By Dan May
Rotary Club of Orange
Dan May
I moved to Connecticut about a decade ago. This was my most recent relocation after previously having lived in four other time zones across the US and overseas. So I am used to packing, unpacking and getting settled in new locales.
Still, some things took time to get used to – for example, what word to emphasize from in “soda pop” or what Italian sausage is most apt to taste like a spicy bratwurst. Other things still confound me, including why it seems like there is a significant vote or election here nearly every fall and/or spring.
I am a conscientious voter and have voted locally in four states and multiple towns (although I promise never in more than one at a time), but voting activity seems more frequent here compared to other locales. I recognize New England is the birthplace of participatory US democracy, and also that the staggered schedule of local, state and federal elections keeps voting frequency high. However, short terms for municipal officials was new to me. My first thoughts were how can a new official learn the job, accomplish something and be held accountable to voters for change initiatives or the status quo over a mere two-year term.
I was thus a little amazed when I learned that Rotary turns over its leadership every single year. This happens not only at the local club level, but also for statewide districts and all the way up to globally for the 1.4 million members across Rotary International.
When I was approached by club members to consider being the Orange club president for a year, I was worried about how I might learn what the role entailed, much less how well I could perform. The first turned out to be easy; the second is ongoing.
Rotary International has a well-formulated leadership development approach, designed for continuous annual succession that starts more than a year before a formal role begins. At the club level, the path to leadership begins as a year-long term as president-elect, where that individual (Wendy Barry in our case now) starts paying more attention to club operations as well as participating in training opportunities sponsored by Rotary International and our local district.
Navigating my current presidential year term, I am able to rely on my 2022-23 experience as president-elect as well as last year’s past-president (Roger Tausig). And all major fiduciary decisions incorporate the experience of successive former past presidents (Tausig, Cathy Bradley and Phil Smith). Club leadership, from president-elect to past-president twice removed, is thus a five-year journey. Other club leadership roles (such as secretary or treasurer) also regularly turn over. The same approach holds for Rotary’s district governors, although the leadership on-ramp and off-ramp is even longer.
In fairly short order, then, many club members become involved in guiding club operations, opportunities and challenges at successive leadership levels in addition to regular membership roles. Over time, collective experience, interest and engagement with Rotary and the host community increase.
One of the more interesting Rotary rituals takes place when a new president is inducted and all past presidents line up by the year of their service to pass the club charter from the earliest president still active in the club to the new president. When I received my official gavel in late June, nearly a third of the club stood up as former presidents to pass the charter. The depth of experience (and wisdom, too) was remarkable, with past leaders quietly working alongside everyone else.
Rotary’s model for club leadership thus allows many members opportunities to influence and help guide a club. Leading an organization, however briefly, is the best way to get to know it and to learn where you can make a difference and how such an experience can make a difference in you as well. It is a selling point for Rotary membership.
It is decidedly not a political model, with elected leaders beholden to a given ideology or coalition of special interests, nor an idealized corporate meritocracy. However, it has proven to be effective globally at sustaining and advancing a grassroots commitment to community service for over a century. It may not be dramatic and is sometimes cumbersome, but at least for its goals, regular systematic succession works.
Dan May is the president of the Rotary Club of Orange.