Running a nonprofit organization or a charity can help make the world a better place to live in. It is a pledge to make other people’s lives comfortable and convenient. But it also offers you another benefit as an organizer – it lets you meet a lot of wonderful people: the volunteers.
These volunteers offer their time, talents, and efforts to help you with your cause. And that is such a beautiful thing. You have to acknowledge that your volunteers are among your lifelines, so you need to take better care of them. You can do just that when you know how to manage them efficiently.
This can be quite challenging, but you can get inspiration from other organizations and charities that have succeeded in doing it. You can make great things happen by knowing your goals and putting the value of volunteers at the center. Nevertheless, here are some of the things you may want to keep in mind:
Foster open communication
A nonprofit is made up of different parts and departments. For these groups to work efficiently, there should be open communication – and it should be made easy. You can make that happen by eliminating unnecessary layers of approval; an open-door policy may do the trick. Furthermore, every word that you will say should be genuine and sincere. When you focus on this aspect, you will realize that communicating will increase retention and engagement among your volunteers. It will even help you recruit more people.
Make recruitment hassle-free
Speaking of recruitment, one of the many things people think twice about volunteering is that they have to accomplish many forms and interviews. This should not be the case. Understand that the easier the recruitment process is, the more manpower you will receive. So, this means that you should make the recruitment process hassle-free. One of the strategies you can implement is creating an online page where volunteers-to-be can register. A properly scheduled follow-up from your staff should then come next. However, don’t forget to check the background of your applicants.
Be smart with training
While you may have experienced volunteers applying to become part of your roster, there are still people who are new to the business. As such, your nonprofit should have a consistent training program. You can have some of your experienced volunteers as the leaders of this department. This is an important aspect of nonprofit management, as it helps the organization to become more efficient. Furthermore, training will also provide you a chance to build relationships with your volunteers and even thank them.
Plan your rewards properly
Your volunteers might have signed up for the cause without expecting anything in return. But that does not mean that you will leave it that way. You are still required to reward your volunteers. Recognizing their efforts and rewarding them will boost their morale, encouraging them to be consistent with what they are doing.
Integrate technology
A lot of organizations nowadays are heavily reliant on technology. Marketing companies have analytics. The medical industry has even created tech-dependent systems, such as mobile integrated healthcare. And just like them, your business runs on a lot of data. That means that you should invest in technology and applications, such as volunteer management software, which makes scheduling, events prioritization, and manpower administration easy.
One for all, all for one
You depend on your volunteers, and the volunteers depend on you. Knowing this, you should do your best to help your team thrive and become better versions of themselves. This way, you know that they are the best they can be. May the pointers above help you achieve that.
