Anyone have any tips for a new Recruiting and Retention Officer? Before anyone asks, Yes. I have read the staff handbook.
Get very familiar with CAPP 226 and CAPP 201
Work with your command staff to work out a plan and set goals for recruiting and retention and stick to them.
If you aren't already doing so, I highly recommend pipeline recruiting for cadets. Our unit has been doing that since February and we've had immense success from it!
The Great Start Pamphlet has a wealth of ideas and best practices on how to get the word out. A good PAO can do wonders to get the word out about your unit, but a well-planned open house or the like will really put the "butts in the the seats."
Work with the senior members to create a list of, and schedule recruiting tables at community events like street fairs, local festivals, National Night Out events, local public service days/events. Look at calendars on local municipal websites to start a list.
Works with your senior leadership to identify the types of members that the unit needs. If you need cadets, target recruit cadets. Work with local schools and youth organizations to target cadets. If you need pilots, recruit pilots. If you need ES types, recruit them from local EMS, EM and DR organizations. If you need AE types, find some teachers and recruit them. If you need chaplains....you get the idea. Work with your local active, Guard and Reserve units to identify their members who will soon be retiring and recruit them. They can continue to serve and pass along their knowledge to the next generation of leaders in the country. Standing at a table and handing out flyers while saying "We have 3 missions and we might have bombed some subs...or whales...of flotsam.." is all well and good but it's not recruiting, it's fishing.
For the retention portion, give your new members a clear path for success. Let them know what is expected of them, and give them meaningful tasks to accomplish those goals. Keep them engaged by assisting in arranging training sessions that will allow them to showcase their skill sets, that's why you're recruiting them. Identify what keeps people in CAP really make an effort to focus on those things. The Great Start and pipelining are great ways to start.
Good luck, have fun!