Recruitment Coaching

For a previous post about recruitment coaching, visit here.

Phired Up Productions recently announced the formal roll-out of their newest recruitment service for fraternities and sororities, DYNAMIC RECRUITMENT, MD.  The real guts of this service is the year-long weekly coaching relationship that a Phired Up MD builds with a chapter.  This post is meant to shed some light on why recruitment coaching works, and how recruitment coaching works

Josh Orendi and Matt Mattson, co-founders of Phired Up recently presented a presentation at the Fraternity Executives Association annual meeting that was titled, From Recruitment Band-Aids to Recruitment Coaching.  This session started the discussion amongst professionals of the benefits of shifting from ADVISING and CONSULTING to coaching. 

For years fraternity and sorority strategies for helping their chapters to recruit has been to come up with new slogans, manuals, brochures, web sites or even T-shirts for their undergraduate chapters.  The best organizations have offered recruitment training, which is an important start, but for real results to take hold, there must be more.  Advising from alumni or headquarters professionals has been the common response, but too often these advisors neither know good recruitment techniques, nor do they know how best to work with the undergraduates to get results through those techniques.

Enter the concept of RECRUITMENT COACHING. 

Phired Up Productions has started to deliver RECRUITMENT COACHING services that are based on their “4 Cornerstones of Recruitment Coaching.”  These four cornerstones are what makes recruitment coaching different from advising or consulting, which have been the traditional methods of delivering education to undergraduates.  Phired Up’s recruitment coaching methods focus on 1) the level of action, and 2) measurable results.

The coaching relationship starts with something called a Designed Alliance.  The Designed Alliance is a co-created, clear, formal relationship between the coach and the client.  This is an important cornerstone because coaching balances support and tough challenges to push a client toward their desired results.  This clearly established alliance gives the power to the relationship, and not to one particular party in the relationship.  A recruitment coach delivers services based on the agreed up on designed alliance.  For example, a recruitment coach might request an alliance where the coach does: 1) ask the tough questions, 2) offer every resource available, 3) focus on measurable results, and 4) let the client determine the agenda, but the coach might not: 1) give answers even though he thinks he has them, 2) shy away from uncomfortable conversations, 3) be afraid to interrupt for the benefit of the client, and 4) accept excuses.

A second cornerstone of successful recruitment coaching, according to Phired Up is Measurable Outcomes.  Typically, an alumni recruitment advisor might ask, “How’s recruitment going?”  And if they do ask questions like that, they’ll get similarly vague answers, like “Recruitment is going great, we’ve got a lot of awesome prospects.”  This type of conversation is quite different from how a recruitment coach would work.  A recruitment coach focuses almost exclusively on measurable outcomes.  You might hear a recruitment coach ask, “Precisely how many names were added to your names list this week?  Can you E-mail that names list to me right now?” “Of the 50 phone calls you promised to make, how many did you complete successfully?  Can you send me the notes you took on those calls so that I might more closely analyze your work for peak performance?”  Recruitment coaches help a client understand that effort and results are two different things, and they assist clients in discovering for themselves which efforts get results, and which do not.

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Confessions of a Recruitment Addict

by Dennis Kaps (Phired Up’s NEW Senior Recruitment Consultant

Hello, my name is Dennis and I am a Recruitment Addict.  From the moment I was appointed as Vice President of Recruitment in my Fraternity as a Sophomore in college I was hooked.  There is something about Recruiting that challenges us to get outside our comfort zone like nothing else.  

Getting outside our comfort zone is something that is…uncomfortable, and that is exactly how it is supposed to feel.

Another thing that comes to mind that is uncomfortable is going through growth spurts as a kid.  I can remember lying in bed at night, my legs hurting so badly and I didn’t understand why.  My Mom told me I was fine but I was growing and growing hurts a little bit.  Now there is a universal truth, growing hurts.  When we get outside our comfort zone we are growing and it’s usually a little uncomfortable.  We do it because we know that growing is something we have to do to truly lead fulfilling lives.

Whenever I want to motivate myself to do something outside my comfort zone so I can grow, I think of the following quote which is seared in my brain:  “A ship is always safe in its harbor, but that’s not what ships are made for.”  This quote is so beautiful, so simple and so true.  Each and every day we go out into the world and take risks.  Getting in the car or bus in the morning has risk involved, so does crossing the street or even going to the bank.  When we interact with new people it feels a little risky too.  What if they don’t like us?  What if we sound stupid?  What if we don’t know what to say?  These thoughts are normal, even the best recruiters have them.  The difference is the best recruiters don’t worry about them.  The best recruiters know that the risk is worth the reward.

