Page 20 - 2015.11.Voices

SUCCESSFUL CLUB

Lots of laughs, plus respect, help Toast to US grow strong

By Erin Stammer, President, Toast to US
Toast to US is a corporate club at U.S. Bank that chartered in March 2015. We
meet in Tigard, Oregon, at our Equipment Finance division, every Wednesday
at noon in the Columbia Room.
Being a corporate club has some distinct advantages:
• We have the support of U.S. Bank to add Toastmasters participation to our personal development
plans.
• Assuming our manager has approved our joining Toastmasters as a development opportunity,
our membership fees and club dues are reimbursed by U.S. Bank if we attend 50% of the scheduled
meetings and take a role 25% of the time.
• Promoting Toastmasters is that much easier for us due to the proximity of so many potential
members in our very own office! We are able to post public relations posters throughout the building,
attract potential members via on site events and stop by their individual desks to answer theirToastmaster
questions.
• Through U.S. Bank’s intranet we are able to locate and attract other U.S. Bank employees to our
club via email campaigns and visits to local branches.
Despite these advantages, we do face challenges as a “closed” club. We are not able to draw friends
and families interested in public speaking and leadership to our club; we must refer them to other
Toastmasters clubs that are open to the public. We are also restricted as to the time of day we can hold
our club meetings, and we compete for a slot of time in the Columbia Room each week. Additionally
there are security procedures any guests to our club or non-Equipment Finance employees must follow
to access our building.
We have been successful in maintaining our membership and in adding new members to Toast to US by
thoughtfully considering how to best accommodate our defined population of potential members. At
our officers’ meetings we ask ourselves what might keep people from joining or staying in the club, and
then take action steps to address these perceived obstacles:
• We meet 1:1 with department managers to solicit their support and ask that they suggest
Toastmasters to employees they believe would benefit from it.
• We pair new members with established members in a mentor-mentee relationship to create
additional support, education and encouragement.
• We make sure people are aware they can bring their lunch to the meeting.
• We celebrate successes large and small for each milestone reached by individuals and the club; we
personalize the celebrations with small gifts, food or toasts targeted to the member’s unique attributes
or goals with Toastmasters.
• Because we all work in the same building, our evaluations must be respectful, point out the
positive, yet also contain useful feedback for growth.
Each Toastmasters club has its own character, and Toast to US is no different. We all look forward to our
weekly meetings because we know there will always be laughter, raucous applause and surprisingly
refreshing prepared or impromptu speeches from our members. Each week we take away a new tidbit
of information about someone in the club, and the smiles on our faces last long after we have left the
office for the day.

20 Volume 2 Issue 5 - NOVEMBER 2015