STUDENT ORG LEADER RESOURCE LIBRARY Officer Transition

11 Overview Why? Benefits of an efficient transition How advisors can help organizations What does a successful transition look like Potential hurdles

22 Why should orgs talk about this? When organizations spend too little time transitioning, the new officers are forced to spend too much time acclimating and reinventing the wheel. This results in a continuous cycle of lost momentum. Officer transition is the single most important event in a viable student organization’s year. Want to avoid officers leaving without formally passing along valuable organizational knowledge

33 Benefits to a successful transition Capitalize on the knowledge and experience of outgoing officers Minimize confusion of leadership changeover Provide outgoing officers with closure Formal process for transfer of knowledge Allows for a period of learning/partnership between new officers and old officers – build confidence of new officers Minimize loss of momentum of the organization as a whole Ensure strategic and effective fiscal planning

44 A Successful Transition: Outgoing Officers Outgoing officers should work to:  Coordinate new officer selection  Refer to constitution and bylaws – update new officers with CSE and in all documents/websites  Ensure space is reserved for all annual events  Organize all files, compile resources – create a transition binder  Develop an action plan and timeline for new officer transition  Schedule a transition meeting between outgoing and incoming officers to share information as a group  Allow incoming officers a period of time to shadow outgoing officers  Ensure incoming officers actively participate in registration/budget requests

5 Transition Documents Each officer should have a binder/compilation of information The most effective way is to compile information as things happen rather than all at once at the end Organizational mission and goals Organizational constitution and by-laws Position description  Necessary meetings attended/conducted  Important tasks  Collaborative duties  Financial information Position goals Positional year-end report Organizational calendar Budget information Important contacts/resources Relevant correspondence or notes from past year Unfinished project information Do’s and Don’ts, lessons learned Contact info for outgoing officers Even if your orgs don’t hold elections in the ideal time period, encourage them to at least provide transition documents

6 Transition Meeting A transition meeting can offer formal change, continuity, and growth for the organization while allowing new officers to learn from the outgoing officers. Meeting should be causal and open so that organization can benefit from an honest dialogue of the accomplishments and challenges of the year. Year in Review  Goals  Programs and Activities  Membership  Officers and Org Structure  Org Operations  Advisor Involvement  Public Image Legacy to New Officer Team  Current strengths and weaknesses  Advice to successors  Major challenges and accomplishments Officer Transition (incoming and outgoing officers meeting 1:1)  Review transition binder  Talk about unfinished projects  Mistakes that could have been avoided  Advice for new officer Transition Ceremony  Semi-official passing of the gavel/socializing

77 A Successful Transition: Incoming Officers Incoming officers should:  Be proactive in seeking advice from outgoing officers  Be actively engaged in the transition process  Ask questions  Expect change to be accepted gradually  Be available  Let group members have a say in what happens  Be sure your group has a common purpose  Encourage brainstorming and creativity  Manage conflict, don’t ignore it  Promote group cohesiveness

88 How Can Advisors Help Advise! Facilitate conversations about officer transition Encourage orgs to think about transitioning between December and February Regardless of transition time, communicate the how and why of officer transition Make updates in SOMA! Make sure incoming officers are aware of deadlines (i.e. registration, budget submission) Encourage new officers to take an active role in budget planning

99 How Can Advisors Help Encourage officer shadowing  If transitions take place early in the spring semester, new officers can shadow outgoing officers to gain a better understanding of the role Work with current officers  Provide them with the tools and knowledge to lead a successful officer transition  Help them understand why it’s important Meet with outgoing officers and incoming officers  Recognize the accomplishments of the outgoing officers; offer your support to the incoming officers, get them thinking strategically and planning early

10 Potential Challenges Outgoing officers that don’t want to move on A national organization/advisory board that is too involved in the election process Procrastination Non-responsiveness Waning interest in continuing the group  General disinterest, no students interested in becoming officers, etc.

11 Facilitating Group Conversations Look out for group dynamics Observe student’s formal and informal roles Observe how individuals interact with on another Active Listening Take note when individuals aren’t being heard or are controlling the conversation Encouraging, restating, reflecting, summarizing Provide feedback that has an impact Know when to intervene appropriately Validate and politely redirect/ask for input from others Ask questions that drive a discussion Use ‘we’ questions that generate discussion and commitment to solutions What problems are we trying to solve? Stay on track, but be willing to leave it

12 Constructive Team Behaviors Destructive Team Behaviors Cooperative Clarifying Inspiring Harmonizing Risk-Taking Process checking Dominating Rushing Withdrawing Discounting Digressing Blocking Facilitating Group Conversation

13 Brainstorming Helps a group create several ideas in a short period of time Helps a group expand its thinking creatively to include thinking about all the dimensions of a problem Never criticize ideas Write every idea down somewhere visible (flip chart, white board, projector)  Recorder/facilitator should ask clarifying questions Everyone should agree on the question or issue being brainstormed Do it quickly; 5-15 minutes Adapted from University of Wisconsin Office of Quality Improvement Facilitator Tool Kit

14 Recap: The Ideal Transition Elections Hold between December and March Start the conversation now Transition Transition Binders Officer Shadowing Transition Meeting Challenges Facilitate group conversations on issues related to transition, or group planning for the year ahead