Thriving on Engagement: Aligning Service to Strategy. Nikki Russell The Volunteer Advantage

Transcription

1 Thriving on Engagement: Aligning Service to Strategy Nikki Russell The Volunteer Advantage

2 Nikki Russell, CVA 20 years in the Community Engagement arena Dedicated to creating and supporting easy pathways to service for everyone: Everyone can be great, because everyone can serve I care about community resilience and believe that service to community builds resilience Some side notes: Director of Development and Community Engagement, Olympic Peninsula YMCA Former Chair, Volunteer Administrators Network Board Member: CCVA Owner, The Volunteer Advantage

3 Introductions Your Name Organization One word about volunteers

4 Leadership Session Leveraging Volunteer Engagement to Accomplish Your Mission Understanding Your Leadership Role

5 Our Goal This Morning To explore your critical leadership role in effectively harnessing the human resource potential of your volunteers

6 We will explore: The potential of volunteers Common VM challenges Being Strategic Investing in volunteers Your leadership role

7 Why do nonprofits Involve Volunteers?

8 So Much More Than Nice. Volunteer Engagement is a core strategic function for achieving the social mission of the organization

9 9 Volunteer Engagement Inspiring people to join you and take action! Inspiring and supporting the involvement and commitment of community members in order to accomplish your organization s mission and vision

10 Your current volunteer involvement efforts How are you involving volunteers? How do you align volunteer activities with your mission, goals and priorities? What do you invest to support Volunteer Engagement? What is your return on investment (ROI)?

11 How do volunteers engage with you? How did your volunteer become involved? To accomplish mission & strategic plan We Involve Volunteers How were your volunteer s skills and interests matched to needs? How did your volunteer know what to do? How were your volunteer s efforts measured and acknowledged? How were your volunteer efforts supported?

12 Volunteer Engagement Cycle Marketing/ Recruitment Guided by mission & strategic plan Volunteer Involvement Strategy Screening/ Placement Orientation/ Training Evaluation Supervision/ Recognition

13 Your High Impact Volunteer Think about a high impact volunteer: a volunteer that has a real impact on your programs and mission

14 Your Ideal Volunteer X 100 Imagine multiplying your phenomenal volunteer by 100

15 Mind the Gap

16 What gets in the way?

17 A Wasted Resource 1/3 Volunteers stop volunteering 38 Billion in lost labor Volunteer Management Capacity Study, 2003

18 Why do Volunteers Leave?

19 Key Issues in Engagement Leadership Magical Thinking Think Strategically About Volunteers A Shifting Paradigm Volunteer Management to Volunteer Engagement Resource Allocation Invest Volunteers are NOT free!

20 Magical Thinking. Haphazard Engagement: Let s Just Get a Volunteer to Do it

21 Haphazard Volunteer Engagement A clumsy or inelegant solution to a problem

22 Effective Management? Effective Volunteer Management Matching volunteer skills with appropriate assignments Providing volunteers with training and support Recognizing the contributions of volunteers Measuring the impact of volunteer efforts Training staff to work with volunteers Percent that practice 45% 25% 35% 30% 19%

23 Collective Reflexive Collective Collective action through membership in nonprofits, clubs, churches, etc. Reflexive Reflexive (self-referential) action, based on individual interests, motivations and needs. Hustinx and Lammertyn, 2003

24 Volunteerism has Changed Collective Fewer Opportunities Simple opportunities Less people volunteering more time Long-term Subordinate Reflexive Greater variety Sophisticated opportunities More people volunteering less time Short-term partner Increasing focus on individual goals

25 Shifting Our Thinking Position-centered Management Volunteer management Recruitment Placement Supervision Tracking hours Recognition Person-centered Engagement Volunteer Engagement Building Relationships Negotiation & Agreement Support Measuring results Acknowledgement

26 Our Volunteer Programs

27 Resourcing Volunteer Engagement Only 1 in 4 nonprofits effectively resource and manage volunteer engagement

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29 Resourcing Volunteer Engagement Volunteer Resource Manager

30 From Magical to Strategic: Building Service into Strategy Have a vision for volunteer service aligned with strategic goals and priorities Plan Strategically Design 21 st Century opportunities Resource Engagement Efforts

31 Strategic? Strategic: displaying a sound strategy or plan of action Strategy: a carefully devised plan of action to achieve a goal, or the art of developing or carrying out such a plan a word of military origin, refers to a plan of action designed to achieve a particular goal

32 Being Strategic Means having a well defined roadmap that bridges the gap between where we are and where we want to be The purpose of an effective planning process is to deeply understand your organization, to develop sound strategy, and understand your purpose in the context of the community you serve.

33 Planning Engagement Mission and Vision + Strategic Plan Goals and Priorities and Plan for Engagement The purpose of an effective planning process is to deeply understand your organization, to develop sound strategy, and understand your purpose in the context of the community you serve.

