Transition
Why is transition so important?
In order to help your student organization thrive from year to year, it is essential to adequately transition the incoming officers. The new officers need to be fully briefed on the operations of your student organization, the Student Activities Center, the Marvin Center as well as University policies.
Remember: you can always refer to the Student Organization Handbook, as well as contact your SAT Advisor if you have any questions.
Thorough leadership transition has several benefits:
- Provides for transfer of significant organizational knowledge
- Minimizes the confusion of leadership changeover
- Gives outgoing leaders a sense of closure
- Utilizes the valuable contributions of experienced leaders, usually the most neglected members of your group
- Helps incoming leadership absorb the special expertise of the outgoing leadership
- Increases the knowledge and confidence of the new leadership
- Minimizes the loss of momentum and accomplishments for the group
When do you start the transition? EARLY!!!
- Begin early in the year to identify emerging leader(s)
- Encourage these potential leaders through personal contact; help in developing skills, delegating responsibilities to them, sharing with them the personal benefits of leadership, clarifying job responsibilities, letting them know that transition will be orderly and thorough, and last, modeling an open, encouraging leadership style.
- When new officers have been elected, orient them together as a group with all of the outgoing officers. This process will provide the new leaders with an opportunity to understand each other’s roles and start building their leadership team.
Prior to transitioning, outgoing officers should:
- Revise office position description
- Clean out/organize officer notebook/files
- Write a year-end report including a summary of major projects, programs and events, challenges faced, outcomes and suggestions for future planning
- Make sure all records, reports, and bills are filed and up to date
What do you need to transfer?
Think back to your first weeks. What could you have used to do your job better? Some suggestions are:
- A complete record of the organization’s structure, goals, and accomplishments:
- Constitution and by-laws
- Organization purpose and mission
- Organizational goals and objectives for previous years
- Updated Officer descriptions/role clarification
- Status reports on ongoing projects
- Evaluations of previous projects and programs
- Minutes for previous 3 years
- Resources/contact lists with addresses, emails and phone numbers
- Financial records for previous 5 years
- Mailing list
- Events that happen every year
- Written reports containing information on:
- Traditions, ideas or completed projects; continuing projects and concerns; ideas never carried out
- Personal notes and organizational files
- Office procedures
- Instructions on equipment use, computers and other supplies
- Introduction to personnel (advisors, administrators, contacts, etc)
- Budget:
- Be sure to update the budget at the end of the year. The new officers should contact the Student Association at 202-994-7100 to inquire about when the budget process will begin. New officers should try to consult with past officers when applying for funds.
- Officer Meeting:
- Each outgoing officer should meet at least once with their corresponding incoming officer. The outgoing officer should go over the responsibilities of his/her position with the incoming officer.
- Set up an Advisor Meeting:
- The new officers should meet together with the SAT advisor. They should introduce themselves and decide together what expectations the organization and advisor have of each other.
Your SAT Advisor is available for tips on how to execute a smooth transition
