| Canadian Progress Club Progression On-line |
November 2002 |
Special Feature |
My "learnings" on chairing an event for the first time are significant and encompass all aspects of leadership. I am definitely not afraid of trying something new but being keen does not necessarily mean everything will fall into place naturally. I found that to be a good leader I needed the support of the club and their confidence that I could do the job. Getting members to agree to the overall objectives of the event, as well as the approach, was also important to me. Being given the opportunity to try new ground, by experienced members especially, is probably the most important confidence builder and critical to the success of the Chair. This is where experienced members can serve as mentors. It boils down to hard work, commitment, leadership, and keeping positive. I also found that putting knowledge into practice is not as easy as one may think. The rigour in creating enthusiasm and a forward thrust which involves the community and the club members, can be fun and exhausting at the same time—as you well know. Hopefully, this article will give food for thought to potential first-time event Chairs, and for members who support the event Chair. In December of last year, I volunteered to Chair our first Christmas fundraiser in support of the Canadian Breast Cancer Foundation, AB/NWT—"The Reindeer Doo". I found that one of the most important aspects of my position (besides coordinating the activities of the various committees) was maintaining an ongoing momentum for committee work, promotion and sales—a challenging position for a first time event Chair who is learning the ropes at the same time. My overall goal being that all the efforts of our members would translate into community awareness about the event and thus sales. Last year Calgary City Centre worked hard to remodel our approach to new membership, charity support, and membership involvement such that each aspect of being part of our club was to resemble closely what was in the hearts and minds of our members. Subsequently, we were challenged at the start of 2002 with proving our commitment to the new approach. In January, we formed the committee for our first Reindeer Doo event and the objective was and still is, to have one major fund-raising event per year whereby every member of our club plays a role in bringing about the success of the event—no matter how small or large their role. The Reindeer Doo committee has a very strong and dynamic group of women who know what they are doing. These women have thrown themselves into the event and have made this event their business in terms of marketing strategy, budgeting, promotion, a sale's plan, a sponsorship plan, and creative event activities and displays. With this in mind, my thoughts throughout the year were centered on identifying how I could add value in my role and be a good leader. The development of leadership skills is challenging and continual. I realize good leadership qualities are not usually innate and that when put in a leadership role I need to change my focus from a "doing role" to that of one who directs, guides, encourages, facilitates, and resolves roadblocks so that the team can be successful. A leader needs to instill confidence and stay on track. In order to become a good leader I find that it is beneficial to have a good role model, someone who has demonstrated effective leadership qualities and hence has received the respect of others. There are many questions that enter one's mind as you go through the process of organizing an event and these are important to address as soon as possible. If I had prepared a list of questions prior to assuming the role and worked through some of the solutions with my committee members, this would have given the team a good solid start. However, in my typical fashion I found it easy to just "jump in"—guess that's my nature. Albeit, I thought at the time that I had planned well for the event, in hindsight I needed to plan some areas more thoroughly. During my reflections, on the past year, I made a list of questions that I suggest would be beneficial for the Chair to address—the earlier the better. Although, I can say that I did address each question in one way or another, I realize now that some questions have much more impact as you go through the plan than I expected. The following have been some of the most significant questions for me, this past year.
If you are organizing a "first time" event (as is our Reindeer Doo event) there are additional things to consider. It is important to ensure that all members agree with the event plan, most especially if it is different from what has been done in the past. A new event may entail changes that include a very new concept, a different committee structure from previous events, a new target market, a new focus and approach to selling, a requirement for all members to participate, a different communication plan for club members, a different plan for obtaining sponsors, a requirement for additional skill development of members—basically a different way of doing things. Each of these must be a worked out carefully so all members agree because ongoing support is crucial to the event's success. At the same time it is important that the club members trust the decisions made by each committee. When embarking on a similar role in the future, I would: find a good mentor to help guide me, prepare an exhaustive list of all questions that may arise, resolve each and every question in detail with input from mentor(s) and club members, create an event plan based on these questions and solutions, make changes to the plan as required but review questions that may arise and need to be resolved as a result of the changes (again using a proactive approach), and finally, not be afraid to trust in my approach—mistakes make you more confident and give you the opportunity to reflect and grow. In conclusion, my "learnings" do not imply that I have implemented all my findings or that I have had success with everything that I have tried, but I do believe that awareness is the best place to start. Being an effective leader does not necessarily mean being liked. It means being respected and I have gained a new found respect for those who can lead successfully and who can create willingness for others to follow. I strongly believe that the most important thing to remember is that our club members volunteer because they want to contribute to important causes and are willing to share their experience. As a first time Chair, I would say that there is nothing like learning by experience and learning from others with experience (after all the committee members make it all happen).
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