Cocktail Style Rotation for WRC?
 

Hi all!

My chapter is a weaker recruiting chapter and we have formal recruitment in the spring. We've really been struggling with numbers. We have great girls but a lot are shy, so our workshops are going to focus a lot on conversation. We've also been improving our chapter in other aspects as well.

I'm looking for specific advice on cocktail style rotation. I've seen some talk about it and I sort of understand how it works, but I can't seem to wrap my head around how it could work for my chapter. We currently use a 5 person bumping system and it doesn't seem to be effective.

I estimate that right now we have about 110 girls, but in the spring we will have less due to I think 24 seniors graduating. We will COB in the fall but normally we only get around 10 girls through that. So to work with and recruit, I'd say around 90. How could we do this numbers wise?

To specify further, our greek life is growing. This year open house had 47 or 48 pnms each round for a total of 8 rounds. We had to double up a lot, obviously, in our bump groups. We'll still double up most likely with cocktail style. I've thought about doing 30 groups of 3, but that's a LOT of doubling. Please help! How could I make this work! I fear having 50 girls picking up at the door and just roaming to whoever they can find out of the remaining 40 floaters, but is that how it's supposed to work???

The first thing I would do is contact your regional (or national) recruitment volunteer person (director, officer, whatever she's called). She will have a ton of resources and can help guide you. Be sure and loop in your recruitment advisor as well.


Secondly, this cocktail style rotation you're describing IMO can be very difficult with women who are shy, as you admit members of your chapter are. It takes the most bubbly, confident, friendly person to be able to float in and out of conversations with ease and grace. I have seen people who were thought of as great recruiters (and were for the most part), struggle and come off awkward when trying to float.


If I were to try and implement this in your situation, I would probably have 50 people designated as the women who pick up PNMs at the door. You could then go one of two ways:
- Have chapter members and PNMs sit or stand in groups of 4, so that two chapter members are meeting two PNMs in a group conversation. Other chapter members can then float in and out to break up the conversations a bit
- Have chapter members remain in pairs with just their one PNM and have a number of people float in and out.


Regardless, IMO it would be best to set up specific bump/float groups, as in these 4 people who are paired with PNMs are floated in on by these 3 floaters, and that group of 7 chapter members is consistent between rounds.


Hopefully that helps you. But seriously, talk to people in your org. They'll be able to help the most.

Good advice Alpha Xi Husky

What number of people would float in and out in your second option? That's what I don't understand. I want to avoid doubling up as much as possible- pnms hate it! I just don't think bumping is for us because our shy girls seem so much more outgoing when other sisters are there.

I can try talking to nationals- I don't know how much advice they would have as we are really really small and our recruitment manual doesn't have much, but I will look into it for sure!

By small do you mean you don't have many chapters nationally? Because I don't consider a 100+ person chapter small! Regardless, your national recruitment person should have some ideas to help you.


As for the second option, it depends on how long the parties are for that round. For first round, I have seen anywhere from 2 to 4 people float in on a chapter member-PNM pair. If you only have 15 or 20 minutes, you're probably only going to get 2 floaters. If you have 30 or 40 minutes, you could probably do 3 or 4 floaters.

How many rushees do you expect to be at a party. If you have 90 members and and 90 girls attending a party you can't help but double up. But let cuts be your friend. I would say buck headquarters (if they're telling you differently), cut heavily and get as quickly as you can to a number of girls you can work with and really sell the value of your membership. And if they numbers do stay high, really try to focus on the girls you've got a shot with. Zip through the girls you know are not interested (the rude ones are the first to go! Then the ones who just seem disinterested). So bump through the ones you have to and put your absolute best rushers on the girls with potential. To me it's not about the numbers, it's about the chemistry. And conversation wins over all the glitz.

Both! And I think we have 45 minute parties the first day. That includes time for entering, exiting, and video.

Last year we had I think 48 girls at each open house party. We did bump groups of 5, with the first 3 picking up girls at the door, and then bumping twice.

My cochair and I just figured out a great solution we'll probably use: bump groups of 4, with the first 3 picking up, and bumping 3 times. That way the pnms talk to more girls for less time so it's easier for sisters, but still long enough to make a connection.

Unfortunately, we tried to disobey RFM this year and failed. The LC was not about it.

That sucks. Well, you can still focus on the girls who matter and the bitches can wonder what the hell is happening and why the earth doesn't seem to be revolving around them at that particular moment. The girls who might be ignored or just not given the love at other parties might really respond to special attention. Do your homework over the summer! I'd really have 100 girls picked out who you really want and use every trick in the book to woo them.