When Feedback Doesn’t Happen — Seeing Volunteer Management from the Other Side
One of the most frequent coaching requests from nonprofit leaders is some version of the same question: How do I
Strengthening Volunteer Accountability Starts with the Right Tools
Accountability is one of the most talked-about—and most misunderstood—aspects of volunteer engagement. Many organizations associate accountability only with problems: missed
Sustaining the Spark: Preventing Volunteer Burnout
While recruitment remains the top concern among volunteer engagement professionals and nonprofit leaders, it’s only one piece of the puzzle. Research—and plain experience—show
Empowering Volunteers to Rebuild – a Case Study in Pro Bono
Case Study: Empowering Volunteers to Rebuild the Bayou When Hurricane Ida struck Louisiana in 2021, the devastation to communities in
Blog: Video Blog – Join the Conversation!
What a priceless opportunity it was to sit down in person with Dana Cory Litwin, CVA at the Points of
Blog: The A B Cs from Conference Season
The weather is warmer, colleagues are signing off earlier on Fridays, and my airline mileage is accumulating quickly. What does
Blog: Value of Volunteer Involvement… The good, the bad, and the “time” to move on
We are updating this post from last year to reflect the recently released value of volunteer time the past year.
Blog: Developing a Volunteer Engagement Guide for Staff: Getting Beyond the Policy Handbook
Whether or not an organization has a dedicated volunteer engagement manager on staff, engaging and supporting volunteers is never the
Blog: Clearing Away Barriers to Volunteer Engagement
If you asked the volunteers at your organization, "What is the one thing you would change if you could change
Blog: Job Analysis Survey: Share Your Voice
Are you a leader of volunteers within the first five years of your role? Then please share your voice!The Council
Blog: Building the Case to Fund Volunteer Engagement
Today, I heard from a past client excitedly telling me that a donor is interested in supporting the organization in
Blog: Add Your Voice for Better Data
Once again, you have an opportunity to share your voice in the annual Volunteer Management Progress Report. The 10th annual
Blog: Adapt and Overcome
In honor of Veterans Day, we are reposting an e-newsletter we shared in fall 2020 highlighting the flexibility and adaptiveness
Blog: Investing in Volunteer Engagement Pays Off! New stories to tell.
Over and over again, we have a front row seat in seeing research-based benefits of engaging volunteers really do play
Blog: Let’s Do This! Advocate for the Profession
Despite all the valuable work that those who lead volunteer engagement do for organizations and the community, the role is
Blog: Walking the Tightrope of Volunteer Screening – Part II
Leading volunteers can often feel like walking a tightrope as we balance many seemingly conflicting things: For example, needing to
Blog: Walking the Tightrope of Screening Volunteers – Part I
As professionals and leaders of volunteers we must balance many seemingly conflicting things: for example, honoring processes vs. honoring people;
Blog: Value of Volunteer Involvement… The good, the bad, and the “time” to move on
This week, the much anticipated annual announcement of the updated Value of Volunteer Time was announced by Independent Sector and, drumroll please...
Blog: Recognition and the Power of Connecting
Earlier this month, I left the office to attend an in-person “Network and Share” event hosted by DOVIA Colorado. The
Blog: Enhance Community Impact: Free Playbooks for City Engagement
Across the nation, city leaders strive to build resilient cities, serve their residents, and strengthen their communities economically, socially,
Blog: Chart the Future of Volunteer Management
Attention all leaders of volunteers: We are pleased to help promote the annual 2024 Volunteer Management Progress Report, VolunteerPro's ninth
Blog: Revealing Volunteer Impact In Your City: New Playbook
Making a difference matters to volunteers. Research shows that volunteers today are more motivated by the chance to do
Blog: Mythbusting 101: Day 5
Every day, volunteers help organizations achieve their mission – delivering meals, entering data, providing pro bono consulting, mentoring youth –
Blog: Mythbusting 101: Day 4
Every day, volunteers help organizations achieve their mission – delivering meals, entering data, providing pro bono consulting, mentoring youth –
Blog: Mythbusting 101: Day 3
Every day, volunteers help organizations achieve their mission – delivering meals, entering data, providing pro bono consulting, mentoring youth –
Blog: Mythbusting 101: Day 2
Every day, volunteers help organizations achieve their mission – delivering meals, entering data, providing pro bono consulting, mentoring youth –
Blog: Mythbusting 101: Day 1
Every day, volunteers help organizations achieve their mission – delivering meals, entering data, providing pro bono consulting, mentoring youth –
Blog: Memorable Moments: Points of Light 2023
Engagement professionals invest a lot of time and resources in training volunteers, developing volunteer leaders, and coaching colleagues in how
Blog: What is Strategic Volunteer Engagement?
