In August 2008, Tri Sigma held a “Let’s Get Phired Up for Recruitment” Seminar, facilitated by Jessica Gendron of Phired Up Productions. This seminar, held in Indianapolis, was for Chapter Membership/Recruitment Advisors, Chapter Advisors, Alumnae Directors, and other volunteers woring in recruitment. We had 78 volunteers in attendance! The weekend covered the Dynamic Recruitment process developed by Phired Up, which is detailed in the book, I Heart Recruitment. This issue of the Sigma Standard will reflect on what we learned, and it will also share some Tri Sigma recruitment success stories.

Want to learn more about what was covered over the weekend?
You may purchase a copy of I Heart Recruitment to read. We have a few available at National Headquarters. Or we have an electronic version of the book available for free. Contact Theresa Taylor (ttaylor@trisigma.org) to receive a copy.

Also on our website is a webinar recording that gives a brief overview of the program. Click on the link below, and then click on the first recorded webinar to start the 45-minute recording.

http://trisigma.yourassociation.org/staticcontent/staticpages/webinarrecordings.htm

Personal Success Stories
Read how collegians, AAB and alumnae are using the Phired Up for Recruitment model to achieve success.

• We came back from Indy with great ideas just before our formal recruitment. Our advisor did a wonderful job of focusing on what the chapter had time to absorb and not trying to throw too much at us. The women went into recruitment with confidence and excitement to share their feelings about Sigma with their potential new sisters. We really out recruited two of the "powerhouse" chapters that did the same old, same old and added 26 top-notch women.

We plan to work more of the information and suggestions into our chapter programming.

Thank you so much for bringing this to all the chapters. This is exactly the type of information and help we need to communicate and recruit the women of today!

— Alpha Chi

• I want to tell you that I believe the wonderful "Phired Up for Recruitment" did the trick. We worked on our conversation skills and several PNMs commented that we were really interested in them and that they got to meet many of our girls compared to the other two sororities. We have 12 girls on the floor surrounding the chapter suite and several new PNMs want to move on the floor. The Housing Department commented on how well Sigma is doing in filling up the rooms. Our whole attitude is so positive — who wouldn't want to belong to us?

We have come a long way in these past nine years. I think this is the happiest day in our history.

Thank you for "Phired Up for Recruitment."

— Eta Kappa

• Thanks for this!! I did all of the conversation activities with our chapter (except the cell phone one) during practice for formal recruitment in an effort to help our chapter stand out among the many typical recruitment conversations. And our return statistics for the first two rounds were UP BY 6% EACH NIGHT (the highest return rates in at least five years — I do not have stats for earlier)! We think that we were able to build foundations and relationships with these women and our conversations were memorable because they were not “rapid fire questions” that are typical of our campus formal recruitment.

We are starting a recruitment team next week to strengthen our image and visibility on campus and create a base to build off of for the future. We will be using the Phired Up workbook and I Heart Recruitment in this plan. I will keep you updated on how it goes.

So far, our women have been very receptive to the change of the status quo.

— Delta Delta

• In addition to my National Officer position with Tri Sigma I am the president of our alumnae chapter. We barely have 10 members. In the past seven years that I have been involved with this chapter, I have off and on sent out the bulk mailing to all the women in the area. I think maybe that attracted one member, if that. SO… since I have come back from the Phired Up Seminar, I have been trying to think of what the best way would be to make other Tri Sigmas in my area become my friend, because bulk mailings are weird! Last night, I had a thought, I looked up all the zip codes I could think of on our website. Only 14 women had e-mail addresses (can you believe that? Looks like some women need to update their information!) I e-mailed all 14, after I looked them up to see if they still lived in the area… Within 24 hours, two of the women e-mailed back, totally excited about getting together with another sister! I am so excited! I can’t wait to see if I receive more! I did mention the Alumnae chapter, but my main message of the e-mail was I was interested in connecting with sisters in the area. It worked! I had to share.

Do you have a success story to share? Send it to Chris Smithhisler at csmithhisler@trisigma.org. We’d love to hear from you!

20 Wisdom Sparks from the Phired Up for Recruitment Event
At the end of the seminar in Indianapolis, Jessica had us shout out what we learned/gained from the weekend. She called these “Wisdom Sparks.” Here are the staff’s top 5 Wisdom Spark picks. Click the link below to access all 20 of the Wisdom Sparks for Recruitment.

5. You Can’t Recruit Who You Don’t Know.
• Recruitment is about making friends. Only about 15% of the population will come to you (Always-Joiners). You have to actively go out and make friends to grow your chapter. What does “actively” mean? It means going out and meeting women on campus by shaking their hands and networking the “old fashioned way.” How many women do you pass on campus each day without talking or even smiling at them? Try meeting them today!

4. Know your Recruitment Potential.
• There are more women out there than you know. Calculate your exact potential to drive your Names List goals (see #1 below).

