Relaunch case study 1: Breakfast of Champions

When the coordinator of this group had to resign unexpectedly due to family health reasons, and could not arrange meetings, it was not clear whether the group would continue. No candidate for coordinator in the group's inner circle presented itself, and while the team spirit was good, energy levels were low.

Response:

• The outgoing coordinator took over the role of treasurer, which much better suited his time and commitments.
• I supported the group to have an open discussion of whether and how to continue.
• They decided to continue in the short term to see if continuing without the leadership of their outgoing coordinator was viable.
• The group agreed to work together on The Bee Cause (the campaign which most appealed to the inner circle) and specifically a summer event designed to attract new members.
• They went with a Bee Breakfast because the plans were already provided in the Action Guide and it appealed to the interests and resources of the members.
• They deferred the question of who would coordinate the group until after the event had been completed. People pulled together to organise the meetings in the interim.
• I helped publicise the meetings to the local members and beyond, and explained what they were working on. This drew old members and several newcomers back to the meetings.
• Working on the Breakfast brought this group together and raised morale – everybody picked up tasks which suited their time and inclinations.
• I supported the Breakfast through an invite to national supporters and developing publicity resources.
• Breakfast event successful – drawing in 30+ participants and greatly enjoyed by the team.
• After the breakfast event, we discussed new projects and I inducted and supported the new coordinator.
• The group continued its focus on The Bee Cause, shifting its attention to planting projects, film screenings and another breakfast over the coming year. An end-of-year social found them energised, happy and working well together.