I have noticed that a number of membership organisations are starting to live stream their AGM over the internet. This is a good way to enable more of your members to get involved in your AGM.

Neal Patel, Head of Corporate Communications from the Royal Pharmaceutical Society, kindly agreed to talk about their recent experience of live streaming their AGM.

About the Royal Pharmaceutical Society
The Royal Pharmaceutical Society is the professional body for pharmacists and pharmacy in England, Scotland and Wales

Why live stream our AGM?
As a membership body we are committed to being transparent and open with our 41,000 members. By streaming this event it allowed those unable to join us for the evening in person, the opportunity to attend online ensuring that the Society’s annual report was accessible to each and every member across the UK.

How did we do it?
We outsourced the filming of the event to a local AV company who also streamed it via their software through the secure area of our website. The set up was fairly simple with two cameras filming the action, sitting alongside the AGM’s presentation to emulate what was happening live in the conference room. The event was promoted through the Pharmaceutical Journal, e-newsletters and on the front page of our website.

At the start of the event we asked the live and online audience to use a specific Twitter hash tag. We monitored Twitter and answered both technical and policy questions as the AGM progressed.

What were the results?
Members joined us from all over Great Britain and our open and transparent reputation was enhanced. Feedback included “I think this use of IT will increase the amount of people engaging in business and developments at RPS and is excellent – well done! “

What do you think?
Have you considered live streaming your AGM? Have you already done it? What tips would you give other membership bodies considering it? Do leave a comment below or contact me.

Most membership organisations have a Board of Trustees which is comprised of members, and there is generally an election process to decide who sits on that Board.

Encouraging members to step forward as contenders for the Board is often a struggle. Having been involved in increasing interest in Board elections with various membership organisations, I wanted to share a few things I have learnt:

Be clear about the process
You need to explain to your members the process of the Board elections, why they matter and how they can get involved. Make sure the nomination form is really clear and they are guided through how to complete it.

Don’t assume that because you do this every year, all your members will understand or remember from last year.

Be clear about the level of commitment being on the Board involves
Outline what is involved and how much time your Trustees typically give.

Use friendly language
The notice of the AGM usually requires formal language. However, you should try to explain the Board election and vacancy process in lay terms. Nothing scares members off like lots of formal language!

I think it is worth contrasting this nomination form from Mencap to your own. Theirs is purposefully clear because of some of their audience, but I think it shows that you can write about a formal process in an easy to follow way.

Use your existing Board members
For some members, the Board could be a distant concept that they don’t really understand. Use your current Board members to bring a human element to your communications. They can give a statement outlining why they stood for election, what they do on the board and what they get out of it. This can help demystify the process for other members. It doesn’t have to be a written statement, you could video them.

Remove barriers
If your governance structure requires that members standing for election are supported by another member, then consider offering to facilitate a connection.

Offer contact with your CEO/Chair
If members who are considering standing have questions, then you should encourage them to contact the relevant senior person. Typically, this is the CEO, or it could be the Chair.

Conclusion
Members are more willing to put themselves forward if you communicate to them in a way that appeals to them. The approach to elections can be something that organisations do in the same way each year, try something different and you’ll be surprised at the result.