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Unfortunately, a lot of knowledge can be lost when changing board members. Especially when it comes to sponsors & partners, this can quickly become expensive. We'll give you valuable expert tips and a checklist so that a change in your club goes smoothly.
Before we deal with the change of management ourselves, we should briefly question Why there is a change in the Board of Management at all. Restructuring does not always take place on a voluntary basis or an expiring term of office, as would be the case, for example, if the chairman/chairwoman resigns due to age.
Of course, it would be ideal if a change of club management took place with mutual consent and a so-called transition period could be agreed. However, if it is due to personal differences within the board, this can very quickly lead to a split within the entire club. This should be avoided as far as possible. Behind the link is an article about successful club management, which you might also be interested in.
When exchanging or leaving officials, it is therefore recommended to have a conversation in order to find out the motives. These can be temporal, but also because you no longer feel comfortable in the club or no longer identify with it. In any case, it is important to find the real reason, because this is the only way to improve yourself for the future if necessary.
Also communicate the reasons transparently throughout the club. Imagine a senior official leaves the club and you leave the members in the dark about the reasons, that leaves a lot of room for interpretation and rumours. This can be a big problem, not only in the club, but in the entire community. So it's better to proactively state the reasons yourself.
Losing a person from the board does not only mean losing a long-time companion, but also, with him or her, the acquired knowledge in an important area of the club. If a change of management is due to the expiring term of office, you should look into a replacement at an early stage.
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In both cases, the lost knowledge must be transferred to the next responsible persons without any major gaps. There are very specific documents and content which, if lost, can have far-reaching (including legal) consequences or result in considerable additional expenditure.
Tip before you start
Please take the time and write down all areas in which the outgoing board of directors in particular has gathered its knowledge. It is annoying to notice in retrospect that all the information is not missing, where you then have to run after the old board of directors.
An unorganized change of board can result in a loss of a great deal of information and knowledge. That's why it shouldn't even come to that in the first place. So that you don't forget anything in this already very special situation in the “hurry of battle”, we have prepared templates for clubs in our legal package. The content also includes a checklist for board changes, prepared by a legal expert. In addition to the checklist, there are also other documents, such as a discharge of the Executive Board and a resignation form.
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It can be a great advantage to create your own checklist for a change of board so that you really don't forget anything. It therefore makes sense to think more about this in advance in order to have less effort later on. The following areas should play a central role on this checklist:
In particular, these should be managed cleanly and securely under data protection law. Whether this happens online or offline is up to you as a club. Go through the list of members and also think about individual members, maybe there is someone here who is up to the tasks of the board. In the case of youth clubs, this list also includes a parental contact person for each child.
A very sensitive issue, which requires a lot of transparency and a high level of accuracy. The financial situation should generally be clearly documented and it is all the more important to review this documentation together — after all, the cashier is liable for missing money. Discharge of the departing treasurer is necessary anyway.
You save yourself a lot of time if you save the documents for events neatly. It starts with the beverage supplier, food, music band and task list. You can learn from every event you host and if you build on this knowledge, your events will be a must visit for every citizen from your town.
Where can you find the contact details for all sponsors, including the contracts that have been concluded with the individual companies? How and how often has contact been maintained? Do we use our own tool for maintaining contact? Is there a lead list of new sponsors that we plan to approach? Which partners does your club work with on a regular basis? What are the costs and action structures for the partners? Questions upon questions that all need to be clarified.
When lending club inventory, you can quickly lose track of things if there is insufficient documentation and forget who borrowed what. Before you take on this role in the club, please think about how your predecessor handled it.
Invitations, press releases, pictures of events and successes, as well as the club's social media channels have become an integral part of the club. Here, too, there are those responsible who build up a great deal of knowledge over time. For example, by creating flyers, posters and invitations.
Organizing the cleaning schedule in your club house? Information about season planning? Are there any additional hobby tournaments planned? Are there any administrative or repair activities that have already been started? How was youth work carried out? Questions that may lie with the departing board of directors and need an answer.
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The good thing is that it usually becomes clear in advance who will/can take over the new position in the club. Ideally, the respective deputy will fill the vacant position. If things aren't that easy, then you usually have people in your own member ranks who are more committed than others. These should be the first point of contact, as they show an important primary characteristic of a board of directors: personal initiative.
