Top tips: 5 Canadian non-profit managers share how to recruit and keep volunteers

Volunteers want to give back, but they bring diverse skills, experiences and desires to the table. Future of Good talked to volunteer managers and other experts to learn more about building volunteer systems that work and last.

Jessica Pang-Parks, Learn with JPP: Non-profit consulting and learning services

One crucial piece of advice for effectively engaging volunteers is to be prepared and responsive when receiving applications or inquiries. Nothing can deter a potential volunteer more than responding to a posting for a cause close to their heart and then hearing nothing back for weeks!

Organizations should have a welcoming and informative volunteer application response email ready before posting volunteer opportunities. To help organizations get started, I’ve developed a free volunteer application response template that is available for download.

Once the email copy is finalized, it’s essential to be clear on who will be responsible for responding, establish a response timeline — ideally no longer than two business days — and maintain consistency in the organization’s brand voice when addressing common questions about the posted role and volunteering with the organization in general. 

Developing an internal resource based on FAQs about volunteering and updating it regularly with input from stakeholders, such as program managers, fundraisers, and active volunteers, can help ensure consistent and transparent communication.

Everyone interacting with your charity or non-profit deserves good customer service and genuine appreciation. Strategically planning to steward volunteers with these principles and implementing streamlined processes from their involvement can bolster trust in and dedication to your organization.

Spenser Martin, Hoarding Wellness Specialist, Canadian Mental Health Association, Manitoba & Winnipeg

When recruiting and retaining volunteers, most people think the only benefits to the volunteers are that they can feel good about helping others and get a reference for their resume. While this may be true, we can usually offer much more. 

My top advice for volunteer management is to make volunteer experiences more worthwhile and to be honest about what you can offer when recruiting.

To make volunteer experiences more worthwhile, we should consider what else we can offer instead of a salary. For example, volunteering gives people a chance to learn more about an organization or a profession that interests them. 

Think about how volunteers will engage with your organization and its professionals and how that may help them make career decisions and gain skills relevant to your industry. 

You may also keep a list of scholarships, awards, or other forms of recognition your volunteers could be eligible for based on their work with your organization and help them apply. Some organizations also offer certified training programs for their volunteers for free or at a reduced cost.

However, the best way to make an experience worthwhile is to ask volunteers about their expectations for the role and their goals outside of volunteering. Ask what they are passionate about, then discuss whether their expectations can be met and how volunteering with your organization will help them reach their goals or tie into their passions. 

This will give you an idea of what will keep your volunteers around and whether there are other things they can help with that might be a better fit. 

I have built programs around conversations I have had with volunteers in their interviews and had them help design and lead the program. This creates a bespoke experience that other organizations cannot match, and helping someone achieve their dreams is likely far more valuable than any salary you can offer.

However, all that is moot if you are not honest about the experiences you can offer during an interview. 

Be clear about your expectations for volunteers and whether you can meet a volunteer’s expectations. Just about anything else in a volunteer’s life (work, relationships, education, etc.) will take precedence over volunteering, so they will leave or become less reliable when they discover that the role does not align with their expectations.

Adam Janes, Ottawa Food Bank, coordinator of volunteer services; vice-president, Volunteer Management Professionals of Canada

In volunteer management, like most things, you usually get what you invest in it. Small, casual investments will mean small, casual impact — large, quality investments will mean larger, higher quality returns.

Investments in your volunteer program could look like this:

• Having buy-in from your board or executive director to elevate volunteerism and its value to the organization.
• Advocating for a volunteer voice around the organization’s leadership tables to ensure volunteer engagement is part of the organization’s strategic goals and planning.
• Hiring or promoting a professional leader of volunteering and investing in their success, for example, funding professional development and association memberships.
• Adding to the volunteer management staff compliment when appropriate (How much value are volunteers adding to the organization? How much more value do they have to add until you add to the team?).
• Creating and adding an organizational statement to your foundational documents, website, and training.
• Investing in training for staff who will supervise volunteers and their leadership growth.