34 The Role of Leadership

35 Lead The Way! Build your organizations Commitment Capacity Competency to engage volunteers for impact Betty Stallings-

36 Key Leadership Action Steps Set the tone for engagement Philosophy Statement Plan Strategically Set Goals and Objectives Provide Tangible Support Staffing Resources

37 Building Commitment: Set the Tone for Volunteer Involvement Establish a philosophy statement and set expectations for nurturing and sustaining volunteer involvement

38 The Philosophy/Value lue Statement Why you engage volunteersers How you integrate volunteers into mission critical work? How you value volunteers? What your volunteers contribute?

39 Plan Strategically Volunteer engagement that is not strategically aligned with the organization goals and objectives is like a ship without a rudder. Align to Mission!

40 41 Set Goals and Focus on Priorities

41 Provide Tangible Support Support Volunteer Engagement Adopt Best Practice Resource volunteer involvement Measure Results

42 Staffing Volunteer Engagement Understand and support the role of the Volunteer Resource Manager and the role of all staff

43 VRM Competencies Leadership People Management Program/ Project Management

44 45 Adopt

45 46 Allocate Resources

46 47 Monitor Progress and Measure Results

47 Action Steps Small Group Brainstorm: Identify 3 Leadership Actions

48 Have a vision for engagement built into your organization's strategic plan Manage Strategically Resource volunteer engagement

49 Volunteers A Powerful Resource They are not just nice but are a necessary part of the solutions to today s most pressing societal challenges For nonprofit [leaders], there is both challenge and opportunity to meet [volunteer] expectations by creating flexible and strategic opportunities for [involvement]. Volunteering Reinvented: Human Capital Solutions for the Nonprofit Sector, Corp. for Natl. & Community Service, July 2007

50 Structuring and Supporting Effective Volunteer Engagement

51 Goals By end of this session, you will Recognize the elements of a strong volunteer program Appreciate your VRM role Assess your volunteer program needs Understand Volunteer Role Development Know how to target your recruitment efforts

52 How do volunteers engage with you? How did your volunteer become involved? To accomplish mission & strategic plan We Involve Volunteers How were your volunteer s skills and interests matched to needs? How did your volunteer know what to do? How were your volunteer s efforts measured and acknowledged? How were your volunteer efforts supported?

53 Volunteer Engagement Cycle Marketing/ Recruitment Guided by mission & strategic plan Volunteer Involvement Strategy Screening/ Placement Orientation/ Training Evaluation Supervision/ Recognition

54 Assess Your Volunteer Engagement Efforts

55 Complete the Mini-Assessment in Handouts Volunteer Management Mini Assessment

56 What Did Your Mini Assessment Reveal?

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58 What s Your Job?

59 Commitment Organizational Commitment and Vision to support creative engagement Capacity A Strong Foundation and solid sytems, structures and polices that support effective engagement (The Nuts and Bolts) Competency Staff and volunteers have the knowledge and skills to support volunteer activity Leader of Volunteer Engagement

60 61 A Vision for Engagement A Solid Foundation The Building Blocks Of Effective Engagement A Sound Structure 21 st Century Design

61 62 A Vision for Engagement

62 Build A Solid Foundation Organizational Readiness 63

63 64 Plan For Engagement

64 Volunteer Engagement Cycle Marketing/ Recruitment Guided by mission & strategic plan Volunteer Involvement Strategy Screening/ Placement Orientation/ Training Evaluation Supervision/ Recognition

65 Mission and Vision + Strategic Plan Volunteer Involvement Plan Plan Your Volunteer Involvement

66 Why Is Planning Essential?

67 Planning Framework Know where you are Review your current strategic plan and clarify your mission, vision and values. Know where you re going See clearly the direction your organization is headed. Decide how you ll get there? Layout the roadmap to connect where you are now to where you re going. Develop Your Plan set goals and action items for volunteer engagement. Execute

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69 70 Set Goals and Strategies

70 Build the Infrastructure What systems, structures, activities and resources are required to support an effective engagement cycle?

71 Volunteer Engagement Cycle Marketing/ Recruitment Guided by mission & strategic plan Volunteer Involvement Strategy Screening/ Placement Orientation/ Training Evaluation Supervision/ Recognition

72 Volunteer Job Development A Central Planning Component to Effective Volunteer Management Infrastructure

73 Why Job Descriptions?

74 Volunteer Engagement Cycle Marketing/ Recruitment Guided by mission & strategic plan Volunteer Involvement Strategy Screening/ Placement Orientation/ Training Evaluation Supervision/ Recognition

75 Steps to Effective Job Design Strategic Goal/Objective Need/Tactic Role Skills Time Requirements Benefits

76 Writing in Compelling li Position io on Descriptions io

77 21 st Century Design Developing volunteer roles to meet 21 st Century Reality

78 Why Do People Volunteer?

79 Choice Flexibility Short-term opportunities Skills-based opportunities Connection. Results. What do today s volunteers want?

