Many new officials leave officiating after the first or second year. Why? While there are a variety of reasons, sometimes it comes down to the fact that officiating isn’t what the individuals expected. Maybe the rules are too difficult, the parents are too harsh or new officials just didn’t feel comfortable turning toward fellow officials when they needed help. Often retention comes down to preparation. If new officials are prepared and have solid resources around them, they just might stay when the going gets tough.
1. Spell out the challenges.
Officiating has a lot of benefits and associations often “shout out” those positives when trying to get new officials to join the ranks. But recruitment needs to lead to retention in order to have enough officials. As a result, leaders should share with new officials the challenges as well before they go out onto the field or court. “Fans can be brutal.” “It’s difficult to keep up with the speed of the game.” “Fellow officials might be tough on you.” “You’re going to make a lot of mistakes.” Those are just some of the truths you should share to prepare newer officials.
2. Challenge them during training.
Whether it’s in the classroom or onfield or oncourt training, don’t make things easy for new officials. By challenging them in the safe confines of your association training sessions, you will be preparing them for harsh game situations.
3. Share educational opportunities.
The more educational opportunities and rules testing you can provide to rookies, the better off they will be. Sometimes it’s best to have classes for new officials in addition to the regular training meetings to allow them to reinforce their personal rules study.
4. Give them comfort in knowing they are not alone.
Share some of the mistakes you made as a rookie with new officials starting out. It can be a comfort to know that even successful officials can have shaky starts.
5. Provide a mentor to turn to during difficult times.
Some groups assign new officials to games with mentor officials. Others match a rookie with a veteran early on during an association meeting. It gives the officials someone to call with questions or allows the veteran a chance to encourage a newcomer. Having a helpful outlet is extremely important for officials.
Loading ...