3. Don’t Just Focus on the Features.
• Be able to communicate the feature of membership, how you benefit from it, and then provide some personal experience on what you have gained from that experience. So, here is an example: A feature of membership is scholarship. So, you might say this to a potential new member: “Our sorority is committed to academics and scholarship. We offer tutors for members, have study hours and tables, and offer a number of scholarships. My sophomore year I was not doing well in biology. Every day a sister who was a biology major tutored me and I got an A in the class.”

2. Communicate the Value Added.
• What’s your 30-second pitch? What does Tri Sigma provide that a woman cannot get from a college, Greek, or another sorority experience? What value do you add on a national and local level?

1. Grow your Names List! Quantity drives Quality.
• Every chapter wants "quality over quantity" but quantity drives quality! You will have better quality if you have a higher quantity (number of women) to choose from. So, when you are making all of these new friends, keep track of them using your names list. Use a names list to keep track of all of the non-Greek women in your social network, not just the ones you really like — all of them! Never take a woman off the Names List until she graduates or becomes Greek.
• Don’t know what a Names List is? It is the centerpiece of the Dynamic Recruitment model. It is simply a list for recording all unaffiliated women you know. The list should include name, phone, e-mail, source, date and notes. Women should stay on this list until they graduate or they join another sorority. How many women can you put on your names list? Dig deep, think of how many women you sit next to in classes each day or at the library, or where you work out.

Click here to go to the list of 20 Wisdom Sparks for Recruitment.

— Chris Smithhisler

To give you an idea of where we are with our membership statistics and growth – here are some statistics to consider...

• As of October 31, 2007 – we had a total of 1360 new members and a total of 4892 members/new members in our collegiate chapters.
• As of October 31, 2008 – we have 1590 new members and a total of 4996

GREAT NEWS – we’ve increased our overall collegiate membership by 104 women.

This means, 104 more women are benefiting from our Sisterhood of Friendship, Character, and Conduct. Great job!

We will have some work ahead of us to be at our optimum membership! Even though we’ve grown, we are still 1240 women below our Optimum Membership (or maximum capacity)! This translates into approximately a $279,000.00 loss of potential funds which could be used to benefit your chapters, provide regional officer training, reduce costs for programming and convention, provide larger budgets for travel and collegiate onsite support, technology resources, etc.

As of October 31, 2008, there are

• 24 chapters at or above total while
• 80 collegiate chapters are currently below total.

Only 23% of our chapters are at total! This is a great concern!

As you know, chapters have been given recruitment goals for Accreditation and to achieve before December 1, 2008. Our National Membership Coordinators and Regional Support Teams have been working to educate, ensure plans are in place, and follow-up on efforts to help our chapters reach their membership goals. If we meet our National membership goals, there are plans to hire a Director of Volunteer/Alumnae Development. What does this mean for you – more advisors and local support as this would be a main component of this position!

So, now meeting your set recruitment goals will directly benefit you! We’d like to thank and congratulate the following chapters who, as of the October 31 report new members, have met or exceeded their recruitment goals for December 1, 2008:

Jessica Gendron of Phired Up Productions will be the guest speaker at the upcoming Tri Sigma regional Officer Academy in Stevens, PA, January 30- February 1, for chapters in the Northeast. The following chapters have been invited to attend:

**If your chapter is not on the list, don’t panic, we hope to expand this program to more regions in 2010.

Congratulations to all newly appointed advisors! With all that is new and exciting in Tri Sigma, we are thrilled to have you onboard!

The Advisor Training Program is a great way to introduce you to all the new programs and resources Tri Sigma has developed in the last few years. The Training Program will also help build the relationship between you and the existing advisor team as well as one with chapter leaders and members. Feel free to reach out to the collegiate support team members to answer any questions or concerns as they will be there to ensure your transition into the advisor position goes smoothly. Welcome to the team and we look forward to working with you!

Women Appointed to an AAB role between September and October 15, 2008:

Elizabeth Woodring : Zeta Tau, Chapter Advisor

Lauren Stephenson: Epsilon Phi, Honor Council Advisor

Collette Knight: Eta Iota, Chapter Advisor

Kristen Bogacki: Alpha Pi, Recruitment Advisor

Sarah Fordyce: Alpha Pi, Chapter Advisor

Cecelia Lummus: Epsilon Iota, Recruitment Advisor

Emily Ann Vetere: Lambda, Recruitment Advisor

Mandi Hulme: Beta Epsilon, Essential Sigma Advisor

Katherine Chrusz: Zeta Omicron, Essential Sigma Advisor

Cassandra Sulfridge: Epsilon Alpha, Essential Sigma Advisor

Jessica Sleppy: Epsilon Phi, Chapter Advisor

ATP Reminders

Please be sure to register for the orientation call to begin the ATP program. This is the first step in the ATP training process. Below you will find the link to the conference calls for November and the beginning of December. All calls are on Thursday at 8 p.m. EST.

