Well…it turns out the “heated feelings” in volunteer management circles about Reimagining Service may be cooling down. My post on July 30 Reimagining Service: What’s All the Fuss, shared some frustrations I’ve been hearing in the field. But in a July 15 post on Jayne Craven’s Blog, she expressed “STUNNED surprise” at receiving an e-mail from the folks at Reimagining Service with a very different message than their initial report [Reimagining Service Report, 2009]. After more research, the focus on…
There are some “bad feelings” spreading through volunteer resource professional circles over the Reimagining Service initiative (see Susan Ellis’, Reimagining Service: Is Corporate HR Management What We See? and Jayne Craven’s Don’t let them equate volunteer management with HR management). The Reimagining Service initiative is described as a self-organized community of individuals from nonprofits, government and the private sector…inspired by the renewed call to service. Reimagining Service calls for an investment of critical resources and dollars to build the volunteer management infrastructure. Hallelujah! …
Last fall, United Way of King County launched a survey to better understand the challenges and opportunities nonprofits in King County face in engaging and managing volunteers. The response to the survey was astounding- over 600 people, representing a broad spectrum of the nonprofit sector in King County, completed the survey. Respondents filled a wide variety of roles in their organizations, with 27 percent being volunteer managers and 19 percent being CEOs.
I am excited to announce that United Way of King County has just…
As volunteer managers, we spend a lot of time investing in others and our volunteer programs. The Volunteer Administrator’s Network Conference provides us with an opportunity “invest in ourselves” as professionals- to gather with like minded peers for a day of professional renewal and development. And we’ll spend time enhancing our volunteer management skills set too! If you’re a volunteer manager, please join us for the day. If you know a volunteer manager, tell them about the VAN Conference!
Here’s what’s on the agenda:
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We’ve all heard the mantra “Volunteers are the heart of our organization”. I know I’ve heard it…a lot. But how vital are they really? And if they are the “heart” of our organizations, how do we talk about it. How do you talk to volunteers, the community and funders about the vital contributions your volunteers make to your organization? How do you measure volunteer accomplishments?
In a recent King County volunteer management capacity study, conducted by United Way of King County, the majority of survey…
It takes a Village (i.e. lots of committed and engaged volunteers)…to create community change. Ever wonder what it takes to engage volunteers? Seattle Works knows that effective volunteer engagement doesn’t happen without great Volunteer Managers and Leaders. So they have teamed up with Washington State’s Association of Volunteer Centers to help support VAN (Volunteer Administrator’s Network) – a professional association that provides support, resources, training and mentoring opportunities for Volunteer Managers and Leaders. That support for VAN comes in the form of an AmeriCorps VISTA…
There is a relatively new arrival in web-based software available to people who are managing scheduling and communications with volunteers (this is available to anyone- school teachers, non-profits, coaches, you name it) It’s called VolunteerSpot.com. It’s not a sophisticated volunteer management tool- there are no features for tracking interests, skills and availability for instance. It won’t track hours and spit out pretty reports on volunteer involvement. And it doesn’t really track contact information, except e-mail. But it’s a great tool for getting people…
Start off the New Year with a renewed commitment to effectively engaging volunteers in your organization!
Attend United Way of King County’s Volunteer Management Basic Training!
Effective Volunteer Program Management 101: A Course for Volunteer Management Professionals
The next session is: January 12 and January 26
Tuition – $170.00
All sessions are from 9:00am to 4:30 pm.
(training participants must attend both sessions)
This 14.5-hour series is offered to meet the special needs of Volunteer…
Suggested Reads and Resources for Volunteer Managers
Each week I scan through dozens of interesting blog posts and newsletters for content relevant to volunteer management. There is a lot of new and innovative thinking out there on volunteer management and I’d like to take some time each week to share with you the resources and articles that I find most relevant or compelling. So here’s my first round of suggested reads and resources:
I recently came across a new resource…
Volunteers, this is your moment. Did you know December 5th is International Volunteer Day (IVD)? It is, and it has been since 1985. IVD was adopted by the United Nations General Assembly through Resolution A/RES/40/212 and is an opportunity for volunteer organizations and individual volunteers to showcase their volunteer contributions, whether local, national or international. Of course IVD can and should be a year round celebration. If you consider the committed work of volunteers of all ages around the globe, carrying out every…