What is strategic volunteer engagement - and why does it matter? Driven by the power of volunteer energy and grounded
Blog: Dear VQ… How can I inspire our team to plan for volunteers?
This morning, an email arrived from a volunteer manager I've known for many years, and she shared this request: I'm
Blog: Drumroll, please! Landmark Research on Volunteer Engagement & Funding
Today was a longtime coming. After years of meetings, dialogue, presentations, advocacy, (and yes, maybe even some proverbial hair-pulling in
Blog: Introducing our Book Group Facilitation Guide!
When we first conceived of the book, Transforming Disruption to Impact, our goal was to spark conversation about the innovations
Blog: Rethinking Service Days – Join our Conversation
MLK Jr. Day of Service 2023 is right around the corner, with all its potential and promise. Yet, are you
Blog: Mattering: The Growing Volunteer Motivator
The sticky note on the side of my desk reads, "Making a difference is a way to know you
Blog: Reduce the Recruitment Challenge: Feedback Key to Gen Z Engagement
As workplaces struggle to hire and retain employees, nonprofits and other mission-driven organizations have parallel concerns regarding recruiting and retaining
Blog: 4 Reasons to Embrace Gen-Mix Volunteerism
From lockdowns to mask-wearing to vaccination, COVID-19 has been one of the most polarizing issues of our time. Among these
Blog: New Book Convenes Voices Across Sector
Imagine you had the ability to invite the leading thinkers in volunteer engagement, corporate engagement, philanthropy, nonprofit leadership - along
Blog: Strengthening Your “Internal Partner” Muscles
Whether delivering services, providing pro bono support, governing as a board member, or sending advocacy emails, volunteers play vital roles
Blog: Navigating the Conundrum of Auxiliaries
They go by many different names – volunteer councils, auxiliaries, “friends” groups, and more – but regardless of their varied
Blog: Rethinking Recruitment and Retention Goals
For decades, volunteer engagement was summed up in 3 Rs: “Recruitment, Retention, and Recognition.” As the field of volunteer engagement
Blog: Performance Improvement Plans: When, Why, How
As we were reviewing the agenda for a scheduled coaching call last week, a client shared a recent event in
Blog: New eToolkit: Engaging Virtual Volunteers
Volunteers have served virtually for decades, but now, the need for engaging volunteers to serve remotely is greater than ever,
Blog: When is the 3 o’clock Parade?
With the 2022 Points of Light Conference on Volunteering and Service confirmed as a hybrid event -- with the
Blog: Building on Skills-Based Success
Like many nonprofit supporting organizations, the NH Center for Nonprofits organizes the state’s nonprofit “Gives” day, helping to raise and
Blog: Open vs. Welcoming Volunteer Engagement
Nice leaders water down direct and constructive feedback wanting to be nice and to be liked…. Kind leaders deliver difficult
Blog: Loss and Grief in Volunteer Engagement
In the last two weeks alone, six different people said to me, “I am still grieving,” “I am mourning,” or “I am still dealing with feelings of loss.” Nearly all these comments were made in different conversations. It was notable after the second occurrence, but by the sixth, it was un-ignorable.
Blog: Family Volunteering – All Together Now!
