Managing an Effective Student Organization Exclusively for participants in the ACHE Higher Education Network
Creating a Successful Healthcare Management Student Organization Whether one talks with Program Directors or ACHE chapter leaders, everyone seems to agree that the most successful student organizations are the ones that are student-led and student driven. From organizing elections at the beginning of the year to planning all the programming, when students are in charge, things happen! Strong support from faculty, local healthcare managers, and the local ACHE chapter increases the chances of success, and provides a valuable lesson in working with a wide network of people and organizations. The program director role should be one of support rather than control in order to give students leadership experience. Getting Started As the interest in healthcare management increases, more and more students wish to participate in student programs related to the profession. If you don t already have a student healthcare management organization on campus, the best way to learn the benefits is to network with other schools that already have one. Just like in class, you need to do your research. By researching other student organizations, you will get a feel for how to set up your own student group that will fill your program s unique needs. What s in a Name? Now that student groups will no longer be tied to the ACHE Chapter moniker the group can pick a name that is truly their own. One program s student group will be called the Graduate Health Administration Student Association in the fall of 2006. Descriptive names are important, but also keep in mind that the new name should fit in with the campus culture. Creativity starter try describing your student group: Examples: Future Healthcare Managers Association; Students for Quality Healthcare Management; Healthcare Management Students Organization Activity idea The Name Game: Have a contest in the student group to collect ideas for the student organization s name. The prize could be tuition assistance to attend the next ACHE Congress. Form leads to Function: Structuring Your Organization The most common structure for a student organization is to elect a board of directors consisting of officers and directors, and to operate off a set of bylaws. This structure is similar to many non-profit and professional societies, like ACHE and its chapters. All student groups should have the program director, or other faculty member, from their program help them, as needed, with information, advice, and access to resources.
However, the student organization should be structured in a way that best serves members needs, utilizes the volunteer pool, and supports education. For example, some student groups operate with two co-chairs who organize everything with the help of member volunteers, while others have an executive committee made up of all the candidates for office who didn t win a leadership position. Others who have an executive committee appoint each member with a specific area of responsibility, such as fundraising, membership, community service, and programming. Each organization is different, which means that the number of necessary meetings will vary. Less active organizations may meet only quarterly, while others will meet monthly. Business meetings may consist of board members only or be all-members meetings that feature a speaker. When organizing the student group, consider if you want it to be centered on your program, ACHE membership, career development, or a combination. Deciding the focus will help in planning programs and events, but more importantly, will help with the development of a mission. Example: The University of Colorado at Denver student group focuses on five areas Speaker Series, New Student Orientation, community service, social interactions, and the ACHE Congress. Want to be a Success? Get Organized! Get the student organization ready to go immediately at the beginning of the school year. Recruit new members, publicize the first meeting, and hold elections as early as possible. Hold a planning meeting to decide what you want to accomplish in the coming year, then assign tasks, responsibilities, and deadlines. Officers should regularly follow up to make sure things are moving along according to plan. Elections Elections for student organizations should be held as close to the beginning of the new school year as possible. Most groups have a President, Vice President, Treasurer, and several board members. (This structure is very similar to ACHE Chapters.) A great way for the program director to be involved is to act as an ex-officio member of the board, and to act as the election judge each year. Hold the elections right after orientation for high visibility and good publicity. An idea for creating the student organization s succession plan is to hold one officer position open for a first-year student (a good job for a new student is Secretary). This will also build good relations with new students and encourage them to join the group.
Although the student organization will hold an annual election, there may need to be special elections throughout the year. For example, if an officer needs to leave the student organization because of schedule pressures, a special election would be needed to fill their position. SUCCESS FACTOR Leadership and Student Organizations Students have to choose leadership that is willing to put in the energy, time and imagination that it takes to keep people organized. Choosing good leaders is important, but it is equally important that students recognize when leaders are not performing. Poor performance demands improvement, and students should take action if their leaders don t provide the support they need for successful programs. Dues While many organizations charge their members dues, it is not a requirement. If the group wants to charge member dues, it should be based on how much money is necessary for the administration of the student group. Before setting your dues, consider if you will charge a fee for programs or include that in the annual payment (for example, charging a higher dues rate and not charging members for attending programs). Student group dues tend to be lower, such as $15.00 to $25.00 annually. Whatever you charge for dues, keep in mind that students may also be paying dues for the local ACHE Chapter and national ACHE membership. Succession Planning After working hard to organize the group; you don t want to see it fail simply because the current leadership graduates. Put together a continuity binder with all the important information about the group to hand over to the next generation of leadership. The binder should include any governing documents (like bylaws), officer job descriptions, membership lists, schedules, budgets, past programs, contacts at other groups, and any other items necessary to maintain the management of the organization.
