At the going down of the RSL

Critics say the RSL has been focused on membership at the expense of providing practical support to young veterans.

The President of Young Diggers, John Jarrett, said the RSLs were "bottoming out".

"They only help the young guys and girls when they can get the publicity. They have short memories. They keep asking us how do we attract young membership and I say to them 'listen to them and give them what they need.' But that costs money."

The RSL SA hired local advertising agency KWP! in 2012 to boost numbers with limited success. It also recently hired a communications advisor.

The RSL shot itself in the foot by not rolling out the welcome mat to returning Vietnam soldiers in the 1960s and 70s. Vietnam Vets also had to fight post-traumatic stress and cop snide comments from some RSL members who said their war was not a 'real war'. The Vietnam Veterans' Association of Australia was formed in the 1980s.

The RSL is a case study for CEO's and HR managers on how not to let their workplaces or membership bases become geriatric institutions.

The average age of a South Australian public servant is almost 50.The central challenge of policymakers is to replenish the large number of skilled workers who will retire. More NGOs and charities with ageing membership profiles will go the way of the RSL over the next ten years.

In my home town of Adelaide, two local RSL clubs though won't be defeated. A membership drive by the Semaphore RSL and backed by the local community, has turned around a $40,000 debt. It now has 300 members, up from 95 in September 2012.

The rebranded club uses web marketing to promote functions and it has introduced live music, curry nights, singles nights and eight ball. The Semaphore RSL is not incorporated with the state RSL.

The Port Noarlunga Christies Beach RSL has also seen the light and is providing live entertainment. It has a popular menu that is pulling in customers from near and far and there's not a pokie machine in sight.

The RSL is an excellent example of what happens when organisations don't change with the times. We know a lot about the social effects of population ageing in organisations. The most dangerous is the ostracisation of new ideas and the rise of an anti-democratic orthodoxy dedicated to the perpetuation of group think - even to the point of extinction.

The moral of the story is to recruit both young and experienced people across a diversity of backgrounds and set achievable targets.

RSL clubs that go on the offensive will survive. Their young members will carry forward the battle standards, the symbolism and the stories of our fighting men and women, which for so long, was the domain of the old RSL. More power to them.