The Online Club phenomenon is travelling at the speed of light! In just nine months Toastmasters has birthed seven new online clubs; while two more pre-charter clubs are gestating. There was a great deal of celebration during those months as online leadership groups began to emerge in social media and online club hopping became a trend. Online executive teams developed new ways of club management online and online club membership grew exponentially. We now have an overall membership in chartered online clubs of 160+ with several dual memberships of two or more online clubs. Online clubs are developing teams of executives – including those who fulfil an assistant role.
Now we are getting somewhere! Perhaps in 2017 we will reach ‘critical mass’ and have a stronger presence among the 119 clubs in District U.
Teams of online club executives are meeting together to discuss the dynamic nature of Toastmaster Online Club experiences. The Online Alliance emerges!
PURPOSE OF ONLINE ALLIANCE!
Collaborative support team for inter-club communication, education and strategic planning for Online Toastmasters Clubs
A social media presence was established and key players were invited in to share ideas and advice on all things ‘online club officers’ should know. This group has now grown to 40+ members.
ALLIANCE ISSUES
The first Online Alliance Council meeting was held on November 20/21 in the GoToMeeting space hosted by the Firebirds Collective. Club officers and leaders began the process of forming a new community and shaping the future of their alliance. Several agenda items were discussed and among them these significant issues emerged.
- INTER-CLUB ONLINE CONTESTS
- ONLINE TRAINING
- PATHWAYS FOR ONLINE CLUBS
- ONLINE ALLIANCE VISION, MISSION AND WEB PRESENCE
We are moving ahead on the idea of Online Contests and this has sparked some interesting debate about the type of contests, how to host, chair and judge them. The first inter-club contest is being planned for February 2017 and will be hosted by the Witty Storytellers Online.
We are keen to design, host and facilitate a series of Online Training opportunities for Online Club Officers and that is where our next main focus will be for the new teams of online club officers in 2017. The Alliance is currently supporting teams of resource developers who are focused on specific aspects of such online training.
The new Pathways program, due for release in 2017, will have significant impact and importance for online clubs and their members. The Alliance includes several members who are current Ambassadors who will form a small team to discuss what Online Clubs will need from the Pathways Guides.
We continue to discuss the vision and mission for the Online Alliance in our social media group and small teams of Technology Managers are now emerging to consider how and where the Alliance should have a web presence.
The next Online Alliance meeting is being planned for a 15/16 January 2017 schedule and will be hosted by the Great White North Online.
If you are a club officer or assistant club officer for an online club, please contact Carole McCulloch for access to the current Online Alliance social media group.
