Question: How do you know if your chapter program is truly healthy? And how do you diagnose areas in which your chapter network needs repair? Ok, that’s two questions, but the dilemma still stands. If you can’t visually identify what’s working and what’s not working in your program, you can’t take appropriate action as needed.
Think of it this way … A car’s dashboard displays key information about its performance, helping the driver know when to take action and what that action should look like. In other words, the dashboard is how your car communicates with you about its performance while alerting you when something goes wrong.
Similarly, a Chapter Dashboard Indicator provides a visual snapshot of a chapter’s health, highlighting both strengths and potential issues. A well-designed dashboard (we can help with that!) helps you quickly spot areas that need improvement or deserve recognition, allowing you to dive deeper into causes, fix problems, and repeat successes. How do we do this? By paying attention to key factors (see below) where we can assess performance, monitor them regularly, and act promptly when warnings are indicated.
What are the Chapter Dashboard Indicators? Here are four areas we’ve identified as make-or-break elements for chapters. Chapters that score high in these areas are healthy, successful and growing.
- Leadership, i.e., a vibrant leadership cohort with a clearly defined and operational succession plan.
- Operational Infrastructure, i.e., an effective system that manages risk and supports leadership decision-making.
- Member Engagement, i.e., a highly engaged member base.
- Member Services, i.e., a menu of programs and services that meet the needs of the members.
Learn more about creating a chapter dashboard here.
p.s. And be sure to join us online October 23, 2024, for a live discussion with two associations that are using dashboards to track their chapter programs’ successes and challenges. Register here.
*Here are some more resources for you to check out …
- Read Bright Lights, Vibrant Components (from 2017 but still relevant!)
- Read 2022 Chapter Performance & Benchmarking Report (includes link to download the full report!)
- Download a sample of a chapter performance dashboard.
Questions? Email me!