Membership Recruitment In order to have an organization you need members! This means actively recruiting students to join the student organization. The best time of year to find new members is at the beginning of the school year before other groups get a chance to recruit. There is competition on campus for student group members because students are usually pressed for time and cannot commit to join more than one or two groups during the school year. They also have to balance the other aspects of their lives: work and personal. Here are some ways you can get the message out about your healthcare management student organization: Organize a presentation for each class of new healthcare management students about the benefits of joining the group; emphasize the added power of ACHE affiliation, which offers career enhancement benefits and educational opportunities. Ask your department to make membership in your student organization automatic for all new students. Presenting membership as a benefit of their education will increase member loyalty. Offer new members an incentive to join, like $5.00 off their first year s dues. Have a membership drive during the first semester; present an award to the person that recruits the most new members. Set a recruitment goal for the student organization, such as 100% of all 2007 new healthcare management students. During your campus orientation week, set aside three to four hours to aggressively market the student organization to new members. Faculty and student members of ACHE can talk about how membership has helped them in their careers and education. Give your orientation week recruitment presentation star power; invite a leader from the local ACHE chapter or the ACHE Regent to co-present. Seeing the strong tie between the student group and ACHE will demonstrate the importance of membership to career advancement. Plan recruitment efforts at the beginning of each semester (both fall and spring). This way you will attract the attention of students joining your program throughout the year.
To maintain recruitment momentum throughout the school year, publicize the student group events to the entire campus. Students from other areas of study may find something of value in joining the group too. Have recruitment materials available at all student group events.
Planning Student organizations can write an annual plan based on the academic year, broken out by semester. If you look at the annual plan as a goal setting exercise, or a to do list, it will seem more like practice for a healthcare management career and less like a boring task or annoying requirement. Example: Student Organization Annual Plan Fall Semester Publicize first meeting of academic year Recruit new members Hold elections at first meeting Plan one board meeting per month Participate in campus orientation Host Get to Know You social event Plan one educational program featuring CEO of local hospital Plan one career development program with guest speaker from local ACHE chapter Organize one fundraising event to support attendance at ACHE Congress Spring Semester Plan one board meeting per month Plan two educational programs in the evening, including a dinner Plan one career development program on resume writing Host a meeting featuring reports from the ACHE Congress Host a spring fling networking event with local ACHE chapter Host a study session for final exams A Note about Strategic Plans Strategic plans are ambitious undertakings and likely not required by student groups; however, if you decide to create a strategic plan, do not write one that covers more than three years. The traditional strategic plan is five years, but many organizations are rethinking strategic planning and creating plans that cover shorter periods so that they can quickly respond to changes in the business environment.
