Volunteer Myth Busting: Recruitment, Training and Retention

The myths surrounding volunteer management are plenty. This session will not only bust those myths wide open, it will teach you to recruit the best talent for your organization, coach you on how best to train them and walk you through multiple ideas on how to keep volunteers happy and retain the talent you worked so hard to get through your doors.

Volunteer management is hard. Don’t ever let anyone tell you differently. But there are ways we can make it easier on everyone, including volunteers. This session will bust the following myths:

Myth 1: If someone says they want to volunteer, you have to say yes! They are free so we can’t turn anyone away. Truth 1: Just because someone wants to volunteer does NOT mean you have to hire them. I will walk you through the process of interviewing so you only end up with the best of the best.

• Myth 2: Training and development is not important for volunteers. They are not employees so there is no need to cultivate a "career ladder" for them to work toward.

• Truth 2: Volunteers are an asset just like any paid employee. If anything, we need to cultivate their skills and talents on a higher level as we are receiving their services and expertise at no cost to us. I will teach you how to do exactly this while also allowing your volunteers a voice within the organization.

• Myth 3: Keeping volunteers happy means banquets, gifts and celebrating volunteer week.

• Truth 3: Volunteer retention is complicated. I will challenge you to be creative with appreciation ideas while waking you through some retention strategies that worked in my very own volunteer programs. Spoiler alert, it has nothing to do with an end of year banquet!

RUDE Awakening

Recruit the best of the best Unearth Talent Deploy the right people at the right time Evaluate what’s working and what’s not

In this session, you will do a deep dive into Joni’s RUDE Awakening system. You will learn how to recruit only the best talent that is the best fit for your organization. Interview questions, tips and application revision is just the tip of the iceberg.

You will also learn how to unearth the talent you already have. Dig deep and ask the hard questions. Take a look at your volunteer team and figure out what their TRUE talents are. Most volunteers are either retired professionals or current professionals. Utilize them to the best of your ability using Joni’s proven system.

Deploy the right volunteers in the right positions at the right time. Joni’s program will walk you through exactly how to do this with zero room for failure.

Evaluate your volunteers, their assignments and your programs in 30 day intervals. Joni’s checklist makes this easy and quick and will provide you with the data you need to sustain your organization.

Becoming a Decision Maker

Volunteer Managers are the forgotten population. Without them, volunteer programs would fall apart, so why don’t organizations give them the respect they deserve?

This session will cover exactly how Joni created a space for herself at a C-Level table with a manager title. She will explain how to gain the respect you deserve as a volunteer manager, all while creating a seat for yourself at a table of decision makers. Joni will coach you on data collection, how to deliver that data and proving your worth in a room full of executives.