Organisational review – RCEM
The Royal College of Emergency Medicine (RCEM) is the professional membership body representing emergency medicine professionals across the UK and internationally. Following a major membership research and segmentation project delivered by Membership Matters in 2024, RCEM commissioned further work to review how its membership function was structured and resourced to support future growth, greater organisational efficiency, and an improved member experience.
Membership challenge
RCEM was managing significant operational responsibilities while simultaneously implementing a new Member Value Proposition (MVP), introducing a new CRM system, and expanding the scope of member services. Alongside this, the team needed to maintain high levels of day-to-day service delivery.
The organisation recognised that existing structures, workflows, and cross-functional responsibilities needed to be reviewed to ensure they remained efficient, sustainable, and member-focused. There were concerns around capacity, duplication of activity, role clarity, operational interdependencies, and whether processes were optimised for future delivery.
RCEM also wanted to explore opportunities for automation, technology integration, and improved workflows, while ensuring team structures, governance, communication lines, and staff development aligned with organisational ambitions and member expectations. The review also considered how operational structures and workflows affected the end-to-end member journey and overall service experience.
Organisational review and future-state design – what we did
We designed and delivered a collaborative organisational review programme focused on structure, governance, workflows, operational efficiency, and member experience.
The project combined workshops, stakeholder interviews, workload analysis, and process mapping to establish a clear understanding of how the membership function operated in practice. We mapped existing processes across recruitment, renewals, engagement, and committee activity, reviewed team structures and responsibilities, and identified bottlenecks, duplication, and operational inefficiencies.
Working closely with senior leadership and operational teams, we then developed future-state models to explore how the membership function could operate more effectively and sustainably. This included assessing opportunities for automation and outsourcing, reviewing CRM and ticketing system efficiencies, modelling resource requirements, and designing alternative team structures and role configurations.
Finally, we facilitated validation workshops with leadership teams to refine recommendations, test future workflows, and develop a phased implementation roadmap aligned to RCEM’s wider strategy and membership objectives.
Impact
This work helped RCEM to:
- Develop a clearer understanding of operational structures, workflows, governance, and resource requirements
- Identify opportunities to improve efficiency, reduce duplication, and streamline member-facing processes
- Create future-state operational models designed to support long-term sustainability and growth
- Improve alignment between membership delivery, technology, and organisational strategy
- Strengthen the end-to-end member journey through clearer processes and responsibilities
- Build a practical implementation roadmap for future organisational and operational improvements
With these insights, RCEM was better equipped to strengthen its membership operations, improve the member experience, and ensure its structure, governance, and processes were aligned to support future strategic priorities.
Transform your membership experience
Want to understand your members better and boost engagement? Our research can help you unlock deeper insights and deliver a more personalised experience. Get in touch to see how we can support your membership strategy. Contact us today on 0345 955 5155 or email us at hello@membership-matters.co.uk
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