Orientation session for IABC incoming chapter presidents Presented at the 2013 annual International Leadership Institute in Phoenix, AZ (USA),

1. February 8th, 2013 IABC Leadership Institute 1
Presidents Orientation Session
Your Time to Shine:
Tips to Make Your Mark
as a Chapter President
February 8th, 2013

2. February 8th, 2013 IABC Leadership Institute 2
Session Objectives
To provide you with simple tools and tips (experience based
guidelines)
To help you leverage experience from past chapter presidents
and leaders
To offer resources that will boost your confidence!
To help you have some fun in the job!

3. February 8th, 2013 IABC Leadership Institute 3
Agenda
The Chapter Presidency
President-Elect: Two tips to maximize preparation
President: Seven tips (and some fun meeting ideas) to help drive
passion, production and results
Where to Seek Help: Available Resources
International
Regional
Local

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President-Elect
What are you doing to prepare?

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President-Elect: Key Tips
1. Evaluate the incoming board!
Compare notes with current president about board structure
and effectiveness. What’s working? What isn’t? Why?
(Recommended mid-term)
Talk with current/departing board members about their roles.
What’s working? What isn’t? Why? (This assumes board
transition reports not already in place / recommended mid- to
late-term)
Evaluate pending vacancies and required skills, which aids
recruiting by nominations committee (Mid- to late-term)
Revise and clarify board member job descriptions as
necessary to fit skills and strategic needs!

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President-Elect: Key Tips
2. Prepare your goals!
What do you really want to accomplish as president?
Focus on 1-3 goals (Recommended late-term)
How do your goals match with chapter’s strategic objectives,
board talent, and the chapter’s overall market environment?
(Recommended late-term)
Ask yourself: “Will these goals move the sticks?”
Identify potential successor(s) and develop those
relationships! Succession planning is critical.

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The Chapter Presidency
What challenges and opportunities do you anticipate?

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The Presidency: Key Tips
1. Get your board on board!
Focus on relationships. Help new/carryover board members get
to know each other (board retreat, luncheon, etc.)
Focus on planning. Based on analysis of the past year, using
some of your president-elect conversations (or board transition
reports) as a discussion guide.
Focus on strategy: Introduce your board priorities and invite
conversation on how they support/don’t support overall goals.
Leave with consensus on a strategic framework for the year.
(Recommended first month of term)
Be aware of cultural nuances when managing an international
board!

9. February 8th, 2013 IABC Leadership Institute 9
The Presidency: Key Tips
2. Set clear expectations!
Strategic expectations: focus on board/individual
accountability to goals and how those elements will be
measured. Be clear and consistent.
(Recommended first month)
Procedural expectations: focus on schedule/attendance for
board meetings, networking and professional development
events, cell/smart phone use in meetings, etc.

10. The Presidency: Key Tips
3. Balance passion, practicality!
Passion is a valuable tool. As chapter president, you set the
tone. Want better member outreach, better PD offerings or
improved financial results? You can use passion to set that
tone.
When used well, passion creates energy, fosters a culture of
accountability and gives you a personal stake in
board/chapter performance.
But . . . don’t overreach. Remember, it’s a fine line between
dictating and leading. Temper passion with realism and
humanity. A little self-deprecating humor works, too!
February 8th, 2013 IABC Leadership Institute 10

11. February 8th, 2013 IABC Leadership Institute 11
The Presidency: Key Tips
4. Handle board conflict!
Almost every president has (at least one) unpleasant surprise.
Be proactive. If you pick up signals that board conflict is
brewing, get to the source.
Be fair. If an issue involves dueling board members, hear
both sides before taking action.
Be assertive. If something blows up in a board meeting, call
time out. Then, set a time to facilitate discussion/resolution
elsewhere.

12. February 8th, 2013 IABC Leadership Institute 12
The Presidency: Key Tips
5. Reward board accomplishments!
Be social. Periodically, consider buying lunch or coffee for
individual board members as a “thank you” for their efforts.
Be consistent. At each board meeting, recognize “wins” by
board members and their teams. Make sure these are
recorded in meeting minutes.
Be creative. At the end of a board year, consider little gifts
that speak to a board member’s specific accomplishments.
Or, consider fun forms of recognition at meetings and events.
Be promotional. Provide visibility & recognition to your board
members at PD events or via online platforms (LinkedIn, etc.)

