What Motivates Volunteers? The key to successfully recruiting and retaining volunteers lies in an understanding of what motivates people

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Chapter 3

Debunking the Myths of Volunteer Engagement

Sarah Jane Rehnborg CVA, PhD

We’ve all heard it: Volunteers are as revered as “motherhood and apple pie,” regarded (incorrectly, I might add) as distinctly “American,” and celebrated each April during National Volunteer Week. Yet, when it comes to organizational decision-making, managerial hierarchies, and funding priorities, volunteer pro- grams and community engagement are rarely seen as “top-shelf” issues.

Staff tell us that they . . .

• Would consider engaging volunteers, but can’t trust them to keep information confidential.

• Want it done right, so they have to do it themselves.

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• Are tired of do-gooders that don’t do much good.

• Can’t trust volunteers to be there when needed.

The list goes on. Meanwhile executive leadership and boards wonder . . .

• How to fund a leadership position for volunteers. After all, volunteers are free, and funders can’t be expected to underwrite this position.

• If volunteer contributions are really worth the liability risk.

• If they let volunteers into the organization, will they ever be able to get them out if they don’t perform to expectations?

• If days of service are worth the time and effort, especially now that these short-term episodic events have gained so much popularity.

All of which leaves volunteer leaders/managers asking:

• How will I ever get the support I need from this organization to effectively engage the community?

• Is there a career path for me within this organization?

• How can I make the case for community engagement and staff support when no one understands what I do?

• How do I develop a range of volunteer opportunities aligned with the needs of a changing society?

• How can I do my job when the structure of our organization seems to be stagnant?

• How do I intervene in a world saturated with newly minted professionals and needs-based thinking?

These aren’t idle questions. Rather, they have vexed the field for as long as those who manage volunteers have reflected together on more effective strategies for engagement. These are also the questions that this chapter proposes to ultimately address by looking closely at the most pernicious assumptions in the field that keep organizations from greater achievement while clouding the role of volunteers and those who are responsible for volunteer engagement.

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Revealing the Five Myths of Volunteer Engagement

As typically practiced, volunteer engagement efforts too often involve a self- reinforcing cycle of poor management, which are then seen as presenting a “catch-22,” an unsolvable logic problem for which we then blame the volunteer. The process goes like this:

1. A nonprofit recognizes the need for assistance to achieve its mission.

2. It assesses its financial resources, finds them deficient, and reflexively turns to volunteers to fill the gap.

3. Leadership assumes that free volunteer labor requires little financial or strategic investment.

4. The organization engages volunteers who may or may not be qualified.

5. A staff person may or may not oversee the volunteer effort, and expectations, accountability, and communication remain unclear.

6. When the effort achieves little, volunteers are identified as the problem and are approached with skepticism, if at all, the next time a need is identified.

Does this sound familiar? A variety of additional issues can make this skepticism worse. An organization

facing cutbacks eliminates its volunteer manager position while increasing the expectation for volunteer involvement. Major organizational restructuring impacts the volunteer program, yet volunteers are never engaged in the process or informed of the outcome. A longstanding service tradition is discontinued without attention to the feelings or needs of those who will be affected or the foresight to create new roles or opportunities for volunteers.

In short, volunteers are frequently overlooked as stakeholders in the process, programs suffer, and the victim becomes the identified problem.

This cycle of dysfunction is widely accepted even among those who champion volunteers, leaving the underlying assumptions and perceptions that perpetuate it unexamined. This begs the question: To what extent are some of these assump- tions and perceptions accurate? Are the perceptions of the volunteer managers accurate? Are they actually marginalized and misunderstood, or are their super- visors overworked? Do executive directors or board members really overlook community engagement as a component of organizational function or are they too busy to attend to these “details”? Do board members and executive directors

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actually spurn volunteers, even though trustees are themselves volunteers, or are they so focused on other responsibilities that their inattention is perceived as dismissal? Is it true that executive leadership doesn’t regard volunteer manage- ment as a position that can be sold to a funder or to the board? Do executive directors believe that this work is “easy” and anyone can do the job (just as anyone can volunteer), or does the organization’s leadership see the position as one that requires special training and expertise worthy of professional status within the organization? Do volunteers actually pose liability and confidentiality risks, or are these just smokescreens for other issues?

