What Are the Qualities of a Good Unit Commissioner?

By Conrad Fruehan, associate director
National Events Division

With the exception of your district's Key 3, no members of your district team have a more important responsibility than unit commissioners. As friends and counselors of unit adults, they must work to ensure a quality program for kids and that your youth members remain in Scouting.

Units are people. To help units succeed, commissioners must be people-oriented. They are truly your district's frontline diplomats. Because a district operates mostly by persuasion rather than legislation, commissioners must exercise the highest degree of diplomacy. They should also exhibit the following 10 traits:

1. Be an effective communicator. This is how most unit service gets done.
2. Be a good listener. It's a big part of good communication.
3. Be tactful and thoughtful. It usually has more influence.
4. Have sound judgment. Be adaptable. Unit situations are often quite different and require more than a cookie-cutter approach. Commissioners need to help units consider several options.
5. Have a Scouting background or be a fast-track learner.
6. Be persistent and patient. Some units need a healthy dose of both.
7. Know and practice Scouting ideals. A commissioner must be a role model.
8. Be enthusiastic. The secret ingredient for success.
9. Fulfill promises. Be dependable. A commissioner must be the kind of person that units and the district can count on.
10. Be a team player. A commissioner plays a role on both the district and unit teams. They dare not be loners.

These traits are common to all effective commissioners. As you guide your commissioner leaders in making unit assignments, it is also important to consider which unit commissioner may best mesh with the needs, background, and personalities of a particular unit.

As a district executive:

• Review these qualities with your district commissioner.
• Keep these qualities in mind as you train and coach your commissioners.
• Consider these qualities in your own relationship to units.

(Reprinted from the August 2004 Prospeak Journal.)

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This page was last modified on Wednesday, December 23, 2009 @ 10:01pm