The document discusses the challenges and opportunities for the International Association of Business Communicators (IABC) France Chapter, focusing on membership attrition, volunteer engagement, and the need for a collaborative leadership approach. It highlights the necessity of enhancing perceived value for members through structured programs and improved communication. Additionally, the document outlines strategies for achieving better member retention and engagement through networking, leadership rotation, and leveraging global resources.

1. Collaborative Leadership:
A New Approach to IABC
Chapter Boards
Eileen Lee Lavergne
President, IABC France
Feb 13, 2015
@eleelav @IABC_France @IABCEME #Collablead #Collaboration #Leadership
http://france.iabc.com

2. The French Chapter
13/02/15 2
12 years old
2nd ** in EMENA
>70% - 10-20 year
veterans
>80% speak
2+ languages
Transitory Expat
Community
20+ nationalities
Freelancers/Consultants/
Business Owners

3. Recurring Challenges
13/02/15 3
✗
Member Attrition

4. Member Attrition
13/02/15 4
• Membership Value NOT obvious
• High “product” prices make TCM costly
(esp. in difficult market)
• Difficult to appreciate value if busy/
remote
• Irregular communication & promotion
July-­‐June
New
Lapsed
Fallout
2011-­‐2012
18
33
15
2012-­‐2013
14
23
9
2013-­‐2014
11
16
5

5. Volunteer Engagement
• Own business/freelancers/in transition
• Volunteering for professional development
not a culture - little/no co. support
• High elasticity to job market/economic
uncertainties
• Silo-ed responsibility/ownership - low
team cohesion
• Outcomes reliant on “individual calibre”
• “Beggars can’t be choosers”
13/02/15 5
✗

6. Learning about & from Past Years
• PDE-­‐value
survey
• 11
major
events
+
9
mixers
(free
flow)
• Hybrid
format
+
sponsored
speakers
+
KPIs
• Higher
non-­‐
member
pricing
Built
value
thru
frequent/
monthly
PDEs
&
mixers
• 5
major
events
+
7
mixers
(structured)
• New
Partners/
Sponsors:
OECD,
EPWN,
Hoi
Moon
• Lowered
non-­‐
member
rates
• Engaged
with
recruiters
Fewer
&
higher-­‐
visibility
events
+
job
search
support
PROS:
members
liked
quality
partners,
event
leader’s
workload
more
manageable
CONS:
Perceived
value
unclear
for
members,
s`ll
opportunis`c
&
dependent
on
event
leader
13/02/15
6
2012-2013 2013-2014
PROS:
members
saw
value
in
hybrid
format,
quan`ty
&
frequency
CONS:
Volunteer-­‐intensive
event
focus,
unpredictable
support
&
turnout,
dependent
on
event
leader
&
opportunis`c

7. Leadership Organization
Past
President
President
Communica`on
Professional
Development
&
Events
Membership
Career
Development
Awards
&
Accredita`on
Vice-­‐President
Secretary
Treasurer
13/02/15 7
Board
Extended
Leadership

8. WHAT WOULD YOU DO?
Problem Statement & Group Discussion
13/02/15 8

9. SWOT-TOWS
Strengths
• Maturity
of
chapter
>
10
yrs
• Interna`onal
profiles
• Global
network
of
experienced
peers
• Good
consistent
reviews
of
PD
events
• Die-­‐hard
volunteers
see
value
Weaknesses
• Interna`onal
PD
value
not
apparent
enough
• Low
sense
of
volunteer
team
cohesion
• Dependent
totally
on
volunteers
• Hi-­‐level
of
member
agri`on
• Assets
are
fragmented
&
not
easily
found
Opportuni`es
• Low-­‐hanging
fruit
-­‐
lapsed
members
• Beger
European
representa`on
in
Exec
Board/global
leadership
• New
global
digital
plahorm
-­‐
Fall
2014
• Leverage
regional
+
global
support
• Healthy
cash
balance
Threats
• Survival
depends
on
volunteers’
engagement
• Member
agri`on
con`nues
• Compe``on
for
stakeholders’
`me,
agen`on
&
commitment
• Value
undermined
by
free
resources
• Iner`a
about
PD
investment/engagement
13/02/15 9

10. Value For Who Really Matters
Lapsed
Members
(to
woo)
Exis`ng
Members
(to
deliver
value)
Exis`ng
Volunteers
(to
recognize/reward)
• Why
you
joined?
• Why
you
lapsed?
• What
would
convince
you
to
re-­‐join?
• Why
you
joined?
• What
value
you
find
unique
to
IABC?
• Will
you
renew
-­‐
why?
• What
one
reason
you’ll
renew?
• Why
volunteer?
• What
will
help
us
be
more
efficient/
effec`ve?
• How
does
it
meet
our
expecta`ons?
13/02/15 10
What is value
to them?

