1. Administrative Officers Training

2. District Administrative Officer
Walter Neese, Incoming
By way of introduction, I’m Walter Neese.
I’m stepping on to the district bridge this year as many of you are.
I have been a district officer before, and part of the role is in coordinating and facilitating your jobs, and keeping up communications with National.
So I’m here to help.

3. Who Are You? Name Squadron Position or Interest in this Meeting
How many times you have been Administrative Officer before?
Enough about me. Let’s go around the room and ask everyone to introduce himself or herself.

4. Housekeeping Interactive Session Restrooms Smartphones
Thank you. Welcome all. If you have questions or comments as we go, feel free to chime in. Often the benefit of these sessions is in hearing about others’ successes or struggles.
Restrooms are down the hall to the left. Please disable your mobile phone ringers.

5. Squadrons The backbone of our organization District and National
We’re ALL volunteers
Operations Training
The success of squadrons is pivotal to furthering our mission. Volunteers at the District and National levels are squadron members first.
The Admin Officer’s role is to manage the squadron’s internal activities. As distinct from the Executive Officer who is concerned with the squadron’s outreach to the community and sister organizations.
Just a word here about operations training. Show of hands how many here are aware of provisions for Operations Training in your squadron? If you look on the Leadership Development page on the national website, you will find materials for “OT in 3”, which is a presentation of Operations Training that takes about three hours. Under select “Site Index” from the menu bar at the top. Click on Leadership Development, and look for the Operations Training Seminar in the list to the left.

6. Your Mission Arrange Activities Membership Meetings Newsletters
Boating
Other
Membership Meetings
Organize speakers
Meeting Logistics
Newsletters
Membership
Recruitment
Retention
Recognition
Have fun!
Activities, Newsletters and Membership
Activities includes membership meetings, executive committee meetings, rendezvous, social events. Who can give me an example of non-boating squadron event?
Newsletter – you need an editor and people contributing material. Timeliness is key.
Membership – Bring ‘em in; hold on to ‘em; recognize their achievements. Every membership organization is challenged to keep numbers up.
Attrition, disinterest among next generations, economics
Why should someone want to join the United States Power Squadrons?
It’s about having fun and having your fellow members have fun too.

7. Your mission Get involved Invite others to assist
Leverage technology and media
Seek locations where boaters are
Don’t limit it to boating
Have fun!
Be prominent in your participation; lead by example.
Do the ASK! Many times we get the feeling that others aren’t helping, but those people would say, “you didn’t ask me”.
Standing up in front of a meeting and asking for volunteers for a particular task does not usually work too well. Same for s.
Call prospects directly on the phone or do it in person.
Once you have participants by all means use s to coordinate.
Your squadron members will enjoy locations where boaters are, and it gives your squadron visibility with the boating public.
Non-boating activities: Delhigh does a road rally: “land navigation contest” …

8. Help is available Squadron Members District Administrative Department
District Bridge
District Squadron Development Committee
To get things done in your squadron, involve your fellow members and share the work. The most critical support for your role comes from strong chairs for membership, newsletter and boating activities committees. Even if they are committees of one person, they make up the lion’s share of work you are responsible for. If it’s just you doing it, you must triage and decide what efforts will succeed and bear most fruit.
In the District, we have the following committees and chairs (list inserted as promised at the training).
Under the Admin Officer, Walter Neese:
Auxiliary Advisory Mary Palmer
Boating Activities Ralph Bernarrd
District Meetings & Rendezvous Apryl Bernard
Membership Kenny Perigo
Operations Training Chris Brown
Member Programs (Benefits) Ray Reuter
Navigation Contest John Hall
Under the Assistant to the Admin Officer, Rich Norris:
Photographers Stu Meyers
Squadron Publications Bea Norris
Newsletter Mark 5 Apryl Bernard
Everyone on the district bridge has significant experience in the organization and can point you to the right people or resources.
Squadron Development is active at the national and district levels (It’s under the national admin department, but the district executive department: go figure). It does include support for organizing new squadrons. What is more common now, it seeks to promote positive change in squadrons where things seem really to be falling apart. Sometimes the problems align around personalities, and other times just apathy – not being able to put together a minimal bridge.

9. Don’t let it get this bad

10. Dealing with Conflict
Whatever you do in life, surround yourself with smart people who’ll argue with you –John Wooden
The best way to destroy an enemy is to make him a friend –Abraham Lincoln
Imagination is more important than knowledge –Albert Einstein People don’t notice whether it’s winter or summer when they’re happy – Anton Chekhov
Some conflict can be constructive.
Sometimes it just takes the right attitude to accommodate another viewpoint, and the team is stronger if all the good ideas don’t come from you.
Volunteers are more likely to contribute when they feel included.

11. My mission is like yours
We’re both responsible for meetings and rendezvous
Our succession plans are similar
We can cross promote the events
Leverage District Calendar for your events
Anyone can look at events going on at District 5 squadrons from the home page of the District 5 website, . Click on “Squadron Meetings and Events” on the right hand side.
As a squadron officer you can post your events in this list. You need to sign on as a member so that the site recognizes you as a squadron officer. Then find “Squadron Event Management” on the list to the left and click on it.
The Squadron Event Management page allows you to maintain the list of event locations for your squadron, to add a new event, and if there are events already posted it allows you to make changes to them. The first time you enter an event, you will have to add its location, but if you have a subsequent event at that place, the system will remember it. Each location name has a list of details such as address, phone number and web address (“URL”). So once it’s in there, it saves a lot of time not to have to recreate it every time.
When you click on “Add a New Event”, a new screen allows you to fill in the event name, place, type, date and time for start and end, a brief description of the event and associated documents such as the sign-up, flyer, schedule or what-have-you, which you upload to the site from your computer. Then those sheets are made available to anyone interested when he or she clicks on the event from the public list.
After you have entered events, the Squadron Event Management page shows them in a list in chronological order. You can go back in to an event and make corrections or add a sign-up sheet by selecting it from the list and clicking on “Update”.
Once an event date passes, the entry automatically drops from the maintenance page list and from the list available to the public..
I encourage you to post your squadron events on the district website with all the pertinent information so that members of other squadrons and the boating public can join your events. The more the merrier.

12. What’s in it for us? Sense of Accomplishment New friends Merit Mark
Highly Visible
Skills to move up the bridge

13. Thanks for Joining Us
Don’t forget that this a volunteer organization and to have fun!
Let me know if you have questions.
Best of luck for a wonderful year ahead!