It is important that board members have basic leadership skills and also have the will to develop themselves and their own club. Of course, this also includes the necessary free time, but above all, it is important that you have the trust of the club. In other words, that you know that the other members are behind you. Transparency, honesty, punctuality are basic requirements and, in addition, having the gift of getting others excited about something is a great advantage as a board member.
Just being professionally good in one area and having social deficiencies can cause major problems in a club in the long run. There is no “sample board person”, it definitely helps you to listen to your gut feeling and involve the entire board and members in the decision.
In summary, it can be said that motivating others, a good level of organizational talent, an analytical and strategic way of thinking, and an open and empathetic character are the requirements of a chairman or chairwoman.
“Clubs are places where common interests and goals become actions and successes. This requires not only a strong board, but also motivated members who successfully move forward together.”
Finally, we would like to briefly discuss how you can benefit from using Vereinsplaner in the event of an imminent change of board. It is important that you start to put down your documents, information about events, inventory management, finances, etc. at an early stage in an online storage.
In addition to online storage, appointments/news and surveys, we have just implemented inventory management to cover this area for clubs as well. Financial management is also available. This means you are well prepared for a change in management and will save yourself a lot of time and stress in the years to come. If you have any questions, please feel free to contact us as usual.
You would like to know what advantages our club software has, especially for medium-sized and large clubs, and how you can use it in your own club? This video answers your questions.
Finally, here are the most important questions that arise in connection with the change of management and the associated bodies (chairman, secretary, treasurer/treasurer,...).
The following bodies may exist in a club and are usually regulated by the club's statutes (Information about the association's statutes):
1. General meeting; 2. Management body (e.g. chairperson); 3. Representative bodies (deputies/authorised signatories); 4. Supervisory bodies; 5. Auditors (including deputies); 6. Final auditors (if required).
A club that acts as a legal entity must have at least one general meeting, a governing body and a treasurer including deputies.
The club management ensures that the club's transactions run smoothly. The board represents the club both internally and externally, taking care of the members' concerns as well as the club's image in the community and media. Individual board members can be tasked with subject-specific topics such as financial administration.
The general meeting (often referred to as general assembly) must be held at least once every five years. In our opinion, however, once a year is recommended. Topics relating to the general interest of the club are discussed. These could be board elections, cost agendas or even club projects for the next year.
At first glance, this question can be answered with “yes.” If you take a closer look, there are a few cases where this is not immediately possible. For example, the resignation must not result from the club's inability to act: In other words, all legally effective people responsible may never leave the club at the same time (e.g. chairman and his deputy). Resignation would then only be possible at a general meeting, where the new signatories would be elected immediately.
Depending on the area of responsibility in which a person is on the executive board, their role is also individual (financial officer, digital officer, event officer, youth work officer, etc.). As chairman/chairwoman or managing director, you should not take on too many specialized tasks, as there are already enough tasks from the areas mentioned above and general responsibility for you. So you can't say in general what tasks await you as a board member — it is certain that these will be tasks that you have not been confronted with before.
With the consent of the legal representatives, a person could theoretically hold office on the board of the club after reaching the age of 7. Each club must ask itself whether this is effective and, above all, good for the child.
The discharge of the executive committee (e.g. treasurer or chairman) is not only a formal process, but also shows, firstly, that the club supports the actions of the executive committee. Secondly, it shows that other people (e.g. auditors or people from the supervisory body) have examined the actions and results of the club's management and consider them to be complete = discharge.
A club (as a legal entity) is generally liable for its debts with its assets. The club's bodies are only liable if this has been stipulated by law (e.g. if they act as guarantors for a loan taken out by the club). If a member of the executive committee violates legal or statutory obligations, that person may also be held liable for the damage caused. Even in the case of unpaid club bodies (e.g. chairperson, cash auditor), liability comes into effect if they act with gross negligence. As you can see, the issue of liability can also be extremely complex for clubs, and it is advisable to consult a legal expert if you are unsure.
Together with nine experts from practice, we have written a 98-page ePaper on current topics relating to clubs. The ePaper contains 5 chapters and 15 topics on important areas relating to the organization, members, funding, sponsors, taxes and more. You can download the handbook as a free download from the club handbook website.