11. Program-­‐Theme
Oriented
Body
of
Knowledge
&
Core
Principles
Seminars/
Workshops
Content:
Blogposts,
Webinars
Themed
Mixers
seminars
Work-­‐
shops
Informal
mixers
Opportunis`c
Program-Centric Focus

12. WHY COLLABORATIVE LEADERSHIP
Inspired by Another Research Context
13/02/15 12

13. My Studied Case & Observations
13/02/15 13
Nice Connected Boulevard: A Smart City Project

14. What is Collaboration
Network interactions that co-
create transitional value,
because of
• multi-interested & self-
organizing individuals
• whose multi-dimensional
influence
• Interdependently drive &
enable exchange
• for learning, experimentation
& innovation
13/02/15 14

15. Accredita`on
Synergy
Federa`on
Mul`plier
Why Stakeholders Collaborate
Perceived Value
• Accreditation: reinforces
credibility by association & proof
• Federation: catalyst to social
and intellectual connections
• Multiplier - promotional trigger
for feedback/dialogue/
engagement/education
• Synergy - safe space for trial &
error, fail and learn by doing;
whole is bigger than sum of parts
Source: @ELLAGORA 2014

16. 8 Distinctive Features
What Made IABC Fr A Candidate
Temporal
space
that
is
a
virtual
organiza`on
Stakeholders
with
mul`-­‐dimensional
interests,
mindsets,
values
Varying
levels
of
individual
and
organiza`onal
“readiness”
Use
of
public
assets
in
a
public
domain
with
poli`cal
risks
Dependent
on
self-­‐
organizing
agents
who
juggle/reconcile
mul`-­‐level
interests
Complex
integra`on:
technical
+
social
tech.
a
change
catalyst
Membership
based
on
“agrac`ng”
vs.
“selec`ng”
Stakeholders’
fate
intertwined
✗
✗
Source: @ELLAGORA 2014

17. 13/02/15
S.M.A.R.T. Objective to Execute
Measurable
• Each
program
built
on
:
• Content
• Member
Outreach/
Networking
• Seminars
• Anchored
by
Comms
• Evalua`on
for
each
Achievable
• 3
programs:
1
per
quarter
• 4
leadership
clusters
for
each
program
• Collabora`ve
leadership
process
Realis`c
• Each
leader
commits
to
lead
specific
program
ac`vi`es
of
interest
•
And
supports
on
others
• Leaders
rotate
to
spread
workload
type
&
gain
exposure
and
rela`onship
Time-­‐focus
• Q0:
Jul-­‐Sep
• Q1:
Oct-­‐Dec
• Q2:
Jan-­‐Mar
• Q3:
Apr-­‐June
• Rota`on
&
commitment
defined
end
Qtr
• Re-­‐assess
master
program
plan
every
Qtr
1) Deliver accessible programs relevant to personal, professional and business development;
thru 2) synchronized “bite-size chunks” of collaborative & rotative volunteer leadership
Specific

18. Content
Curate
Commu
nicate
Create
Comms
Email
Twiger
LI
Groups
FB
Blog
Upload
Event
Program/
Speakers
Recep`on
Promo`on
Envisioned Collaborative Structure: Q1
13/02/15 18
Outreach
Networking/
Social
Media
Lapsed/
New
Members
Career Development
Anna
Alec
Claudia
Kristen
Sean
KashaEileen
Danielle
Tom
Tatiana
VictoriaLise

19. Content
(Eileen)
Kristen
Sara
Andrew
Tom
&
Gillian
Event
(Danielle)
Ta`ana
Kasha
Tom
Kristen
Sean
Comms
(Sara)
Eileen
Danielle
Kristen
ALL
What Actually Happened: Q1
13/02/15 19
Program Theme:
Career Transition & Growth
Outreach/
Networking
(Sean
&
Kasha)
Tom
Eileen
Lise
Sara

20. Outreach/
Networking
(Ta`ana)
Kasha
Sean
Danielle
Comms
(Sara)
Eileen
Kristen
ALL
What’s Happening: Q2
13/02/15 20
Program Theme:
Strategic Communications
for Biz Impact
Content
(Gillian)
Kristen
Andrew
Kasha
Event
(Eileen)
Kasha
Sean
???
???

