Volunteers - Recruit and RETAIN

As I have been thinking about volunteers I have come to the conclusion that whilst training is a moderately neutral element the real struggles come in the form of the high inertial load in getting people to volunteer and the working against those factors which would cause things to stop that we call retention.

One of the best ways to get volunteers is to get converts because as people come to faith it is relatively easy to harness that zeal and new found passion and make volunteering part of the discipleship package. The problems come when you try to get some of the church members who have been part of the congregation for some time to get themselves moving What one invariably finds is that they are stuck where they are or simply refuse to budge because "they've tried it before'. These people need a good push (a squib up the backside as my dear old Dad used to say).

The real issue therefore, especially if the 'done it all before' camp is to be believed, is that of retention. Keeping volunteers both doing and remaining when they stop doing (which I think is called 'being'. It's retention that I want to think about today:

The issues as I understand them are this:

1. The job gets boring - there needs to be some degree of challenge and development in the things we get volunteers to do,

2a. The organisation needs to be smooth (too many volunteers) - Many of those I meet who 'used to volunteer' ceased to do so because they turned up to find someone else doing the task they thought they were coming to do.

2b. The organisation needs to be smooth (too few volunteers) - Others who did volunteer find themselves 'attacked' because no one was on the rota and they get the flak for not having been present (when they weren't supposed too be!). Let volunteers experience stress and criticism too often and you'll lose them (and the people they fought with!).

3. Approbation - A bit of applause, recognitions, flowers, chocolates, a meal (or whatever) says that what the person does is valued (and so are they). Work without the volunteers receiving a bit of recognition and you'll be working without volunteers (just after the tough and unnoticed event they did)!

4. The 'lone volunteer' syndrome - Leave the job to one person and you can be sure that they will (usually) come to resent it and yet (often) will ensure that they maintain the status quo so that they are both Mary and Martha rolled into one! They make the job their won and ensure that it stays that way.

5. Progression - with some jobs what it is is what it is whilst others lead on to greater (perceived) things. The lack of progression, when it is expected, promised or has been the custom, leaves people feeling that they are not valued or up to the task. Either way, the potential for the volunteer ceasing is great - look at what the role is and where the last few people that were doing it have gone (and why they went too). The other side of this coin is the 'dead end' role. The singe task that leads nowhere and so results in someone being the magazine distributor for twenty years (I've met him) - a job they do with a deep lack of joy and eventual total disinterest.

Over the course of many years I have met volunteers who have served their body well and then folded because they didn't get (often promised) progression, recognition or support. Far too often they found themselves locked into mundane or boring roles and there was just no joy or fun in what they did. Worse still, most people let this continue because they didn't want to get lumbered with the job (and clergy are often very bad in this area).

So if you have volunteers you need to work to keep them. We might not have to do what they do but
we can still come alongside and say 'Thank You' and offer them some form of reward and recognition (and even think about helping the role change or them move to keep them fresh and enjoying it).

The workman is indeed worthy of something and if it's not money then it's respect, recognition and thanks!

HTH