Click Newsletter Category

By Tim Sloan People come and go. In the association business you’re happy when they come but not always so happy when they go. Sometimes they retire or move away, but there are other times when they communicate their departure by not sending back their membership fees or showing up as an empty seat. In those cases, as unpleasant as it might be, it behooves you as a leader and a builder to reach out to the departed and find out what happened: Is it something you’ve done? Is itRead More

Associations are only as strong as the membership, yet many associations struggle to build their membership. Is increasing membership a major initiative for your association? Here are three plans to try: Advertising. Do a better job in advertising your association to non-members by being more visible at major local tournament and registration events. You could place large banners near the officials’ area at local tournaments. Also, have extra members available to provide anyone interested with information about the benefits of the association. Membership Packet. Provide every existing and new memberRead More

Something rather basic following the formation of an officials association is the adoption of a set of bylaws to govern the association. The following is a list of frequently asked questions to answer your bylaw basics: What are bylaws? Bylaws are rules adopted by an association to manage its affairs and regulate the internal practices and procedures of the association. Bylaws serve to define the relations, rights and duties among members and define the powers, duties and limitations of directors and officers. With a workable set of bylaws, setting outRead More

By Doug Day Companies the world over have realized the value of public relations campaigns to help the public see them in a better light — a truer light. Officials associations can do the same to help people understand officials and the rules a little better. It could lead to some improvement in sportsmanship in the stands and, better yet, it will likely attract a few people to join our ranks. Public relations research has shown that when people feel you are dedicated and committed, they are likely to believeRead More

Many officials suffer from midseason burnout. Midseason burnout is that feeling when you don’t want to work another game or listen to another coach or spectator, and you begin to wonder how you are going to make it through the rest of the season. You can help your membership avoid and ward off midseason burnout by being supportive and giving a venue for venting frustrations. Step 1 — Cover it. Often the best way to relief stress is to talk about it. Try dedicating an entire association meeting to handlingRead More

Officials associations should have some idea of how they will handle media inquiries. Here are questions to answer when setting up a plan. The complexity of your plan will depend on several factors, including whether or not you actually employ or assign officials. Before you start, make sure you talk to any other stakeholders, such as your state association or the leagues that use your services. Association determination points: Who is in charge of media relations? Who can answer media inquiries? Who approves news releases issued by your organization? HowRead More

Many officials associations have a group of evaluators tasked with helping the officials improve. The evaluators are trained to watch the game, the participation of the officiating team, the behavior of the players and coaches and provide constructive feedback to the officials on how they might better handle situations and events. Forms are often utilized by the evaluator to help identify the typical things that officials need to address. Those typical items include: appearance, fitness, mechanics, player management and knowledge of the rules. Being an effective evaluator is a difficultRead More

By Tim Sloan Face it. The day will come when it’s time for you to stand aside and pass the torch of leading your association to a successor. When that happens, you want to be certain that the person carries it nobly instead of dropping it or perhaps setting you on fire with it. For a smooth transition, the ideal person will be someone the membership believes will carry on the good things you’ve started. They might even have some constructive changes in mind for things that caused you problems.Read More

The key to successful association training sessions is not found solely in the excellent content, attention-grabbing multimedia tools or the number of members who show up. A big part of effectively teaching your trainees comes in your delivery. It won’t matter if you’re the best rules person in the room or if you’ve got the skills to work state every year. If you can’t deliver the education clearly and with some enthusiasm, your audience will fall asleep. Step 1 — Practice pronouncing difficult words — especially people’s names. To helpRead More

Leadership takes effort. If you want to grow as a leader, follow these five tips. Don’t expect people to follow you only because your title says they should. To enjoy real authority, you have to earn the trust and respect of your group’s membership. To do so, be honest, share information openly and be as quick to deliver the good news as you are the bad. Be willing to admit when you’re wrong and never break a promise. Keep constant two-way feedback going between yourself and the membership. Without it,Read More