21. 2014-2015 Leadership Team
13/02/15 21
Past President
Past President
& IEB Director

22. KEY LEARNINGS
Evaluation & Reflection
13/02/15 22

23. Also Revisited Key Initiatives
Recruitment/Job
Pos`ng
Tie-­‐Ups
in
Communica`ons
&
Marke`ng
Pricing
strategy
to
differen`ate
real
value
for
members
Community
database:
members,
lapsed
&
non-­‐
members
Themed
networking
events
w/
min.
registra`on
charges
Leverage
Regional
&
Global
Support
&
Assets
Up-­‐skilling
on
collabora`ve
tools:
Asana,
SurveyMonkey,
MailChimp,
website/blog,
etc.
Volunteer
Leader
recogni`on
&
rewards:
eg.
• Scholarships
to
EMENA-­‐LI,
GLI
• Scholarships
to
EuroComm15
13/02/15 23

24. Early Indicators
13/02/15 24
July-­‐June
(mid-­‐point)
New
Lapsed
Fallout
2011-­‐2012
18
(14)
33
15
2012-­‐2013
14
(11)
23
9
2013-­‐2014
11
(12)
16
5
2014-­‐2015
(6)
(6)
0
• MONTHLY & 4+/5 rated events
• 12+ (about 2-3/month) blogposts
• Improved turnout for networking: 19-25
• Regular communication & promotion
• Personalized member reach-out

25. Qualitative Feedback
The
Good:
• Beger
visibility
of
quarter’s
plans/calendar
• More
team
cohesion
&
opera`ng
less
in
silos
• Ownership
of
events/ac`vi`es
spread
among
leaders
• More
predictability
in
turnout
• Reasonable/manageable
`me
commitment
• Learning
“how
to”
so
valuable
-­‐
didn’t
realize
how
much
work
before
The
Less
Good:
• More
work
for
some:
ie.
treasurer,
secretary,
president
• Not
sure
who
does
what
some`mes
• Need
to
communicate
more
• Need
to
learn
how
to
use
support
tools
13/02/15 25

26. Visual
birdseye
status:
master
planning
excel/
calendar
Regular
mee`ngs/
informal
gatherings
&
almost
monthly
Zoom
conference
Collabora`ve
technology
&
tools:
ASANA,
ZOOM
Essentials to Support Adoption
Leadership
Charter
&
Values
everyone
“signs
up”
to
on
shared
purpose
&
commitment
Each
leader
ar`culates
own
dev
objec`ve
&
what
they
want
out
of
their
commitment
Understanding
different
role
redundancy
&
complements
13/02/15 26

27. Collaborative Leadership Roles
All Boundary Spanners
Convener
-­‐
leverages
informal/
legi`mate
power
to
bridge
different
levels
with
shared
meaning
&
purpose.
Champion
-­‐
help
to
keep
collabora`on
going,
typically
feels
ownership
and
advocates
from
his/her
standpoint.
Taskmaster
-­‐
designated
func`on
by
specialized
interest/exper`se/
focus.
Project
Driver
-­‐
move
collabora`on
beyond
talk,
executes,
documents,
measures,
chairs
&
coordinate
mee`ngs.
13/02/15 27
Source: @ELLAGORA 2014

28. HOW PLAUSIBLE FOR YOUR
CONTEXT?
Tweet Your Feedback & Comments
13/02/15 28
@eleelav @IABC_France @IABCEME #Collablead #Collaboration #Leadership

29. Essentials in Summary
Proac`ve
thinking
&
innova`ve
attude
-­‐
reinvents
self
&
dictates
ac`on
Structured
processes
but
“minimum
specifica`on”
Horizontal
reach
&
interac`ons
over
hierarchical
order
Informal
&
internal
over-­‐
commu-­‐
nica`on
Task
comple`on
&
shared
purpose
to
forge
collabora`ve
&
produc`ve
`es
13/02/15 29
Source: @ELLAGORA 2014
Adaptive Leadership Role “Redundancy”
Shared Meaning & Rules of Engagement = Intertwined Fate

30. Things to Look Out For …
Behavioral
and
mindset
shiu
takes
`me
Everyone
starts
from
a
different
point:
experience,
open-­‐
mindedness,
habit,
synergy
with
own
interest
Ini`al
socialising
and
educa`on
rela`vely
heavy
Nurture
informal
communica`on
but
uphold
diligence
in
formal
communica`on
Requires
systems-­‐thinking
&
clear
big
picture
vision
&
rules
of
engagement
13/02/15 30

31. THANK YOU
eleelavergne@gmail.com
Mobile: +33 6 13 06 85 20
Skype : eleelav
@eleelav