Budgeting The smaller the organization, the easier it is to budget. Even if the student organization does not have an annual budget budgeting for each activity is a necessity. Budgeting for an organization is like budgeting for a home; estimate your income, decide how much will go into savings, and then develop your estimated expenses. Budgets do not have to be complicated, but strive to finalize a budget that reads like the annual plan. If you choose not to write an annual budget, another option to consider is to write a budget for each project. Example: Annual Student Organization Budget INCOME Dues Income Current members: 20 @ $15.00 each = $300.00 Estimated new members from recruitment drive: 10 @ $15.00 each = $150.00 Fundraising T-shirt sales: 100 shirts @ $5.00 each = $500.00 Pen sales: 250 pens @ $1.00 each = $250.00 Programs Lunch program: 20 people @ $10.00 per person = $200.00 x 3 programs = $600.00 Estimated annual income: $1,800.00 EXPENSES Flyers for Member Recruitment Drive: 100 flyers @ 25 cents each = $25.00 T-shirts for fundraising: 100 shirts at $2.00 each = $200.00 Pens for fundraising: 250 pens @.25 cents each = $62.50 Lunch expense: 60 people @ $5.00 each = $300.00 Estimated annual expenses: $587.50 SAVINGS Deposit to ACHE Congress fund: $500.00 Estimated net income: $712.50
Running Meetings When you are having a meeting of any kind board, committee, or special project it is best to have an agenda as it will keep the meeting on track and the attendees focused. If possible, distribute the agenda, and any materials like draft meeting minutes, prior to the meeting so that everyone knows what will be discussed. Prior preparation by everyone is an aspect of smooth running meetings that should not be overlooked. 1) At the beginning of the meeting, ask if there are any additions to the agenda. If not, do not allow discussion of items not on the agenda (it will distract from the business at hand). 2) No one should speak unless called on by the Chair or the person running the meeting. 3) Set a time limit for your meeting and then assign time limits for each agenda item. Example: Agenda for Student Organization Meeting Meeting time: 10 am 11 am (total meeting time: 60 minutes) Call to order Approval of minutes of last meeting 5 minutes Treasurer s Report 15 minutes Program Committee Report 20 minutes Old Business 10 minutes New Business 10 minutes Adjournment The Chair can appoint a time keeper at each meeting to keep the discussion on track. 4) After each report, ask if there are questions. After questions, open the floor to discussion as needed. 5) Before adjourning the meeting, review responsibilities and assignments, and set a date for the next meeting. 6) After the meeting, send out the minutes or notes as soon as possible, and then follow up on assigned tasks. While having meetings is important, having too many meetings or the wrong kinds of meetings can prevent progress rather than foster it.
Working by Committee Committees are great ways to get things done, and to involve more people in the organization. Assigning specific tasks, like programming, to a committee also keeps everyone focused and allows volunteers to donate varying amounts of time. For example, someone who may want to participate but doesn t have time to be President could work on a committee and take on several smaller tasks that call for just a few hours per month. Ways to keep your committees working smarter, not harder: 1) Make sure each Committee knows exactly what their assignment is. This can be accomplished by writing a one to two sentence mission statement for each committee. Example: The mission of the Programming Committee is to plan three (3) educational sessions per school year. 2) Don t put too many people on a committee. There has to be enough work for everyone so that each member can contribute. 3) Give your committees specific timelines for accomplishing their annual mission. Ask the committee members to write up their own schedule as one of their tasks, but make sure they follow it as closely as possible. 4) These rules apply equally to task forces and working groups. And, there is one very important rule for task forces and working groups: Make sure they have a sunset date, or date that their job is to be completed and the group disbanded. These types of volunteer groups are for very specific jobs and tasks and should not be around for more than one year. If their job is that big, they may need to be a standing committee instead.
Organizing programs Setting up a program can seem overwhelming at first glance, but just answering a few questions will lead to a successful gathering: 1) What: Pick a Topic what does your audience want to hear more about? The topic should be timely, healthcare management related, and substantive. 2) When: Pick a date and time Make sure the program is scheduled at a time when there is the greatest chance for a good turnout. 3) Where: Pick a location will it be on campus or off-site? Once this is decided then choose a room size by estimating attendance, then taking into account if it will be a program with a meal or just refreshments (dinner v. coffee and cookies). 4) Who: Pick a Speaker now that it has been determined what the group wants to learn about, when the program is scheduled, and where it will be held, you can invite a speaker. When inviting a speaker, always be able to tell them all the details, plus if there will be a dinner or lunch. Other details the speaker will be interested in knowing are the estimated number of attendees, audiovisual capabilities, and whether or not handouts will be expected. 5) How: as in How much? To finish planning the program, it is necessary to decide if there will be a fee for attending. Fees for programs are based on covering expenses, such as speaker or room rental fees, or to cover the cost of a meal. If you want to make a profit, then the fee should be slightly higher than the estimated per person cost of just covering expenses. For example, if you just want to cover expenses: Estimated number of attendees: 25 people Room rental fee: $50.00 Lunch fee per person: $20.00 Estimated cost for lunch program: $550.00 Fee per person: $22.00 ($550.00/25) If you want to make a profit: Add $3.00 to the fee for a total of $25.00 per person. This would be an estimated gross of $625.00. Less the estimated program cost of $550.00, the profit is $75.00. A Note about Speaker Expenses In most cases, speakers will not charge a fee to a student organization. However, they may request expense reimbursement, such as parking, gas, or photocopying. Before inviting someone to speak at your program, decide
if the group will reimburse any expenses, and if so, which ones; then remember to share this information with the speaker when he or she is invited.
