Division 89,

As you may or may not know I am very committed to AFSA and spend countless hours dedicated to our great organization both on the telephone, in person, and via the e-mail communicating and discussing AFSA related issues and concerns from coast to coast.  I have recently learned that our organization is in grave danger of dropping below 100,000 members due to the lack of action and involvement by many chapters worldwide.   Division 89 chapters are NO exception!  Much of this inaction is due to ineffective leadership, committment, and vision by chapter leadership.  Pardon me if my words seem harsh but i believe that leadership is action and not a popularity contest.   Ladies and gentlemen, 'The baby is ugly"!

 

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I spent the better part of this evening extracting data related to recruiting and retention within Division 89.  I learned that our AFSA International Membership Chairman has set a goal for each chapter/Division to increase their strength 20%.  Granted, that is 20% of our current respective strength and does NOT factor in the often overlooked retentions.  Moreover, we must NOT turn a blind eye to the lapsed and bad address roster; chapters MUST organize into teams/committees in order to properly and effectively tackle these challenging issues.

 

Chapter #	Current Strength	Current recruit	Current Retention	20% Goal	# Required to Make Goal	% Of Goal	# of Active Recruiters	# of Active Retainers
F0804	1237	1	3	247	246	<1%	1	2
F0851	1099	13	95	220	207	<1%	4	1
F0856	334	0	0	67	67	0%	0	0
F0858	879	8	0	176	168	<1%	3	0
F0872	1671	52	50	334	282	16%	11	2
F0881	565	8	0	113	105	<1%	2	0
F0951	433	12	3	87	75	14%	6	2
F0959	397	28	0	79	51	35%	5	0
F0964	226	15	0	15	0	100%	4	0
F0972	719	30	5	144	114	21%	5	4
F0984	1046	69	7	209	140	33%	6	3
F0985	1892	166	17	378	212	44%	7	5
F0988	467	55	3	93	38	60%	1	1
F0990	134	1	0	27	26	<1%	1	0
F0991	76	0	0	67	67	0%	0	0
Totals	11175	458	183	2256	1798	20%	56	20
Current Strength = Chapter Membership as of 1500hrs 17 May 2010
Current Recruit = Numbers of Recruited new members since 1 Jan 2010
Current Retention = Numbers of Retained members since 1 Jan 2010
20% Goal = Number of new members required to meet the 20% target
# Required to Make Goal = Difference between Goal & Numbers recruited since 1 Jan 2010
% of Goal = Where you are as of today to meeting the 20% target
# of Active Recruiters = Members who have recruited at least 1 member since 1 Jan 2010
# of Active Retainers - Members who have retained at least 1 member since 1 Jan 2010

Please refer to the attached Excell spreadsheet.  You will notice the 15 "active" chapters within Division 89 and I use the term "active" very loosely.  Before I continue I must applaud Chapter F0964 from Grand Forks, ND as they have achieved 100% goal already!  However, notice that they have NOT retained anyone, nor do they have any active retainers.  Simply speaking, it is great to bring members in but we MUST KEEP THEM!  If we do not focus on retentions we are "sailing a sinking ship" and thus are "Bailing the water out just to stay afloat".  Bad business.  F0964 is not the only Chapter doing so.   Please refer to the spreadsheet.

 

Also, please note that the current strength in Division 89 is just over 11,000 members.  As of today we have 56 recruiters and 20 retainers spread across 15 chapters...APPALLING!  For Division 89 to achieve our 20% increase we need to recruit 2256 members.  It is imperative that each Chapter Executive Council Member lead the way and recruit at least one member and encourage their chapter general membership to do the same.  If not, what kind of example does this set for your people?  For those who are doing what they are charged with and are executing their duties properly and effectively--Thank you!

 

Leader's AFSA was founded in 1961 by four NCO's who were tired of mediocrity, were filled with vision and drive, and had passion and desire to improve the Air Force's Enlisted Corps through hard work, determination and dedication.  They were NOT simply seeking EPR fodder or a feather for their cap.  They worked, worked, and worked some more...  Collectively, we can NOT let that primal sense of improvement die...we MUST unite and forge ahead in the form of education via recruitment and retention.

 

Again, THANK YOU to all of you who have selflessly recruited or retained at least one member this year.  For those of you who did not-DO IT TODAY!  We can not afford to sit by idly and wait for failure...we must embrace change!  We must be the change agent!

 

LETS DO THIS!  DIVISION 89---ARE YOU WITH ME......?