External Membership Services

Mark Leach MRSB, Director: Mark joined the RSB in 2012, becoming Head of Membership and Marketing in January 2017, Associate Director in 2020, and Director in 2023. Mark is responsible for membership recruitment and retention, and marketing the RSB's membership services. Mark has previously worked in membership marketing at the British Medical Association, National Voices, and managed the publications team at MIND – the national association for mental health. 

Andy Stephens, Client Services Operations Lead: Andy manages the day-to-day administration for the British Society for Genetic Medicine and the British Society of Animal Science, and oversees the activities of the client services team. Andy's previous experience includes working in membership for several organisations in the charity sector, including the Institute of Physics, Parkinson's UK, and BAFTA. Andy is a member of the Institute of Direct and Digital Marketing. 

Charlie Brown MRSB, Membership Officer: Charlie manages the day-to-day membership administration for the Genetics Society, British Lichen Society, and the International Society for Affective Disorders. 

Zoha Tauseef AMRSB, Membership Assistant: Zoha manages the day-to-day membership administration for the Heads of University Biosciences (an RSB special interest group), Fisheries Society of the British Isles, and the Anatomical Society. 

Freya Bambridge AMRSB, Membership Assistant: Freya manages the day-to-day membership administration for the British Society for Neuroendocrinology, Laboratory Animal Science Association, and the Freshwater Biological Association.

Why should we outsource our administration to the RSB?

The RSB has a dedicated team fully capable of taking on administration for a variety of different membership organisations, which ultimately frees up valuable time for your organisation while ensuring that your members receive excellent customer service.

How much does it cost?

In an initial conversation, we will be able to give an assessment of your needs, with a full quote to follow.

How long does the process take to transfer services to RSB?

This will depend largely on the scale of the work, but also other factors such as how data is currently being held.

Who will we deal with day-to-day?

You will be allocated an individual account manager, who you will be able to liaise with for any day-to-day queries. You will also be able to contact any member of the team.

How will our membership data be used and stored?

Your organisation's membership data will be securely stored on a separate database, accessible by key staff at RSB as well as staff and committees within your organisation.

Our organised and efficient team will deliver your event to time and budget. We will be responsible for:

• creating the relevant planning documents
• sourcing and negotiating venues
• providing an online platform (currently Zoom Pro or Webinar)
• managing any suppliers and sponsors
• supporting abstract submissions
• overseeing guest management
• on the day delivery

Initially, we will meet with you to review your requirements and create a personalised event proposal. Once a Letter of Agreement is issued, a dedicated member of our team will become your main point of contact throughout all stages of your event, from planning to delivery and evaluation. We will record our activity and you will be invoiced after the event.

Our detail orientated and flexible team is experienced in many event types and has previously run well-received academic conferences, informative webinars, Annual General Meetings, and engaging workshops for clients. Our team is accomplished in delivering networking receptions, seminars, and celebratory events such as formal dinners with VIPs and award ceremonies.

As event professionals, we know that delivering events at any scale can be challenging, particularly for volunteers and committee members who may have other commitments.

We have supported numerous organising committees with a wide range of events from virtual webinars to academic conferences. We want to use our expertise in managing numerous events of various sizes and for a range of audiences, to benefit the biosciences community.

Testimonials from some of our previous and returning clients on our event services:

"During the COVID-19 pandemic the Anatomical Society (AS) turned to the Royal Society of Biology (RSB) to assist in hosting its first ever virtual AS 2020 Annual General Meeting (AGM) held in early January 2021 using the Zoom platform. Under the direction of Karen Patel, Head of Membership and Events, and her team, the event was successful and seamless from the initial approach by the AS, from the pre-event planning and testing, to the actual event hosting on the day and finally to the post event wrap-up. The documentation was excellent, the support outstanding, and the cost reasonable. The AS would definitely want to work with the RSB team again in the future."

Dr Joanna Matthan, Honorary Secretary, Anatomical Society

"The Royal Society of Biology (RSB) has, in recent years, provided excellent support for our face to face annual Clinical Genetics Society meeting. In view of the pandemic, the arrangements for this year had to be changed to an on-line event and the RSB offered fantastic and flexible support throughout the whole process. Karen Patel, Head of Membership and Events, and her team were amazing from start to finish. They responded immediately to any queries. Their planning, invitations, liaising with speakers, running of the day via Zoom, and post-event contact was superb. I would thoroughly recommend the RSB team to help organise a meeting or conference.”

Dr Angela Brady, Conference Organiser, Clinical Genetics Society

If you are in need of some professional event support, contact us for an informal chat at events@rsb.org.uk or on 020 3925 3443.