Membership Thoughts Like many organizations throughout the world, membership has either remained static or has been declining. And, when we speak about “membership,” this includes the initial recruitment, induction, retention, and lapsation. Each of those categories has its own approaches. As we journey through time, the reasons we had for joining change as well. We acquire new reasons for maintaining our membership. As a living entity, any organization must first adapt to the times it exists in. Editor Brophy, in his written work on America’s Secret Societies, notes the number of them founded after the U.S. Civil War. He describes why many failed and a few survived. The survivors did so because the reasons for which the organizations were established had changed in time. Those groups that did survive changed to address the contemporary problems. One example would be the United States’ largest organization for its time, the Grand Army of the Republic (GAR). Membership was limited to those who had served in the Union Army. For nearly 50 years, the GAR shaped American politics. But when all the Union veterans died off, so did the organization. We see this happening in the VFW today. The Benevolent & Protective Order of Elks, the Knights of Pythias, and many other organizations were founded after the Civil War as the civilian counterpart to the GAR. Their membership requirements were elite, but not limiting. However, their social activities and exclusive membership requirements eventually spelled doom for them. The Elks, Moose, and Eagles survived the “social fraternity” phase because they adapted to the times. This changing of the times gave birth to new groups, like the Lions, Rotary, and Exchange Clubs, around the turn of the century. They grasped the need for community service organizations to fill the void between public welfare and upper class philanthropy. The Elks, Moose, and Eagles slowly adopted these goals as well. They survived. Then after WWII, things changed again. The community needs were still there, but the pool of potential members changed. The “baby boomer” generation started to rebel against many of their families’ accepted ideas. Technology played a bigger role in their lives. Formal education became a must to succeed in a world filled with baby boomer competition. College fraternities declined in membership. Many dropped their exclusive membership requirements and survived. Some did not. The Pierre Fauchard Academy was founded in 1936 with very lofty goals of meeting the literary needs in our profession. It limited its membership to only the top 3% of the world’s dentists because it was felt that they could best meet those goals through their leadership. And it appealed to a pool of professionals who were “joiners” and active in organized dentistry. Times changed in dentistry as well, but this was not felt so acutely until the 1990s. Dentists, by their very nature, are more educated, basically conservative, and organizationally inclined to protect their independence in practice. They are respected in their communities where they are often active. Being active—joining community organizations—was a way of feeding their practices. Then came advertising, third party carriers, PPOs, HMOs, and all the other changes that resulted in a profession of colleagues becoming business competitors. ACD has seen this and has implemented a campaign to structure ethical conduct within the profession. (A sad commentary that this is needed today.) PFA, in its own way, has done this as well. Some time ago, our subtitle of “an international honor dental organization” added the word “service.” No one noticed, since that was what we had begun to do. No one certainly objected. From a 1936 mission goal of improving dental literature and giving out awards—certainly needs of those times—we began mentoring, a scholarship program, and grants for service projects. We encourage our Sections to not emphasize being a “knife and fork” club, to one sponsoring dental public service. We have changed and will survive. Change in our mission, as reflected by what we are doing, also brings with it the need for funding. No longer are we running an honor organization out of a shoebox of names and addresses. We are big business in mentoring, scholarships, and grants. That takes money to organize and execute. As we extend PFA internationally, that need will become more acutely felt. We are becoming a major world player in dentistry. And we must begin to prepare for this role.		But the change in the available pool of recruits needs to be recognized as well. That still needs to be addressed. Canadian Trustee Kevin Roach pointed out the “graying of dental leaders” and the need today to appeal to the “baby boomers” and beyond. Trustee Bernardo Levit touched on another problem. Do we take only the top 3% of those who can afford membership or the top 3% that deserve it, but have economical restraints? Vice President Robert Friedman, though, makes the pertinent statement that perhaps it is time to loosen the top 3% requirement. When we slipped in the word “service” into our mission, we silently committed millions of dollars, pounds, francs, pesos to our future activities. All the PFA volunteers in the world will reduce that cost, but they will not change the fact that funds will be necessary to carry out all the programs we undertake. When we slipped in the word “service,” we expanded our role in dentistry. That role may not be able to be carried out by a “graying leadership” alone. We will need younger members to perform the service functions. Then the debate becomes, what do we with the 3% figure? Or do we even need that as a limitation (since it is not defined anywhere anyway)? Can we evolve into the only international dental service organization, which provides the “honor” through our awards? By adapting a different membership approach, we can achieve more Fellows, which generates more revenue to run the operation. Recruitment hinges on several basic factors first—organization, activity, and appeal. Currently, we are well organized on the international level with Sections, even some Districts, down to the Fellows level. Our philosophy has always been to grant the Sections complete autonomy from dictated structured recruitment, induction ceremonies, and activity, as opposed to the other colleges. This has been touted as our hallmark of difference. But, perhaps, it is also our undoing. New Section Chairs, those wishing to establish a Section, and those named as Chairs that do nothing are at a loss sometimes to know where to begin. In their offices, they follow rigorous procedures to produce ideal treatment results. They look to PFA to do the same. Perhaps it is time, as many of the Chairs have said themselves, to establish “suggested” formats for operating a Section; new guidelines for recruitment; establishing Section offices of Chair, Vice Chair, Secretary/Treasurer, and Editor; a framework for an induction ceremony; and a list of possible Section projects to undertake. Each of these formally composed can allow for individual Section variation. And each of them has their own reasons for being. We discussed the new ideas for recruitment. But beyond any new ideas, the most successful Sections with large memberships are (1) organized, (2) with a cadre of officers (ideal for experienced succession), (3) have some type of newsletter to communicate with its members, and (4) are involved in one or more Section projects. Often they have also developed a formal recruitment policy, screening process, and induction ceremony. The tuxedo rental companies published a report that the greater number of marriages that survive were performed in formal dress. The Elks Initiation is formally done in tuxedo and has a greater retention than other groups that initiate in street clothes or just hand the recruit a certificate of membership. Whether these reports are true or not, the formality of the Induction Ceremony expresses how important the event is in PFA and in the life of the new member. This aids in retention and lowering lapsation. The activities that a Section holds is another answer to appeal, retention, and lapsation. As dues rise to cover costs, as economic times become more difficult, as the kids get into college at the same time, members begin to reassess their membership when the dues statement comes out. But if the Fellow feels he is a part of bringing dentistry to the indigent, this gives him reason to stay. If he is participating in a worthwhile project, this gives him reason to recruit his friends and classmates. None of this can happen without an organized Section running the local operations. The days of the International Board members doing it all are gone. The world is too big. And we are expanding into areas that need local leadership to meet unique needs.
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