Page 17 - Branch Leader Guide

Branch Leader Guide

Know CMTA Sponsors and Cultivate Others (www.cmtausa.org/corpsponsors)

Find out if any members would be willing to inquire about corporate sponsorship at their
places of work, in the community or among friends and co-workers. The CMTA needs
corporate sponsors on many levels within the organization. Corporate sponsors could
include local businesses to support your local branch, regional businesses that might
want to support regional conferences or events and national businesses whose services
improve quality of life for those living with CMT. Every corporate partnership is
customized to best fit the needs of the business and the CMT community.

If you have contacts or ideas for corporate sponsors, please contact Jeana Sweeney
(jeana@cmtausa.org). She can either lead the discussions with the partners or give you
the tools and support to develop those relationships.

Many of you may have fewer branch members than job positions. Start small and either
combine the roles, or create the volunteer positions you find most useful in the short
term. As your branch grows and expands, you can always add additional roles and
responsibilities. Look for and nurture potential new volunteers and helpers. If you know
that a certain individual would be a perfect fit for a particular volunteer position, don’t
hesitate to ask him or her privately, in person, by phone or email.

Each position can be filled by one person or by several people if the job is too
intimidating for one individual. At first, ask members to sign up for a one-year
commitment. If after a year, that individual wants to continue in the chosen role, great.
If not, suggest that the person find a replacement when he/she chooses to move on.
And don’t forget to acknowledge your helpers often and publicly for their time and effort.
A nod of appreciation goes a long, long way.

Contact Information Sheet (www.cmtausa.org/leader-toolbox)

At the beginning of the first meeting, don’t forget to get everyone’s contact information
(name, phone, address and email) and make sure you can read everyone’s handwriting
before they go home! (See Part VI – Samples and Examples for a form you can use.) If
your branch members agree to share their contact information with other members, offer
to send the master list, including names, phone numbers, addresses and emails to every
member of the branch. As new members join, update the contact information list to keep
it current. This will allow relationships to grow outside of meeting hours and can provide
for carpooling opportunities as well. Your regional branch manager will ask you for your
member list on a semi-annual basis (January and June). Also ask your members to join
your branch on the CMTA website.

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