1. Vision 2021 – Looking Forward

2. Charity Application for SIGBI Ltd submitted
Gift Aid may be reclaimable on Membership Fees in the UK
Skills-based Board for SIGBI by end 2021
General Meeting in Bournemouth 2019
Strategic Planning integral to the success of the Charity
The Charity Application has been submitted and we are waiting to hear if SIGBI has been successful. We have listened to charity and finance experts to ensure that the application stands a good chance of success. Charitable status will enable us to claim Gift Aid on Membership Fees in the UK, and submit grant applications for project funding.
All these changes need us to think how we will best make a success of a charity and a trading company. Therefore the time is right to look to introduce a skills based management board and committees by 2021.
The work on this will begin now with a full review of Federation role specifications; to look at how a Board for SIGBI Ltd the Charity should look, and to begin research on how best to select those Board members. We need skilled members to join the Board of Trustees. We actively want to get the best women for the jobs not necessarily those who are simply time served.
Recommendations on SIGBI trustees will be presented to the FMB in October 2018 in Liverpool prior to Conference.
Committees will play a vital role in the future of our organization; even more so than now. Once again we need to recruit the best women to these committees. Federation Consultative Councillors will be eligible to serve on these committees as well as members who hold no current office at Federation level. The place on each committee will be dependent upon the skills and knowledge required for that particular committee.
For all posts interviews will be held, followed by election. However the method of election for posts is still up for discussion.
In January 2019 final structures will be presented to the FMB and from here resolutions will be written for the General Meeting in Bournemouth 2019.
The following year will finalise the recruitment process. From after Conference in October 2020 the new recruitment process will open with the first new shaped Board and committees introduced at the Conference in 2021.
We will obviously be in touch with everyone throughout this process-producing FAQs and answers and holding meetings.
This of course runs alongside the continuation of the fantastic programme work which you all do, and our work to continue to grow our membership and look at ways of diversifying our income streams.

3. Trading Arm SIGBI Trading Limited set up
Director Posts have been advertised
Trading to commence 1 April 2018
Create a Commercial Plan for sustainability
We have established the Trading Company with interim Directors until the 1st April 2018.
The Trading Company will consist of 5 Directors including the SIGBI Director of Finance and President plus three independent skills based directors
We now want to recruit permanent Directors to the Board of the Trading Company – check that advert that has been issued if you are interested in being a Director of the Trading Company.
The idea around the Commercial Plan is to create a sustainable future for our organisation. This is in the very early stages of development and once again we are looking for interested Soroptimists to join us.

4. Membership/Organisational Development
Rate of Membership Loss slowed in 2017
87 Associates – almost all renewed for 2nd year
Two School Clubs have chartered – Soroptimist News article February 2018 rolling it out to all Clubs
A Working Party is researching Campus Clubs
Facebook Campaigns
Partnership with Ravensbourne College
The figures submitted to SI as at 30 June 2017 showed a loss of 2.8% of Members, compared with 3.5% in 2016 and 6.4% in We are hopeful that this trend will soon reach 0% loss and turn into a net gain of Members.
Associate Membership has remained steady in the high 80s. We accept that Associates can transfer from Clubs (some of which have closed) and transfer back to other Clubs when they have decided which Club they want to join. This is a good way of keeping Members that otherwise may have to leave and then may not re-join another Club once they have spent some time without being a Member.
We are delighted that two School Clubs have been chartered in SI North West England and Isle of Man. The sponsoring Clubs, SI Preston and SI The Fylde, are very involved with these Schools and are nurturing them. We have developed a pack for School Clubs consisting of an Agreement which they sign, a School Club Certificate and a Member of a School Club Certificate. They also get 25 gold Dynamic S badges free of charge and can purchase more if they require. We are now launching this to other Clubs via an article in the February 2018 Soroptimist News and look forward to seeing how this progresses. School Children will benefit from the Club by giving them a lifelong interest in helping others, and also being able to demonstrate to Universities and Employers the extra-curricular activities they have been involved in. Hopefully, these Clubs will produce Members of the future.
No Campus Clubs have as yet been established, but a Guide has been produced for Clubs to use and a Working party is looking to launch a pilot in the coming months.
Facebook Campaigns have been piloted in 2017 and generated a number of leads. We are reviewing the way leads that come to SIGBI HQ are being managed, and several changes to the database have been commissioned to help us to do this. More information will be disseminated to Clubs in 2018.
A project with Ravensbourne College at Greenwich was carried out in 2017 about the recruitment of young women into the organisation. Their findings which form part of the work plans for Organisational Development and Membership are to look at a mentoring programme for young women. The students at Ravensbourne are to carry out another project on retention of members in Clubs.