The skills you build in recruiting will reward you the rest of your life.  Learning to effectively communicate with people will land you a better job, get you the girlfriend/boyfriend you have always wanted and will ultimately give you a better life. Approaching strangers making them your friends and ultimately making them your brothers/sisters/members will profoundly impact your life in many ways.  You will build the confidence to do things that you never thought possible before.  The only catch is you have to practice and make recruiting more than an activity, make it a lifestyle.  

Everywhere you go focus on your skills.  Master the art of approaching people; learn the art of conversation and practice being persuasive.  Gain the confidence to be the guy who can go anywhere, anytime and make friends with anyone.  Live recruitment and it can give you that gift and more.  I do have to warn you that if you do decide to make that decision and live the life of a recruiter, you just might become an addict too.

Dennis Kaps (Dennis@PhiredUp.com)
Senior Recruitment Consultant

 

Phired Up’s Team Grows

For Immediate Release

Contact: Matt Mattson (630) 965-1779

 

New Recruitment Consultant - Dennis Kaps

INDIANAPOLIS — Phired Up Productions, the nation’s leader in fraternity, sorority, and college student organization recruitment education, announced Tuesday the hiring of Dennis Kaps.  Dennis will serve in a part-time role as Senior Recruitment Consultant joining the full-time team of recruitment experts that includes Matt Mattson, Josh Orendi, and Jessica Gendron.

Leveraging his experiences as a past Expansion Director for one of the nation’s largest fraternities and his experience as a current executive recruiter for one of Business Week’s top 10 performing companies, Dennis brings a unique ability to inspire and coach organizations to deliver superior recruitment results.  Dennis has a bachelor’s degree from The Ohio State University and has been recognized as an outstanding alumni of the year at a recent awards presentation.  Dennis is a member of Sigma Phi Epsilon fraternity.

“Dennis brings the level of experience, results, and ability to coach students to reach their highest potential that we really believe in,” said Josh Orendi, CEO.

Dennis will be working with Phired Up’s Dynamic Recruitment Training clients, delivering programs, and providing specialized follow up services.  Dennis will also be engaged in Phired Up’s new Dynamic Recruitment, MD services, which will be announced in the coming weeks. 

Phired Up Productions is an education firm providing recruitment services to membership organizations. Our message is for customers that desire a higher quantity of higher quality individuals involved in their organization(s) – and who are interested in long-term, limitless success.Phired Up Productions has delivered training and programming to the college fraternity/sorority community, and to other membership organizations, since 2002.  With the publication of Good Guys in 2006 and I Heart Recruitment in 2007, the company has become widely recognized as The Recruitment Experts.

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Fraternity Executives Association (FEA) 2008

by Matt Mattson

Phired Up Productions will partner again this year with the Fraternity
Executives Association (FEA)
to provide several programs during their annual meeting — Miami, Florida July 8-12.  The link above goes directly to this
year’s schedule.

During the 2008 FEA Annual Meeting, Phired Up will deliver three programs,
network at an exhibit booth, and meet with executives of the inter/national
fraternity and sorority industry.  Here are the workshops to be delivered by
Phired Up:

Implementing Values-Based Recruitment Strategies Throughout Your Fraternity Chapters and Colonies
 
Many inter/national fraternal organizations have struggled to implement an effective growth strategy that translates to undergraduate chapter success — so often our organizations are re-teaching mediocre recruitment strategies that re-deliver mediocre recruitment results.  Does your organization want a consistent, repeatable, values-based recruitment system to teach everyone from new members to alumni?  This session will introduce a results-driving system along with results-driving strategies for cultivating that system at all levels of your organization.  You will learn from the creators of Dynamic Recruitment, and authors of Good Guys, the best strategies for driving a higher quantity of higher quality members into your fraternity.
 
