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Volunteer Professionals - want to influence your CEO?

Volunteer leadership, support and management are hugely underrated skills. The ability to continually motivate, involve and coordinate people without pay or contractual ties requires significant understanding of human behaviour.

However, over the years I have, time and again, heard volunteering professionals bemoan that they do not have the ear of the Chief Executive, there is insufficient investment in volunteering, and volunteering is perceived as less important than HR or fundraising.

This is where the volunteering leaders should step up, right?

So here are a few pointers from me.

1. Emphasise life time value of volunteering

Our focus is usually on filling roles and managing current services. This is essential, but if you want to influence the the strategic direction of the organisations you also need to think longer term. Shift some of your thinking and a good chunk of your talking to building life time value.

To take a retail analogy, your supermarket is not seeking your custom just today, but wants you to come back and spend your well earned wages with them for years to come. So they focus on your customer experience, and reward loyalty.

I am not saying you need to explain how you keep the same volunteers in the same roles for years and years. I am saying think about how volunteering can add value to the organisation long-term. Perhaps you can focus on building a community of actual and potential volunteers who can dip in and out of volunteering but feel a sense of belonging for life in your organisation.

This community, brings value not just in terms of volunteer activity, but also in funds. Those who give time and those who have a sense of belonging to a organisation are far more likely to donate funds over many years. So you can make a case for a focus on building this community and building this into your organisation's central strategy.

2. Project return on investment

Volunteering is seen as nice but fluffy. You need to spell out the return the organisation gets from its investment. Increased income, saved costs, increased reach and voice, and measure these.

3. Demonstrate where volunteering fits long term organisation strategy?

Volunteering should be central to your strategy- a cross cutting theme. You need to work with other teams to build a vision of how this adds value to your organisation mission. Take a look at how RSPB have done this successfully. https://lnkd.in/ecB6Pztg

4. Build alliances

Know your who can champion your work and nurture those relationships. Don't forget those on the board.

5. Most of all be a leader.

You have to take people with you if you are to lead. However good your argument may be, it's no good unless you can convince others to follow your vision. Make time to lead this.

Chris Wade, Lead Consultant, Time for Impact

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