IBM Z

Society Startup

Tips

Ajeet Prabu

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Follow your university process

Find your committee members

Start your social media page

Collaborate with existing societies

GROW

What do I need to do?

Follow your University Policy/ Process

Many universities have a clear procedure to start a society/ chapter. If available, use the support given to you and adhere to their guidelines.

You may be checked against criteria you must meet in order to qualify. Prepare answers to questions like:

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• What are your club’s long-term goals?
• How is your club original from others?
• How many people are interested?
• How many committee members do you have?
• What events/ activities do you have planned?
• What are the risks for your club?
• What are your membership costs?

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In general follow your universities structure and fill out relevant forms, attend required meetings and gain relevant permissions.

Follow your University Policy/ Process

Example Case:

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At the University of Birmingham, there were two Google Forms submissions detailing our ideas for the society, one video interview with our Student Guild management and a final written constitution to be submitted.

Finding your committee

Your committee should be structured as needed according to university policy and your group needs. In general keep it simple with three positions to start:

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• President: Group leader and representative
• Treasurer: Manage finances
• General secretary: Administrative support

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Other positions are often useful later on such as Events manager, PR manager, and Technical supervisor.

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There are many ways to find your members, for example:

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• Ask your friends/ course-mates!
• Find another ambassador at your campus
• Post openings on social media

Social Media

Start promoting!

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• Instagram account
• Facebook group
• Discord Server
• Website

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Grow your pages by sharing join links across all your networks and communities. Start with your friends, colleagues or course-mates.

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Post content!

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• Create a manifesto that clearly outlines what your society plans to do this year
• Create engaging posts about mainframe technology/ IBM Z that will engage wider audiences/ different backgrounds
• Follow the branding guidelines and use templates from YourBigYear

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Social Media

Insta: @ibmz.bham

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Social Media

Discord: IBM Z Society UoB

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Collaborate

Stand on the shoulders of giants!

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Don’t be afraid to seek help, advice or inspiration from larger existing societies on your campus. They are successful for a reason.

For example, IBM Z UoB has some support from CSS (Computer Science society) UoB, which has been established for decades with over 3000 members.

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Examples you may be able to ask for:�

• A shoutout on their accounts
• A mentoring discussion
• Potential committee members/ volunteers
• Co-hosted events
• A dedicated chanel on their discord server
• contacts with professors/ external speakers