Working with your National Office

Your national organization can — and should be — your most valuable partner. The partnership exists on two levels:

Two levels of partnering:

Local Volunteer to National Volunteer: The national board sets programs and policies for the organization. As a local volunteer, you should know the issues, and share ideas and local perspective.

Local Staff to National Staff: The national staff handles the day-to-day operation and can make your chapter administrator's job easier.

 

Here are tips for strengthening that partnership:

Have regular contact with national staff — National staff naturally respond more favorably to groups with whom they have an ongoing relationship.

Form a "staff team" — Forge a partnership between your administrator and national staff to get work done. Local staff can do certain jobs better than national and visa versa. For example, local staff makes networking happen, while national staff can develop the website.

Participate in leadership conferences and functions — Take advantage of every opportunity to gain training and network with other local leaders. This will benefit you, your group and your members.

Treat the national leadership and staff as local members — Add them to mailing lists, invite them to events, ask them to participate in planning and programming, and thank them for being involved. Involved members are committed members.

Coordinate your goal-setting & annual planning with the national group — The power of association is magnified when working on the same issues.