Implementing Values-Based Recruitment Strategies Throughout Your Sorority Chapters and Colonies

Is your organization invested in the growth of your sorority on a chapter and inter/national level?  If your answer is, “Yes”, then this session is for you.  Dynamic sorority recruitment represents the future in organizational growth centered around values and the core purpose of sororities – friendship.  Come learn from the author of I Heart Recruitment, the best-selling book on sorority recruitment, about the methods that are revolutionizing sorority recruitment around the country. You will learn the Dynamic Recruitment system and how you can implement results-driving practices into your organization and chapters across the country - regardless of size, recruitment structure, and campus rules.

From Recruitment Band-Aids to Recruitment COACHING — A Philosophy of Results
 
Recruitment manuals, recruitment trainings, recruitment brochures, and recruitment slogans from your inter/national organization are good, but do they go far enough?  Is there another step for organizations that want to experience dramatic growth in the quantity of quality members it recruits?  Yes — Recruitment Coaching.  Organizations on the headquarters, alumni council, and chapter levels are seeking recruitment coaches who can provide accountability, knowledge, perspective, and support for dramatic growth initiatives.  Come learn from providers of this level of service, Phired Up Productions, about how to create recruitment culture change within your organization through coaching techniques.

 

Closing a Recruit — Ben Franklin Style

by Matt Mattson

You’d think we were major history buffs at Phired Up by the way we talk about Benjamin Franklin so much.  You might remember our post about him here as well.  And actually, Josh (our CEO) was a history major at Bethany College, so maybe that’s why we’re so prone to learning from the past. Anyway, here’s another lesson from history to help with the way you recruit members into your organization.

So I was playing golf with my Father-In-Law yesterday.  His name is Bob Gilbert, and he’s the greatest (I’m going for Son-In-Law of the year, so I had to get that in).  Anyway, he shared with me a way he used to close sales when he was working as a solar energy salesman.  He called it the ”Benjamin Franklin Close,” and that got me thinking about how it might apply really well to college student organizations as they work to ”close the deal” on new recruits. 

Apparently, old Benny, one of our esteemed forefathers, was famous in his time for a few things.  One of those things was using a simple “balance sheet” of sorts as a decision making tool.  He’d draw a vertical line down the middle of a sheet of paper and write the “pros” of the decision on one side, and the “cons” on the other.  In this day and age that doesn’t seem terribly revolutionary, but keep in mind that vertical lines weren’t invented until after the first World War.

Anyhoo…  A lot of salesmen apparently use this technique to help a prospective client make a decision about a purchase.  And it fits perfectly as a way to help potential members get past the small hurdles that often stand in the way of them joining.

Imagine a conversation that goes something like this…

First, you have been using the “Pre-Close” technique for a while to get a sense of where this prospect is.  But for this scenario, let’s imagine that the prospective member is just a little hesitant to make the leap into membership.

So there you sit with the prospect, and suddenly you pull out a piece of paper and a pencil.  You say, “O.K., so we’ve been talking about you joining our organization for a while, would you mind if we thought together about the facts and realities of the situation?” 

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Learning from Door To Door Sales

by Matt Mattson

As I was outside mowing my front lawn this afternoon, a woman walked past and got my attention.  I shut off my Craftsman lawn mower and thought I’d find out what this well-dressed middle-aged lady wanted.

“My name’s Cathy,” she said. “I live here in the neighborhood, own my own financial advising business, and am just walking around to get to know everyone.”

I am kind of in the market for a financial advisor, but that’s not why I wanted to continue the conversation.  I figured if this Cathy person had the nerve enough to wander around the neighborhood on an 85 degree day in a nice blazer, I might be able to learn something from her.  Plus, anytime someone is obviously trying to sell me something, I like to take their best practices and try to apply them to the world of organizational recruitment.

Cathy continued by asking me what I do (a common tactic, but classic).  I told her, and she seemed interested, but she kept moving on to not waste my time.  Then she gave me the pitch for the internationally known financial management company (and to be 100% honest, I couldn’t tell you what company it is).  It’s amazing.  I remember thinking that when she was talking about it she was focusing on features, not benefits (which I wasn’t impressed by), but reflecting on it later I realized that even though SHE WANTED to talk about her business and how great it is, WHAT I CARED ABOUT is how interested she ended up being in my business.

After she gave me the pitch accompanied by the really glossy expensive brochure that I proceeded to throw away as soon as I got in the house, she went back to ME as the topic.  “I’m really fascinated by what you do, and I hope to be able to learn more about it someday,” she said referring back to how I aloofly mentioned that I do professional speaking for college students.  Then she got me… “Have you ever worked at Missouri or Arizona State?  My kids go there.” 