5. Growing our Brand Use of the SIGBI booklet 21 Top Tip Videos
Champions trained to carry on the work in Regions/NAs
Patrons
404 members attended the first round of workshop sessions. The feedback overall has been positive and Clubs are recruiting and retaining members.
The new SIGBI booklet about out Programme Action work is one initiative to widen our appeal. We are also looking at a new style Annual Report which will also be more of a publicity tool.
The videos will shortly be released onto our YouTube channel for dissemination across the Clubs outside the UK and they will also be available for all Clubs to use.
It is vital that the work on growing our membership is not allowed to fade away. To that end we are looking at a workshop prior to the Conference in Liverpool for Regional/National Association/Club Membership Officers to continue the work.
We also need to look at how our Regional/National Association meetings are organised. It is time we looked at single page development plans for this important part of our organisation.
Patronage is something which has loomed large in the SIGBI inbox of late. It is in the Strategic Plan but we have to ensure we get the offer correct.

6. Programme Action Zones for AACM countries set up and working well
Stronger relationship with UKPAC
Looking forward to another Federation Project in 2019?
Extension of advocacy into European centres
Updating the SIGBI PFR database; clear links to SDGs
Future of Programme Action when a Charity
The role of the Assistant Programme Directors
Zones in overseas countries have now been set up, with each assigned to an APD. Communication is successful with these Clusters.
UKPAC – New Terms of Reference agreed for UKPAC and closer working with Programme Director & Assistant Programme Directors
Consultation is out at the moment about having another Federation Project to follow on from Meru.
Should we be looking at advocacy work in Geneva, Vienna, Rome or Paris? Commission on the Status of Women in New York is expensive. Is it value for money? These are questions which we need to answer. Are our limited resources better spent lobbying in more local centres? Also the Commonwealth Heads of Government Meeting (CHOGM) will take place in Should we be lobbying there?
PFR database needs to link into the SDGs
More focussed project work when we are a charity
We have a gap at the moment with the APDs and so the conversation should start about the role and responsibilities of the APDs.

7. Call to Action All Regions/NAs/Networks to form a new Club in 2018
All Clubs to hold an event for Membership Month
Membership Figures 2018 to report 0% loss
If every Region/NA/Network looked at forming a new Club in 2018, there would potentially be 25 new Clubs created. By sharing the tasks like this, it means less work for each Region/NA/Network but can have amazing results in terms of SIGBI Membership. If each Club had the minimum number of 12 founder Members, this would be 300 new Members (consider the net loss of 212 Members in 2017).
Existing Clubs should embrace Membership Month 2018 and hold a recruitment event in or close to May This raises the profile of Soroptimist International and many Clubs reported new Members as a result in 2017.
We need to redress the decline in Membership, and all work towards 0% loss in If all Clubs do this in their own Club, then there is more chance of this happening overall. Obviously, if your Club can increase its Membership then so much the better.

8. Members’ Involvement
Welcome new Members and show them the fun side of Soroptimism
Challenge bad behaviour
Shout about the wonderful work Soroptimists do at every opportunity!
Be willing to take on a Leadership role in your Club, Region, Country, NA, Network and at Federation level to help shape the future direction of our Organisation
Value each other
Embrace Programme Action – do projects that directly Educate, Empower and Enable women and girls, and get new Members involved in your projects straight away.
Do not tolerate bad behaviour by other Members. Create a Club that you are proud of and to which you want to bring potential new Members.
Whenever you get an opportunity, tell people about the work that you personally are doing as a Soroptimist. Emphasize the fun that you have as well as improving the lives of women and girls.
When requests are sent out for applications to Officer Posts at any level of the Organisation, do consider them. You may already have experience of chairing meetings, organising events or bookkeeping, so share your skills to the benefit of the Organisation.

9. Liverpool Federation Conference