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

The French Chapter

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12 years old

2nd ** in EMENA

>70% - 10-20 year veterans

>80% speak 2+ languages

Transitory Expat Community

20+ nationalities

Freelancers/Consultants/Business Owners

Recurring Challenges

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✗ Member Attrition

Member Attrition

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•  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  

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”

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✗

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  

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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  

Leadership Organization Past  President   President  

Communica`on  Professional  

Development  &  Events  

Membership   Career  Development  

Awards  &  Accredita`on  

Vice-­‐President   Secretary  

Treasurer  

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Board

Extended Leadership

WHAT WOULD YOU DO? Problem Statement & Group Discussion

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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  

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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?  

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What is value to them?

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

WHY COLLABORATIVE LEADERSHIP Inspired by Another Research Context

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My Studied Case & Observations

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Nice Connected Boulevard: A Smart City Project

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

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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

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

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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

Content  

Curate  

Communicate  Create  

Comms  

Email  

Twiger  

LI  Groups  FB  

Blog  Upload  

Event  

Program/Speakers  

Recep`on  Promo`on  

Envisioned Collaborative Structure: Q1

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Outreach  

Networking/Social  Media  

Lapsed/New  Members  

Career Development

Anna

Alec

Claudia

Kristen

Sean

Kasha Eileen

Danielle

Tom Tatiana

Victoria Lise

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

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Program Theme: Career Transition & Growth

Outreach/Networking  (Sean  

&  Kasha)  

Tom  

Eileen  

Lise  

Sara  

Outreach/Networking  (Ta`ana)  

Kasha  

Sean  Danielle  

Comms  (Sara)  

Eileen  

Kristen  ALL  

What’s Happening: Q2

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Program Theme: Strategic Communications

for Biz Impact

Content  (Gillian)  

Kristen  

Andrew  Kasha  

Event  (Eileen)  

Kasha  

Sean  

???  

???  

2014-2015 Leadership Team

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Past President

Past President & IEB Director

KEY LEARNINGS Evaluation & Reflection

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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  

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Early Indicators

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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

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  

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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  

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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

HOW PLAUSIBLE FOR YOUR CONTEXT?

Tweet Your Feedback & Comments

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@eleelav @IABC_France @IABCEME #Collablead #Collaboration #Leadership

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  

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Adaptive Leadership Role “Redundancy”

Shared Meaning & Rules of Engagement = Intertwined Fate

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  

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