Wow did I get unintentionally excited and start telling her all about the schools I’d visitied, how much I respected her kids’ college choices, and which schools I like the most.  She listened, asked a couple more authentic follow up questions with genuine curiosity, then shook my hand and took my contact information.

The way she got my phone number was another highlight from the conversation.  She had a pen and a list with her, and was obviously writing phone numbers and notes about prospects she’d met on the sidewalk.  I knew this, but couldn’t help but give my contact information because she said, with her pen on the paper, “How do you spell your last name?  O.K., and the best number to reach you at would be three zero three…” and I couldn’t help but finish it.  Well done, Cathy.

This may seem like a simple, odd story to you, but here are the top five lessons I learned or was reminded of from Cathy today…

1. Have the guts to walk up to strangers and introduce yourself — Cathy won a prospect because of her guts.

2. Dress like you want to be received.  Cathy wanted me to know she meant business with her burgundy blazer and delightful slacks.

3. People join people, not organizations.  I might use Cathy for my family’s financial advice and management not because of her company’s reputation or brochure.  I’ll call Cathy because she was nice.  People will join your organization because you’re the person who was interested in them.

4. Be genuinely curious about others.  We teach the “5 F’n Ways to Master a Conversation,” but it is much better to ask honest, open questions out of genuine curiosity.

5. You get contact information from prospects by expecting it, asking for it, and being honest about why you want it.

Well done, Cathy.

Free Lunch

by Josh Orendi

A few days ago, a friend of mine was in town for a few days.  We met for breakfast.  He and I began talking about the work Phired Up does.  Obviously, this is one of my favorite topics … so I got really excited.  I started down the path of describing the best recruitment techniques I had seen in recent years.  He listened politely then reminded me that great recruiters “keep it really simply.”  
 
“Of course,” I shot back.  Then I’m sure I started down the same path of describing some elaborate recruitment strategy…
 
“For example,” he interrupted, “there is a man at my church who has personally grown our congregation by over 25 families….” 
 
He had my attention.  “How did he do it?” I asked.
 
He paused and said, “free lunch.”
 
I’ve heard that one before, I thought to myself.  “Yeah, a lot of people and groups use free food as a way to get people to meetings, events, etc…  This is the oldest trick in the Rush book.” I said.
 
“No, no, no.  You don’t understand.  This guy personally invites anyone he meets during the week to attend church with him on Sunday.  Then, he casually throws in the closing statement, “afterwards I’ll take you and your family out for lunch … my treat.”  My friend continued, “In fact, he often goes a step further and offers to pick them up on Sunday morning.  It’s hard to say no to someone standing on your doorstep waiting for you.”
 
That’s brilliant, I thought to myself.  It’s exactly what Directors of Expansion do when they’re recruiting a Founding Father class to build a new fraternity.  That makes perfect sense.  You just ask anyone you know or meet that week to come join you at a fraternity meeting, event, study group, sporting activity, etc.  The money line is simply saying, “afterward, I’ll take you out for lunch … my treat.” 
 
My friend added, “but to be fair, he also told me that he has over 100 invitations outstanding.  Most people never take him up on the opportunity.  You have to ask a lot of people out to lunch to get 25 new members.”
 
“Isn’t that expensive,” I asked. 
 
“It’s not FREE, that’s for sure,” he said with a grin, “but according to this guy, it only costs a fraction of hosting a big church event and the results speak for themselves.”
 
That’s when the light bulk went off for me.  It’s all about the personal relationships of People joining People.  I’m a little embarrassed that it took a friend at breakfast to remind me how simple recruitment really is.  I hope he reads this as a way for me to say “thanks” for the kick in the ass.  :-)

 

Pancakes… mmmm

by Matt Mattson

I just thought this was a cool recruitment idea (when combined with the explanation below) and wanted to share.  I will give full credit for this idea to the Gamma Theta Chapter of Beta Theta Pi at Washington State University.

I was working with that chapter on their upcoming fall recruitment calendar, and they were trying to come up with some creative ways to take advantage of normal college student behavior.  They wanted to have a non-threatening, non-traditional method for attracting non-Greek students to their fraternity house.  Knowing what we know, normally fraternity houses are scary to non-Greek students, and the most logical of them wouldn’t dare set foot on frat house property (for good reason, in my opinion).  So we were trying to think of something that would make it more inviting.