80 Traditionalists Boomers Gen-Xers Millennials Valued civic duty, respect for authority, blending in, following the rules, organizational loyalty Idealist Suspicious of organizations; antiauthoritarian; motivated by self-fulfillment Increasing Individuality Self-reliant. independent; questions authority, respects competence, not titles Entreprenurial; Self-confidence, sense of individuality and uniqueness

81 Designing Attractive Position Descriptions While paid people will do a job that is unrewarding because they are compensated for doing it, volunteers will not do so for long. This has given volunteers in general a reputation among paid people of being unreliable. On the contrary, if the volunteer does not find the job to be personally satisfying, he or she can be relied upon to quit. ~ Steve McCurley & Rick Lynch

82 Create a Job Description

83 Volunteer Engagement Cycle Marketing/ Recruitment Guided by mission & strategic plan Volunteer Involvement Strategy Screening/ Placement Orientation/ Training Evaluation Supervision/ Recognition

84 86 Marketing and Recruitment

85 How do you recruit your volunteers? Warm Body Concentric Circle Targeted Recruitment

86 Speak to Your Audience When you send a message to the community in general, you often wind up speaking to no one in particular (Rick Lynch)

87 Step 1: Identify your target audience Step 2: What would appeal to them about the position? Step 3: What are some possible barriers? Step 4: What strategies to reach your audience? Step 5: Craft your recruitment message Choose Your Target

88 In Small Groups: Discuss two recruitment messages Which was most appealing? What was appealing? What would you add to either message to improve the message? Which Message Appeals to You?

89 Sell the benefits and share the features of the volunteer positions. Benefit: What volunteering does for the volunteers, such as teaching them a skill, having fun, meeting people, etc. Feature: Descriptive elements of the volunteering, such as when, where, doing what with whom, etc. Recruitment Message

90 Develop A Recruitment Message

91 How do you get the message out?

92 Volunteer Engagement Cycle Marketing/ Recruitment Guided by mission & strategic plan Volunteer Involvement Strategy Screening/ Placement Orientation/ Training Evaluation Supervision/ Recognition

93 What us Screening About? It s All About Making The Right Match Increases Job Satisfaction Performance Retention Person Job Decreases Risk

94 Recruitment message Application Interviews Toolbox Background Checks Screening

95 The Interview Explore applicants interest, ability and availability Identify or co-create opportunities Interview Discuss requiremen ts and expectatio ns

96 The Effective Interview Prepare ahead of time Ask openended questions Ask questions that discover knowledge skills attitudes

97 Direct Non-Direct 1. How old are you? 2. Have you ever volunteered? 1. What personal goals do you consider when choosing a volunteer position? 3. What jobs have you held? 4. Are you available on Thursday? (Some of these might be considered illegal or unimportant depending on the task for the volunteer.) 2. What was the best thing about your last volunteer position? 3. What type of work do you enjoy most? Asking the Right Questions

98 Design Your Interview

99 Orientation: information on your organization Training: specific knowledge, skill or attitude Orientation and Training

100 Orientation Cause Social Orientation System

101 Cause Orientation Vision, mission and purpose WHY? WHAT?

102 System Orientation organizational structure systems and Processes volunteer roles How?

103 Social Orientation the social context/ community WHO?

104 Training The Process of providing volunteers with the ability to perform specific types of work Knowledge Skills Attitude

105 Effective Training Design Experience acknowledged Interactive Visual, auditory, experiential Applied

106 Volunteer Engagement Cycle Marketing/ Recruitment Guided by mission & strategic plan Volunteer Involvement Strategy Screening/ Placement Orientation/ Training Evaluation Supervision/ Recognition

107 Support Volunteers Motivating those who do not work for pay requires more skill and greater ability than is the case among those who supervise paid employees McCurley & Lynch, Volunteer Management

108 Elements of Supervision Communicate Expectations Guide and Support Recognize and Reward

109 Job description Policies and Procedures Expectations Training and orientation Evaluation Communicating Expectations

110 What does it look like to support and guide your volunteers? Guide and Support Your Volunteers

111 Guiding Principles Take care of the person, not the task Provide guidance in the way that works for the volunteer, not the way you think is right. Support, rather than control, the volunteer s efforts.

112 Program Evaluation demonstrate the value of the program/ project/ position assess the effectiveness and improve program/ project/ position

113 Evaluation Design Takes Forethought Evaluation requires preparation Is part of your planning process Should be outcomes based Build into your volunteer engagement plan and position descriptions Start with purpose/goal Define Outcomes

114 Steps to Effective Evaluation Step 1: Decide what to evaluate (based on intended outcomes) Step 2: Decide what and how to track Step 3: Collect Data and Analyze Results Step 4: Report Results to Stakeholders

115 Outcomes Evaluation Worksheet Pick a volunteer positioncomplete the outcomes worksheet

116 Retention The best way for volunteer organizations to receive more hours of volunteer service is to be careful managers of time already being volunteered

117 What Are Your Big Rocks???

118 Your Big Rock List of Issues/ challenges: Groups of 3 Each participant identifies a challenge/stressor Group Brainstorms solutions Record on Flip Chart

119 Your VM Plan On VM Planning Sheet Set Goals Action Steps Due Date Select a Goal/Action step transfer on sticky note. Include your name and due date

120 Wrap Up! Parking Lot Final Questions/ Comments? Evaluations