Retention steps during summer period

RETENTION
PLAN DURING
SUMMER
AIESEC Greece
GUIDELINE
Our purpose
Retention of the members in
the LCs of AIESEC Greece
What we know is that we want to keep the
members of the LC connected during the
summer in a way or another in order to strive
for their retention ... aaaaand to keep them re
paidi moy since they are so great!!!
Here you’ll find some easy, useful steps and
ideas which will help you to overcome the
eternal issue after the summer holidays of not
having members in the LC 
LET’s DO IT!!!
TM Summer Working Group 2013
Georgia Palantza, George Pappas, Diana Andrei

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About Retention
What is retention?
Retention is the act of keeping or not losing something. In organizations, retention is a term
commonly used in the context of employees and the actions and strategies that ensure
they stay. It is a particularly hot topic amongst HR experts and major organizations, because
as the trends of skills shortages and the difficulty in finding high quality people continue, the
more crucial it becomes to retain top talent, and prevent employees moving to other
organizations. Retaining people is particularly important because it is understood in
organizations that talent is the greatest, most valuable asset.
Why is it important?
To build on the enormous success of our Recruitments, it's important to be focused on
retaining our member base. If we don't retain our membership, we will be continually
rebuilding our member base, having inexperienced people in Leadership positions, going over
the same content over and over, and reinventing the same strategies. Therefor us as TM
people, we are so crucial to the overall success of our LCs.
Why members go away?
If your members leaving AIESEC your first question should be WHY? The easiest way to get
answer is to simply ask them. You can use like example exit interview which will help you to
gain feedback to organization. The most common reason why members quit are:
 No growth
 No sense of direction
 Unfair or no accountability
 Lack of communication
 Lack of recognition
 Lack of feedback
 Relationships with offices or other members
 Organizational values not the same as personal one
 Misunderstanding of Nature of Organization
 Lack of challenging and attractive opportunities
 Close friend leave
 Poor leadership style
 Problems with Team Leader
 Feeling uncomfortable in things what I am doing

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Other reasons:
 Work, studying
 Other available opportunities, tasks
 Too high expectations
 Culture not suitable for everyone
 Personal contacts missing
 Lack of time
 Work not appreciated
Steps for a successful retention in AIESEC
Ice cream won’t truly help though 
INtegration and RE-integration of our Exchange
Participants
How to have EPs retention after their exchange?
Before exchange:
The first main step it’s the OPS of course. As long as we do it good and well prepared we will
definitely raise our chances to have satisfied EPs starting with their first steps of their
experience with AIESEC. This will also increase the chances for us to have them after their
exchange as new members in our LCs  Also during the OPS will be presented the
opportunities that they can take after their exchange, in AIESEC but as well small
opportunities before they leave!

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Part of the INtegration process:
Invite them at:
 LCMs,
 to pass by our office,
 to reception activities,
 events from AIESEC – as Global Village,
 host interns, include them in reception teams as members.
 Integrate them in the LC’s Facebook group in order to start understanding the culture
and AIESEC.
When we have a match we can celebrate/recognize it on the group, newsletter, local site, local
FB AIESEC page in order for the other EPs to get the motivation and match as well as soon as
possible.
During their exchange
Keep communication with them and track the EP managers regarding their communication.
Once per week the EP managers should send a mail to their EPs to see how they are, how they
enjoy it, what are they doing, if it’s everything ok.
Send them a questionnaire/evaluation form at the middle of their internship in order to see
how it’s generally going and in case there are some issues to be able to interfere and one at the
end in order to have an overview of how was their experience. For GIP EPs we can send them
every 2 months an evaluation form – to show to them that we are also taking care of them as
well.
Also the EP managers will forward to them the newsletters of the LC, will update them about
opportunities and will present them the teams and positions. We can create here special
booklets for them and even videos.
Ask them to send us a paragraph with their experience and pictures so far and post it on
Facebook group, newsletter, local site, FB AIESEC page.
In order for the communication to work smoothly between the EP Manager and the EP, we
should assure a preparation of the EP Managers regarding the communication process and as
well check upon their connection with their EP.
RE-INtegration
Steps to follow:
When the EPs come back they will participate in our next LCM as special guests. They will
present their experience, share their story – it can be a video with pictures and words, it can be
a small speech with photos in background, whatever will suit the Returnee!

