Tap The Broader Spectrum

of Volunteers!
Reed Dewey
VolunteerFrontier.com
Delivering Strategic Staffing Solutions

Special thanks to Scott Martin and Katie Campbell

who provided some of the content for this session

Getting Started
Introduction
What

of the topic

participants will take away

Some

questions next slide

Questions To Consider

Is it worth my time to invest in skilled & leader

volunteers . In what situations does it make the most
sense?

What programs could we increase, replicate, or expand

through unpaid staff? (Put another way where are we
understaffed or constantly overloaded?)

Are staff ready to accept , support and effectively

utilize skilled volunteers? Would our culture support it?

But first a few questions

What
In

motivated you to come today?

what ways are you thinking about

utilizing skilled or leader volunteers?

Common Impact Study (2008)

Nonprofits face many organizational

development challenges

79% of nonprofits only spend 2% or less of their

operating budget supporting key infrastructure

Few nonprofits have this expertise on staff

Most organizations have reservations about

working with consultants - volunteer or paid

Community Impact Study (2010)

Strained Budgets Leave Little Room

for Back-Office Investment
48% of nonprofits reported struggling with funding core
programs, making non-program infrastructure
investments difficult to justify

38% of nonprofits say that a lack of resources for

infrastructure was their top challenge.

67% of high performing organizations invest more in

capacity building resulting in less staff /volunteer
turnover.

Deloitte Study (2009)

9 out of 10 nonprofits said they need more

skilled volunteer support.
(Yet, 25% of nonprofits have no plans to use
skilled volunteers)
57% of nonprofits say they dont have the
capacity to engage skilled volunteers

Bottom line: Senior managers are resistant

to utilizing skilled volunteers even though
they have huge needs.

What Can Skilled

Volunteers Do?

What Is The Business

Case For It?
Where Are They Coming From?

Skilled Volunteers
How Do They Shake Out??

Limited Time Duration/Project Specific - Annual

reports, evaluations, websites, events, etc

Ongoing With Technical Skills help with website,

book keeping, database, social media, media, etc

Ongoing With Managerial Skills Taking

ownership/lead role with a program in close partnership
with staff. Can include other volunteers reporting to
them

Note: Some leader volunteers look like staff have

business cards, phone number, title, etc

Business Case For Skilled

Volunteers:
Pros:

Save money on consultants/professional services

Often can stay around longer than staff

After investment, pay-off can be exponential.

Supports paid staff who are already over-extended

Leverages resources - looks good to funders

Dedicated volunteers give money and fundraise

Volunteers provide new ideas, fresh perspectives

Challenges and Concerns:

Hard to find dedicated people wholl commit significant

time?

Culture shift that gives more responsibility and trust to

volunteers may be hard for the organization

Concern that it might take too much time to train and

support skilled or leader volunteers

With lack of parameters, potential exists for volunteers to

make mistakes for which staff are ultimately responsible.

Where Do Skilled
Volunteers Come From?

Self-referral
Responding to a specific request
The Volunteer Center, of course!
Companies & Civic Groups

Changing the Balance Direct

Service vs. Leading others
Delegation Dance: Move Stuff
Off Paid Staff Plates:
60% - staff
management including
managing
volunteer
leaders

Allow volunteers more authority

for self-direction
30%
Leader &
skilled vols.

Use volunteers to supervise

others
Use volunteers to manage
projects
Develop self-directive teams

10% ED
leadership

The Management Pie

Develop task forces with

volunteers and staff

Time Out Check In

Group Question
If you could find one new skilled volunteer to
support your organizations work, what would
that person do?
How much time would it take to get them up to
speed? Would it be worth it?

Shifting Gears How To Attract

Skilled Volunteers
We all know it and see it - volunteers and their
expectations and motivations have changed.

Changing Generational
Characteristics
Traditionalists

Boomers

Gen-Xers

Valued civic duty,

respect for
authority, blending
in, following the
rules,
organizational
loyalty

Suspicious of
organizations;
anti-authoritarian;
motivated by selffulfillment

Self-reliant and
independent;
questions
authority,
respects
competence,
not titles

Empty nesters?

