Making Clubs Work

A practical guide to creating successful clubs, societies and other membership organisations

Brad Parkes

• Publisher: SRA Books
• Year: 2014
• eBook ISBN: 9781909116306
• Topic: Business
• Subtopic: Nonprofit Organizations & Charities
• Index: Business

As anyone knows who has tried to organise any sort of group, from a book club to the National Trust, from a scout troop to a business networking group, it is an enterprise fraught with challenges – acquiring members, involving members, retaining members, keeping the organisation focused, functioning and vibrant – none of this is easy. Brad Parkes has been involved with membership organisations at the highest levels for a number of years, and has developed a number of tried and tested strategies and approaches which, when applied, will help any membership organisation to flourish. A skilled and much sought-after speaker, Brad presents his ideas in a lively and attractive way, using a threefold approach – through the story of a young man, Billy, just starting out on his career, his boss and mentor Alex, and a cafe called Archie's; through case studies and real-life examples; and, finally, through suggestions, hints and tips to apply in order to a membership organisation successfully. It is Brad's great belief that membership organisations play an incalculably valuable role in providing individuals with a sense of belonging, a place and a purpose, and that, in today's increasingly fragmented society, it is crucial that membership organisations of all sorts and sizes survive and thrive.

Chapter One Hidden Gems and Unlocked Doors

Billy started at the smell of not-quite burning but soon-to-be cinders toast. His mind had definitely been elsewhere. Lunging for the cooker, he whipped the toast out from under the grill and set it on a plate. Grabbing his coffee, he sat down at the table and tried to focus on simply eating his breakfast without starting a house fire. It was the morning of his very first appraisal.

He’d been working for BCH for just over a year now and he was excited and nervous in just about equal parts. Alex, his manager, was a great guy and Billy had already learned a lot from him. He really hoped he’d pleased Alex with the way he’d been working, but he knew he still had a long way to go. Strangely enough, he found himself really looking forward to the appraisal – it would be good to know how he was doing and what he could do better. More than anything, though, he was looking forward to spending the day with Alex – he just knew and understood so much, and Billy loved spending time with him.

Billy had first met Alex when the older man had done some part-time teaching at the college from which Billy graduated. Over his breakfast, Billy’s mind wandered to the day he sat in a workshop conducted by Alex, remembering how he thought to himself, ‘One day I’m going to work with him.’

Billy had been brought up in a family-run hotel in a seaside resort. The business had given him a fantastic foundation to working with teams and the public, as he had shared his house every week of the summer season with a new bunch of friends. He had learned from an early age that he had as big a part to play in the success of the business as anyone else in the team. His father would impress on him the importance of making friends and of making sure that those other kids had a great holiday: ‘If the kids have a great holiday, they will be happy. Happy kids mean happy mums and dads. Happy mums and dads mean repeat business and recommendations.’

Billy had moved away from the seaside to the big city at the end of his schooling in order to go to college. He’d spent three years studying, had graduated and had then joined BCH at the beginning of the previous summer on their graduate scheme. Billy felt at ease at BCH – being part of a family-run business literally felt like a home from home to him.

Okay, it wasn’t a hotel, but, Billy mused, the two businesses had a surprising amount in common. BCH was a family-run retail and manufacturing business. They designed, built and fitted kitchens and bathrooms and had been doing so for three generations, having gained a reputation for service and reliability together with consistently fair pricing and high-quality workmanship. The company had expanded over the years, growing from three small, local showrooms to now operating out of 100 showrooms across the country, together with a large manufacturing plant, warehouse and distribution under the ‘group’ umbrella. They had even recently acquired sites that extracted and supplied all the raw materials they used.

*****

Alex, Billy’s manager, had been with the firm about 15 years. Like Billy, he’d joined BCH on their graduate scheme and he’d stayed with the company ever since. He thought it likely that he’d stay with the company until he retired. Not through a lack of ambition, and certainly not because they paid exceptionally well, but more because, now that he had joined the board, he clearly saw just how well the company’s values and his were aligned.