So imagine this scenario.  Throughout the first week of school, all of the chapter members are constantly wandering around campus selling raffle tickets for a charity.  With every person they sell a ticket to, they have a short conversation, get their name and contact information, and let them know that the big raffle prize will be given away at the pancake breakfast on Sunday morning.  The members are also spending time all week handing out applications for their recruitment scholarship.  The scholarship awardees would be announced at the big pancake breakfast the chapter’s putting on Sunday.  The chapter has also been working with sororities and other referral sources all week to get referrals of good potential members.  They offer to thank the sororities and other referral sources by inviting them to the big pancake breakfast on Sunday.  At the parties and social events on Thursday, Friday, and Saturday ever member in the chapter is offering free “hangover” breakfast on Sunday morning to everyone they meet.

Then on Sunday, guess what, the chapter serves pancakes for breakfast under a big tent on their front lawn.  That’s it… nothing too crazy, just free pancakes from 9 a.m. to 12:30 p.m. or so.

What I love about the idea is not the pancakes, not the tent, and to be honest, not that it is at the house (it might be better if it was somewhere else on campus).  What I love about the idea is that it gives all the chapter members something of value to talk about (a.k.a. an “icebreaker”) when they’re meeting people all week.  It also provides REASONS to invite people to the event (saying thanks to the referral sources, scholarship awarded, raffle prize given, etc.), instead of just inviting people to an event for the sake of the event. 

Other variations on this idea might be to invite faculty, staff, alumni, parents etc. to attend, or even help.  An organization might consider “charging” a $1 donation to a local charity, or 5 canned goods for breakfast.  A chapter might consider working with the “orientation office” on campus to make this part of the university’s orientation week.   The organization might consider putting out yard games and turning it into a natural afternoon barbecue — making it an all day event.

Pancakes can be cheap, and better yet, they could be donated if the event was for charity.

Just thought it was a unique idea that could definitely work.

Fraternity Recruitment Scholarship

by Matt Mattson & Josh Orendi

One of the most popular recruitment ideas we share with fraternity leaders is what is known as the “recruitment scholarship.” 

This is a concept that has been mastered by a few international fraternity headquarters, especially Beta Theta Pi.  Check out their whole program here: http://www.betathetapi.org/index.php?option=com_content&task=view&id=494&Itemid=268

Here’s an example of an on-line application (created by a Phired Up Extreme Recruitment Makeover client): http://www.wsubeta.net/recruitment/scholarship_app.php

Here’s where you can find Phired Up’s new sample application: http://www.phiredup.com/files/admin/Mattson_&_Orendi_Honorary_Scholarship.doc

Here’s how we describe the scholarship idea in our presentations and in a free resource you can find here: http://www.phiredup.com/files/admin/Presentation_Part_2_&_3_Handouts__6_cyl__vbsp__etc_.pdf

Offer a scholarship ($300-$500 is fine) to all non-Greek men; distribute scholarship applications far and wide; collect the scholarship applications (which include name/contact info of all applicants; consider interviews for top applicants; give away one scholarship to a deserving young man; follow up with all applicants you’re interested in.  Many chapters take on this great initiative, but fail to maximize it because they simply mail out the applications to all incoming freshmen.  A better way to do it is to print up 2000 applications, and have your brothers hand them out around campus using an adaptation of the script below.  However, giving out the scholarships applications isn’t the most important part – use the lure of free money as an icebreaker to start meaningful conversations with the strangers you’re giving the applications to.

Here’s an example of how to distribute it:
“Excuse me, are you interested in a $500 scholarship opportunity?  My name is Matt, and I’m part of an organization on campus that celebrates academic potential – that’s just one of our values, and this is one way we represent that.  Anyway, this is a simple one-page scholarship application, and all you have to do is fill it out to be considered for a $500 cash scholarship.  Hey, don’t I know you from Physics class?”

We got an E-mail today from a fraternity leader at the University of Michigan who wanted to do this whole scholarship thing right, so we put together a list of ways to market the scholarship to incoming freshman, and thought we’d share it with everyone.  Here it is!
* A lot of chapters we work with that do summer recruitment efforts make a flier and print out a bunch of the applications (or make an on-line version available) and work with local high school counselors in and around their hometown to advertise it to students that are heading to their university.

