It is often difficult in the beginning to know which of your committee members will be fully committed to the task. You must pay attention to how your committee members complete action items. Are they consistently not done or late? If this is the case you should consult with the committee member and be frank about his/her performance. If they do not improve, remove them from the committee. Do this in writing and verbally. Get rid of dead weight asap. You can then fill the position with someone else or re-delegate the committee’s responsibilities.

Communicate all action items in writing. Make sure that your committee understands what the primary medium of communication will be. If it is by email then you must set rules such as a 48 hour turn around on email responses. This will improve communication and accountability. Keep a running action item list in which everyone has access. Every committee meeting should have action items to be completed before or by the following meeting. This will also establish accountability and keep the committee aware of what must be done. Always communicate committee activities with the Vice-President as he/she is the manager of the entire Chapter Executive Board.

DOCUMENTATION for PROGRAMS

Documentation is extremely important to the viability of programs within your chapter. It serves as proof of your activities within the CDP and is a guide for the next person in your position. The documents you should use are the PROGRAM PLANNING SHEET, PROGRAM EVALUATION FORM and the PROGRAM PARTICIPANT EVALUATION FORM. Flyers, radio announcements and other publications should also be kept for archiving and documentation purposes.

Avoid the temptation of skipping the evaluations. Evaluations are the only way that you will analyze the effectiveness of your program. Create a summary of the attendee evaluations and include this in your CDP for the next Programs Chair. He or she can improve upon what you have done.