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Participation in the Local Seminar in Autumn and here we propose one day of special
reintegration for them only – a track for the Returnees which can include:
 AIESEC way, LC culture aspects, opportunities, activities, involve them to propose to
us any inputs regarding projects that we could have for ICX, reception activities, any
GCP that they could bring from other countries.
Prepare a test/questionnaire or something else and include it in the Re-integration Seminar in
order for us to see which team would suit them better.
Allocate them in teams that are relevant for them and have a connection with what they have
done in their exchange. Examples:
 if they like to speak in public – OGX teams (promotion), if they like to organize
events OGX or ICX (COMM sector), if they like to build projects etc. anything they
have done and liked can be also done in AIESEC, of course at a different level in the
AIESEC way
Teams during Summer
If the teams or some of the teams/positions are ending before summer or during summer, new
positions should be open. So we will send new application forms*, take interviews through
Skype, have small transition or parts of transition delivered through Skype (parts that are not
crucial and can be done virtually). Announce the LC about the new opportunities through
mails, newsletters and as well FB group or even better and more efficient: calls and messages
through their phones!
(*Proposal – it would be nice if the whole functional (TMs from the whole LCs of Greece)
will share their application forms and interview guidelines in a chain mail, in this way we
could make even better new applications and interview guidelines for the new teams)
Enjoying participation spirit could be even more offered throguh opening new unofficial
teams with a fun role  therefore:
 Funishment team (punishment),
 paparazzi team (take pictures from summer holidays),
 Fun team etc. and have a really funny JD which can be made together with the
members willing to be part of the teams!
Fall Recruitment Team during Summer – It’s a crucial team and as soon it will be open, as
better it will be for the experience of the team. Why? Because during summer they can have
enough time in order to know each other, bond, prepare the planning, brainstorm, check the
evaluation of the past terms. Take the GCPs and be aware of the BCPs, be creative and make
really nice and motivational materials that will increase their enjoying participation, it will
make them motivated for the month September to come in order to implement their ideas and
make things happen.

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Proposed timeline:
June
 Selection of the team,
 preparation and transition,
 team bonding activities,
 GCP and BCP of last recruitment teams (evaluation), making a plan (but keep in mind
that everything like numbers, goals will be established after planning).
 Give them nice and light homework, delegate small tasks that motivates the members
to work upon during summer such as brainstorming for the team name, their values,
vision, motto, roll call, shout, logo, think of innovative things to add to the operations
of the team or new ways of conducting the “old stuff”(brainstorm for a better promo),
video, culture etc.
 Team meetings conducted through Skype, meetings in the city, going to the beach, or
visiting someone of the team members, going out in the night etc. (different leisure
and having fun activities, since we shouldn’t forget that it’s summer and as long as
they will connect better as better will be the life of the team further)
Alumni engagement
Our Alumni are valuable resources as well and we should start capitalizing on them for 2
simple reasons:
1. they are AIESECers that for sure are missing the AIESEC environment and they
would like to live it again
2. they will support in a way or another our LC
Therefor we can involve the Alumni in different ways in our LCs:
 Invite them at LCMs,
 AIESEC events, participate in the hosting interns project, reception activities,
 Local Seminars (as chairs, facis, deliver trainings, provide education), induction
seminars, become mentors.
 Having learning circles with them as a living library about their experience in
AIESEC, how it helped them, how AIESEC changed from that time until now etc.
(different topics)

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Interns engagement
Last but not least, during summer we have our lovely interns in our city. They can be in the
city or out in camps, but they are in Greece so we can actually enjoy a nice time together with
them from time to time 
Ideas:
 Invite all the members that are living in the city or not, since maybe some of them
would like, to go to their camps and have some fun along with the interns, or even go
to their NGOs, museums (the places where they work).
 Engage the interns in different LC activities or projects that we are running, meet the
members and the EBs, meet the other interns from the other LCs, having nights out
together, going to the beach, going to play games etc.
Get connected all the interns from AIESEC Greece during summer! Example:
 The interns from Thessaloniki could go in Athens, Chios, Patra and vice versa and be
hosted by the interns or by the members.
 Organize different events for them or just help them to travel safe and cheap  We
can make a group on Facebook or organize events. Thessaloniki already has the group
with all the members and interns from both LCs
 Have different leisure activities with all the members of the LCs within the city. Here
can be created the group on Facebook or create events in order for the people to be
aware 
Personal Goal Setting
It is really important to be done to the whole LC.
The TLs will do it to the members and the VP of each
sector or VP TM will do it to the TLs.
Through the GS, we can see the future steps that the
members and TLs will do. And we can see the
retention.
If for example they have put that they will be members
at September we can calculate our retention. It won’t
be 100% accurate but it will be a great beginning for
us.

