Wednesday February 266th We’ve designed a day of workshops specifically for nonprofits looking to strengthen their volunteer engagement programs. Join us for this opportunity to develop your skills as a volunteer program manager as well as create some important connections in your community!

1. Welcome to the Nonprofit
Volunteer Program Manager
Training Day!
Jennifer Bennett, CVA
Senior Manager, Education & Training
VolunteerMatch
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2. What Does Volunteer Engagement Mean?
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3. What does Volunteer Engagement mean?
Volunteer engagement describes a cooperative and
collaborative relationship between a volunteer and an
organization.
• Volunteers contribute to outlining or defining the work
they want to do.
• Volunteer management is the foundation or structure on
which volunteer engagement can happen.
• New model for collaboration with volunteers – not a
traditional model, not your mother’s volunteering.
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4. Keys to Creating Volunteer Engagement
• Develop work that is meaningful to the
volunteer and important to the organization.
• Create a connection between volunteers,
clients and your mission
• Establish the foundation necessary to support a
diverse program of volunteer engagement
• Know and share the impact of the work
volunteers do

5. Engage the Volunteer of the Future!
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6. What are we talking about?
• Moving beyond “Volunteers Needed”
• How do volunteers find you? How can you find
them?
• Finding the right volunteers
• Create Connection
• Building a culture of involvement, flexibility and
understanding
• What next?

7. “Volunteers Needed”
What does your volunteer program look like to a
volunteer?
• 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
Volunteers have a choice!

8. This is not your mother’s volunteering
Shifts in generations create a new model
• Volunteers hope to make an impact
• 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?”

9. How do volunteers find you?
80% of Volunteer Coordinators tell us the “Word
of Mouth” is their #1 recruitment method
What are your volunteers saying about your
organization? What can you do about it?

10. Pros and Cons of “WoM”
• You can create a positive experience
• Meaningful and important
• The right volunteer in the right job
• Saying no politely and professionally
• Make it easier for volunteers to share
• Arm them with information
• Social media
• Don’t keep them in a silo

11. Pros and Cons of “WoM”
• Passive
• You can’t make your volunteers tell their
friends, but you can encourage them
• Depends on earned marketing/media
• Easier now than ever – but can be negative
• Doesn’t bring in volunteers who don’t
have a connection or know who you are

12. What we know about volunteers
VolunteerMatch by the numbers:
81,861 Active opportunities nationwide
7,623,625 Connections since 1998
2,500 Average referrals a day
Around 130 during peak hours
2-3 Referrals for each visitor
Lots of volunteers don’t have a strong idea about where or
how they want to volunteer.
They are looking for a opportunity to make an impact and find
a cause they care about. (79% and 82% Hart 2010)

13. Find the right volunteers!
When inviting volunteers to participate in your
organization finding the right fit becomes even
more important
• Know who you want
• Comprehensive position descriptions: skills, experience,
traits or characteristics
• Create a strong foundation and manage
expectations
• No bait and switch
• Policies and procedures manual, NDA, Letter of
agreement

14. Create more Involvement
• Training and experience pathways
• 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?
•Bring more positions into your volunteer engagement
program
• Let volunteers help you!
• Volunteers know the work that volunteers do - empower them
to document or create the foundation and flexibility you need.

15. Create more Flexibility
• Are there different types of opportunities or different
levels of involvement available?
• 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, micro volunteering
•Where does the rigidity come from? You, organization
leadership, the past, or perceived ideas about volunteers?

16. Create more Understanding
• Keep volunteers informed
• New ideas or theories in your impact area
• New policies, practices or projects in your program
• Milestones in your organization
• Incorporate impact into recognition
• 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

17. Create the Connection
Turn your volunteers into Advocates!
• Do volunteers know your mission?
•Major accomplishments, funders
• Do they know about other programs?
• Areas and impacts besides their own
• Empower them to spread the word
• Keep them up to date
• Use social media
• Do you know which of your volunteers are also
donors?

18. Tools for Evolving your Program
• Think strategically!
• Do you have a 3 or 5 year plan for your program?
• Get off the hamster wheel
• What type of program do you have now?
• What type of program do you want to have?
• Start with the easy (easier?) stuff
• Create or document the structure that exists now
• Identify volunteer position descriptions, how they fit
together, what volunteers need to know to do them.
•Don’t do this alone!

19. Tools for Evolving your Program
•Where and why do volunteers drop out?
• Ask them!
• Survey past and current volunteers about what they like,
are proud of, don’t understand about your program
• Create more flexibility
• What did your volunteers tell you they wanted to do, but
couldn’t - so they left?
• Where does the rigidity come from? You, organization
leadership, the past, or perceived ideas about volunteers?
• Create a communication plan to turn volunteers in to
advocates

20. Things to Think About
• You don’t have to change everything right now
• Putting pathways in is an easier first step
• Identify the priorities or critical positions
• Invite volunteers to take on leadership roles
• Volunteers want to tell you what they like (and don’t like)
about your program
• Invite your superstar volunteers to take the lead
• Share your milestones and successes with the
organization
• Manager, leadership, co-workers and, of course, the
volunteers!

21. Engaging Skilled and Pro Bono Volunteers
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22. Introduction
• Defining Pro Bono Consulting & Skilled
Volunteering
• Getting Started
• Building Support
• Developing Projects
• Finding the Talent
• Managing for Success
• Working with Corporations
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23. Who are Skilled Volunteers?
• All volunteers have skills
• Skilled volunteers and Pro bono consultants bring
their professional-level skills
• Traditionally associated with attorneys
• Now also being applied to other professions
• Marketing/PR
• Graphic/Web Design
• IT
• Accounting
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24. Getting Started: Building Support
• Identify Stakeholders
• Board, Exec. Management, Program Managers, Paid
Staff, Volunteer Staff
• Communicate to create buy-in
• How could the impact of staff members, programs, the
organization be expanded by engaging pro bono and
skilled volunteers?
• Reach out to your champions
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25. Getting Started: Developing Projects
What could your organization accomplish if not
limited by available skills and time?
Successful projects include:
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•
•
•
Measurable deliverables or outcomes
Accountabilities
Timeline
Evaluation
http://www.taprootfoundation.org/get-probono/be-powered-pro-bono/project-finder
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26. Getting Started: Finding the Talent
• Communication Plan
• Internal and external
• Research Existing Volunteer Pool
• Applications, Resumes
• Recruit from Outside
• VolunteerMatch, Corporations, Colleges,
Professional Groups
• Screening the Candidates
• Approach as if you would be paying for service
• Say “No” and Hear “No”
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27. Getting Started: Managing for Success
• Define the Project
• Who, What, When, Where, How.
• MOU, Letter of Agreement
• Include key evaluation or check in points.
• Delegate
• The outcome is more important than the process.
• Let go without checking out
• Manage Expectations
• Does everyone have the same definition of success?
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28. Working with Corporations
• Identify skills areas needed
• May be primary or support functions
• Match corporate structure to organization
• Grassroots nonprofits consider small businesses
• Work towards creating long-term relationship
• Single day, ongoing, leadership roles
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29. Things to Think About
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•
•
•
•
Start Small
Work with your Champions
Tout Successes
Don’t Force It
Exit Plan
• Don’t give up, return to the phase where the project
went awry.
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30. Contact Me:
Jennifer Bennett, CVA
Senior Manager, Education & Training
VolunteerMatch
@JenBennettCVA
jbennett@volunteermatch.org