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TOGETHER WE RISE MEALS ON WHEELS ANNUAL CONFERENCE & EXPO
AUGUST 31 – SEPTEMBER 2, 2016
INNOVATIONS IN
VOLUNTEER
ENGAGEMENT FRIDAY, SEPTEMBER 2, 2016
JENNIFER BENNETT SENIOR MANAGER, EDUCATION & TRAINING
VOLUNTEERMATCH
TOGETHER WE RISE MEALS ON WHEELS
CONFERENCE AND EXPO
TOGETHER WE RISE MEALS ON WHEELS ANNUAL CONFERENCE AND EXPO
WHAT WE ARE GOING TO DO HERE TODAY
Discuss and create action plans to address:
How organizational structure promotes and supports,
or restricts and limits volunteer engagement
Designing volunteer opportunities that meet the needs
of the organization as well as the needs of the
volunteer
Leveraging technology to create a more successful
volunteer engagement program
Final thoughts and next steps
WHAT ARE SOME
CHALLENGES YOU FACE
IN MAKING YOUR
VOLUNTEER PROGRAM
SUSTAINABLE?
TOGETHER WE RISE MEALS ON WHEELS
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TOGETHER WE RISE MEALS ON WHEELS ANNUAL CONFERENCE AND EXPO
WHAT DO WE KNOW ABOUT VOLUNTEERS?
When asked about what they look for in a
volunteer experience:
• make an impact (80% Hart 2010)
• fits my schedule (89% Hart 2010)
• find a cause they care about (91% Hart 2010)
Share the why and ensure that volunteers have
the flexibility information they want!
TOGETHER WE RISE TOGETHER WE RISE MEALS ON WHEELS ANNUAL CONFERENCE AND EXPO
WHAT DOES YOUR PROGRAM LOOK LIKE?
Cul-de-sac
• Nowhere to go when you
get there
Country Road
• If you hang in there it
goes somewhere,
eventually
Highway
• It’s a direct route to
impact and engagement
TOGETHER WE RISE TOGETHER WE RISE MEALS ON WHEELS ANNUAL CONFERENCE AND EXPO
• Volunteers want to make an
impact with their
involvement
• Volunteers need flexibility
• Volunteers want to
understand
• Training & Experience,
Leadership Positions
• More types, levels of
involvement, diverse
positions
• Information, Recognition
and Impact
GIVING VOLUNTEERS WHAT THEY WANT
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TOGETHER WE RISE MEALS ON WHEELS ANNUAL CONFERENCE AND EXPO
CREATE A HIGHWAY TO ENGAGEMENT
Volunteers want to make an impact with their
involvement
• Volunteer task lists replaced by meaningful, targeted
work, skills based
• Meaningful to the volunteer, important to the
organization
Volunteers need flexibility
• Does not imply that they can’t be dependable,
reliable, accountable
Volunteers want to understand
• Answer the question “Why?”
TOGETHER WE RISE TOGETHER WE RISE MEALS ON WHEELS ANNUAL CONFERENCE AND EXPO
• Do volunteers know what
they need to do to be able
to fill each role in your
program?
• Is it clear how that happens, or is it mysterious or based on longevity?
• Do you offer those classes or have on the job experience checklists?
• Do you have opportunities
for volunteers to move into
leadership roles? In your
program? In the
organization?
• Shift leaders, committee leaders, subject matter experts, pro bono consultants
HOW WE PROVIDE IT
TOGETHER WE RISE TOGETHER WE RISE MEALS ON WHEELS ANNUAL CONFERENCE AND EXPO
• One size doesn’t fit all
• Doesn’t allow for growth or
retraction as a volunteer’s
life changes
• Do you offer project based
opportunities, virtual
opportunities?
• Let volunteers help you!
• Volunteers know the
work that volunteers do
- empower them to
document or create the
foundation and flexibility
you need.
HOW WE PROVIDE IT
TOGETHER WE RISE TOGETHER WE RISE MEALS ON WHEELS ANNUAL CONFERENCE AND EXPO
• New ideas or theories
in your impact area
• New policies,
practices or projects in
your program
• Milestones in your
organization
• Don’t just say thank you -
share the work the
volunteer has done
• Include clients in the thank
you message
• Spread the thank you
outside of your volunteer
program
• Social media, internal and
external communications
HOW WE PROVIDE IT
TOGETHER WE RISE TOGETHER WE RISE MEALS ON WHEELS ANNUAL CONFERENCE AND EXPO
• Expand scope and reach of
messages
• Allow new volunteers to
participate or allow them to
participate in new ways
• Most tools & channels are
free or very low cost
• Great opportunity for skill-
building or cross-generation
mentoring
• May miss volunteers not
participating online
• Requires different approach
to volunteer training &
management when
volunteers are remote
• Online tools and channels
have learning curves and
may require specialized
knowledge
TECHNOLOGY TOOLS & RESOURCES TO HELP
TOGETHER WE RISE TOGETHER WE RISE MEALS ON WHEELS ANNUAL CONFERENCE AND EXPO
• Social media campaigns
• Word of mouth through
Facebook, Twitter
• Active, dynamic volunteer
opportunity page on your
own website
• Online recruitment sites –
national, local/regional,
volunteer centers
• Online, on demand, training
and resources.
