Council Staffing

[MattR 2659]

That's a really good observation, @Wëlënakwsu. Why have the most important position held by the least paid? Of course, getting marketing people that know marketing would also help, along with every other position. Maybe, starting with an SE that understands how to run a non profit would be a good place to start.

[Eagle94-A1 2687]

Caveat, I am a former professional.

Regarding DEs,  a GOOD DE (major emphasis) is worth their weight in platinum. They can provide a lot of assistance to their units. And I don't mean picking up and dropping off paperwork and supplies to and from council office.

The problem is that most new DEs are just out of college with little to no experience in Scouting, let alone as a Scouter. If they have experience with Scouting, it is usually as a Cub Scout or Scout. When I went to PDL-1 back in the day, out of 72 new professionals (71 new DEs and Exploring Execs. 1 "retread" professional was Director of Development who had to redo professional training because it was over 5-10 years since he left the profession), less than 20 had any experience as an adult Scouter. Of the Group that did have experience, the bulk of them  were either military retirees looking for a post-service career, or folks looking to start a new career. I want to say 3-5 of us had experience as adult Scouters during college, i.e. summer camp staff, attending a local college and remaining active in our units or OA, etc.

So one of the reasons for the high turnover is the lack of preparedness for the new folks. They just are ready for all the demands of the job. Job descriptions and interviews do not adequately describe the full responsibilities.

Another reason is pay. The pay is low for the skill set required for the job. Almost all of the DEs I knew who quit either went to the private sector and doubled their salaries ( in one case tripling the DE salary) or they went back to school. DEs are on call 24/7, and it does take it's toll. Especially if you are a newlywed like I was.

But the biggest reason many DEs left when I was a DE was the hostile culture in the professional ranks  and unreasonable demands and goals. While growth is important, the unreasonable demands to XYZ growth and focus on quantity over quality is why many new units fail within a few years, and why existing units tend to get neglected. And the threats and intimidation by the higher ranks to meet immediate goals, regardless of other issues that if fixed would increase retention long term, was extreme. I cannot tell you how stressful and exhausting it was to try and fix problems AND start new units the right way, while being under constant pressure and hostility from management to get membership and unit numbers up. Two of my coworkers had nervous breakdowns, and I was on my way to one. Thankfully, my wife saw what the job was doing to me, and gave me an ultimatum: her or the job. The irony was that supporting her was one of the reasons I stuck with the job as long as I did.