The Strength of a BNI Chapter Lies in A Strong Tripod (Part 2 of 3)

Welcome to Part 2 of the sharing. In Part 1, we spoke about the importance of leadership being the first leg of a strong tripod that supports a growing chapter. Today, we will study into the second leg, which is system. If we study different organisations around us, we will realise that there is one common characteristic in organisations that are long-lasting. By being long-lasting, I mean the organisation can last longer than any of its members, and even after many many rounds of changes in the people . Some examples would be “national organisations” like the Singapore Government, MNCs like General Electric or even local companies like Eu Yan Sang. Another well-known company with a good system in place is McDonalds because they are able to reproduce the same concept and customer experience wherever they choose to set up shop.

Similarly, for a BNI Chapter to be strong and to be lasting, there has to be systems in place. This is especially we always have members joining us and leaving us and leadership team and committees changes every 6 months. The best reflection of a good system in place is simply when every member in the organisation knows who exactly what to do without being told. Having a good system in place is also why BNI continues to grow from strength to strength in different countries e.g a fixed meeting agenda, MSP101, common referral and done deal slips, dancecards etc.  But is this enough? From my experience, NO. The BNI system lays the basic foundation but each chapter has to build their own system which characterise their chapter. In short, BNI has to “Think Global, Act Local”. In this aspect, it is heartening to see that BNI Renaissance has always been focussing on building system, and we have also constantly ‘upgrade’ our system to support the growth of the chapter. Examples of systems include vistor follow-up, new member orientation, new member induction, updating of website, planning of group dance cards, adhering to 45sec in the Sales Manager Minute, tracking of chapter performance, buddy system and even as simple as the passing of referral slips or the 11 claps. All these seemingly simple systems are not built overnight, but only through the continuous and painstaking effort of everyone in the chapter.  Another key benefit of having a good system in place is that when visitors come to our chapter, they will sense it and it increases their confidence in wanting to join the chapter and be part of us.

The next question in your mind is probably “After we build a system, how can we ensure that it will last?” The answer can be found in a very simple 3-step process:
1. Learn
2. Do
3. Teach
It is thus the responsibility of every member to learn and know the system, then do what is expected and finally be able to teach the next member on what he has internalised. Along the way, it is also important to continue to innovate so that collectively we build a dynamic system and not a static system.

That’s all for this week. So the question is, do you know the BNI Renaissance system?

Stay tune for Leg 3 : )