Here is what Rotarians think about Rotary's strengths and challenges

I have decided to restart this blog to try to provide useful information for those in Rotary and in our communities about the huge amount of work and information that is available about Rotary.  How many people in our communities or indeed in our Rotary Clubs know about our ambitions and achievements as Rotarians?

A sample of Rotarians are surveyed at least every three years for strategic planning purposes. Here is what they had to say in 2017. Source: https://my.rotary.org/en/document/strategic-plan-survey-results-2017

"The survey, in reviewing respondents’ experiences with Rotary, revealed these strengths:

• Rotarians generally find the friendship and fellowship that they seek in Rotary, particularly through in-person club meetings. 
• Rotarians strongly prefer Rotary’s type of long-term membership. 
• Most respondents feel that Rotary gives them an opportunity to make a positive impact on their community and the world. 
• Participants’ descriptions of an ideal organization’s membership are considerably consistent with Rotary’s actual membership. (Although Rotary’s membership lacks full age and gender diversity, most Rotarians do not seek gender and age parity in their clubs). 
• Rotarians are interested in an organization that addresses a wide variety of causes rather than a single cause. 
• The most popular causes among Rotarians are mostly covered by Rotary’s areas of focus and PolioPlus. 
• Because their Rotary experience more or less matches their ideals, most Rotarians are engaged and intend to remain members, both short- and long-term. 

The results also reveal some challenges:

• Younger Rotarians, female Rotarians, Rotaractors, and alumni desire a higher percentage of younger and female members than Rotary now has. 
• Transparency and accountability are top priorities, but a quarter of respondents say Rotary lags in this area. Questions about Rotary, overall and within clubs, indicate that ineffective communication methods contribute to transparency complaints. 
• More strategic planning by Rotary clubs might improve members’ satisfaction and their optimism for Rotary’s future. 
• A significant percentage of Rotarians are frustrated with the pace of change. 
• Not only Rotaractors and alumni but also a growing number of Rotarians choose the environment as a chief cause for their ideal organization. 
• Many Rotarians would like their clubs to take part in more community service and international service projects. 
• Results suggest that some clubs do a poor job of involving Rotarians in projects and activities, which can lead to member disengagement and attrition."   

RIP Ian Riseley (2017-18) and Rotary NZ & Pacific Islands leaders plant a tree in March 2018 in support of the environment - identified in the survey as a chief cause for Rotarians' ideal organisation.