How to effectively engage volunteers through changing, challenging times

Charity Meetup - Tuesday 14 September 2021

Reimagining Volunteer Engagement

At August's Charity 'Feetup' event, we chatted through some potential future themes to ensure we continue to host events that are useful and relevant for those in the sector.

Volunteer engagement was a popular choice, so we created our September event around how this can be improved and ways those who give up their time can be supported post-lockdown.

Vicky Hadley, owner of Keystone Virtual Assistance, kindly took notes for us so we can share the key points with anyone that couldn't make the Meetup.

The next event will be on Tuesday 12 October from 10 to 11.30am. Everyone is welcome!

Despite a wet and miserable morning for most of us, we had an inspiring session with the Charity Meetup networkers. It was lovely to see faces old and new.?Our topic for this session was reimaging volunteer engagement. We were lucky enough to hear from Linda O’Donnell of Zenith Consulting on how to deal with re-engaging volunteers post-pandemic as well as from Emma Haslam of Borago Insights. Emma, an active volunteer, shared with us her story of being a volunteer for the London 2012 Olympic and Paralympic Games and at Battersea Cats and Dogs Home.

However, before we got started, we got creative and put pens to paper to 'draw' what we felt were the top three attributes of an ideal volunteer. There were common themes (and some interesting drawings!) which included:

·??????Welcoming

·??????Team player

·??????Energetic

·??????Generosity of spirit

·??????Flexibility

·??????Non-judgemental

Pens down… It was time for our first speaker - Linda O’Donnell of Zenith Consulting.

Linda spoke of the current challenge within the third sector of re-engaging volunteers post-pandemic. Charity beneficiaries are suffering from the lack of volunteers. This is having a big impact within the sector.

Where to start when trying to actively re-engage your volunteers??Linda spoke of the psychological contract between a charity and its volunteers.?This contract is the informal bits that you would expect i.e. from a volunteers point of view it could involve a monthly meeting to support and inform of what is going on.?It is a set of promises and commitments that you expect the organisation to fulfil, thus helping to reduce uncertainty and giving a sense of security.

Breaches to the psychological contract involve things such as receiving no supervision or not having the opportunity to work face to face and having to work online. The impact of breaching this contract can lead to reduced engagement and performance issues as well as an increase in turnover.

A focus on prosocial behaviours, a behaviour that is intended to benefit another person, is vital for volunteers. Linda encourages increasing prosocial behaviour and gave two suggestions on how to do this:

·??????Nudge people to make prosocial choices. A way to do this is to arrange choices in a way that shifts preferences – you could opt people in automatically and it is up to them to opt-out.

·??????Improve empathy skills. Put yourself in another’s shoes so you feel the same emotion. Create videos for social media using personal stories of your beneficiaries and your volunteers and include subjects such as what is volunteering really like, what have I got out of volunteering, why did I volunteer? By telling a story, you are motivating and engaging your volunteers.

In summary, Linda concluded that communication is vital. Remind people of the benefits of volunteering including gaining confidence, being able to make a difference, meeting people, being part of a community, learning new skills and taking on a challenge.

Next up we heard from Emma Haslam of Borago Insights.?Emma has vast experience as a volunteer including as a Games Maker at the London 2012 Olympics and Paralympics and at Battersea Dogs and Cats Home.?It was interesting to hear what aspects of volunteering have made Emma feel valued and engaged.

To start with Emma spoke to us about the 'volunteering hooks' that make a volunteering experience meaningful (and it stretched further than the cute pictures of dogs and cats that were shared throughout – my favourites were Chip and Dale, two kittens found on a construction site!).

Firstly Emma explored values that included how the organisation conducts itself, if volunteers are considered team members and the importance of aligning these values with her own. Emma also considers the long term goals of an organisation and gave the example of how London 2012 had sustainability goals and the benefit which the Games still have on the local area. Another example was Battersea’s ethos to help smaller charities by working together to improve the lives of as many animals as possible. This is something Emma really buys into.

Linking nicely to Linda’s talk around the importance of communication, Emma describes the frequent catch-ups during London 2012 which focussed on team communication. At Battersea, regular communication means Emma and the other volunteers get to know what is happening across the board.?From Director Q&As to communication with kennel and cattery staff, the team goes the extra mile to ensure everyone is informed.?Even throughout the pandemic, volunteers were invited to webinars, a Facebook group and to guest speaker presentations. This resulted in Emma feeling like a valued team member and connected to the organisation she loves.?Battersea also engages their volunteers in activities such diversity workshops and branding to gain their opinions.

Transparency is key to engaging volunteers. It is vital to know the 'unsexy' parts of the role to give a realistic impression of what it will involve. Life at Battersea is much more than puppy kisses and cuddles.?If there is an emotional impact, make sure it is clear at the recruitment stage. It is an emotional rollercoaster when dogs get re-homed but the assessment day at Battersea made the reality really clear. Emotional support systems are also in place at Battersea which include spaces on site for people to retreat to if they need time out.?There are also Mental Health first aiders throughout the organisation.

Emma next spoke about personal development and how she values the opportunities that are available to her as a volunteer which included ongoing training and shadowing behaviourists to see what they do at Battersea.

Finally, Emma talked of the need to feel appreciated and the importance of saying thank you. As a volunteer, it is important to feel as much of a valued team member as someone on the payroll and to have an opinion that feels valued.

The next Charity Meetup Birmingham event is on Tuesday 12 October, 10-11.30am. Please keep an eye on social media for updates or join our Facebook and LinkedIn groups.