Register for call on November 6: https://www2.gotomeeting.com/register/541706759

Register for call on November 20: https://www2.gotomeeting.com/register/937157654

Register for call on December 4: https://www2.gotomeeting.com/register/949258420

Also, please remember to e-mail essentialtraining@trisigma.org as you complete the various components of the training program. Please indicate the date that you completed these items.

— Tiffany Fay

As a way to improve member retention by enhancing National support systems and ultimately meet our strategic initiatives, Tri Sigma has made a few changes to the depledging and self-termination process. You can now find both depledge and self-termination forms on the Tri Sigma Website in the Collegiate Monthly Reports section under the Officer Resource Center in Sigma Connect. Additionally, Tri Sigma has created a new exit interview strategy for all women who have depledged or self-terminated. Upon completing a self-termination form online, members will be automatically prompted to complete the exit interview form. All members who complete a depledge form will receive a follow-up e-mail that includes a link to the exit interview.

All exit interviews will be kept confidential and chapters will not directly receive feedback from the survey information or have access to the survey data. Tri Sigma will be providing Collegiate Coordinators and Regional Directors with summaries of the interview results in order to help chapters improve their member retention efforts. The Regional Directors and Director of Programs will review these interviews at least once a semester to evaluate retention efforts on a national scale.

If you have any questions, please contact National Headquarters at sigma@trisigma.org.

— Celinda Miranda

Need help with Accreditation Verification? Want to be sure you're properly submitting information?

Join us for a webinar training session on Tuesday, November 11th @ 7:30pm EST/ 6:30pm CST for a webinar to review the process and get you prepared for the December 1 Verification Process.

To Register: https://www2.gotomeeting.com/register/113319427

It’s that time of the year again. The time when your chapter gets together and decides on officers for the upcoming term. It is one of the most important decisions the chapter has to make, so we wanted to share some reminders to help the process run smoother. More detailed information can be found on Page 106 in the President’s Manual.

10. Distribute interest forms during the same meeting that your nominating committee is chosen. Each member should get two copies, one to nominate individuals and one to nominate herself.

9. The Nominating Committee should consist of a representative from each academic year and an AAB member. This committee slates both officers and Honor Council members. Current officers or women interested in being an officer cannot be on the committee.

8. Prepare more than enough ballots before the meeting (12 x # of members).

7. Elections take place at the first meeting in November. The only way to change this is with Permission from your Collegiate Coordinator or Regional Director.

6. In order to be nominated, a person must be in good standing and have the required GPA. Check the local bylaws for your chapter’s specific GPA requirement, as they can vary from chapter to chapter.

5. The Parliamentarian and an AAB member should be appointed by the President to count the votes. The Parliamentarian cannot serve in this role if she is nominated or was on the nominating committee.

4. No campaigning! Save that for Obama and McCain.

3. Elections are not a popularity contest. Vote for whom you think is best for the job, not simply the person you like more.

2. Immediately change the C202 so that new officers can receive manuals. When you do this, do not expire the current positions, as they are in charge until the last meeting of the semester.

1. Being an officer for your chapter is very rewarding. Remember, to receive much, you must give much.

— Randi Pillion

Sigma Sigma Sigma (Tri Sigma) has developed two new websites pursuant to its online strategy. The two sites enable marketing and Sisterhood. The public website has a marketing focus and is designed consistent with the organization’s new brand standards and messages. It features content that introduces prospective members to our brand of Sisterhood and rekindles the embers of sorority within the hearts and minds of our alumnae members.

Designed by Bigfish (www.gobigfishgo.com), the public site incorporates a boutique approach to content presentation wherein premium information and visuals compel users to explore our Sorority. The site is driven by interactive features including a user directed timeline in our Since1898 section, Meet Us introductory videos for the YouTube generation, and seamless integration with our new social network; Sigma Connect.

Sigma Connect is the new online verb for friendship and sorority at Tri Sigma. As members join the community their chapter affiliation will be used to encourage members browsing our public site to join. Features include:

My Page – Sigma Connect is Your Online Tri Sigma Home. Choose from numerous content-rich features to customize your profile. Personal messaging, photos, blogging, and friends await you. With features familiar to those who use online social networks you’ll be pleased to know that the experiences you share and connections you make will be among a private community designed exclusively for you and your Tri Sigma Sisters.

Grow Community – Sigma Connect is Limitless Sisterhood Connections. Reconnect, stay-in-touch with, and form new friendships around the bonds of Sisterhood and around the world. When you joined Tri Sigma you became part of a local chapter. At Sigma Connect you’ll be part of your initiating chapter and local community even as the barriers of time and space evaporate enabling a whole new universe of friendship.

Your Portal – Sigma Connect is Your Access to All Things Tri Sigma. In addition to your friendship network you’ll find access to member news, resources to help you get the most from your Tri Sigma experience, and access to the tools officers and volunteers need to carry out our Sorority business.

Visit the public site at www.sigmasigmasigma.org and go to www.sigmasigmasigma.org/sigmaconnect to join our social network.