Responses
to September 2008 Hot Topic
New
Incentives for New Volunteers?
Response
posted on 19 September by DJ Cronin, Brisbane, Australia
I
think we are missing some important points here. And
the reason that we miss them is that we perhaps don’t
see them as recognition tools.
I
am talking about recognition through
- Well resourced and professionally
managed programs
- Empowerment of the volunteers
- Evidence based results of
volunteer input
Well
resourced and professionally managed programs
Take
a new volunteer entering an agency for the first time.
Even at the interview stage the volunteer can pick
up that there are good resources in place for the
volunteer service. There is a full time volunteer
manager and perhaps other coordinators and staff.
In my experience volunteers appreciated the fact that
the volunteer program is taken seriously by agency
management. That is to say, it is well managed, structured
and professional in how it deals with orientation,
training, recognition and growth. If a volunteer joins
a program where the opposite to this is the case they
will instantly realise that the program is under funded,
that there is no real structure and that their leader
or coordinator does not sit with the rest of management.
I refer mostly to organisations that have well funded
and structured management in all departments except
for the volunteer service. We cannot underestimate
ever the intelligence of the volunteer workforce.
It is my belief that they will easily correlate the
value placed on them with the value placed on volunteer
management. This has been my experience talking with
volunteers.
Empowerment
of the volunteers
Again,
a topic seldom discussed when talking about recognition
or incentives for volunteers. I hope that every VPM
evaluates their program yearly and gives the volunteer
major input into this evaluation. Giving the volunteer
team a say in the running of your program can be a
very important recognition tool. One other method
I have engaged is the setting up of a Volunteer liaison
or representative committee. This committee meets
with senior organisational management once a month
and provides feedback on volunteer programs, volunteer
management and on how volunteers are travelling in
general. It’s not just a talkfest and adheres to strict
terms of reference. It empowers volunteers and provides
a voice for the team and an input into direction of
the program moving forward. It says to the volunteers
“not only do we recognise you but we value your input
and advice”
Evidence
based results of volunteer input
Most
volunteer programs record the number of hours provided.
But how good are we at “selling” and promoting volunteer
achievement both internally and externally? And is
this too not a valid recognition tool? For example,
where I work we record extensive data on our volunteer
activity. Every volunteer task is tracked and recorded.
At the end of the month not only are we able to report
on the hours that volunteers have donated but we are
able to show how many enquires were received at volunteer
information desks, how many patients had a volunteer
visit, how many volunteer requests were received from
across the agency, how many massages were given, how
many people were transported, how many walks and escorts
etc. then we break it down to averages per day. The
results? As well as being able to present evidence
based achievements to management we are able to demonstrate
to the volunteers themselves the astounding service
they provide. At our quarterly volunteer meetings
the team are amazed when they see these staggering
statistics on the big screen. At the Christmas function
we do a presentation titled “Year in review” where
we collate all the achievements for the year. Every
time I’ve done this volunteers keep breaking out in
applause at the magnitude of their achievements.
While
certificates, lunches and the normal tools of recognition
are important, and I do believe we have developed
these tools well, I believe we need to look beyond
these and begin to see different ways in which we
can recognise and provide incentive for volunteers.
And at the end
of the day should we not link an organisations true
value of volunteers with how they value and support
volunteer management? And do the volunteers themselves
make the same connection?
Let's
hear what you think!
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