• YouTube, Facebook,
• Regular updates through
social media, targeted
messages to episodic
volunteers
TECHNOLOGY TOOLS & RESOURCES TO HELP
TOGETHER WE RISE TOGETHER WE RISE MEALS ON WHEELS ANNUAL CONFERENCE AND EXPO
• Short videos sharing stories
with a call to action –
recruitment, advocacy,
engagement with
organization, impact of
volunteers
• Info-graphics to highlight
work and outcomes
• Keep volunteers informed
and aware of activities
• Video chat for
screening/mentoring remote
volunteers
• Online collaboration &
tracking tools to facilitate
work
TECHNOLOGY TOOLS & RESOURCES TO HELP
TOGETHER WE RISE MEALS ON WHEELS
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TOGETHER WE RISE MEALS ON WHEELS ANNUAL CONFERENCE AND EXPO
CREATE A PERSONAL CONNECTION TO THE WORK
When developing mission-driven work it is important to
create a connection to the work
• Some have the most personal connection
- Support others in the same way they were supported
- Can be powerful, but this motivation (like any other)
needs to be managed and those volunteers need to
practice good self-care
• This emotion, gratitude, can be a good example of why
this work matters
• Volunteers, clients, families – this is where our stories
about mission-driven work comes from
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TOGETHER WE RISE MEALS ON WHEELS ANNUAL CONFERENCE AND EXPO
SHIFTING HOW YOU THINK ABOUT VOLUNTEERS
• Think about volunteers as being a key component to
your organization’s success
- Shift away from a traditional, nice to have, resource
• Instead of focusing on the “I just want to help”
statements ask volunteers about their motivations
- What are they getting out of volunteering? Can and
should be personal. Ask them to answer Why?
• Include impact and outcomes in your recognition
- Don’t just say thank you, share “because you
volunteered…”
WHAT BELIEFS OR
ASSUMPTIONS DO
YOU BRING TO YOUR
WORK WITH
VOLUNTEERS?
WHAT
ASSUMPTIONS OR
BELIEFS ABOUT
VOLUNTEERS HAVE
YOU ENCOUNTERED
IN YOUR
ORGANIZATION?
TOGETHER WE RISE MEALS ON WHEELS
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TOGETHER WE RISE MEALS ON WHEELS ANNUAL CONFERENCE AND EXPO
WHAT MAKES A CULTURE?
A shared set of:
Goals – actions or things to be accomplished
Values – ideas that are important, things that
matter
Beliefs – trust or confidence that someone or
some things are true
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EXAMPLES
Volunteers are capable of creating real impact in our
organization
Engage volunteers in meaningful work
Open and transparent communication between
volunteers, paid staff, and clients
Understand and share the impacts and outcomes of
volunteers (not just #s and hours)
Create opportunities for volunteers to contribute and
learn
Engaging volunteers is how we connect our mission
and the needs of our clients to the community
TOGETHER WE RISE MEALS ON WHEELS
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TOGETHER WE RISE MEALS ON WHEELS ANNUAL CONFERENCE AND EXPO
WHY DOES IT MATTER?
Why should we talk about a culture of volunteer
engagement?
• How is the current culture shaping your
organization’s engagement of volunteers?
• What could your organization accomplish if
you changed what it means to be a volunteer?
• What happens if you do nothing?
WHAT ARE THE
WRITTEN AND
UNWRITTEN GOALS,
VALUES, AND BELIEFS
YOUR ORGANIZATION
HOLDS ABOUT
VOLUNTEERS?
HOW ARE THESE GOALS,
VALUES, AND BELIEFS
SUPPORTING VOLUNTEER
ENGAGEMENT? LIMITING
ENGAGEMENT?
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TOGETHER WE RISE MEALS ON WHEELS ANNUAL CONFERENCE AND EXPO
CRAFTING A NEW CULTURE
How can you shape or form your organization’s
volunteer engagement culture?
• You rarely have the luxury of starting from
scratch.
• It may take “generations” of volunteers and
paid staff to create the culture you want.
• A small group of people with dedication and
consistency can create a new culture.
