Decide who belongs in the room. Too often, chapters recruit without a goal in mind. We want to rethink the way data is used in the recruitment process by helping chapters understand their previous results.

Our team has researched a decade of chapter growth data and compared it to more than 800 schools across the country. As a result of this data analysis, we have calculated the membership potential of every chapter and set initial recruitment goals that will push your chapter to be one of the best on your campus.

In general, chapters initiate 90% of the new members that accept a bid and retain 73% of initiated members throughout their time as an undergraduate student. This means, if your goal is to have a chapter size of 70 men, you will need to recruit approximately 26 men per year. If your chapter percentages are above these averages, keep up the great work. If you are below these averages, that is a signal that you should identify areas to improve different aspects of your chapter experience.

Your Chapter Support Specialist will be able to talk you through your growth data and goals. We recommend contacting your assigned staff member when you are beginning your growth planning.

In addition to overall recruitment goals, your chapter should establish membership criteria and set specific process goals.

Membership Criteria Goals

Membership criteria goals are the standards your chapter believes new members should meet. This process is equivalent to a sport recruiting process. Think of it this way, if your school’s best quarterback just graduated, you wouldn’t recruit a kicker to replace him. If you have traditionally been a run-first offense, but want to move to an air-raid offense, you will need to recruit a different type of player. If your chapter has normally been a low-performing academic chapter, you should set goals that will help your chapter recruit people who possess the skills you need to elevate your team.

Values/Criteria	Evaluation	Goal
Scholarly	Potential new member has at least a 3.0 GPA.	At least 80% of the new member class will meet our scholarship requirement.
Respectful	Potential new member does not have a campus conduct record, and the chapter did not receive any conduct complaints during the recruitment period.	The chapter will not extend a bid to any potential new members who are found to have a conduct record.
Athletic	Potential new member played at least one sport in high school, or active plays on club or recreational teams on campus.	At least 50% of the new member class will meet our athletic requirement.
Creative	Potential new member can play a musical instrument, participate in theater or film, or have artistic design skills.	At least 20% of the new member class will meet the creative requirement.
Technical	Potential new member is proficient in spreadsheet software and coding in at least one language.	At least 20% of the new chapter will meet the technical requirement.

Recruitment Process Goals

Process goals are the inputs or actions that will lead to success. These are the day-to-day, week-to-week benchmarks that should add up to success. Here are a few examples:

Goal	Due Date	Leader
Identify 250 potential new members.	Aug. 26	Michael
Meet with 15 student organizations to discuss partnerships or referrals.	Sept. 10	Josh
Deliver 3 interest sessions.	Sept. 16	Nick
Increase Instagram followers by 20%.	Sept. 21	Alex
Submit all required forms to school, IFC, and national office.	Multi-date	Andrew
Contact every potential new member at least 3 times per week until they accept a bid or it is determined they are not a good fit.	Weekly	Marcus
75% of chapter adds two unique people to names list.	Weekly	Chris

Technology separates amateurs and professionals in the growth game.

You need to determine what tech is needed to leverage your team’s effort. We recommend using the following tech to accelerate your chapter’s growth.

Put your team members in a position to succeed with these training tips.

As you develop your growth strategy, it can be helpful to check-in with advisors and fraternity staff for guidance. It is also important to share your strategy with your chapter so that everyone has a basic understanding of the work taking place. Determine what training your growth team needs from outside resources, and then determine what training your growth team can share with your chapter.

For most chapters, practice is needed in the area of written and verbal communication with potential new members, student leaders, and campus professionals. While we cannot script every interaction, we can share a few best practices. Those best practices can be found in the Recruit section of this guide:

Coordinate with your team to schedule next steps and put them on the calendar.

As a team, look at your academic and personal schedules, campus events, and chapter commitments. Use these key dates to build a calendar that everyone can access. Be intentional about when tasks need to be completed and be realistic about your availability. Every task should be assigned a person and a deadline, and your growth team should connect regularly during your primary recruitment period to ensure you’re making the best decisions for your chapter.

This is a great opportunity to use your G-Suite and Slack technology. These tools will help you sort action items, set due dates, and communicate together.