While General Assemblies are often perceived as daunting events, they are key moments in the life of a Non-Profit Organization (NPO). An AG is a crucial time to bring members together, discuss projects, objectives, strategic issues, and elect board members. Let's explore some keys to transforming your General Assemblies into a true driver of engagement!
Understanding the Origins of Member Withdrawal during General Assemblies
Several factors can lead to member disengagement during General Assemblies. However, these meetings should be a unifying event, a source of engagement and dynamism for your non-profit organization (NPO).
Various elements may explain this disengagement:
- Lack of time, skills, or resources to organize the event. Often, organizations realize they are running behind schedule just a week before the General Assembly. Last-minute organization often goes hand in hand with unappealing communication to invite members to participate.
- The way subjects are presented during these meetings. Presentations that mainly focus on numbers may fail to generate sufficient interest and effectively communicate the NPO's actions and objectives.
- Transparency can also be a hurdle. Virtual General Assemblies, organized through platforms like Teams or Google Meet, can have visibility issues during voting. It may be difficult to know if the voting process went smoothly and who actually participated.
- Inefficient practices in managing past General Assemblies can also leave a negative impression on members, leading to disengagement.
- Digital transformation, remote work, and evolving governance expectations are among the factors influencing members' motivation to engage in General Assemblies.
NPO managers must consider these developments and explore innovative solutions to make their General Assemblies more attractive and engaging for their members.
Best Practices to (Re)ignite Members' Interest in Participating in Your General Assemblies
1. Involve Members from the Event's Creation
To create an attractive General Assembly, it is essential to involve members from the beginning of the process. For example, you can organize consultations or surveys to gather their preferences on the date, format, and topics to address during the event.
You can also establish an organizing committee composed of engaged members who will participate in planning and promoting the General Assembly.
By involving members from the start, you create a sense of ownership and responsibility, which will encourage them to actively participate in the event.
2. Define a Clear Agenda as a Team
Developing a clear and relevant agenda is essential to maintain members' interest during the General Assembly. In addition to the usual financial points, consider treating the General Assembly as a comprehensive event for your organization.
For example, include presentations on the achievements of the past year, future projects, upcoming challenges, and opportunities.
Allocate time for interactive discussions and idea exchanges among the members.
3. Adopt a Hybrid Participation Model
Offering a hybrid participation model for the General Assembly, combining in-person and online attendance, has become a common practice to attract a larger number of participants.
You can host your General Assembly in a physical venue while providing an option for online participation through a video conferencing platform. This allows members to choose the method that suits them best based on their availability and preferences.
By offering a hybrid model, you expand the reach of your General Assembly and facilitate the participation of members from remote regions or with travel constraints.
4. Send Compelling Invitations
Sending compelling invitations is essential to pique members' interest and encourage them to participate in the General Assembly. Prepare an effective email with Yapla and utilize our General Assembly invitation template to create an impactful invitation.
Highlight the event's key features, such as guest speakers, interactive workshops, or special activities. Also, be sure to include practical details such as the date, time, online participation link, and encourage members to confirm their attendance.
How to Make Your General Assembly Dynamic?
Automate Proxy Management
When it comes to proxies and voting rights, digital tools can help simplify and automate the process. Instead of providing proxies in person or by mail, you can use specific tools that send secure email invitations. This streamlines participation and makes the process more reliable.
Save Time During Voting
Voting during a General Assembly can sometimes be time-consuming. With digital tools, you can implement online voting systems that allow all participants, including those in hybrid mode, to vote quickly.
Digital solutions like AG-CONNECT enable participants to use their mobile phones as voting devices for both in-person and hybrid participation.
Improve Result Visibility with Synthesized Displays
It is essential to make voting results clear and easily understandable. You can use digital tools to create visual graphs and charts that display the results in a visually appealing manner.
For example, you can use Excel to quickly create graphs showing the percentage of votes for or against a decision, making it easy for participants to understand the results.
Enhance Governance Quality and Credibility
Well-organized and managed General Assemblies will help improve your governance quality and credibility.
Using effective digital tools can demonstrate to your members that you seek to facilitate their participation, thereby strengthening their trust in the organization.
Levers to Activate After the General Assembly
Close the General Assembly with a Recap and Action Plan
It is important to provide a visual recap and action plan summarizing all the discussions and decisions made during the General Assembly. This allows members to anticipate the potential choices resulting from the votes and guides them toward the next directives.
Draft and Share the Minutes
It is essential to draft and communicate the minutes of the General Assembly within a maximum of 7 days after the event. Tools like AG-CONNECT can facilitate the drafting and sending of minutes with an electronic signature.
Preserve General Assembly Data
We strongly recommend preserving all information and data related to the General Assembly. This helps keep a record of past decisions, debates, and arguments, ensuring transparency in decision-making processes.
This information can be useful for understanding the context of subsequent decisions, analyzing the evolution of positions, and evaluating the effectiveness of implemented policies.
By keeping voting and discussion data, you have valuable documentation in case of disputes or legal issues. In case of future legal questions or disagreements, the records can be referred to for resolving conflicts objectively.
Post-Assembly Communication: Recap and Thanks
Post-assembly communication is crucial for maintaining members' engagement!
Remember to thank the participants and provide absent members with a summary of what happened during the General Assembly.
Use this opportunity to keep your members active and promote upcoming initiatives and events.
4 Steps to Prepare Your Next General Assembly
1. Discover and Test AG-CONNECT, the Digital Solution for NPO General Assemblies
Suitable for both professional and community organizations, AG-CONNECT promotes good governance within organizations!
2. Present Your Ideas to the Next Board of Directors Meeting
Take advantage of the next meeting with the decision-making members of the association to present your ideas and suggestions for revitalizing your General Assemblies.
Start by providing context for your approach, explaining why you propose these ideas. Get to the point and avoid getting lost in details. Focus on the expected results and benefits, such as:
- Increased participation rate in General Assemblies
- Improved transparency and better communication of news and decisions
- Increased member engagement in association activities...
3. Define the Elements for the Next General Assembly as a Team
Work as a team to define the important details of your next General Assembly. Begin by selecting a date that suits everyone, decide on the participation mode (in-person, online, or hybrid), create a detailed agenda, and assign roles and responsibilities among team members.
4. Prepare Compelling Invitation Communications and Anticipate Post-General Assembly Communication
Pay special attention to preparing communications to invite members to the General Assembly.
Use tools that assist you in content creation to design engaging and effective invitations. For example:
- ChatGPT can help you write your communication, optimize, and proofread your text.
- Create captivating visuals easily with Canva, Figma, or Unsplash.
Also, anticipate communication after the assembly by preparing follow-up and thank-you messages!
In conclusion, digital tools are your best allies for fostering engagement during your General Assembly. By using digital tools like Yapla to promote your AG and AG-CONNECT to manage proxies, speed up voting, make results readable, and enhance your governance quality, you can create a dynamic and engaging experience for all participants!
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