Mobilizing Volunteers

Written by Karen Schenk

You can change your world by creating communities that become powerful movements which volunteers are attracted to.

1. A single interest or cause can result in a community

People are congregating around single interests. They join groups by the tens, hundreds and millions around very specific niche areas. Over three million people are members of the facebook group “hate to wake up during a dream and it won’t come back”. Patients go to the website, patientslikeme.com to find others who are dealing with the same issue.

Significant change has taken place in our culture in recent years by three distinct areas: 1. Factories 2. Media & advertising 3. Like-minded people. We can no longer depend on factories or media to change culture. We need to discover ways to connect like-minded people. As we engage small numbers of people who do likewise we are then able to powerfully impact 10, 100, and thousands in a very short time.

2. Communities can become powerful movements that attract volunteers

People congregate in clusters online. Pictures of Internet traffic actually show the complexity and inter-connectedness. It is all about communities.

Communities are changing our world. All movements of the future will be highly inter-connected through an unprecedented communications capacity. Using these new capacities people will communicate, collaborate, and compete.

A community of relationships coupled with a compelling cause is an environment where people want to participate. There are unique ways these willing people can become active volunteers.

3. Volunteers need to be mobilized

It was an overwhelming task. I was 19 and asked to mail 8,000 letters. I came up with an idea to contact a couple of people who were interested in that organization. Before I knew it, I had the commitment of 22 people who were going to attend that evening. I scrambled to put together a plan so the time would not be wasted and that the mission would be accomplished. The evening was such a success, that these parties took place each month for the next year. I realized engaging volunteers is actually very simple when the right things were in place.

The definition of a volunteer:
1. To perform or offer to perform a service of one’s own free will.
2. To do charitable or helpful work without pay.

At Power to Change, our goal is to have “millions of volunteers engaged in faith adventures that transform lives through the power of the gospel”. We have determined that we need volunteers. By being involved in faith adventures – they are completing cycles of spiritual multiplication. After determining that we need volunteers the next step is to create opportunities that people want to be a part of.

Clearly define you would need to ask people to give you the gift of their time?

Understand why someone would want to volunteer

When asked why he volunteers, a design student responded “to work with people I like, to do something I enjoy, and cause is just a bonus.

This struck me as quite fascinating and I discussed it further with others. I discovered that he really was stating something rather profound. In his case, he put a higher value on relationship than cause. Cause alone would not be enough to motivate someone to volunteer. A colleague commented to this saying “In some cases we see a cause we value, and the community is a bonus. In others, people we care about are passionate about a cause, and their passion is contagious, drawing us to the cause as well. “it seems that no matter what initially draws us to a cause, unless there is a viable community, most people will not stay with it long term. If there’s a community, we can weather far greater challenges for that cause.”

Define roles and expectations

• Clearly define each role with a job description and expectations. Ensure that the volunteer is in agreement with the job expectations and roles. Define your expectations related to working hours. You may discover that people will want to work and receive feedback during times when staff is not available. Roles vary and a volunteer may have significant responsibility. Most of these roles require the volunteer be handled in nearly the same way a staff person would.

Make use of an application process complete with references. Take the time to check the references by phone. If you take their position seriously, so will they. Show respect to your volunteers by increasing their levels of responsibility when appropriate. Value your volunteers and make sure that no one feels they have been given a “junk job”.

• Provide opportunities within the person’s areas of interest and giftedness. The commitment level will increase significantly when people can do what they love to do and feel they are good at. You certainly can challenge people to try new things and to be trained in those areas. People will receive incredible value by doing what they are committed to. Volunteers for one-time events have different needs than those who are longer-term. They may just enjoy helping out wherever needed because of who they are with and who they are doing it for. However, to move this one-time helper into a volunteer on your team, a more calculated effort should take place to engage them in their giftedness.

• Provide flexibility regarding schedules. Clear agreements regarding time commitment creates an environment where a volunteer can make ministry work for them.

Equip your volunteers

If your volunteers have training, resources and know-how to get assistance when they need it, they will operate much more efficiently. Make sure no one ever feels like they have to “go it alone.”

1. Provide resources for volunteers to do their job. These resources may be training, definition of expectations, or equipment and software as necessary.
2. Provide a reporting structure with a supervisor or coach responsible for each team member. Create a mechanism for each person who is involved at a significant level to regularly communicate his or her goals and progress.
3. Supply ongoing training. Communicate new information and maintain vision. Things change quickly and at times we forget to update people of things that really matter.
4. Take time to listen. It is vital that they know they are valued for who they are and not just what they do.
5. Provide opportunity for your volunteers to give feedback regarding their role and their experience on the team. Make sure that everyone knows it is okay to ask questions and when it is appropriate to do so.
6. Ask volunteers for their input on how to better equip others. Learning from one another, and even implementing some of the ideas of team members gives them a sense of ownership. It also stretches them to think as part of the leadership, rather than being content to volunteer at the lowest level of involvement.
7. Establish expectations for issues like office hours, notification of times off, switching days, and protocol for contacting staff. Systems like weekly reports enable you to keep track of projects and problems.
8. Encourage your volunteers to recruit. Unless you specifically show them how to do that, they may not even consider it as a possibility. Make it easy for them by providing online resources.

Provide community

A community is developed when a group of individuals make an effort to relate to one another. You will find that team members and volunteers will be much more engaged in their role if they build relationships with one another.

1. Incorporate regular times for the teams to connect. Use chat rooms, discussion boards, Facebook, immediate messaging as well as email to develop community. Encourage team members to develop relationships and communicate with one another. Everyone needs to know that they are cared for and valued.
2. Make a commitment to acknowledge special days. It makes the team members feel more real and relational.
3. Send thank you gifts and/or cards when appropriate.
4. Have fun! A virtual world can give a lot of opportunity for humor and fun – especially when you make the commitment to have team times together.
5. Communicate, communicate, communicate! Most volunteer teams now have or need a virtual component which require you to place a heavy emphasis on communication. Be quick to ask someone what he or she meant or to clarify what you believe they have said. Things can easily be misunderstood because you can’t hear tone of voice or see facial expressions for large portions of your communication. Communicate in terms that can be easily understood and clarify issues over the phone when necessary. Communication over the phone should be followed up with written text to clarify/reiterate.
6. Volunteer teams have a unique look and feel to them. The more you put into your team, the more you will benefit.

One person at a time, you can mobilize armies of people where significant life change can take place.

Notes for plenary session “Mobilizing Volunteers” MinistryNet 2009
Karen Schenk, Director of TruthMedia, a ministry of Power to Change