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Personal Talks with VPs and TLs
The VP TM can have personal meetings with the VPs and TLs to evaluate every
member of the LC.
How is the performance so far and what future each member or TL may have!
Specially the TLs because they are really close to the members of their teams, have done
personal meetings with them(even the GS) and know the reality and what the members
want to do next. They know also the reason.
So it will be helpful for us to calculate the retention and also it will help us on how we
will approach the member that they want to stop and we can show them that the reason for
them to stop isn’t enough and that it would be better to continue( of course if the reason
isn’t so serious and we can see that the member has things to offer to the organization and
AIESEC has more to offer to the member.)
Mentorship
The relation that the mentor has with the mentee can help the retention. The mentor
knows the mentee, how has developed so far and can really understand if continue in the
organization will help the mentee( because the purpose of mentorship is to help and do
what best for the mentee and not for AIESEC). So we can talk with the mentor and see
which mentees will continue and which will stop and if they can do something to make
them stay.
 From all the above we can make o document with the members that will
continue in AIESEC, so we will be in position to calculate the retention and
set goal for the Recruitment team!!
R&R System
If we have an R&R system, we can give the reward to the members at the last LCM before
going for vacation. The teams that started from March to August or any other period.
The rewards are to motivate the members, so if a member see that he/her work is being
rewarded, that motivates them. And also it may motivate the other members to want to
continue and try to take the next rewards.
It is important to give them on summer, because at September
the most of them will already have taken a decision to stay in
AIESEC or not and this won’t help them a lot.

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The rewards might be:
Tribute on Facebook page.
Have a “Hall of fame” in the office with pictures and stories of members who have
been awarded
Being the Team Leader of your team for one week.
Take a transition from another sector (to expend their knowledge and also be more
ready if they want to change team).
Some food for thought:
“Little things make a difference”
Provide them with little treats:
Create funny “competitions” for the whole LC and announce the winner in the LC
Meetings. Such competitions could be “who will take the craziest picture in the office?”,
“who will do the most dare dances during a specific period of time?”, create a “wall of
vacation” which can be used as a place to describe and share details concerning our
summer holidays and experiences that we have had upon returning to the office.
Additionally you can establish a sugarcubes wall in the office and a feedback box. In that
way the members will feel much more appreciated and that their opinion counts.
Local Seminar
The Local Seminars (preferably twice per year) is a great source of motivation and can
really boost each and every member in terms of wanting to be an AIESECer. It can also
mean that the members acquire a deeper AIESEC understanding and bond with the LC.
Agenda:
Make it at least 2 days in order for the members to spend qualitative time together and get
to know each other better. At night it is a great chance to interact and get motivated. After
all it is the “Enjoying participation” factor that actually makes the members retained and
re-allocated in new teams. Consider also including a session about “change management”,
meaning the change of the terms not only regarding the EB terms but also the teams (old
ones closing, new ones opening). Make it seem like a whole package right from when the
members join AIESEC for the first time and make it attractive. In addition and since we
are talking about a motivational conference, try and make the agenda light enough to have
adequate space for interaction but not so light to the point that the members do not get
something in terms of knowledge (after all it is an AIESEC conference). The themes of
the session can be somewhat of inspiring ones – think of leadership, positioning of one’s

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self on the world. Have BIG breaks! During the breaks and given that there previously
was a session on a specific topic you can make qualitative discussions concerning that
topic but also general stuff. Last but not least, it is essential to include games in this
conference. Such games can be a treasure hunt, night stalk or gotch ya. But be careful: the
games must be well organized and every member should participate!
LC Meetings
The LC meetings act as a way to bridge the gap between the EB team and the members of
the LC! The objectives of each one may vary but they all have something in common.
They are a tradition by which the whole LC gathers and discusses about current problems,
updates of every sector, opportunities… So in order not to get bored by doing the same
things and in the same way every time, consider changing the place of the LC meetings
(maybe a park if there is one close to the office). This could serve as a “escape from the
routine” factor for both the EBs and the members. Moreover try and think of innovative
ways for presenting the sessions and include fun parts in them in order for the members
not to get bored and to get the load off of some heavy sessions.
Sources of information:
LC UoM Thessaloniki, Athens and LC AUTh
http://www.myaiesec.net/content/viewwiki.do?contentid=10005205
Thank you for reading! The next step towards success is the
implementation part 
LET’s DO IT!

Retention steps during summer period

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