Recruit, Retain, Repeat

Let’s look at the world of officiating. Imagine a pyramid. Its shape is narrow at the top with a wide base. This is as accurate of a depiction that one can describe. The first thing one could point to is that there is less room at the top in comparison to the bottom. Logical and obvious point. However, I doubt that would aid in anyone’s pitch when trying to recruit a 20-year-old to become an official. There lies the dilemma. How do you grow and maintain a solid foundation that over time can feed into the higher ranks? Let’s look at it from an association standpoint. The purest form of officiating comes at the local association level. One can gauge the health of any association based upon these three pillars: Recruitment, Retention, and Reinvention.

RECRUITMENT

Recruitment will always be the easy part of any growth plan. If you have the right bait, you can catch any fish. For example, if the target demographic is the traditional college student, then the incentive of training, growth and development may pique their interest. In other cases, the extra money might be enough to snag the recent retiree or weekend warrior to operate a clock on a Varsity field. Regardless, the main purpose of recruiting is to get as many able-bodied people as possible in the door to offset the losses due to age and attrition.

RETENTION

As easy as recruitment can be, retaining those new members can be as difficult if not harder. Several factors play a part in officials not making it past their second or third year. Obviously, we all know the toxicity of the “new” spectator in modern times has made it unbearable for even the most composed official to do their job. Imagine being a rookie official. There is really no way to simulate that type of distraction in training without taking time away from actual, concrete rules and mechanics teaching. As part of the recruiting and initial training process, the job is to not overwhelm rookies and bring them along at a fair pace. The goal is to gradually get them experience at a consistent rate through shadowing and lower-level contests. However, that seems to be where the “toxic” culture is most saturated. Rules and even laws are being created to help curtail some of this bad behavior from endangering youth sports altogether, but that may not be enough to retain young officials.

REINVENTION

The last pillar, which in my opinion I believe some associations overlook, is the idea of reinvention. The recruiting and retainment need to lead to an influence on the direction of the association. Incorporating young, seasoned officials into areas of leadership can help bring fresh points of view to the table. Having young officials lead more crews in spotlight games will send the message to potential recruits that they will not be used primarily as warm bodies. I am also a firm believer that an injection of youth in those previous two areas mentioned can keep the standard raised for all members and Iron sharpens Iron. I think the fear of someone coming in to take your job is an awful mindset for any veteran official. We should all have the drive and the flexibility to allow ourselves to be pushed to stay on top.

In conclusion, to maintain the healthy base in which higher levels can recruit from, the local level of officiating must be able recruit, retain, and reinvent themselves. This is the solid foundation needed to influence ALL levels of what we do in quality, accountability, and character.