To look more deeply into these issues, the Volunteer Impact Fund project brought together a group of leaders in the field to try to figure out what executive directors really think about community engagement.1 A purposeful sample of more than 35 executive directors of nonprofits participated in three focus groups held in Austin, Texas, and Denver, Colorado. Invitees were selected using the criterion of ignorance about the participants’ perceptions about volunteers. In other words, if no one could readily identify what the executive director (ED) thought about volunteer engagement, they were added to the invitation list, and if someone knew that the ED was a “champion” of volunteer engagement, they were excluded from the sample. Each focus group session was recorded, and the discussions were transcribed.

Not only was turnout for these focus groups high, the rich discussion yielded considerable insight into the executive mindset about volunteer engagement. Wide ranging comments covered all aspects of the volunteerism “waterfront,” so to speak, from the problematic . . .

“We do more work for volunteers than they do work for us.”

“You tend to focus on what can go wrong.”

“It’s almost easier to not have volunteer-client contact.”

to the more generous . . .

“We get a lot of people who want to volunteer . . . . It’s folly for us not to find a way to engage those people, because it generates ill will if we can’t utilize that energy.”

“Today, our goals have to do with social capital building in the communities we serve . . . . Our thoughts about volunteer programs . . . have to change.”

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to basic management considerations . . .

“Each volunteer has an agenda, and we need to match that with our programs and mission.”

“I can see that even though I was hesitant to hire a volunteer manager, 20 hours isn’t enough . . . . I’m starting to see how this fits with branding and development—how it all goes together.”

In analyzing the data from the focus groups, we found that the same five myths kept coming up:

• Volunteers are free.

• You can’t “invest” in voluntary efforts.

• Volunteers want only what you want.

• Meeting volunteers halfway is a recipe for trouble.

• “Volunteer work” is best defined as that which staff wants no part of.

Our findings also helped us to hear more clearly the concerns of executive leadership about volunteer engagement, and find some clear ways to respond to the problems they encounter on the topic. In examining these myths and some of their root causes, we hope to provide a few guidelines to assist the leader of volunteers in targeting and addressing internal resistance to volunteerism.

Debunking the Myths

If you work to involve volunteers, you will undoubtedly run into many of the same attitudes again and again, and perhaps you’ve even felt these things yourself. Certainly, the myths that bubbled up in our focus groups aren’t exclusive to executive directors. As you read the following section, I encourage you to first ask whether each assertion is familiar to you, and to explore the evidence that is used to reach the assertion. Then I invite you to consider the research findings and other materials that I present. There’s ample information that these “truths” really aren’t self-evident, but rather are easy responses to complex issues worthy of thoughtful analysis. How would letting go of them serve you, your organization,

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and the community interested in working with you to achieve important outcomes?

Are Volunteers Worth It?

• Myth 1: Volunteers are free.

• Myth 2: You can’t invest in volunteers.

These myths, which are actually deeply intertwined, speak to perceptions of the “value” of volunteer engagement.

The language and vocabulary associated with volunteers may be responsible, at least in part, for some of these assumptions. The term volunteer generally connotes free choice, socially beneficial behavior, and the absence of market-rate financial compensation. In a society in which people are frequently judged by their salaries and their financial success, a service rendered at no charge is often construed as unskilled, menial, amateur, lacking in value, operating within the purview of thoughtless do-gooder-ism, or, in a sexist light, as “women’s work.” As Susan Ellis points out in Chapter 2 of this book: “Men have always volunteered; they just call themselves coaches, trustees, and firemen!”

Because volunteers are so often regarded as “free,” the notion that they might require an investment seems paradoxical. As one executive director noted in our focus group, “Volunteering sounds like it’s free and not worth anything,” thus, “. . . it’s tough to convince the board to use money for volunteers.” Although it is true that volunteers operate without receiving market-value compensation for the work performed, serious organizational initiatives—of any type—require a strategic vision and an outlay of time, attention, and infrastructure.

Hagar and Brudney found just this in an analysis of 3,000 charities in 2004.2

Based on extensive telephone interviews, the authors concluded that “organiza- tions that invest in volunteer management capacity are likely to attain high net benefits.” According to the study, key elements of an investment in volunteer management capacity would be having a volunteer coordinator, having “regular supervision and communication” with volunteers, buying “liability coverage or insurance protection” for volunteers, tracking hours, and having written policies and job descriptions for volunteers, among other things.