During his years at BCH, Alex had discovered he was a great salesman – not because he bullied prospects or had a ‘system’ for ‘closing the sale’, but simply because he really enjoyed discovering the customer’s vision and understanding what the finished job would be like for them. He always put the customer’s needs ahead of his own, and supplied what was right for them and not what was right for him or the business. Other graduates had come and gone over the years, most making a name for themselves with increased one-off sales, but Alex had outperformed them all with repeat business and the trust of his clients. If he’d wanted, he could have had the shortest buying cycle of all sales team members.

Alex had been the fastest graduate to be promoted to manager and had been given the responsibility to train up all new graduates joining the organisation. The company recognised that Alex was skilled at guiding new recruits through their early months, demonstrating to them how to uphold the company’s values and how to engage with the business while putting the customer at the centre of all that they do. Despite these added responsibilities, Alex maintained a regular sales role and the responsibility for overseeing 12 units in a region – the largest region in the group. Alex instilled in all the unit employees under his guidance a happy, friendly demeanour and, as a result, they consistently outperformed other stores and regions.

Whereas other managers held on to their knowledge or contained individuals’ potential in fear that they might threaten them in their role, Alex identified that if he encouraged progression and continued to support and develop his team, they would all grow, all get better and all achieve more. As subordinates grew into their next job, they did not depose Alex, but they allowed him to grow and develop into his next job too. Alex also held the best staff retention figures in the whole of the business.

Alex made a commitment to all his graduate trainees to share all his knowledge and expertise with them so that they too might use that knowledge to be the best leaders they could be. He shared his unique proven steps to success with them all, and encouraged them to put this shared knowledge and learning into practice so that they could be the best they could be. He knew that his reputation was reflected in what they did, not in what he did alone.

*****

Billy was sitting at his breakfast table, considering what the day ahead and his appraisal held in store for him. He felt he had worked hard during the year. He had achieved some great results and he had always wanted to do his best for himself and for Alex.

In his mind, Billy was taken back to the moment when he realised that all the students on his course were applying for their first jobs. Billy had already secured his. He still had his father’s words ringing in his ears. The words hadn’t meant that much at the time but now, in hindsight, looking back on what the future had bestowed on him since then, they brought a smile to his face.

Sometimes, Billy realised later, we don’t appreciate the full significance or meaning of messages we are given at the time. The key to unlocking our potential is to understand this and to remain open to all the advice we receive, remembering the messages so that when the time is right we can act upon them. In his own mind, Billy referred to these messages as ‘hidden gems’.

Billy’s father had been a heavy smoker – an addiction that would eventually take his life. When Billy was little, they would all travel as a family to the city to shop, especially at Christmas time. Billy would stick with his dad, and would often accompany his father outside shops as he smoked a cigarette while his mother would be inside shopping.

One day, a particularly busy Christmas shopping day, Billy recalled the shops having been full of people. There had been a sense of hustle and bustle on the streets, the smell of roasting chestnuts, pine and Christmas had filled the air. There had been a real buzz with busy people chatting and wishing each other season’s greetings. Shops and streets had been festooned with trees, lights, decorations and artificial snow. The atmosphere had been electric. Billy had loved it.

He and his dad had been standing outside one particular large department store, one they often stood outside. The main entrance was made up of 12 doors.

‘See that, son,’ his dad had said to Billy. ‘See how the majority of people fight to get through the open door while others make a quicker entry by pushing on the closed door.’

Billy had watched for a moment to observe exactly what his father had pointed out. Some of the doors had been open, held open by customers passing through them, holding them for the people following behind, each person holding the door for a few seconds only and the door being almost suspended in a permanent open position as if broken or held on a latch.

There were other doors that had been closed. They had been unlocked, but they had remained closed. Billy had watched as one member of the public approached and chose to push on one of the unlocked closed doors. As they had passed through it, a line of people had followed them and the door had remained open. The flow of people through one of the other doors had slowed until eventually the door had closed and remained so for quite some time.

Billy had decided to test the theory. He had deliberately gone over to open a closed door to observe how people would change direction, almost falling over themselves, to gain access through the newly-opened door. He had then moved to another door that had been closed and opened that one instead. This test had amused Billy during quite a number of ‘cigarette breaks’ over the years.