November 20, 2021 is Family Volunteer Day – a global day of service that celebrates the power of families who
Blog: The Power of Pretzels
Sometime after two hours on the tarmac last Saturday, the flight attendants kindly walked up and down the aisle offering
Blog: Avoiding Conflict: It’s All about Expectations
As I prepare to deliver a training today on navigating sticky situations with volunteers for a statewide network of food
Blog: Another New eToolkit: Engaging Volunteer Leaders
Volunteer leaders can build the capacity of staff throughout an organization, yet many professionals are reluctant to empower
Blog: Training Tips, Tactics, and Tools: Building a Comprehensive Training Plan
While the COVID-19 pandemic has greatly accelerated the adoption of virtual training, online training is not the
Blog: Building Leadership Support through Good Goals and Meaningful Metrics
The COVID-19 pandemic has forced many organizations to rethink how they do business, including how volunteers serve.
Blog: Planning for the New 3 Rs of Engagement: COVID-19 Recovery, Reopening, and Return
As organizations begin to recover, reopen, and return to more normalized operations after the pandemic, developing a plan
Blog: Finding the Right Volunteer Opportunity
Have you seen the latest issue of Civic Life Today magazine? April's issue focuses on -- you guessed it --
Blog: New eToolkit on Recruiting and Retaining Volunteers Amid Uncertainty
Volunteer engagement has been evolving for years, but due to the COVID-19 pandemic, organizations were forced to accelerate change at
Blog: Navigating the Murky Waters of Delegation
In the last week, I’ve interviewed three different volunteer engagement professionals about volunteer retention as their organizations are in various stages of reopening and recovery from the pandemic-related restrictions on volunteer engagement. Interestingly, they all shared one strategy: All are engaging volunteers as leaders in new ways.
Blog: Days of Service – Let’s Evolve the Vision
In anticipation of today, the 2021 Martin Luther King Jr. Day, designated as a National Day of Service, I was
Blog: A Grateful Note to End 2020
The end of the calendar year is traditionally a time of reflection – looking back on the year’s achievements, challenges,
Blog: The Power of Plans, Peers, and Pivots
At the start of 2020, we at VQ Volunteer Strategies were training and coaching four different cohorts of organizations. While
Blog: Redefining Leadership: Finding Balance in Recovery and Renewal
In our recent blog, we explored the importance of making the case for volunteer engagement as a strategy to sustain
Blog: Leveraging Engagement to Sustain Our Organizations
The most common topic of discussion in meetings lately and the theme of many sessions during this unusual fall conference
Blog: A 2020 Time Machine
2020 hasn’t turned out as any of us expected. Just for a moment, imagine what you would say if you could magically travel back and provide some advice or pose questions to your January self… What would you ask? What advice might you give?
Blog: Do you Have a Seat at the Leadership Table?
Now, more than ever, volunteer engagement professionals need a seat the leadership table to help organizations leverage this vast resource
Blog: Zoom Fatigue, Volunteers, and Some Aha! Moments
Over the last few days, a common theme emerged from several seemingly disparate conversations. A virtual coffee with a colleague this morning. Listening to a book on leadership while I was walking outdoors yesterday. And, yes, even a call with my mother a few days ago. What was the theme? Fatigue.
Blog: Engagement as a Path to Inclusion and Justice
Just as organizations began to explore reopening models after months of pandemic-induced closures or adaptations to services, millions of people
Blog: Top Three Tips for Selecting Volunteer Management Software
We were recently asked to share our top three tips for selecting volunteer management software to provide some context for
Blog: What To Say, What To Send… Part 2
Last month, I wrote about proactive communications with volunteers during the pandemic and the importance of emphasizing transparency, versatility, humanity,
Blog: COVID-19 Statement by the National Alliance for Volunteer Engagement
The National Alliance for Volunteer Engagement, along with VQ Volunteer Strategies and other leading organizations in the field, has released
Blog: What to Say, What to Send: Strategic Communications to Volunteers Amid the Pandemic
One of the most common topics of conversation these days with clients, colleagues, and the nonprofit community-at-large revolves around how
Blog: Stories from the Field: How Your Peers are Adapting Engagement Strategies
Nearly every day since the coronavirus outbreak, I have had the privilege of participating in calls with organizational leaders and
Blog: Volunteer Engagement Plan for COVID-19 Response
In recent weeks, we have come face to face with unprecedented challenges as the world is now in full response
Blog: Volunteer Engagement Amid a Pandemic
Note from VQ Volunteer Strategies: For four days straight, I have drafted this blog – yet, with each day’s news,
Blog: Is There a Secret Shopper in your Midst?