SAMPLE SPEAKER INVITATION [Date] [Inside Address] RE: Invitation to Speak at the Health Management Student Organization Dear : The Healthcare Management Student Organization at <<Your Local University>> exists to support students preparing for a career in healthcare management. Our organization is five years old and we are a participant in the American College of Healthcare Executives Higher Education Network. One of the many services we provide the members of our organization are programs addressing career development. As part of our monthly series, we would like to invite you to speak at an upcoming meeting. The topic our Program Committee has selected is Will Charity Hospitals Survive? As an expert in non-profit healthcare organizations, you are an excellent choice to address this topic for us. The points our members are most interested in are: *funding for charity hospitals where does it come from? *current economic pressures on fundraising for these institutions *government support for non-profit hospitals *realities of managing such an organization (salary, benefits, resources) This program is scheduled for May 15 at 6 pm, and will be held on campus in the healthcare management department conference room. The presentation should not be longer than one hour; we encourage speakers to present for 45 minutes and take questions for 15 minutes. We hope you will be able to join us as our guest for the networking reception immediately following your presentation. Although we cannot offer a speaking fee, we are happy to reimburse you for any expenses related to your presentation, such as photocopies. Please contact me by April 30 to let me know if you can accept our invitation. My contact information is listed below. Thank you for your consideration. Sincerely, [Signature Block with contact information]
Program Ideas: Establish a weekly or monthly program schedule, then publicize the topics well in advance. Organize a Women in Leadership Forum. As an annual event, plan a Day@Hospital program where students meet with hospital executives. Tour a number of local hospitals during a Bed Crawl. Hold an annual Ethics in the Workplace seminar. Make your Leadership Seminar an annual event, too. Work with the local ACHE chapter to organize an event, such as a golf tournament or an educational session. Student Executive Forums: arrange for students to meet with local health care executives and spend the day at their organization. Brown bags: lunch-time events featuring speakers ranging from resume writing to social issues. Consulting Panel: Invite consultants to speak to students and answer questions about career opportunities in the consulting field. Fellowship Panel: Invite alumni in post-graduate administrative fellowships to discuss their experiences and career path. ACHE Tip: Demographics Know your audience Each healthcare management program is as unique as an individual. In order to provide the best programming or services, learn about your audience. Some programs are for undergraduates, others have graduatelevel only. Are they working adults with families, attending school part-time? If so, then programs may need to be held on weekends or in the evenings. Undergraduates attending the program full-time may have more flexible schedules and thus the ability to attend morning activities. It all depends on who makes up the student body; ask questions, find out what sort of lives your students lead, what interests them as they prepare for their career, then deliver the services they ask for at times that are convenient. Social Events While healthcare management student groups are focused on studying and career development, don t forget to have some fun! Social events are an important rung in the networking ladder, and the student group can organize these sorts of events on campus or in conjunction with the local ACHE Chapter. Suggestions for social events include: end of semester parties rock climbing we survived exams parties wine and cheese socials baseball games bowling Student/Alumni Mixers
Fundraising Fundraising is another way to supplement the student group s income without charging members for every little thing. The goals do not have to be large amounts of cash (like endowing a wing at the University), but there should be targets in mind for total cash and a timeline to facilitate planning. For example: The Project: raise funds to supplement student travel to ACHE Congress The Goal: $5,000.00 Timeline: Congress is in March; the fall semester starts in September Six months to raise the money Efforts to raise funds will include: October: Annual educational conference and alumni dinner November: Thanksgiving Bake Sale December: T-shirt sale January: Back-to-school rummage sale February: Valentine s Day Flower Sale March: St. Patrick s Day Luncheon