Kim Dooley, Ontario SPCA, provincial manager of volunteer development

• Communicate with your volunteers regularly and share organizational updates/changes, new policies, job opportunities, and upcoming events. By integrating them into the organization, volunteers feel appreciated and are part of the team. This is the key to a successful volunteer program.
• If there is a goal you are trying to reach, let the volunteers know and keep them updated when you accomplish the goal. It could be a fundraiser, volunteer recruitment event, etc.
• Ensure you have clear position descriptions for each role, including a breakdown of the tasks, time commitment and qualifications required.
• Engage with your volunteers. Share new volunteer opportunities with your current volunteers, as they may be interested in taking on additional roles/responsibilities.
• Check in with volunteers on their progress. Do not wait until the end of the shift to gauge their success.
• Recognition is key. In general, most volunteers are not interested in perks or benefits. The number one way volunteers want to be recognized is by a simple thank you. When thanking a volunteer, a personalized thank you is the gold standard. When thanking the volunteer, include something you observed them doing well. This will motivate your volunteers and show you notice and appreciate their work.
• Volunteers look for flexible roles, so allow them to self-schedule, volunteer remotely, etc.
• Don’t overrecruit. Volunteers do not want to give their time only to be told, “We do not need your help.”
• Volunteers possess many skills; ask them if they are willing to share their talent or skills with the organization.
• Ask the volunteer what you can do for them. For example, training, giving them experience in the field, a recommendation letter for a job or scholarship, etc.
• Keep in mind everyone learns differently. Provide a mix of hands-on learning and online or reading materials. 
• More people are looking for short episodic volunteer roles and are looking for cause-based roles. When recruiting, include the role’s purpose and the time commitment.
• Volunteers are looking for meaningful work. Communicate with them the value of their volunteer role and how they contribute to the organization/mission/values.
• Ensure there is a point person for the volunteers to contact.
• Ensure volunteers are assigned the proper role; not everyone is suitable for every role. Follow up with the volunteer to see how things are going and if they are enjoying the role.
• Have a recruitment plan, including the number of volunteers needed, roles, training requirements, timeline, etc.
• Track volunteer hours and outcomes. This will help the volunteer know the impact the volunteer is making in the organization.

Sheena Swierenga, VolunteerConnector, head of community cultivation

Volunteers are humans. This might seem like the least surprising thing written, but it is shocking how easy it is to forget. 

This also means a couple of different things. Humans are messy and unpredictable; we are all this mass of cells with many feelings, intersections and shifting priorities. 

Engaging people in work they are passionate about means having empathy, compassion and understanding. It is all about relationships and taking care of each other. The labour volunteers carry out is often so important to the community, but the way they are made to feel while doing this work is vital. 

Beware of barriers disguised as “requirements” 

In many situations in established organizations, people inherit volunteer programs, which often come with habits, processes and even cultures that may not work for the current landscape. 

Sometimes, that is about the work allocated to volunteers, and sometimes, that can be a list of “must dos” when recruiting people for roles and tasks. It takes time and bravery to examine a current system, loosen the rigidity, let go of the things that are no longer working and find a pathway rooted in what communities need in 2024. 

So many things keep people from engaging in their communities, and it is up to us to work on them!

This Anti-Racist Approach to Volunteering report offers more information.

Know what you’ve got and celebrate it 

Volunteering is an enormous privilege, especially in a cost-of-living crisis being felt in households across the country. 

Having people be able to give their time and energy without financial compensation is an enormous gift. Acknowledging and showing appreciation for this generosity is critical when engaging people in their community. 

Over the years, we have given many different versions of advice on this. Ultimately, appreciation is very personal, and no mug or t-shirt fits all. It comes back to the human and relationship piece, celebrating humans in a way that feels genuine and meaningful to them! 

Also, when people have a great experience with the organization, they are more likely to speak positively about it in the community, and word of mouth is such a great tool to bring other people into an organization. 

Humans are seeking a sense of belonging 

Everyone has been through a lot in the last couple of years. Volunteering is still very motivated by people desiring to impact the community, but they also seek belonging. 

Data comes out every year about increasing rates of loneliness and isolation, and engaging in community is such a brilliant way to address this. Ensuring that volunteering roles allow for connection and are explicit about addressing the community needs means a fulfilling and mutually beneficial experience for all. 

Sometimes, it is over

This is probably the hardest thing to acknowledge when it comes to the world of volunteering, and it should not be taken lightly, but nothing should last forever. 

It is as simple and as complicated as that. 

Community priorities shift, generations change, capacity lowers, and sometimes, the best thing to happen is to bring it all to an end. This will likely be painful, and the hope is to leave a good earth for something different to grow on in the future.