Increasing Individuality

Millennials

Entrepreunrial;
Self-confidence,
sense of
individuality and
uniqueness

From Collective to
Individual Volunteering

Collective Volunteering

Collective action through

membership in nonprofits,
clubs, churches, etc.

Individual Volunteering

Reflexive (self-referral),
based on individual interests,
motivations and needs

Volunteer Management Field Has

Been Slow to change its ways
Getting cogs for the agency wheel
Isnt as easy as it used to be

Especially for Skilled & Leader

Volunteer Cohort...
From: Command and Control
To:

Empower and Entrust

Suggested New Vocabulary

FROM

volunteer management
recruitment
placement
supervision
performance review
recognition
retention

TO

volunteer engagement
cultivation and networking
negotiation and agreement
support & empowerment
performance measurement
acknowledgement
sustainability

Source: Boomer Volunteer Engagement, by Fixler, Eichberg & Lorenz, 2008.

Recruiting Tips for Skilled

Volunteers
Dont

use the word volunteer when

recruiting
Be specific about what you need, how
long it will take and what the end product
will be
Treat them like consultants that are
valued
Other tips?

Real Life Examples of

Nonprofits Using Skilled and
Leader Volunteers?

Retaining Skilled Volunteers

Factors to Consider

Hertzbergs Motivation/
Hygiene Theory

Hygiene Factors Motivators

Policies
Administration
Supervision
Working
conditions
Interpersonal
relations
Status
Security
Money

Achievement
Recognition for
accomplishment
Challenging work
Increased
responsibility
Growth and
development

Strategies of
Job/Volunteering
Enrichment

Skill Variety Increasing the number of skills that individuals use

while performing work.

Task Identity Enabling people to perform a job from start to finish.

Task Significance Providing work that has a direct impact on the

organization or its stakeholders.

Autonomy Increasing the degree of decision making, and the

freedom to choose how and when work is done.

Feedback Increasing the amount of recognition for doing a job

well, and communicate the results of peoples work.

Job/Volunteering Enrichment Model

Job
Characteristics

Critical
Psychological States

Skill variety
Task Identity
Task Significance

Meaningfulness

Autonomy

Responsibility

Outcomes
Worker Motivation

Work motivation

Jobsatisfaction
Satisfaction
Job
Growthsatisfaction
Satisfaction
Growth
Low
Lowabsenteeism
Absenteeism
High
Highquality
Quality
performance
Performance

Feedback
J. Drez, 1999

Knowledge of results

Job/Volunteering Enrichment Model

Works

for individuals
Works for teams and leaders

Group Discussion: Could Giving

Volunteers More Responsibility &
Ownership

Create a Monster?

What About Folks Who Are Motivated,

Talented, But Dont Fit With Positions?

Three options:

Turn him/her away

Force him/her to take a
job he/she doesnt
really want
Is there a way to tap
assets that fit needs of
organization?

Thinking of the Volunteer As a

Consultant

Some characteristics of
job sculpting candidates:

Wants to work at the leader

level
Want to make use of
specialized skills
Entrepreneurial
Interested in short-term
involvement

Areas for Consideration IF

Needed by Your Organization

Programmatic

Organizational

Includes developing, implementing, and evaluating

programs and services
Includes general management, financial
management, HR, marketing, strategic planning,
training and grant writing

Technical

Includes IT, skilled trades, and projects related to

facility maintenance and improvement

There is a Parallel Between Donor

Cultivation and Volunteer Cultivation
Move people up the commitment pyramid
(start them with short-term assignments,
and build up to sustained ongoing leadership roles)

Social Media Is Blurring Volunteers,

Donors, Clients and Agency Fans

Group Discussion
Reactions to all this?
Are their steps you can take now to ramp
up skilled and leader volunteers?

A few more thoughts

Parting Suggestions

Assess org needs, plan, recruit and evaluate

skilled volunteers engagement
Get staff buy-in. Make sure culture will support
skilled/leader volunteers
Pilot leader/skilled volunteer first
Look for skilled volunteers in your midst
Create tight assignments and clear expectations
Support and train staff to succeed with skilled and
leader volunteers

Reed Dewey
Volunteer Frontier
www.VolunteerFrontier.com
(240) 454-1992
Delivering Strategic Staffing Solutions

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