Rotary and Strategic Plans - Part IV of IV Parts
The image (reputation) of Rotary
International (RI) is a fundamental instrument in influencing how Rotarians and
non-Rotarians view Rotary.
RI's image is a valuable component of its differentiating identity. The image cannot be blurry because it is defined by those who view Rotary from outside of the association. Rotary's image:
· attracts groups of people who may be interested
in becoming association members,
· stimulates the attention of people who may
become members of local clubs,
·
influences RI's image in competitive markets and
cooperative endeavors,
·
attracts people to become club,
district, zone, and international leaders,
·
arouses the interest of people who may wish to
be employees of RI,
·
helps retain employees and member clubs, and/or
RI's
People
of Action campaign could be a major factor in whether or not RI goes up
or down in its core business. Extreme
care must be taken in how the campaign is received in the social fabrics of core
supporters because the phrase People of Action can imply that
Rotarians are:
· people who act without thinking,
· people who act without discussing and/or thinking through
the pros and cons,
· people who are willing to try to solve any major issue
that comes along, or
· judgmental and believe that only Rotarians are People of Action.
RI's
strategic plan should consider all of these issues because RI's future depends
on (1) RI actually delivering a differentiating identity, (2) when it begins
actively promoting the
People of Action campaign, and (3) how
the campaign is received by its core supporters. RI leaders, communications
specialists, and public image coordinators must realize that communication
occurs only when
those who receive the message understand and believe it. If RI proves itself capable of delivering a
differentiating identity to its member clubs then properly promotes its
People
of Action campaign, its reputation should soar. HOWEVER, even if the
People of Action campaign
projects the desired message throughout the network, but RI fails to deliver
its differentiating image to core supporters, its reputation will slide downhill
faster than an avalanche.
This
is the fourth and final segment of Retention Central's Rotatorials on
developing a strategic plan. Perhaps it
has helped readers understand that creating or updating a strategic plan for a
legacy international organization like RI is an important, time consuming, and complicated
task. If clubs, districts, or zones are
creating or updating strategic plans, the same fundamental principles will
apply.