Association Leadership - September/October 2008 - (Page 45)

About Cliques Jan Friese Executive Director Texas Counseling Association Case Study Personal relationships are the critical link in dynamic volunteer teams. Initially, the dynamic energy created by cliques that often result from those relationships serves the organization well, but in the long run can cause greater harm than good. Balancing the beneﬁts gained from cliques with the need to create leadership opportunities for enthusiastic but unknown new members can be a huge challenge. Sooner or later, the “legacy leaders” who comprise those cliques retire, move on or just burn out. In the mean time, those enthusiastic new volunteers have gone on to organizations that embraced them. The organization that was served so well and so long by its “legacy leaders” is left in the lurch. The ﬁrst step to breaking up cliques is getting clique members to recognize that without opportunities for new leaders to serve, any leadership development program is meaningless. Admitting that you might have to step down for someone else to step up is difﬁcult, but not impossible. Strategic planning provides an excellent opportunity to face this challenge. In our organization, we used the SPOT (Strengths, Problems, Opportunities, Threats) analysis. With the help of a facilitator, our leadership began to recognize that while their experience strengthens the organization their resistance to integrating new members threatens its longevity. Assigned seating that separated clique members was a huge help. Setting committee term limits in our governance documents has been very effective. Committee chairs serve for a maximum of two years as chair and on the committee for three years. During the third year, the former committee chair stays on the committee to mentor the new committee chair. Once the three-year term is completed, the former committee chair is recognized with a Distinguished Service Award and a new cycle begins. Inviting legacy leaders to mentor new members has also been effective. Through a mentor-matching program, our long-term leaders are asked to work individually with our emerging leaders to help engage them in leadership roles. This provides an opportunity to recognize the experience of those who have provided many years of service and creates an environment in which new volunteers are embraced. ◆ September/October 2008 | Association LEADERSHIP 45

Table of Contents Feed for the Digital Edition of Association Leadership - September/October 2008

Association Leadership - September/October 2008 Contents President’s Column Homepage 60-Second Solutions An Interview with TSAE’s New Chairperson TSAE’s Newest Board Members Vetting Volunteers Orientation of Volunteer Leaders Get on Board – Qualification Considerations Questions to Ask Before Saying Yes Liability Insurance for Volunteer Leaders Committee Planning TSAE’s Annual Golf Outing Congratulations to Our New CAEs Perspectives Association Case Study New Members Community Spotlight San Antonio Beaumont Index to Advertisers Advertiser.com The Lighter Side of Associations

Association Leadership - September/October 2008

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