Our Rotary new year has just begun and we’re in the thick of changeover season. That’s when the Family of Rotary celebrates the past year, welcomes new leadership to office and recognizes the fine efforts of those who’ve gone the extra yard in the past Rotary year.
Our recognition of Rotary achievers is made on the basis of some extraordinary performance by the recipients. Many of the presentations have been shared on social media, newsletters, websites and elsewhere. Whilst the images of these presentations tell part of the story, what is often lacking is an explanation of what the recognition is for. The inclusion of a meaningful citation is essential to convey the true meaning of an award. Often that can be achieved within a couple of sentences, but for a major award, more detail is appropriate if others are to understand the relevance of the contribution.
We should also consider the broader opportunities associated with the recognition of fine performance by our members. Rotary is an organisation of professionals and community leaders, many of whom are in the process of developing or redeveloping careers. A lot of those members share their abilities and aspirations via social media, with LinkedIn being a very popular option.
LinkedIn provides the opportunity to recommend the skills and abilities of others. One can quickly endorse a listed skill, or provide a brief recommendation. It’s this opportunity to provide a recommendation that we should use to share the achievements of our members more widely.
By providing a recommendation to a professional member, we achieve two things:
- By recommending our Rotary achievers publicly, we define the recipient as a skilled and motivated person who gives back to our community.
- We also help define our Rotary as an organisation that provides opportunities for community service and to develop relevant skills and connections. A real win-win!
I’ve provided a several recommendations on LinkedIn, most recently for the four Rotarians on Social Networks Fellowship Board members to whom I awarded presidential citations in June 2014.
By providing these recommendations, we strengthen the connections within our own great Rotary network. That’s really important in a time-poor society where people often have to prioritize the causes they want to commit to. Think member retention!
Kero O’Shea
Membership Director Rotary District 9465
& Past Chair 2013-14
Rotarians on Social Networks Fellowship