Welcome to class of Human Resources:Volunteers, Staff and Board Members

-Dr. Satyendra Singh

Recruitment Strategy• Precontemplation

– Identify the challenge to get the target volunteers• Doing nothing vs. donating money

• Contemplation– Make the target audience conclude: sensible and desirable thing to do

• Benefits• Costs• Others

• Preparation/action– Activate predisposed volunteers to take action

• Self-efficacy

• Maintenance

Benefits• material benefits

– tangible rewards associated with the monetary value

• solidarity benefits– intangible social rewards

• purposive benefits– intangible rewards from identification with the org. and

its mission

Costs• time• Money

• higher the cost, higher the involvement• Higher participation is associated with higher cost• Costs exceed benefits!

Others

• high motivation to volunteer is not enough (benefit/cost) to promote action– Referral

• teens do not volunteer!• volunteer culture is not there• religion!

Self-efficacyBarriers to inaction must be removed; such as,

• personal schedule too full• I am too young• no transportation• did not know how to get involved• may not be able to honor the volunteer commitment• do not have the necessary skills

Maintenance/retaining volunteers

• value their contribution• appreciate any extra effort from them• do not ignore their complaints• care about their well-beings• care about their opinions• make their jobs interesting• Reward - lapel pin, certificates

Why volunteers quit?

• unreal expectation• lack of appreciative feedback• lack of appropriate training• feelings of second-class compare to full-time staff• excessive demand on time• lack of sense of personal accomplishments

Managing volunteers

• volunteers are dilettantes• volunteers do not pay attention to

training/instruction• volunteers may be already bosses• volunteers are well-to-do members• so• role of volunteers, confidentiality, hours – forthright• create value, team work, leaders at all levels,

positive vision, missions and goals are clear

What board members do?

• Judicially responsible for ensuring objectives of the organization – I.e., within charter of the organization

• Give specific advice• Set governance and policies• Fundraising• Decisions (fiscal, moral, strategic…)• Link to community

– Lawyer legal issues– Banker economic– Educator theme of board

Recruiting Board Members

• material incentive: goods, service, money• social incentives: intangible rewards, status, honor, friends• developmental incentives: new skills, civic responsibilities• ideological incentives: helping is good

• help the community• believe in the agency’s mission• want to accomplish something• may be obligated by employer• want personal development• repaying the agencies

Useful links

• national center for volunteering (UK)– www.volunteering.org.uk

• volunteer Canada– www.volunteer.ca

• volunteerMatch (USA)– www.volunteermatch.org

• volunteer western Australia– www.volunteer.org.au