TOGETHER WE RISE MEALS ON WHEELS
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TOGETHER WE RISE MEALS ON WHEELS ANNUAL CONFERENCE AND EXPO
WRITE IT DOWN
Outline the new goals, values, and beliefs
• There has to be buy-in and acknowledgement
of a culture of volunteer engagement
• Everyone can hear what they want – Putting it
in writing makes it clearer
• Talk about what they mean to volunteers, paid
staff, leadership
• Get rid of the unwritten rules and the things
that people “just know” – Be clear, open, and
honest
TOGETHER WE RISE MEALS ON WHEELS
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TOGETHER WE RISE MEALS ON WHEELS ANNUAL CONFERENCE AND EXPO
TRAIN ON THE CULTURE
Give your organization the tools to implement a new
way of thinking about volunteers.
• Help existing volunteers, paid staff understand how
this culture empowers them, engages them, depends
on them.
• Outline and share how work, roles, impacts change.
• Provide support and guidance as relationships, roles
change.
• Tell Stories! Use emotions to influence behaviors.
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TOGETHER WE RISE MEALS ON WHEELS ANNUAL CONFERENCE AND EXPO
DO AS I DO
Change happens over time
• It can’t be just talk, culture changes as you live it,
model it. “Act your way into believing”
• You have complete control over how you talk about
volunteers and volunteer engagement.
• How well do your (your organization’s) actions match
your goals, values, beliefs?
• Base recognition in the culture – how can they inform
recognition activities/events?
• Be transparent about challenges, mistakes, failures.
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FOLLOW THROUGH
Both good and bad behaviors/actions need to be
recognized.
• Tell the stories of success, but tell the stories with
“morals” too.
• If you said there would be consequences, then there
have to be consequences.
• Accept your realities – you can’t change it if you don’t
face it.
• Acknowledge sub-cultures – as long as they’re
aligned with your core goals, values, beliefs
HOW CAN YOU BETTER
MODEL AN INCLUSIVE
CULTURE OF VOLUNTEER
ENGAGEMENT FOR
OTHERS IN YOUR
ORGANIZATION?
TOGETHER WE RISE MEALS ON WHEELS
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TOGETHER WE RISE MEALS ON WHEELS ANNUAL CONFERENCE AND EXPO
FIRST STEPS
Focus on where you can go and what you can do
together.
• Try not to continue to focus on the problems or how
things used to be.
Work to create a new volunteer engagement
vocabulary.
• Our volunteers, impact, collaboration, etc.
Lead the way – model the goals, values, and beliefs
• Volunteers, paid staff, clients or members
TOGETHER WE RISE MEALS ON WHEELS
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TOGETHER WE RISE MEALS ON WHEELS ANNUAL CONFERENCE AND EXPO
REMEMBER:
Keep your eye on the results – are you accomplishing
what you want to?
• Are you living your culture or is it just lip service?
Tell Stories! Inform the next generation of paid staff and
volunteers
Ask why not? What’s the problem or concern?
• What if we shared this with volunteers? What would
happen? What would the harm be?
TOGETHER WE RISE MEALS ON WHEELS
CONFERENCE AND EXPO
TOGETHER WE RISE MEALS ON WHEELS ANNUAL CONFERENCE AND EXPO
RESOURCES FOR CREATING CULTURE
Strategy+Business
10 Principles of Organizational Culture
http://www.strategy-business.com/article/10-Principles-
of-Organizational-Culture
Society for Human Resource Management
https://www.shrm.org/hrdisciplines/employeerelations/ar
ticles/pages/corporate-culture.aspx
TOGETHER WE RISE MEALS ON WHEELS
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TOGETHER WE RISE MEALS ON WHEELS ANNUAL CONFERENCE AND EXPO
FINAL THOUGHTS & NEXT STEPS
What are the immediate needs or top priorities in your
organization?
• Use the mission-driven volunteer opportunity
worksheet to rethink (or change they way you talk
about) your opportunities.
• What do you need to know to determine the current
culture around volunteer engagement? What actions
can you take to shift this culture?
• Investigate what types of technology your current
volunteers are using. How can you create more
opportunities or stronger relationships with new and
existing volunteers with online tools?
TOGETHER WE RISE TOGETHER WE RISE MEALS ON WHEELS ANNUAL CONFERENCE AND EXPO
QUESTIONS?
Senior Manager, Education &
Training
VolunteerMatch
CONTACT ME:
TOGETHER WE RISE MEALS ON WHEELS
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TOGETHER WE RISE MEALS ON WHEELS ANNUAL CONFERENCE AND EXPO
REMINDER:
• Please remember to fill out
the course evaluation on
our App!
• You can access the survey
by going to the course your
Conference App and
selecting “Survey”
• Fill out your responses and
then hit “Finish”
• Thank you!