What do volunteers want and need in a Scouting Professional at the district and council levels keep this positive

[InquisitiveScouter]

1 minute ago, Ojoman said:

I have seen local people come in and do an awesome job in part because they have a head start on knowing the territory. I could elaborate but there is the 'short' version. 

And they have "skin in the game".  Please continue with the long version.

[Ojoman]

6 minutes ago, InquisitiveScouter said:

And they have "skin in the game".  Please continue with the long version.

My vigil honor name translates to 'likes to talk', after this it may be changed to 'likes to write'... lol 

I'll make this 'personal'. I started as a professional in Penn's Woods Council out of Johnstown, Pa. I did my youth scouting in the Pittsburgh area. After 3 years I was promotable and went to New Jersey but had family reasons to return to Western Pa and Harry Mangle in Johnstown offered me a position with a considerable raise. My Scout Exec in NJ had me resign my position to accept the new post and then had the NE region block the move. I ended up going to the Pittsburgh Council with a slight cut in pay but now I was in my old stomping grounds. I did quite well but a year later was offered a position as a youth counselor at a correction facility. More pay, regular hours and I was engaged so I made the jump (still had my nose out of joint over the blocked move). Long story short, 8 years later, with kids in cubs the new Scout Exec invited me back into the profession. I took over another district and rebuilt it. I don't count my success as being due to being a local but rather to my prior training and experience including college. The moral, it really doesn't matter if you are local or not if you have the tools and motivation to do the job. 

[InquisitiveScouter]

6 minutes ago, Ojoman said:

My vigil honor name translates to 'likes to talk', after this it may be changed to 'likes to write'... lol 

LOL, mine is "Loud Talker" (a reference to my "command voice"... military types will know what I mean...), maybe should be "Loud Writer", if there was such a thing...

8 minutes ago, Ojoman said:

My Scout Exec in NJ had me resign my position to accept the new post and then had the NE region block the move.

Now, why, on Earth, would he do such a thing?

9 minutes ago, Ojoman said:

The moral, it really doesn't matter if you are local or not if you have the tools and motivation to do the job. 

At the DE level, agreed.  But I am of the opinion that an SE would be much more effective if they were a locally-connected person.  Most funding for a council comes from local sources, right?  As a local corporate entity, I am much more likely to give my money to someone with "skin in the game", as alluded to earlier...

[Ojoman]

9 minutes ago, InquisitiveScouter said:

Now, why, on Earth, would he do such a thing

Short version, pissed off that I was leaving... I had renewed the FOS program at FT. Dix for $5,000 and he wanted me to stay and work the same thing at McGuire AFB. This was back in the mid 70's and that was a lot of $$$$ It was payback of a sort. 

[Ojoman]

12 minutes ago, InquisitiveScouter said:

But I am of the opinion that an SE would be much more effective if they were a locally-connected person. 

An SE goes through his contacts pretty fast... It's the board that needs direction and ought to be opening doors to donors. I've seen new SE's move mountains, again, if they have the tools, skill and motivation... also, there is a lot more to the SE position which includes directing membership programs and overseeing a dynamic program calendar. New Blood, New Ideas, a new set of eyes on the operation. Having said that, a really solid, productive DE, SE or other staff member is worth whatever it takes to keep them. In the 80's I knew a Scout Exec that bragged he was paying a DE over $40 (at that time some SE's weren't making much more) but they guy just about walked on water. The SE felt it was a positive investment. No other council was going to try to steal him away at that cost. 

Personally, I wish there were fewer relocations for the families sake. I wish pay scales were better for the DE's and that the 3 years and move on mentality didn't exist. 

[OaklandAndy]

17 hours ago, Ojoman said:

not be an arrogant and condescending person in communication

This goes for volunteers as well. Sometimes they can be just as bad. 

[BetterWithCheddar]

I have a good relationship with my DE. If I text him, he will respond within an hour without fail. Even though he works evenings and weekends for what I'm sure amounts to less than $15/hour, he always makes volunteers feel acknowledged and appreciated. If we see him at a district or council event, he greets my son and I by name.

[Ojoman]

3 hours ago, BetterWithCheddar said:

I have a good relationship with my DE. If I text him, he will respond within an hour without fail. Even though he works evenings and weekends for what I'm sure amounts to less than $15/hour, he always makes volunteers feel acknowledged and appreciated. If we see him at a district or council event, he greets my son and I by name.

Be sure if you speak to his superior or council exec to let them know how much he is appreciated. Volunteer feedback is valuable... Thanks for the post!

