Communication is vital to the success of any organization. All too often organizations discover there is a disconnect between leadership and membership, which can slowly diminish member value and satisfaction.
I had the opportunity to test an "out of the box" theory while serving as the MFDA President. During that year, I challenged our board to personally visit every member in their districts and to not only provide them information about member services, but more importantly to report directly to the board what members were saying.
I reorganized the agenda to focus on District Director reports and spent the majority of our time finding solutions to increase member value, while still having time to conduct the necessary board functions. As a fun way of verifying the member visits we had each district director have the members sign a “Team MFDA" game ball, which we displayed during our board meetings. It not only made the process fun, but the friendly competition spurred board members to achieve their goals, as they saw their fellow "coaches" getting signatures and hash marks. I was very pleased when our Annual Member Survey revealed not only had Member Satisfaction increased, but for the first time in decades we had an increase in new membership.
The last five years serving as NFDA Board Member has provided me with opportunities to visit over a dozen State Funeral Associations and conventions across the country. During these visits, I have been able to see firsthand that no two state associations are alike in their need for NFDA support and resources. I focused on forming special relationships with the members, boards and executive’s directors. These relationships are important as I am able to have frank discussions, learn about the needs of the members and association, and recommend the appropriate NFDA resources that will assist their individual needs.
The experience of leading the MFDA as President as well as representing NFDA at state conventions throughout the nation has provided me with an invaluable understanding of how state funeral association works. I will continue to utilize "outside of the box" fresh idea thinking with the NFDA Executive Board as President-Elect.
I had the opportunity to test an "out of the box" theory while serving as the MFDA President. During that year, I challenged our board to personally visit every member in their districts and to not only provide them information about member services, but more importantly to report directly to the board what members were saying.
I reorganized the agenda to focus on District Director reports and spent the majority of our time finding solutions to increase member value, while still having time to conduct the necessary board functions. As a fun way of verifying the member visits we had each district director have the members sign a “Team MFDA" game ball, which we displayed during our board meetings. It not only made the process fun, but the friendly competition spurred board members to achieve their goals, as they saw their fellow "coaches" getting signatures and hash marks. I was very pleased when our Annual Member Survey revealed not only had Member Satisfaction increased, but for the first time in decades we had an increase in new membership.
The last five years serving as NFDA Board Member has provided me with opportunities to visit over a dozen State Funeral Associations and conventions across the country. During these visits, I have been able to see firsthand that no two state associations are alike in their need for NFDA support and resources. I focused on forming special relationships with the members, boards and executive’s directors. These relationships are important as I am able to have frank discussions, learn about the needs of the members and association, and recommend the appropriate NFDA resources that will assist their individual needs.
The experience of leading the MFDA as President as well as representing NFDA at state conventions throughout the nation has provided me with an invaluable understanding of how state funeral association works. I will continue to utilize "outside of the box" fresh idea thinking with the NFDA Executive Board as President-Elect.
"As President, he developed an innovative member communication plan by challenging MFDA Board Members to individually reach out in their respective districts. The real innovation was in making the challenge fun by creating a contest to get a certain number of “game balls” (footballs and basketballs) signed by members during these visits. For board members the challenge wasn’t work—it was a game. And our state association member satisfaction scores soared as a result."
Philip K Douma
Executive Director, Michigan Funeral Directors Association
Philip K Douma
Executive Director, Michigan Funeral Directors Association