HR for Professional bodies: what to set up first

A professional institute registers members, runs examinations, publishes a journal and holds seminars through local chapters. Its head office might have forty people. Results week still leaves the exam section working until ten at night, while the journal desk waits for copy that never comes. The pressure point is the peak, and the way to set up HR is to start there.

List the year's heavy periods: enrolment closing, admit card despatch, examination days, valuation of answer scripts, results, convocation and the annual convention. Mark which desks carry each peak. You will see that the exam section and the helpdesk are loaded together, while the journal and learning desks are loaded at other times. That picture tells you where cross-cover is possible.

PERIOD ................   DATES ................
DESKS UNDER LOAD ................
EXTRA HOURS EXPECTED ................   APPROVED BY ........
COVER FROM (desk / contract help) ................
REST OR COMP-OFF AFTER ................
SIGNED OFF BY SECRETARY ................

Every institute has a senior clerk who knows how a transfer of membership grade is processed, which form goes to which committee and what the registrar likes to see. That method often exists nowhere else. Sit with each long server for an hour a week for a month. Write a numbered procedure for the five jobs only they do. Have a junior follow the steps unaided and note where the page is unclear. This is the cheapest retention and continuity work available, and it respects the senior person's skill.

1. 1

   Pick five jobs

   Choose the five tasks that would cause trouble if the person left tomorrow.

2. 2

   Write as they speak

   Record the steps in the clerk's own words, then tidy.

3. 3

   Test with a junior

   The junior follows the page alone. Mark every question.

4. 4

   File it

   Keep the procedures in the HR documentation set so the next committee can find them.

5. 5

   Thank the author

   Name the clerk in the staff newsletter. Recognition keeps knowledge from walking out quietly.

Chapters are run by honorary volunteers, such as a chairman, secretary and treasurer, who change often. The head office coordinator supports them with circulars, venue bookings, speaker lists and accounts. The coordinator has no authority over a volunteer who is a senior chartered professional. This calls for a brief that states what the coordinator may ask for, what the chapter must send back and by when. A short monthly checklist, shared with each chapter, saves awkward chasing.

When a vacancy arises, recruit for the load of the coming results week, not the quiet month you are in. Write the role with the exam calendar attached. Candidates see the pressure honestly and those who stay do so knowing it. Our page on recruitment for professional bodies goes through selection, and the competency and talent page shows how to map the skills held in the exam section.

A body that teaches its members often forgets its own employees. Plan a few short sessions each year: member-facing conduct, handling stressed candidates, spreadsheet skills for results compilation. Link them to the learning and development process so the plan survives a committee change.

The professional bodies page lists the roles and strains common to institutes. The hub shows how they relate to chambers and trade associations.

A results week resembles a school's board examination fortnight. A rota for supervisors, a quiet room for the evaluators and a clear gate pass system for temporary helpers go a long way. Keep tea and light food arranged for the late evenings. These are small things, yet the exam section remembers them for years.

Journals bring a different rhythm. The editor works to a print date, chases authors, proofreads and sends the file to the printer. When the editor is also asked to help at the convention, the next issue slips. Put the print date on the peak calendar so no committee member borrows the editor in that fortnight.

Finally, keep the first-year plan modest. Choose one process to document, one role to rewrite and one hiring need to settle. A professional body that does these three well in twelve months has built the base for performance review, pay grades and a succession note. Trying to launch everything at once usually ends with a committee losing interest by the third meeting.

Honorary office bearers change, but the registrar and the exam controller often stay. Give them a standing seat in any HR discussion, because they know which proposals will survive a results week and which will not.