Toastmasters clubs have officer titles with names that sound corporate – President, Vice Presidents of this and that. What is different about Toastmasters is the officers are facilitators for the members. There is not a chain of command.
Toastmasters clubs have officer titles with names that sound corporate – President, Vice Presidents of this and that. What is different about Toastmasters is the officers are facilitators for the members. There is not a chain of command.
It’s topsy turvy. The officers are facilitators and mentors. Members do not report to the officers. Officers are not there to prod members to participate, but rather to facilitate.
Here is the inverted Toastmaster pyramid:
Member (without members, there would be no clubs )
Club ( without clubs, there would be no Areas )
Areas ( without Areas, there would be no divisions ) Areas are comprised of 4 to 8 clubs.
Divisions ( without divisions, there would be no districts ) There are 4 to 8 Areas in a Division
Districts ( without districts there would be no Regions )
Regions ( without Regions, there would be no Toastmasters International )
Toastmasters International
It is interesting to note that few officers take a salary at Toastmasters International HQ. Some examples from the 990N for 2015:
the President's salary is $ 479,203
The COO takes out 270,450
IT Director: 264,610
Controller: 188,333
Somewhere in the middle are what are known as Regional Advisors and Area Directors ( formally known as Area Governors ). These dedicated ombudsmen are not compensated. They travel extensively with minimal reimbursement. They coordinate and step in if a club is in trouble. Most Toastmaster members are not aware of how much support they get behind the scenes.
Most Toastmaster members are not aware of how much support they get behind the scenes.