We had such good feedback on this post when it was originally published in 2011 that we wanted to pull
Blog: Meaningful Meetings
January isn’t even over, and already I have spent five full days and one half-day in meetings with staff and
Blog: Transforming Holiday One-Timers into Ongoing Volunteers
‘Tis the season. Not just for celebration… but for people to show up in droves to volunteer over the holidays.
Blog: When Counting Hours Really Counts!
Anyone who has heard us at VQ Volunteer Strategies talk about the importance of measuring volunteer impact has undoubtedly heard
Blog: From Workshop to Workin’ It: One Colleague’s Strategic Planning Journey
There is nothing more inspiring and energizing than hearing firsthand how a workshop or tool or webinar equipped someone in
Blog: The Power of Citywide Engagement – Learning Opportunities
Six years ago this month, I was awakened in the middle of a rainy night by my husband’s phone exploding
Blog: Beyond Retention: How to get better data to inform your volunteer engagement strategy
“How do I know if my volunteer engagement strategies are working? I keep looking at our retention numbers and I don’t understand why some people stay with us and why some don’t.” This was my first conversation with Hannah, a volunteer program manager at a local nonprofit addressing food insecurity.
Blog: Lessons from the Road
Last month and for the third year in a row, I completed a series of 10 business trips in 10
Blog: Be Bold… Lessons for Volunteer Engagement Professionals
by Beth Steinhorn, President, VQ Volunteer Strategies This morning, after nine months of research, design, and preparation, I excitedly sat
Blog: Reinvent the Wheel or Develop Something New?
To Reinvent the Wheel – or to Develop Something Totally New? That is the question. These days, when someone asks
Blog: X, Y, and Introducing Generation Z!
Many different things can indicate “coming of age” … but when it comes to a generation as a whole, one
Blog: Dear VQ… I want to be an Executive Director
A few days ago, I received an intriguing message from a volunteer manager who had been in one of my
Blog: Power of the Personal Ask
One of the top challenges expressed by volunteer engagement professionals is recruitment – whether finding the right volunteers or inspiring
Blog: Scholarship Opportunity for Points of Light Conference 2019
Once again, we are excited to announce the return of the Jill Friedman Fixler Professional Development Scholarship for Points of
Blog: Showcase YOUR Impact at Points of Light 2019
Colleagues, there's still time to showcase YOUR impact! YOU are invited to contribute to the Volunteer Engagement Plenary, “Embracing Your
Blog: Planning: Your Path to Leading the Way
Boulder, Colorado is nestled in the foothills of the Rocky Mountains. Like many cities, Boulder had volunteer programs in many of the city agencies – from libraries to parks & recreation. That worked well for the city, or so they thought, until everything changed over the course of one week in September 2013, when Boulder experienced unprecedented rain. The resulting flooding was catastrophic, destroying 1500 homes, rendering roads impassable, and killing eight people. As the rains were still falling, Boulder residents stepped up to volunteer – as did thousands arriving from far off states. But the city was not ready to engage them. As a result, developing a city-wide engagement strategy became an integral part of the city's resiliency planning.