Hagar and Brudney expand their definition of investment to include volun- teers themselves. This might mean, for example, giving them more responsibility for a greater array of tasks. As the authors found, “Investment in volunteers leads

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to higher net benefits, which in turn leads charities to make an even greater investment in their volunteers.” Surprisingly, although this finding was true for nonprofits of all sizes, smaller organizations had slightly greater benefits when they invested in volunteering.

So, how, then, does one tackle the argument that it might be cheating to invest in volunteer, aka “free” labor? This is clearly tied into the complex issue that every service organization wrestles with—how to translate intangible services into tangible, quantifiable outcomes. What, for example, are the metrics that demonstrate the value of counseling services? How does a crowded hospital justify the costs associated with play space for children in an acute-care facility? How does an organization build the case for a marketing campaign or spend money on advertising? How does one argue the “value” of granting a final wish for a dying child or define the worth of the consistent support provided by a big brother or big sister? In the context of volunteer engagement, what is the value of a volunteer’s service and how is this value identified, defined, and enumerated?

The answer, in part, is to acknowledge that most products require an under- lying process in order to achieve a desired end goal. Yes, steel, plastic, nuts and bolts, wires, and computer systems go into the manufacturing of a car but so does human labor, and human labor is as vital an element of the nonprofit equation as it is in the for-profit sector. Moving closer to home, a great many nonprofits, and the foundations that fund them, require logic models, the linear planning tool that traces an organization’s theory of change. Resources, or inputs, are part of the equation leading to outputs and outcomes. When included as a tangible input in the organization’s logic model, the outcome of the community’s effort can be more readily measured and quantified.

Just as solar panels capture the power of the sun’s rays, we need systems that capture the power of the “free” labor of volunteers. We need to debunk the myth that volunteers are simply the result of the spontaneous combustion of “helping energy” and recognize that complex human issues require complex systems to address them. We need to focus the energy of those who want to make a difference, we need to prepare them for service, we need to account for their effort just as we account for the efforts of every other input, and we need to measure the return on that investment. It is a team sport, and we need staff, experienced volunteers, and board members who move our organizations to their finish lines. We invest in and measure what we care about, and we care about what we invest in and measure. (For more on this topic, see Chapter 20, “Measuring the Volunteer Program.”)

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What Do Volunteers Want?

• Myth 3: Volunteers want only what you want.

• Myth 4: Meeting volunteers halfway is a recipe for trouble.

In contrast to nearly every other relationship in the nonprofit sector, volunteers are often viewed as a homogenous group whose needs and motivations for volunteering are seen either as directly aligned with the organization’s needs, or otherwise unimportant and distracting. Furthermore, if volunteers are seen as actually needing anything, they are considered a nuisance. As one focus group participant noted: “Doing things to support volunteers . . . is that truly necessary? Do I have to do appreciation lunches? We want volunteers who are focused on the [client] and bringing them joy at no cost.” Another executive director took this concern a step further: “Volunteers are the biggest area that I struggle with in my job. They are time consuming. They contribute to mission drift.”

Yes, the mission of a nonprofit organization, whether a charity or a public sector agency, is paramount. In practice, however, the needs and motivations of some stakeholders are deemed more important than others. Effective nonprofit relationships are characterized in win-win terms; foundations are selected based on sympathy with certain causes, grants are written to cultivate a positive response, and board members are solicited with an eye toward time, talent, and treasure. When our expectations are not met in these relationships, we don’t dismiss the entire category of stakeholder as deficient. Rather, we work to analyze the problem and fix it.

In fact, effective exchange relationships are built on devotion to the mission, shared understanding, clarity of expectations, appropriate boundaries, and mutual respect. Nowhere is it stated that every applicant for a job must be hired, nor is it necessary to engage every volunteer that walks through your door. Carefully crafted job descriptions underpin both salaried and nonsalaried posi- tions. What needs to be done and by when? What attitude and demeanor fit most appropriately within this workplace? Is training a pre-requisite for this position, or is training provided on the job? Do we need lots of people for a short time (distributing water at a marathon fundraiser), or are we seeking a person with specific skills (a bilingual translator)? The type of work, its nature, and duration all become factors in the development of the relationship as well as the latitude the manager affords the applicant, whether salaried or not. There is no “one size- fits-all” solution.

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Yes, volunteers do “want something,” but generally it’s consistent with the needs and desires of the organization. Volunteers want to know their time is being well used. They want to know they can make a real difference. They may also want job experience or a new connection to the community. They may want to hone a new skill or make a donation.

