Changing The Way Kiwanis Grows

by

Greg Holland, Chair - Membership Growth

2005 - 2006

Membership growth is the key to keeping Kiwanis prosperous in the future.  Like most service groups, Kiwanis membership has been in decline for the last 10+ years.  If we are to continue to provide the valuable service in our communities that we currently enjoy we need to reverse this declining trend.  On average, Kiwanis loses 18% of our membership each year, and the current recruitment methods are not keeping pace with the decline.

Kiwanis International (KI) has recognized that what we did 10 - 20 years ago is not good enough for our changing world and has made a commitment to change the fundamentals of how Kiwanis operates and grows. Governor Elect Steve Emhoff has appointed 8 people to a District Growth Team, to assist clubs in their rebuilding and growth efforts.  The team recently attended a conference sponsored by KI, where they outlined their new approach to membership growth.  It is so simple that it will work.  Imagine a small club membership increasing by 5 - 10 per year or larger clubs by 25 per year.  It will happen.

In the past, Kiwanis has relied upon individual members to recruit new members, which requires each and every one of us to go find an individual who we think would make a good Kiwanian.  Unfortunately not all of us feel comfortable approaching someone about membership and the failing of the system is that recruitment is left up to 5 or 10 % of our membership.  We all know someone who would be an asset to our club but if we do not feel comfortable approaching them it will not happen.

The responsibility of the District Growth Team is to assist clubs in the district with recruitment efforts.  Together with the Lt. Governor, Division Growth Teams will be assembled - people who feel comfortable with recruitment.  These Division Growth Teams, in conjunction with the clubs, will organize and carry out recruitment drives. 

Instead of relying on each member to recruit, we will now be doing the recruitment as a team, with individuals who enjoy recruiting.  The club member, who is not comfortable with approaching a potential Kiwanian, will now be encouraged to add that name to a club list and leave the recruitment to a combination of club and division recruiters. We lose many potential Kiwanians each year because they were never asked.

New club building and membership retention are the other aspects of helping Kiwanis grow and these are issues that will continue to be promoted and developed.  Reorganizing our recruitment process is the first step to positive growth.

At the spring conferences and Lt. Governor training we will be providing more details of the program and implementing the formation of the division growth teams.  Once these division teams are in place, they can start working with the clubs. As a team, we can rebuild Kiwanis to the membership numbers we have seen in the past.