Blog: Reunion Day! A Time for Stories
Today was one of my favorite days: “Reunion Day!” I spent all day with the ten teams that participated in
Blog: Recognition vs. Acknowledgment
With fires blazing across the American West, hurricanes approaching our coastlines, and floods rising in the Midwest, I am grateful
Blog: Saying “No” When “No” is the Right Answer
Last week, I received this email from a volunteer coordinator whom we’ll call “Vickie the Volunteer Coordinator.” Hi Beth, I
Blog: Spin the Wheel of Value!
How do you talk about the value of volunteering? And, with whom do you discuss it? So many professionals strive
Blog: Peach of a Morning: Transforming Volunteers into Strategic Messengers
This post was originally published in August 2015... but I experienced it all once again this past Saturday when I
Blog: People, Participation, & Partnerships: Lessons from Service Unites
By Beth Steinhorn, President of VQ Volunteer Strategies, and Alison Doerfler, Senior Vice President of Capacity Building at Points of
Blog: Listen Up! Summer Listening List
Every summer, we post a list of “what we’re reading.” For the 2018 edition, stay tuned (as I do have
Blog: Sometimes Simplicity Rules!
This blog was originally posted in November 2015, but a client recently asked a question about how to match volunteers
Blog: Ask Questions Now… Save Time Later!
Interviewing volunteer candidates takes time... but that time is well spent. Investing time in interviewing candidates up front saves time
Blog: Demographic Trends Shaping America… and Service?
This afternoon, Pew Research Center released an article highlighting 7 demographic trends shaping the U.S. and the world in 2018
Blog: Why I Volunteer
This post is adapted and updated from a post originally shared on 3-24-2015 So much has been written and discussed
Blog: Scholarship Opportunity for Points of Light Conference!
Professional networking is just one of the many benefits of attending the Conference on Volunteering and Service hosted by Points
Blog: Building Strong Staff-Volunteer Teams: From the Conference Room to the Ski Slopes
This month, I am relishing those few weeks that come only once every few years: The Olympics. I love watching,
Blog: Volunteer Orientations: Is the Jury Still Out?
As I am being called back next week for my civic "volunteer" duty, I am reposting this from October 6,
Blog: Finding the Fit for Remote Volunteers — A Case Study
As part of our ongoing series of Case Studies, VQ Volunteer Strategies is sharing a story from WomenOnCall, a unique,
Blog: 5 Engagement Lessons from a Company Rebranding Process
If you are reading this blog, you likely already know that just a few weeks ago, JFFixler Group became VQ
Blog: VQ: Your Path to Smarter Impact
We believe every organization has one … and it has the potential to lead an organization to greater impact. What
Blog: It’s Budget Time… so we have FREE Resources to share!
Since money is on many people's minds as you plan for 2018, we decided to "celebrate" by sharing some new -- and classic -- resources that are available to you for free.
Blog: Summer Reading on Failure, Feedback, and Resilience
Rarely are we asked about how organizational leaders can create opportunities for volunteers to provide feedback to them, and it’s even rarer to be asked about the benefits of doing so.
Blog: The $10,000 Question
How can you best tap into that passion so that these individuals can be involved in ways that are truly helpful in addressing organizational needs?
Blog: Volunteer Performance Evaluations
Evaluating a volunteer's performance means that the organization's leadership recognizes and accepts that there are, in fact, standards and/or goals for volunteers' involvement!
Blog: Engaging and Empowering the 50+ Crowd in New York City
As part of our ongoing series of case studies of best practices in volunteer engagement, we met Rabbi Brian Fink, Director of Engage at the JCC Manhattan to learn more about the work of the Engage Jewish Service Corps.
Blog: Interviewing Volunteers
Interviewing volunteers - who knew it could be such a polarizing concept? Yet, I never know what response I will receive when I ask a group of nonprofit professionals about their volunteer interview process.
Blog: Data as a Doorway to Engagement
When I reviewed the draft application, I thought it was a minor oversight that the form asked for phone number but not email.
Blog: Finding the Right Volunteer Partner
So, you are seeking a volunteer to step up and take on a leadership role in your organization?