To ascertain these needs and desires, the skills associated with effective human resources management apply. Targeted recruitment narrows the field; interviews illuminate motivation and temperament; and applications and back- ground checks ascertain skill levels and hidden issues. These processes also provide the opportunity to set expectations and select the person who is most appropriate and exclude those who aren’t.

Staff must also be prepared to work with volunteers to assure a win-win relationship. For example, staff members who have themselves volunteered somewhere are more likely to identify with the needs of the volunteer and design appropriate opportunities. Putting volunteer engagement into someone’s job description further reduces resistance. Rewarding staff for creative teamwork with volunteers adds incentives, giving this part of the position credibility and excitement.

To bring the point home, it’s helpful to think about when the “issue of volunteers” pops up within the organizational lifecycle. A developmental sketch of the history of most nonprofits finds a group of committed individuals gathered around a kitchen table sharing their dreams, concerns, and aspirations. These people—yesterday’s organizational founders, today’s social innovators—channel their energy and ideas to promote a shared common interest. Seldom are these early innovators salaried.

In other words, they came together as volunteers. Along the way, a board is formed, articles of incorporation filed, IRS designation sought, bylaws created, and funds solicited. As the history of the group evolves, these early volunteers seek funds to further their objectives and hire staff to hopefully reach new levels of success.

Generally, it is only after an organization is reasonably well established that a different and distinctly separate notion of volunteer emerges. Usually this is when an organization revisits its goals and realizes that its needs exceed its resources. Maybe volunteers can help! Of course, by this point in the evolution of the organization, barriers to engagement have already sprung up and the kind of robust volunteer energy, which helped launch the organization, is now consid- ered extraneous and viewed as distracting the group from reaching its carefully

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constructed goals. Or, as one of our focus group participants observed, now the organization “works on making sure that volunteers are giving what the organization needs, not just doing what they want to do.” Maybe there would be fewer nonprofits if only we could keep engaging the energy and enthusiasm of those who want to make a difference in new and creative ways?

What Do Volunteers Do?

• Myth 5: “Volunteer work” is best described as work that staff want no part of.

“Should we save our volunteers for envelope stuffing and hire someone to work the front desk? Would this drive away our volunteers?”

Volunteer engagement, like any other critical aspect of organizational life, requires forethought and alignment with the group’s mission, vision, and goals. The question is not “What can volunteers do?” but, rather, “What work needs to be done to achieve organizational success?”.

There are no tasks that a volunteer with the requisite training and credentials can’t do. Medical and dental clinics can be staffed by pro bono clinicians; attorneys and CPAs often donate their services; executives write business plans for startups without charging for it; speakers and trainers offer workshops to enhance skills; firefighters and first responders serve many of the nation’s communities without compensation; cooks deliver gourmet meals; and U.S. postage special-issue stamps are selected by citizen advisory committees.

To not harness the skills and abilities of the community leaves a valuable asset on the cutting room table. Expanding your vision, it turns out, expands opportunities. Or, as one executive director in the study noted, “I wish I had known more about the literal ‘dollar value added’ . . . . I finally got that it impacts your bottom line and that having a healthy [volunteer] program benefits the organization.”

Developing a vision for volunteers and broader community engagement begins with an open mind. To automatically assume that volunteers are somehow different from the rest of us is a myopic view of the potential of community engagement. When we add words like pro bono, trustee, intern, student, corporate group, and friend to the litany of words that describe our volunteers, this opens us up for skilled service opportunities, short-term as well as long-term experiences, and space for the generalist who wants to be associated with your cause.

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Expanding our engagement circle also brings new life to the process. Most assuredly, the staff upon whom these plans rest need to be a part of the process, as do representatives of the community, clients, and other stakeholders whose outreach helps us harvest the necessary resources. Likewise, it is important to take stock of where you are with engagement efforts. Frequently, organizations have networks that may be invisible or underutilized. You may have friends who are waiting for the chance to be a part of your mission-critical work.

If you are new to the world of volunteerism and community engagement, think about employing pilot programs that allow some of these ideas to be tested and refined. Ask volunteers to help you try out ideas and establish guidelines before large problems emerge. Explore what other organizations are doing. Sometimes, the best ideas come from organizations unlike yours; at other times, you may want to benchmark your success based on the work of leaders in your organizational domain. And, finally, determine ways to measure success. How will you know if your efforts are a success? What baseline data should you collect? Are there new measures to establish, and if so, what

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