Committee vs Leader

[Scoutfish]

Okay, this might be the wrong forum for this question, so I apologize if that is the case.

 

I have a hypothetical question:

A leader cannot also be on a committee position ie; Your CubMaster cannot be the Committee Chair.

 

But lets inject a little bit of " REAL WORLD" vs "what we wish it was like"

.

You know what I mean? I know, that you know, that after all meetings, camp outs, fundraisers, or whatever, there is always that small handfull of people who stick around to help out. 9 times out of 10, they are also the ones who helped set up to start with. They are also the ones who ran around getting the wood, cutting the wood, and making patterns and what not for the Cub .

 

Opps! I forgot to mention that this is on the Cub Scout level. Sorry!

 

So anyways, you know from your own experience...it's always gonna be the same handful of people doing the work, or as I heard 20% working for the other 80% !

And in the same line of reality,. most of the people who do this, also happen to be your den leaders, asst Den leaders, Cub Master, asst Cub Master. etc.. on down the line.

 

Sure, you gain a parent or two each year, but also lose one or two due to a Cub crossing over to Boy Scout.

So here's my question:

Is there a time and place where you just have to say :"Hey, I can't help the rules, I have to serve more than one function or position in order for this pack to function!"

 

I mean, we all want to do what's best for the pack, the boys and everybody involved, but if only the same 12 to 15 people ever step up, and they all just happen to fill all the roles of leaders..what do you do?

(This message has been edited by scoutfish)

[John-in-KC]

You work to bring more parents in, by asking them to help with things. Start with small stuff ... snacks to the den meeting, or driving to an event. Then ask them to do slightly bigger things, like coordinate a Pack visit to the fire station, or maybe participation in the Memorial Day/Independence Day parade.

 

Maybe Mary is an IT professional, and you ask her to do systems maintenance, or help with online recharter or internet advancement...

 

Then you set the hook and ask them to join the Committee or the leadership side.

 

It's all about people, relationships , and friendships aborning

 

 

[ManyHats]

On paper verses reality are two different things.

On paper I'm registered as a Committee Member, but in reality I serve as Webelos Den Leader, Assistant Cubmaster and Treasurer

None of our committee members are just committee members. We do keep a checks and balances. Committee Chair, Cubmaster and Treasurer are all separate, so you have at least 3 people discussing budget and finances. Oh I forgot the Chartered Organization Rep is a separate person as well.

[ManyHats]

As John said - asking people to help is key

They may have no desire to join the committee, but every little bit helps. I know what parents I can count on for cookies, clean-up etc.

Don't try to do every thing your self or you will burn-out at some point.

[scoutingagain]

As ManyHats acknowledges there are many units where adults are serving in dual roles. Usually one lead role and then maybe an asst. role. I.e. CM and Asst. Weblos Den leader.

 

There are some dual roles that should not be allowed period as they would tend to concentrate too much authority (and responsiblity) in one person. i.e. CM + Committee Chair, Or Committee Chair + Treasurer, or CM + Treasurer. I would also hesitate to have a Den Leader also be the CM or CC as all three positions really require someone to concentrate on the roles and responsibility of that position as a lead position. I think they could effectively help out as an asst. den leader though.

 

SA

[TWOMORROWS]

Quite often "new" or "uninvolved" parents would like to do something to help, but feel slightly intimidated or left out. A way to draw them in is to partner two of them up. Example can the two of your coordinate and bring a cooler and ice? Then hand each of them a piece of paper and pen and suggest, "why don't y'all exchange information and we will see you both at 8am Saturday"

[John-in-KC]

Oh, by the way, from collective painful experience:

 

Couples should not be combinations of:

 

COR+CC

COR+CM/SM/ADV

CC+CM/SM/ADV

COR+Treasurer

CC+Treasurer

CM/SM/ADV+Treasurer

 

Nothing in writing, but keeps appearances of conflicts from raising their heads.

[Lisabob]

A couple of comments...

 

1) Yes, this happens a lot in the "real" world.

 

2) But there are some lines that really ought not to be crossed. The CM ought NOT to hold ANY other position. You risk burning out a great CM and/or creating a very serious and potentially unhealthy concentration of power by doing this. Same goes (in my view) for the CC. A lot of times, people in Cub packs do not fully understand the potential authority that the CC holds, particularly in packs where the CO is uninvolved. The CC should not take on other roles because they'll get burned out too, and/or end up crowding out other volunteers.

 

3) Spouses are often easy marks for volunteers. I'm the CC so you (dear hubby/wife) will be the CM, or treasurer, etc. Be careful about power/authority combos here, too. CC/CM and CC/treasurer spouses are not usually a good idea. Think about accountability, and think about what happens if/when that whole family leaves the pack.

 

4) It becomes easy to just "do it myself" because then you know that it will get done. Constantly bringing in new people (as is the necessity in cub packs where there's a lot of churn from year to year) can be exhausting, and you risk getting burned by people who SAY they want to help, but then don't actually do the work. I've been there, and fallen victim to this mentality.

 

The down side is that, as a small group takes on more and more of the burden, they get burned out. Other potential volunteers feel intimidated ("gee I'd like to help, but look at how over-burdened Mrs. Smith is...I wouldn't enjoy/couldn't do that so I'll just keep quiet"). And eventually, that core group of leaders leaves the program (for boy scouts, or just drops from scouting entirely). Then you have a vacuum and the pack is at risk of falling apart. This happens a lot, despite good intentions.

 

So. You have a committee member who is also a den leader? Well stuff happens and the real world isn't an ideal place. But be really careful about putting multiple hats on people, or allowing them to take on too many hats, even if they can, they want to, and they are good at it. It isn't in the long-term interest of the pack to allow it.

 

 

[dg98adams]

The thing with most Cub leaders (whatever position) by the time they figure out the position, they are about ready to "age out".

 

This isn't the case when you have a leader with more than 1 Cub.

 

When you have a strong pack, that doesn't work to constantly bring in new leaders/positions..... it seems to suffer all at once when the strong leaders transition.

 

So the key is have a plan to work with new parents (prospective leaders) all year long.

 

 

[ScoutNut]

I would not look for BSA to change their restrictions on registering in more than one position any time in the forseeable future.

 

Yes, in the "real world" many folks, while being registered in only one position, wear multiple hats. However, your Pack's leadership should be leary of putting to much onto one person. A person who is loaded down with to much, often does none of the jobs really well, and the program then suffers.

 

As others have said, the "cure" is to work hard at getting more parents involved.

 

Getting parents to help out depends strongly on getting them invested in the Cub Scout program. This is where utilizing the Tiger program's Shared Leadership can help a lot.

 

Get those new families excited about what they are doing with their Tiger sons. Let them find out that working with the den/Pack is not a chore, and can even be FUN! Get them invested in the program, and make it so that it is almost second nature to chip in and help.

 

These are your future unit leaders. Start cultivating them now.