Frustrated with volunteer apathy and turnover? Seeking to shift your organization’s culture about volunteers?
Take time to strategize about WHY you want volunteer involvement, WHO you are trying to recruit, WHAT skills and values they bring to your organization, and WHY they are integral to your success.
Begin by reflecting on your own volunteer experiences and the inherent values in all of us. This exercise can reveal a lot of hidden information about you and your volunteers. I encourage you to ask each of your potential volunteers to reflect on the following.
· Reflect on your first memory of volunteerism
· Reflect on how your parents were involved in volunteering
· Reflect on your best and worst volunteer experience
Your personal values and attitude, and those of your organization in relation to engaging volunteers in your social contract with alumni, parents, and friends will inform the type of culture that either ignores, tolerates or fully embraces the role of volunteers.
It’s important to ask and understand the reasons why people volunteer – a sense of accomplishment, creating connections with others, giving back, the pride of association, or skill-building. Having these conversations will help you as you recruit, train, manage and recognize volunteers.
Develop a strategic plan. Always be recruiting. Engage each volunteer one-on-one in the recruiting process. While this may seem time-consuming and inefficient (can’t we just send an email?), having the chance to get to know each person and their motivation, history, and attitude about volunteering will help you in the long run. There will be greater clarity about expectations, less turnover, higher satisfaction, and better outcomes overall. Less time will be spent constantly following up with and replacing apathetic or dissatisfied volunteers.
Taking the time to build long term relationships yields more than you originally expect. Engaged volunteers do more, give more, and enthusiastically help you recruit others.
When you embrace sustainable solutions – not the quick fix, but a dedication to fully embracing relationships with volunteers – then you will begin to change your culture for the long term.
Contact Theresa Lee at Theresa@TJLPartners.com for help with sustainable volunteer engagement.