[Tron]

On 12/6/2023 at 7:54 AM, OaklandAndy said:

This goes for volunteers as well. Sometimes they can be just as bad. 

In my experience they are the worst; especially people who end up as a committee chair for too long. God complex is an understatement. 

[Scoutmaster Teddy]

I've been honored to work with our present Council Exec (Jonathan Cartner) and their predecessor (Jeff Doty). The DE's that stay for a while have been excellent. I can't say enough for the council board and leadership. As a DC I've been invited to quite a few council board meetings and I've contributed to the council SWOT analyses, 

Dean

[swilliams]

On 12/4/2023 at 10:51 AM, Ojoman said:

Perhaps if more volunteers understood the demands of the job coupled with low pay they might appreciate their DE more. Also, with the national decline in volunteerism (in all areas, not just BSA) DE's are finding themselve trying to do what used to be volunteer functions just to hold a district together. There is no question that district volunteer manpower should be a major concern. Of course very few units these days have adequate manpower even at that level. 

Hopefully this doesn't veer into the negative, but...  I don't know who our DE is.  I don't know who our Unit Commissioner is.  I don't know what they do.  I've never seen them outside of maybe once when one came to give a FOS presentation, though that could have been anyone.  I used to know who the SE was, but that was only because I worked in the scout shop for a while, which was housed where Council's office is.  It's hard to even try to tell you what volunteers want to see, when we see nothing to begin with.

[Ojoman]

24 minutes ago, swilliams said:

Hopefully this doesn't veer into the negative, but...  I don't know who our DE is. 

I would hope that means your unit is healthy/strong and not in need of intervention. Perhaps a recent change of DE? In your position do you attend roundtables or district events? COR's are also part of the District Committee and those meetings are open to unit scouters to attend. In a large district it may take awhile for the DE to get around and meet everyone. I would hope you soon have a working knowledge of your DE but on the most positive of conditions.

[InquisitiveScouter]

1 hour ago, swilliams said:

Hopefully this doesn't veer into the negative, but...  I don't know who our DE is.  I don't know who our Unit Commissioner is.  I don't know what they do.  I've never seen them outside of maybe once when one came to give a FOS presentation, though that could have been anyone.  I used to know who the SE was, but that was only because I worked in the scout shop for a while, which was housed where Council's office is.  It's hard to even try to tell you what volunteers want to see, when we see nothing to begin with.

You bring up a great point!  You have to "know what right looks like" before you can imitate it...

This is why good leaders create a vision of success for their teams.  The leader sets what "right looks like", and then has to communicate that vision to the team, and lead them toward it.

If your council organization is floundering (and it sounds like it is) you don't really have a good model of what "right looks like" 

And, I have met many a professional who does not know what right looks like... we can teach them, too (if they are teachable, but that is another post.)

That is one of the great uses of this forum.  There are folks here who have seen the magic of what right looks like...  And it is a beautiful thing to behold.

BUT, it takes WORK to keep it right!!  There is no vehicle on land, no ship at sea, no plane in the air, nor craft in space that doesn't require constant vigilance, checking, and maintenance by her crew.  The same is true for our organizations.  When an organization reaches a "somewhat" state of excellence, its decline is inevitable if the leaders  "rest on their laurels" or people in the organization just want to rest on the work of others.

This is one big contributing factor to why organizations fail.  There must be an attitude of constant improvement through training, accountability, humility, sharing of leadership and followership, and transparency...

An Air Force pilot gave a great TED talk on this...  see link below for an approx. 10 minute video.  [I would have an idea correction for him... change "perfectionism" to "excellence". ] (And, btw, this culture is prevalent in ALL Air Force flying squadrons, not just the fighter squadrons 😜 )

https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=YErxkPyPP8M&ab_channel=TEDxTalks

 

[Eagle94-A1]

1 hour ago, InquisitiveScouter said:

You bring up a great point!  You have to "know what right looks like" before you can imitate it...

And, I have met many a professional who does not know what right looks like... we can teach them, too (if they are teachable, but that is another post.)

You can only teach them if they are allowed, and they can only do it right if they are encouraged to do so. Sadly I have met too many Pros who have not cared how stuff is done as long as they meet goals. Does anyone remember the Greater Alabama Council anyone?

[InquisitiveScouter]

17 hours ago, Eagle94-A1 said:

You can only teach them if they are allowed, and they can only do it right if they are encouraged to do so. Sadly I have met too many Pros who have not cared how stuff is done as long as they meet goals. Does anyone remember the Greater Alabama Council anyone?

https://www.parentadvocates.org/nicecontent/dsp_printable.cfm?articleID=6970