Webinar Recap: Improving volunteer recruitment and engagement
BC Trails Day 2023 - Fernie Trails Alliance
Volunteers are the heart of outdoor recreation. Most non-profits couldn’t function without them. They build trails, maintain infrastructure, organize projects, attend meetings, set agendas, raise money and so much more.
But finding and engaging volunteers is a constant challenge and one that is getting harder.
To help the outdoor recreation sector tackle the volunteer crisis the Outdoor Recreation Council of BC hosted a webinar focused on recruiting and engaging volunteers on December 12th. Panelists explained the present state of volunteering in B.C., shared best practices for finding and retaining volunteers, provided insight into recruiting younger generations, and talked about tried and tested case studies and tips.
Panelists included:
Dorothee Birker, Manager of Community Services for KCR Community Resources, which runs a volunteer recruitment service in the Okanagan.
Katelyn Bissat, Provincial Network Coordinator for NatureKids BC.
Adrian Bostock, Operations Manager for Shuswap Trail Alliance.
Here are some of our key takeaways:
The COVID pandemic shifted people’s motivations for volunteering. Key motivations are now:
To connect to a larger cause and make an impact. Think passions and compassion.
To meet people and create new connections.
To find a new and renewed sense of belonging.
Volunteer Management Cycle
Don’t just fill seats or tick boxes.
Recruit with professionalism
Find them where they are at - if you want young adults, use Instagram or Tik Tok, target Gen X and Gen Y through the family lens
Treat volunteering like a job: what skills are you looking for? How much time will it take? What will they do? How can their unique skills contribute to a bigger goal?
Communicate clearly - Be specific about:
How they will make a difference, and how their contribution matters.
How their time is well spent. They want to feel valued and that their time and energy is contributing in a positive way.
Retain with mentorship:
t’s a process - onboarding, training, empowering with support.
Ask what skills they have, stay open to new ideas and help them grow.
Don’t limit by abilities or disabilities.
Provide skill training - can tie funding for it into grant applications and funding requests.
Supervise so they do the job properly, redirect when necessary but also provide opportunities to lead.
Assign tasks that fit skills and personality.
Retention with connection
People are craving connection today.
Share goals and strategic plans so that volunteers can feel important, and see themselves in the bigger picture.
Provide opportunities to meet new people - socials, virtual or in-person events, etc.
Don’t fear sharing volunteers with other organizations - have an abundance mindset.
Other important points:
You can’t measure impact with just volunteer hours. Volunteer projects are as much about community building and engagement as they are productive outcomes.
Equity, diversity and inclusion: if you’re not living it, you won’t attract it with volunteers. Without it, your organization is missing out on whole sections of society.
More variety of volunteer opportunities makes it easier to engage more people. Multiple times, days, skill requirements, etc.
Links and Resources
Finding volunteers:
Grants and funding:
Build volunteer management and training expenses into other project funding or grant applications. Be creative. Training is a necessary part of some projects.
ORCBC has an entire web page dedicated to grants and funding.
Vancity has many grants for non-profits and community groups
Fundraising tools such as CanadaHelps and grant search engines such as Grant Connect which is available at most public libraries.
Professional development and support
Volunteer Management Professionals of Canada website has resources and links to grants, conferences and online training
Dorothee Birker’s employer, KC Community Resources, has online resources, including a workshop series that includes sessions on helping volunteer managers with support and burnout prevention.
Software
NatureKids BC uses Keela to organize membership and volunteer data with AI.
The Shuswap Trail Alliance uses Google Forms to organize and track volunteers. Volunteers fill it out ahead of time or use a QR code at trailhead to fill it out. Includes waivers, input on how people want to contribute, what skills they have, newsletter signup, etc.
Google for Nonprofits provides access to Google products at no charge - ORCBC uses this. Check to see if your organization qualifies.