Trends and Issues

Many of us, especially readers of this journal, have long defied the skeptics and believed that volunteering has multiple benefits. Now there is growing research to prove that volunteering is good for society as a whole and that it needs to be nurtured and fostered.

In this Along the Web, we round up some of the emerging research that explores the impact of volunteering as a producer of social capital and well-being that goes beyond any individual volunteer, agency or organization. Benefits for individual volunteers – such as skill development or building personal confidence – are of course very well-known and documented. But as this article shows, there is a fascinating evidence base developing that also strengthens the case for encouraging more volunteers and better, more widespread volunteer programs. The timing is perfect. Just as policy makers and funders of volunteer programs increasingly want to know that their actions or investments will be effective over the longer term, the research linking volunteering to social capital and well-being is emerging.   

Most organizations have a strategic plan, a fund development plan, a marketing plan and an IT plan. Why is it that so few have a volunteerism plan? Recognized as the oldest voluntary health organization in the United States, the American Lung Association began a three-year planning process for volunteer involvement only six years ago. The Association recently took a different approach to the process, resulting in a volunteerism plan that has ownership from many stakeholders, simultaneously building both the culture of volunteerism and the capacity to sustain it.

In this feature story, authors Mary Ella Douglas, Melissa Gilmore, Katherine H. Campbell and Marybeth K. Saunders explain how they created the Association’s latest strategic volunteerism plan. They first reached out to colleagues in other organizations to ask if they would be willing to share their strategies with them and learn from each other; surprisingly, they did not receive even one plan from their search. Instead, what they heard time and again was, “What a great idea!” and “We don’t have one, but we’d love to see yours when it’s finished.” Using a process that included representation from all levels of its structure as well as external volunteers, the American Lung Association proceeded to create a revised volunteerism plan in about nine months. This story documents the authors’ experience, one that produced principles and a process that can be applied to most organizations as they embark on developing a strategic volunteerism plan of their own.

Assessing learning needs, performing a skills audit and carrying out a knowledge inventory are important activities when providing effective training within organisations. How thoroughly should we extend such techniques to volunteers? How might we link an individual volunteer skills analysis with the overall aims and needs of the organisation?

In this Training Designs article, Sue Jones explores the benefits of needs analysis for volunteers. She examines the pros and cons of a range of assessment methods, and provides practical tips to adapt and apply to volunteer management. 

Australia has seen its share of natural disasters – most notably bushfires and floods – and the surge of spontaneous volunteering each emergency produces. While recent attempts to register volunteers in advance of a disaster are useful, too few are actually activated during an emergency because local officials do not have the resources or skills to coordinate them. In the spring of 2012, with the annual bushfire season right around the corner, Volunteering Victoria, the peak volunteering body for the State of Victoria in Australia, had a simple idea: Why not create a platform that links volunteer program managers across the state in times of emergency?

Launched in January 2013, the Volunteer Program Manager Register now has 70 skilled and experienced volunteer program managers ready to respond to calls for assistance in times of emergency and natural disaster in Victoria, Australia. In this feature article, author Alicia Patterson, the marketing and communications manager for Volunteering Victoria, explains how this Register is meant to work, and how it helps the helpers coordinate volunteers who are keen to assist with recovery efforts when disaster strikes. 

The Minnesota Association for Volunteer Administration (MAVA) hosted its biennial conference on May 8 - 10 in Minneapolis. MAVA is one of the premier professional societies in North America and its conference is always excellent. Participants come from Minnesota and way beyond, especially bordering Canada.  e-Volunteerism's editorial team members Rob Jackson and Susan Ellis were presenters and exhibitors – along with several other authors of past articles in this journal. So it seemed particularly appropriate to use the opportunity to return to one of Voices’ intermittent features and interview conference goers on site. 

Bicycles? In a journal about volunteering? Of course! As pedal-powered transportation continues to gain popularity in urban centers throughout the world, long-distance cyclist Tristan Dahn (who also happens to be on the Energize, Inc. staff) takes a look at the many volunteer activities surrounding this two-wheeled trend. While all are interesting as projects, some activities have elements applicable to any sort of volunteer management. For instance, how can your organization benefit from the outreach strategies used by “bicycle ambassador” programs? Might your organization engage with a broad cross-section of your community the way that many volunteer-led bicycle safety, instruction and maintenance programs do? In this Along the Web, Dahn connects the two-wheeler to the world of volunteering. 

Volunteer-involving organizations – whether nonprofits, government agencies or all-volunteer associations – regularly search for new philosophies and technologies to maximize volunteerism and advance the organization’s purpose. However, implementing the use of personality profiles rarely makes the list of strategic initiatives. But in today’s social world, understanding an individual’s personality is critical to serving up relevant communications and interacting in meaningful ways. In order to succeed, organizations must emotionally engage their volunteers.

In this feature article, authors John Marshall and Hugh Massie take readers step by step to illustrate and explain how to use personality profiles in volunteer-involving organizations. And, the authors argue, "the investment of time and resources to incorporate personality profiles into the process of recruiting, organizing and engaging volunteers is one that pays off tenfold."