Billy had also remembered his father’s words when he had begun applying for work. He realised that the jobs advertised on notice boards and in magazines were the jobs everyone else was applying for. The open door factor was in operation again. Therefore, Billy had taken it upon himself to research a list of companies he’d like to work for that were not advertising jobs. He had prioritised them and then written to them enquiring if they had considered taking on a newly-qualified graduate. He had reasoned that it was better to be one of a handful of candidates applying for the jobs not being advertised rather than one in a hundred applying for the jobs that were.

Top of Billy’s list had been Alex’s company, but the list had had about 15 other names on it. Billy had been invited to eight interviews from those letters; the other seven companies had all sent nice letters declining the application. Of the eight interviews, Billy had secured five job offers.

The day Billy had received the letter from BCH offering him employment with them under Alex’s leadership was a day Billy would always remember. The offer had not been the best financially, it was not the closest to home and it was neither the latest nor the most modern of places to work, but the decision had been easy. He had accepted BCH’s offer and had written letters to the other four organisations explaining his reasons for declining – he had been conscious that he might need to contact them again one day.

Billy was to uncover many more hidden gems before his time with BCH was over.

*****

The appraisal went well. Alex had a great way about him, being able to make feedback constructive rather than negative, and praise good work in a sincere manner that left Billy feeling motivated, inspired and with his self-esteem stronger than previously.

During the appraisal, Alex highlighted Billy’s strengths and weaknesses and, between them, they began to formulate a personal development plan.

‘So, what’s your dream then, Billy?’ asked Alex.

‘I want to be a great leader like you!’ Billy exclaimed, then blushed as he caught himself embarrassingly idolising his boss.

‘That’s good,’ responded Alex, with a warm generous smile on his face that melted Billy’s embarrassment. ‘And when you are a great leader, Billy, who or what do you want to be leading?’

‘I want to be a manager, or even have my own firm one day.’

‘That’s a great vision, Billy. You know, I reckon one day you will.’

They set out a programme that would teach Billy everything he would need to know to become a great leader. Whether it was the leader of a shop, a team or a business, Alex knew he would impart everything Billy would need.

Alex had devised a fabulous programme and had taken a number of his graduates through the process over the years. Alex had enlisted the help of colleagues and acquaintances whom he had met through a club who would each teach Billy what he needed to know. Alex would introduce Billy to them all in time. Alex had identified that what his club had learned about recruiting and retaining members would reveal the skills and principles that would help any willing graduate become an outstanding leader. Alex did not share the details of the programme with Billy. He had learned it was best to reveal the stages one at a time, when his junior was ready.

Alex was always amazed how much the skills people learned from being a member of a club, society or organisation could benefit the workplace, and vice versa. If more people realised this, then maybe more would get more involved. Alex’s wish was that one day many more people would get involved in their community, be it at work or during their leisure time, contribute to their environment and, in doing so, make the world a better place for everyone. He had learned over the years that the principles he would share with Billy would be as useful and relevant to football, golf, squash, rugby or any other sports clubs as they would be to any service club, church congregation, as well as any workplace. The leadership skills apply to all leaders, whether they are a club chair, captain of a team, team leader in the workplace or elder in a church. The list and application is endless. Alex hoped one day, through many of his students, to impact the wider communities.

‘And to help you get there you need to understand the principles of “backward planning”…,’ Alex continued.

Alex w...

Table of contents

• Copyright information
• Dedication
• Testimonials
• Acknowledgements
• Contents
• Foreword by Leon Taylor
• Introduction
• How this book can work for you
• Chapter One Hidden Gems and Unlocked Doors
• Chapter Two Crossing Streams and Backward Planning
• Chapter Three Two Ears and Four Stones
• Chapter Four Goldilocks and the Two Pubs
• Chapter Five The Seven Mistakes
• Chapter Six Doing Sums and Building Jigsaws
• Chapter Seven Archie’s Story
• Chapter Eight Rubber Rings and Scales
• Chapter Nine Flying and Playing Rugby
• Chapter Ten The Elephant Story
• Chapter Eleven Horns and Haloes
• Chapter Twelve Black Ties and Bungee Jumps
• Chapter Thirteen Seeds and Diamonds
• About the Author