* If you have a list of incoming freshmen or your names list that you built in the spring, or even incoming students you find on Facebook, send it to them.

* I STRONGLY recommend this approach.  Print out about 2000-3000 copies (no kidding).  Give each of your brothers a big-ass stack on the first day that new students arrive on campus for orientation or freshman move-in (or whatever).  Tell your guys their only job is to walk around campus and hand out scholarship applications — the important thing is that they hand them out personally, meet the people they’re giving them to, and use the applications as an icebreaker to a normal conversation.  Encourage members to get names and contact info of everyone they meet, and maybe (hopefully) invite them to lunch, coffee, a study session, a pick-up football game, a recruitment event, or whatever.

* Use Facebook in anyway you can to get the word out about it.

* Give the application away at activities fairs, summer orientation days, registration days, etc.

* Talk to the Financial Aid / Scholarships Office or the Admissions office to see if they’ll let you include the application in a packet that they’re already sending out or that they give away at registration/orientation days.

* You’ll notice on my sample application there are no fraternity letters or insignia.  Be authentic, but there is not really a big need to advertise that you’re a frat guy giving out a scholarship… If I’m a freshman, that seems fishy.

* Partner with an organization on campus that has credibility and name recognition (e.g. Student Activities, Student Government, Cheer team, etc.).  This will increase your response rate and serve as a nice PR move.
 
* Find an alumnus to endow the scholarship (work with your HQ Foundation) and name the scholarship after him.  Now the scholarship doesn’t cost the chapter anything, you cultivated and honored a big time donor, and you have a reason not to display fraternity letters at the top of the application (which typically turns potential applicants off).
 
* Mail the applications to “the parents of…” not to the undergrad!  Mom’s fill out scholarships because they pay the bills.
 
* Include transfer students in your mailing list.
 
* Include women in your scholarship.  You’re building a great referral network, but also giving yourself a Names List of women you can share with a partner sorority in return for more referrals from their members.
 
* Include a self addressed envelope.
 
* Create an easy way for people to apply online.
 
* Celebrate the winners by having a banquet for all applicants (that’s a recruitment event), with parents if possible.  Post congratulations posters/advertisements for the winner (that’s good PR).  And make sure you actually give away the award and money (that’s called integrity).

 

Ben Franklin: Frat Dude

by Josh Orendi

Ben Franklin was born to be a fraternity man!
 
I’ve been reading the New York Times bestseller “Benjamin Franklin, An American Life” by Walter Isaacson.  It’s a little thick for this Bethany College grad, but every chapter is packed with fascinating information about the man, the city, the time period, etc.  Anyway, there is one part in particular that I can’t get out of my mind.  The Junto!
 
JUNTO: A club for mutual improvement. Established in 1727 by Benjamin Franklin in Philadelphia, PA for the purpose of debating questions of morals, philosophy, politics, and to exchange knowledge of business affairs.  Check out this wikipedia link:  http://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Junto
 
The Junto (latin for meeting) began as 12 members from diverse backgrounds that saw value in organizing likeminded leaders together to better themselves and their community.  The weekly meetings began at a Philadelphia tavern before moving to a local house.  The men in the group weren’t “better” than other men in the community, but certainly wanted something better for themselves and the community. 
 
These were everyday guys that enjoyed each others company over a beer, but saw the value in organizing themselves to advance their individual and collective causes.  Hello!  (sounds familiar, right?)  Any new members were required to take a four question oath in front of the group that publicly announced their commitment to the Junto, dedication to truth, willingness to be open minded, and tolerant of the differences of others.  (sounds like a fraternal oath to me)
 
For many years, Isaacson recounts the members of the Junto helping each other both personally and professionally.  The “club” created bonds of trust and friendship.  This is another amazing example (nearly 300 years old) of what happens when you bring together People & Purpose.
 
The Wikipedia link above offers a list of 24 questions discussed/debated at the Junto meetings.  This would be a fun lesson to teach an expansion group (or any group for that matter) and challenge a group of collegiate men to think of themselves as a fraternal “junto.”  Franklin hand selected these men because of their backgrounds, professions, leadership, and willingness to live the purpose of the group. 
 
Have the wisdom of Ben Franklin when you recruit for your fraternal junto.  Have a deep understanding of the purpose of your organization and hand select only the best men to join your group.  It should be an honor to be chosen and membership should provide deep personal and professional benefits for many years.