Case Study

How MDRT Built Volunteer Leadership at Scale Across 70 Countries

In this case study

"Volunteering is an underrated membership benefit and the lifeblood of MDRT. When members contribute their expertise, energy, and time to MDRT, they get a huge return. They feel good about themselves for giving back and making a difference. Volunteering increases their sense of belonging, community, and purpose. Providing our members with the knowledge and tools they need to be successful volunteers and volunteer leaders will enhance their member experience, strengthen leadership skills, and make MDRT stronger." Pam Brown, Leadership and Guided Development Director, MDRT

When the Million Dollar Round Table needed to develop volunteer leaders across its global membership of 80,000 financial services professionals, they faced a challenge familiar to many associations: how do you deliver consistent, high-quality leadership development to members spread across 70 countries, three regions, and countless time zones?

This is the story of how MDRT partnered with WeLearn Learning Services to create a digital volunteer leadership curriculum that equips members at every stage of their volunteer journey. It’s also a story about honoring an organization’s rich heritage while embracing modern approaches to professional development.

About Million Dollar Round Table

Founded in 1927 and headquartered in Park Ridge, Illinois, MDRT stands as a global symbol of excellence in financial services. With 200 employees supporting over 80,000 members across the Americas, EMEA, and Asia Pacific, the organization represents the top performers in the insurance and financial services industry.

Members must meet rigorous production requirements and maintain high ethical standards to qualify — and they must requalify every year. MDRT’s membership spans independent practitioners and professionals at major firms like Prudential, Great East, and AIA. Achieving and maintaining membership signals a mark of distinction in the industry.

The organization supports its members through professional development programming, in-person and virtual meetings, publications, media resources, book clubs, and member-to-member mentoring. Each year, MDRT’s annual meeting attracts thousands of top-performing financial services professionals from around the world to a different host city.

One thing becomes clear when speaking with the MDRT team: volunteers are the heartbeat of this organization.

Why Volunteers Matter to MDRT

Volunteers bring diverse perspectives, skills, and experiences that enrich MDRT’s decision-making and keep the organization innovative. They help the association achieve its goals more efficiently — critical for any membership organization managing resources carefully. And they serve as advocates, promoting MDRT’s mission and values across the profession.

For members, volunteering delivers a significant return. They gain new skills, build their networks, and enhance their professional credentials. This mutual benefit sits at the core of MDRT’s approach to volunteer engagement.

The Leadership and Guided Development Department is responsible for these initiatives, providing meaningful engagement opportunities that attract, educate, motivate, and inspire members. The department operates across four pillars: Leadership, Mentoring, Study Groups, and Coaching.

Why Volunteers Matter to MDRT

The Leadership Development Challenge

A unique membership cycle creates urgency

MDRT’s annual requalification requirement creates a challenge unlike most associations.

Volunteer roles, especially leadership positions, operate within a particular membership year. Each year brings new volunteer leaders who need to get up to speed quickly.

Key challenges included:

Members spread across 70+ countries with varying schedules and time zones
Three distinct regions (Americas, EMEA, Asia Pacific) with different needs
Diverse professional backgrounds, from large firms to solo practitioners
Annual requalification creating constant turnover in volunteer leadership positions
Need to respect members’ existing professional development experiences
Strong Asia Pacific membership population that primarily engages via mobile

"It is important for members transitioning into new roles to have the tools to make them successful. The eLearning-based training allows opportunities for the organization to create a path for members to develop and understand how to succeed in MDRT volunteer leadership." Wanda Dixon, Manager of Guided Development, MDRT

Learning and Business Objectives

In 2022, MDRT selected its first learning management system (LMS) as part of its professional development strategy. The Leadership and Guided Development Department recognized an opportunity to leverage this platform to scale learning more effectively to their global audience.

MDRT and WeLearn established clear objectives for the Volunteer Leadership Program:

Support MDRT volunteers at all stages of their volunteer careers, including exclusive leadership development courses
Organize learning around MDRT’s Volunteer Competency Model spanning four domains: Association Governance, MyMDRT Volunteerism, Committee Leadership, and Strategic and Global Volunteerism
Deliver asynchronous learning accessible anytime, anywhere
Create mobile-forward experiences for the significant Asia Pacific membership

Designing the Program

Building on the Volunteer Leadership Body of Knowledge

The Volunteer Leadership Program was built on the MDRT Volunteer Competency Model and the Volunteer Leadership Body of Knowledge. Both frameworks emerged from the actual work volunteers undertake as part of their MDRT careers.

The program contains twenty-four learning modules across four domains:

Association Governance
MyMDRT Volunteerism
Committee Leadership
Strategic and Global
Volunteerism

Course design principles

Each course was designed to be 10–20 minutes in length, respecting members’ time while delivering meaningful content. The team needed to create experiences that worked for members at all levels — from those new to volunteering to long-time leaders — while being respectful of professional development they may have completed outside MDRT.

A critical success factor was engaging current and long-time volunteer leaders to share their perspectives on each topic and how it shaped their own volunteer leadership journey.

Every course was built in Articulate Rise to deliver a modern web learning experience. The design incorporated a mix of interactive elements and media to drive engagement. Each course also included a downloadable job aid and a short knowledge-based assessment.

Piloting the Program

A significant investment in volunteer development

Between September 2022 and February 2023, MDRT piloted the Volunteer Leadership Program with a group of over 80 volunteer leaders. Participants were enrolled in the first nine courses through the MDRT Learning Management System.

This program represented one of MDRT’s first forays into delivering eLearning to their members. WeLearn worked closely with MDRT to ensure the learner journey was consistent with their vision and distinct from other learning experiences available to members.

Collaborative problem-solving

Throughout the process, MDRT and WeLearn worked collaboratively to create the most engaging experiences possible. A hallmark of the partnership was the team’s approach to obstacles: when issues arose, they met to discuss the challenge and possible solutions, then moved quickly to resolution.

Following the pilot, both organizations reviewed results and member feedback together.

MDRT provided a comprehensive list of prioritized improvements for the courses. Participating members were invited to continue accessing the courses beyond the formal pilot period.

Results: Over 80% Participation

The pilot demonstrated strong engagement from volunteer leaders. More than 80% of those selected participated, with many completing all nine courses.

Participants provided valuable feedback that continues to shape the program’s evolution. The content was broadly viewed as relevant, engaging, and impactful, while also surfacing opportunities to connect concepts more tangibly to the MDRT volunteer experience.

The Volunteer Leadership Program now enables MDRT to:

Shorten the timeframe for volunteer leaders to develop key competencies

Ensure each volunteer leader can contribute at their full potential
Onboard and develop volunteer leaders at scale each membership year
Deliver consistent leadership development across 70+ countries and three regions
Support members who gain new skills, build networks, and enhance their professional credentials through volunteering

The Heartbeat of MDRT

The Volunteer Leadership Program has given MDRT something it never had before: a scalable way to prepare volunteer leaders across 70 countries, every membership year, without sacrificing quality or connection.

As Pam Brown puts it, “When members contribute their expertise, energy, and time to MDRT, they get a huge return. They feel good about themselves for giving back and making a difference. Volunteering increases their sense of belonging, community, and purpose.”