Starting this month county Farm Bureau board members can expect to learn about a new set of resources aimed at helping them recruit new leaders. Identifying and encouraging prospective new board members is the focus of a new tool kit designed as part of Michigan Farm Bureau’s recent strategic planning process.
MFB’s 12 Regional Managers will unveil the tool kits at board meetings throughout the summer as county leaders prepare for elections at their upcoming annual meetings.
Generally themed “Where Will YOU Lead Farm Bureau?”, the materials emphasize the power of everyday members stepping up and contributing their voice and influence toward moving the organization forward.
“This is a vital component of our grassroots ethic,” explained Southwest Regional Manager Sarah Pion, leader of the staff team behind the package. “We cite that concept — grassroots — all the time but don’t always lay out what it means in practical terms.
“The materials we’ve designed are an attempt to fill that gap by illustrating that dynamic, ambitious, forward-looking county Farm Bureaus only get that way through the involvement of its members — and the ideas and input those members bring to the table when they step up to serve on their county board.”
The tool kit itself consists of print and electronic resources county Farm Bureaus may employ in their efforts to attract new board candidates and encourage them to run for open seats. Materials include printed brochures, promotional posters and postcards, email templates for soliciting interest en masse, board member “job descriptions” with roles and responsibilities clearly outlined, and social media resources for use online.
Other members of Pion’s team included Northeast Regional Manager Sonya Novotny, Design Services Manager Sarah Richardson and Member Communications Specialist Jeremy C. Nagel.