StarChapter of August: SMPS Indiana

From a Buddy Program, which welcomes new members to the local and national SMPS community, to educational workshop day, the SMPS Indiana board knows how to keep membership strong, involved, and engaging. “Members are our best advocates” says Cindy Culbertson, the President of the chapter. We spoke with her about their strategy for engaging new members, why checking in with members is crucial (member focus groups), and what is to come for the next year.

1. What was SMPS Indiana’s strategy for engaging new members in the past year?

The SMPS Indiana chapter does several things to engage members and encourage involvement. New members are welcomed via email and then invited to a one-on-one, get-to-know-you meeting with the Membership Chair. Or when we have several new members within a short timeframe, we host a group meeting and include additional Board members. Members, especially new members, are actively encouraged to join a committee and get involved. Each new member also has the option to be part of the Buddy Program – where the new member is assigned a member buddy who helps answer SMPS-related questions and introduces the new member at SMPS events.

2. Tell us about a successful event/meeting you organized last year.

The SMPS Indiana Education Committee organized a program and subsequent workshop this year that focused on how our clients make their buying decisions, and the biggest influence isn’t what most people would think. It’s your client’s 3 lb. brain! The first program was a precursor to a half-day workshop where we were able to dive deeper into this fascinating topic. Our energetic and passionate speaker, Bryan Gray with MediaSauce, was well-received by attendees. He left them wanting to learn more, and therefore our half-day workshop the following month was one of the largest attended education programs in recent years. Several months later, people are still talking about how the information has been helpful in their own careers.

3. The SMPS network is extensive. Do you get ideas on how to improve membership value from other SMPS chapters?

The SMPS network is an incredible resource. So, yes, we are always looking for ideas from other chapters. We try hard to provide quality programs that are beneficial to our members. Recommendations and referrals from other chapters are an important resource to us in order to keep our program offerings fresh while maintaining quality.

4. Do you have any tips/advice to share with other board volunteers?

Check in regularly with your members, it doesn’t require a formal process. One of our chapter goals for this year was “no closed circles” at meetings. Many of us have great relationships through SMPS and it’s easy to end up in the same circle of friends at each event. By keeping the circles open, we want all members to feel welcome and to make it easy for them to network and develop their own friendships.

Our members are our best advocates. The SMPS Indiana chapter is lucky to have so many past leaders, CPSMs, and Fellows that are still active chapter members. We purposefully ask them to help as much as possible to make sure they stay engaged and so our members can benefit from their experience!

5. What is in store for the members of SMPS Indiana next year?

In 2015, the SMPS Indiana chapter conducted several member focus groups. The knowledge our Board gained during these sessions helped us keep a pulse on what our members desire, whether they are 20+ year veterans or brand new to the organization. We are planning to make the focus groups an annual activity with the next round planned for Fall 2016.

More industry client panels, relevant education programs, and member networking events are also in the works.

6. How did StarChapter help you run SMPS Indiana and reach its goals?  

One of the primary ways the SMPS Indiana chapter uses StarChapter is for event management. The ability to easily communicate with members and track registrations and payments is critical. The event history is useful for planning future events. Capturing program feedback via surveys also helps inform planning of chapter events and professional development programs.

StarChapter of June: PMI St. Louis

Recognizing volunteer efforts, engaging members in both the local and the national levels, and utilizing the StarChapter software to its fullest have been just a few of the strategies implemented by the leadership of PMI Metro St. Louis chapter of the Project Management Institute. We spoke with Vish Tripathi, the President of PMI Metro St. Louis, and learned why their events usually get an average of 9 out of 10 star reviews, and how in just 2 years, the chapter grew its membership count by 11% and reduced volunteer time. 

1. What was PMI St. Louis chapter’s strategy for engaging new members in the past year?
“PMI Metro St. Louis chapter used several approaches to engage and retain new members. One key strategy was offering a semi-annual "new member orientation" meeting, in which we also distributed new members welcome packages. Board members also attended these meetings to improve engagement with new members by participating in various committees in their area. We also recognized new members during the dinner meetings and weekly emails. In the last 2 years, our membership grew by almost 11% thanks to the hard work of our volunteers and board members.”

2. Tell us about a successful event/meeting you organized last year

“Our chapter volunteers exceeded all expectations by organizing successful events and meetings last year. We had surveyed attendees after each event and the average rating for our events/speakers was usually 9 out of 10 stars. Our premier event was the Annual International Project Management (IPM) Day celebration in November with the IPM Day founder Frank Saladis. Over 180 members, volunteers, and executives attended this event at St. Louis University. The number of attendees in this event grows exponentially every year. Another event worth mentioning was the Volunteers Appreciation evening at D&B, in which we recognized more than 80 volunteers for their efforts.”

3. Do you get ideas on how to improve membership value from other PMI chapters? 

“Yes. Being a 100% volunteers-based organization, we rely on experienced volunteers from our chapter and other PMI chapters. There are few PMI chapters that have fine-tuned their processes and achieved the maturity level we strive to achieve. During the Region 6 meeting, we met with volunteers from 26 other PMI chapters and exchanged ideas and best practices on how to improve membership value. PMI Metro St. Louis chapter always focused on "Membership Excellence" and that's the reason why it has been recognized by PMI National for last 3 years for providing high membership value to its members.”

4. Do you have any tips/advice to share with other board volunteers?  
“Stay engaged and focused! The chapter can only grow when you get involved with members and listen to what they want to get out of their membership. We have found that members are 300% likely to renew their membership if they are involved with the local chapter. Beyond the members, our volunteers are the backbone of the chapter and as such must be recognized and appreciated.”

5. Through a unique integration developed by StarChapter, PMI Metro St. Louis chapter has been sharing membership data with PMI national. What has the chapter been able to accomplish so far? 

“PMI Metro St. Louis was one of the very first chapters to adopt StarChapter and integration of shared membership data with the PMI national. Our experience was very smooth without any interruption. Beyond saving almost $18,000 in last 4-5 years on credit card charges, our chapter was able to automate some of the processes, in turn leading to a 11% increase in membership and saving of volunteer time. Volunteers are now able to focus on setting the strategic goals instead of doing redundant tasks of running the chapter.”

6. How did using StarChapter help you run PMI St. Louis and reach its goals?

“PMI Metro St. Louis Chapter is now able to retain and engage members by using some of the standardized templates StarChapter offers. New members are welcomed every week. Soon-to-be-expired members are easily notified and reminded, while renewing their membership is just in one single click. Meetings are set up in less than 5 minutes and surveys are set up well in advance and are sent automatically to attendees after the event.
We have come a long way as a chapter in last 4-5 years. Some of this success is attributed to StarChapter and its team.”

7. What is in store for the members of PMI Metro St. Louis chapter in 2016?

“Our chapter is all about the project management profession and the community we all live in. 2016 is dedicated to continue improving the "membership excellence" value. Members will have access to a variety of events such as the PMI dinners in regular and alternate locations, with speakers such as Jim Snyder, one of PMI’s founders during our October dinner. For our veterans, we plan to create a Military Liaison position/committee which will help our veterans' transition into the project management profession much easier. Finally, we will be launching the "Free Chapter Guest” program, designed for members of PMI National who are currently not members of our local chapter, to develop inclusion and the project management profession as a whole.”