It’s that time of the year again. Pools are open, kids are out of school, and tourists are out in full force. Summer has arrived. For many, the summer is a slow time; a chance to relax and perhaps enjoy a family vacation. If this is the case for you and your organization, you should definitely take advantage of the free time and focus on conducting a summer audit. Some of you may be thinking that there’s no such thing as free time in the association and chamber world, and while that’s a valid point, it’s important to remember to slow down every once in a while.
Below are some groups who should be considered during the audit who you can touch base with to ensure that you are on the right track.
Your Team. How often do we get sucked into the routine of powering through our daily check lists that we fail to check-in with our team? Managers should meet with their team members on a regular basis to ensure that everyone is on the same page and that morale is high. In addition to your regularly scheduled meetings, you can create a more relaxed setting by scheduling an off-site lunch, happy hour, or group activity.
Outside Stakeholders. This group encompasses your members, volunteers, board members, etc. While it’s key to collect feedback immediately following an event, it’s just as important to check-in with your outside stakeholders other times throughout the year. Are you fulfilling your members’ needs to the best of your ability? Are you offering enough valuable opportunities to engage your volunteers? You won’t know the answers to these questions unless you ask.
Yourself. Perhaps the most important of the three is yourself. Have you considered your yearly goals since your last performance review? Are you aware of all the organization and industry resources available to you? Too often we are worried about pleasing others that we fail to take care of ourselves.
These are just some quick examples for you to think about. What are some other areas or groups that you think should be included in an audit?