Club Assembly - President Theresa
President Theresa along with Sue Lewis attended the recent District Assembly at Schoolcraft College and shared with members the new direction RI will be taking in the future. Two years ago, Theresa said, the Board of Directors of Rotary International decided to revisit Rotary’s Brand – to see if Rotary is still relevant in today’s changing world and if we are presenting ourselves properly.
The easy answer is that they realized very quickly that they weren’t receiving full recognition for their efforts and therefore it has been difficult to attract members – particularly in North America. We all know the good work that we do – but how many others have yet to hear our great story?
As a result of this revelation, a firm from New York by the name of Siegel & Gale was hired to help RI get to the core of “who we are, what we do and why it matters”. They were selected because they have several international offices and, since the project needed to be relevant in all corners of the Rotary world, this could not be simply a North American exercise. Siegel & Gale conducted an unprecedented amount of global research whose goals were to:
• Clarify what Rotary stands for, how it’s different and why people should care,
• Elevate awareness and understanding,
• Motivate, engage and inspire current and prospective members, donors, strategic partners and staff.
Theresa shared with us data from Rotary’s own public image surveys conducted in 2006 and again in 2010 which showed that: Four out of every 10 people have never heard of Rotary; another 4 in 10 have heard of the name only; and only 2 in 10 claim to have some familiarity with the organization!
Research on the branding effort was unprecedented. Those who were involved were: over 20,000 Rotarians, 1,100 Rotaractors, and 400 staff in 167 countries on 6 continents. It also revealed that the top 2 reasons people joined Rotary and what mad them stay were to (1) “positively impact their communities” and (2) for the “friendship and fellowship” being a member offered.
During the research it was determined that Rotary has four “core strengths” that truly differentiate us.
• First, we see differently. Our multidisciplinary perspective enables us to see challenges in ways others can’t.
• Second, we think differently because we apply our leadership and expertise to social issues.
• Third, we act responsibly, with the passion and perseverance necessary for lasting change. There is no better example than polio.
• Fourth, Rotary is a grass roots organization that impacts communities globally.
Because Rotary’s strategy and future direction begin right here the firm focused on three “key implications” during the research:
1. Rotarians are responsible leaders, both socially and ethically. For Rotary we define leadership by mindset, not title. Some of us hold senior titles, CEO, partner, school principal. Others are leaders because they step forward to tackle some of their community’s toughest challenges. When people step forward as Rotarians, they ARE leaders.
2. Connecting always will be a driving force behind Rotary. We are a membership organization. Connecting celebrates our membership and the friendships and bonds we form.
3. Rotary is not just about global impact. Rotary creates community impact on a global scale.
Rotary’s brand strategy was made up of three components:
• Essence—our reason for being: What we stand for, how we’re different, why people should care.
• Value—our actions/behaviors/beliefs.
• Voice—our expression/personality/tone. We sound smart, we are compassionate, persevering, and inspiring.
We would not have been able to develop our essence, activate our values or create our voice attributes without our research. Rotary’s new and improved Essence Statement is: ROTARY UNITES LEADERS FROM ALL CONTINENTS. CULTURES AND OCCUPATIONS TO EXCHANGE IDEAS AND TAKE ACTION FOR COMMUNITIES AROUND THE WORLD.
In the weeks and months to come, Theresa said, you will start to see Rotary’s brand begin to stand out from the rest. You will also learn about new web tools and literature pieces to help members share the Rotary story. You’ll notice the new and improved Rotary logo in the upper left.
If there is anything that RI learned, it is that “clarity of message” equals “strength”. If we are all looking, sounding, feeling like the same organization it will make it so much easier for us to attract like-minded people.