13. February 8th, 2013 IABC Leadership Institute 13
The Presidency: Key Tips
6. Conduct transition reports!
Ask about strategic accomplishments. Allow all board
members to share specific views on what worked/didn’t work
during the board year (and why).
Ask about the experience. Were board members pleased/not
pleased with their time on the chapter board (and why).
Ask for recommendations and nominations. Encourage board
members to make specific suggestions for improvement and
to recommend promising committee/volunteer members for
consideration as future board leaders.

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The Presidency: Key Tips
7. Have a (non-IABC) life!
Being chapter president is not a 24/7 commitment!
Learn to delegate. Represent the chapter at major events or
activities. You don’t need to attend every event.
Learn to back off. You don’t need regular involvement in
every board committee or portfolio. Let your VPs/portfolio
leads do their jobs. If you don’t have VPs/portfolio leads,
consider expanding the board structure and volunteer pool.
Learn to set boundaries. Create your own personal plan to
allocate time for family, paid work, personal activities and
IABC.

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The Presidency: Fun Ideas
One president cooked a meal for each chapter board meeting
(trust us, it wasn’t McDonald’s).
Another president started meetings with a review of positive
chapter happenings and public “thank yous” to all involved.
Another leader anointed a “Cheesehead of the Month” for a
board member or portfolio lead who had achieved success.
Yet another leader used fun icebreakers to open meetings
(i.e., what’s the one thing you’ve done in life that other board
members would be surprised to know about?”)
Finally, one president made a point of involving her board in
quarterly public service activities (i.e., soup kitchen support,
school reading programs, etc.).

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Where To Seek Help
Quiz Time!

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International: Key Resources
Presidents Orientation Kit
http://www.iabc.com/leaders/presorientationkit.htm
Leader Center’s Presidents Guide
http://www.iabc.com/leaders/presguide.htm
IABC Staff
http://www.iabc.com/about/staff/
Chapter & Regional Leaders
http://www.iabc.com/about/leaders/
Presidents eXchange
http://presidents.x.iabc.com
Presidents Calls

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IABC Regions: Key Resources
Online resources. All IABC region websites have contact
information for regional leaders. Remember, most regional
leaders have substantial chapter-level board experience!
Chapter advocates or liaisons. Some region boards have
designated members whose main role is chapter leader
support. For example, Pacific Plains has five chapter
advocates, who support 19 regional chapter leaders.
Regional chapter leader workshops. Like LI, some regions
also produce their own chapter leader development
workshops, hosted one or two times each year.
IABC Council of Regions. This group is the conduit between
chapter leader concerns and International processes.

19. IABC Local: Key Resources
Past presidents. Former chapter presidents are a wealth of
local knowledge, insight and chapter history. They’ve also sat
in the chair you now occupy. Put their knowledge to work!
Members and former members. Want to know what’s working
/ not working in chapter activities? ASK. This can be a formal
survey, or far less formal coffee meetings or other casual
outreach. chapter leaders.
Related trade association leaders. PRSA, AMA, YP, WIC,
AdFed…While IABC competes with those (and other) trade
groups for members and resources, local market leaders
often have common concerns. Talk with them. You might be
surprised what you learn (and can get inspired from)!
February 8th, 2013 IABC Leadership Institute 19

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Questions?
Claudia Vaccarone
President, IABC France
http://france.iabc.com
Board Member, IABC Europe, Middle
East and North Africa (EMENA)
http://europe.iabc.com
Head of Market Research &
Customer Experience
Eutelsat SA
Paris, FRANCE
Mobile +33 6 77 35 34 03
cvaccarone@eutelsat.com
Brett Pyrtle
Board Chair, IABC Pacific Plains Region
http://pacificplains.iabc.com
Past President, IABC Minnesota
http://mn.iabc.com/
Principal
Turning Point Communications LLC
St. Paul, MN (USA)
651.592.6369 (office/mobile)
brett@turnpointcomm.com
www.turnpointcomm.com

21. February 8th, 2013 IABC Leadership Institute 21
Presidents Orientation Session