Joni Reed

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!