Community/Sm
all Chapter Best
Practices
Why Suddenly a Subject
of Interest?

More chapters who were corporate chapters
have become community chapters because
of changes in contractors, changes in top
management

Small businesses need to be as
knowledgeable as the “big guys” they may
be competing with

The federal government is looking to small
businesses to provide services and materials
Comparisons between Small
and Community Chapters

Community






Generally not
sponsored by a
business
Smaller
membership
Membership is
made up of
many businesses
Meet at public
locations
Usually meet
during the
evenings
Usually purchase
web site

Small





May be
sponsored by a
business
Smaller
membeship
May be a city
government or
small business
May meet
during business
hrs
Web site may
be sponsored
by business
Pros and Cons of Small/ Community vs
Corporate Chapters

Pros
 Not tied to
business – can
gather members
from anywhere
 Can meet
anywhere – such
as restaurants
 True networking
 Don’t have to do
everything –
focus on one or
two things you do
well or want to
do well

Cons
 No corporate
sponsorship to help
with funding
 No senior
management to
count on
 No set place to
meet and store
materials
 No set field of
members
 Can’t take dues
from paychecks
 Fewer members to
hold offices and
chairs
What is Your Goal?

Training for your members

Providing training for others

Community service

Speech Contest

Large membership to do many things
How Do You Decide What
to Do With So Few People?

You may want to combine officers and chairs

Secretary/Treasurer

VP/Membership Chair

Community Service

Chair/Publicity

Use National to provide training through live online

Sell business membership to allow for less expensive
training materials for their business

Meet with other Associations – Project Management,
Administrative Professionals, Professional Engineering
Groups
How can NMA Help?

On-Line Training

LDCs and National Conferences

Staff, National Officers, and National Directors

Councils – way to participate in more

Breaktime

Foundations of Management

Building Virtual Teams
What One Chapter Did

Bring in a facilitator

List three things that every member wants from the
chapter

Multi-vote to trim down to no more than 6 items

Every member gets 1 vote for the item that means
the most to them

Take the top 2-3 items and have someone volunteer
to lead a team in discussion about one of the topics
– do this for each of the 2-3 items chosen

List what the target audience is, what the
benefits would be to them, what chapter
resources will be required, what the benefits are
to the chapter
What One Chapter Did

Present the results and decide how to move forward
– accept the items, change the items, delete the
items

Form teams and go forward with the focus of the
chapter

If membership grows, meet again to choose focus
areas or take some of the other items from the larger
lists

Think of this as a 2-year strategic plan – take time to
do it right, plan to spend some money, don’t give
up!
Any Ideas to Share?