Volunteer Management

Volunteer Management 101

This introductory session will take you through the volunteer cycle, including planning, recruitment, orientation, supervision, and recognition. You will learn how all of these stages interlink, and how they all contribute to excellent performance and volunteer retention.

Instructor: Kathy Magee
Cost: Members – $90.00, Non-Members – $145.00

Volunteer Program Restoration Project

This two-part workshop is great for an organization looking to revamping their volunteer program and get back into the swing of things after COVID-19. 

Instructor: Adam Janes
Cost: Members – $90.00, Non-Members – $145.00

Volunteer Recruitment

Volunteer attrition is a fact of life, and it is a trend which is increasing as more and more people find that they are only able to take on short-term commitments. This workshop will take you through the recruitment process, from developing good job descriptions, to identifying motivation, getting out your message, and the application process.

Instructor: Adam Janes
Cost: Members – $90.00, Non-Members – $145.00

Volunteer Supervision and Monitoring

A good supervisor creates a safe environment for volunteers to learn and develop, to grow with their role in knowledge, motivation, and autonomy. Effective supervision is a mix of supporting growth, providing appropriate praise, creating a culture of excellence and accountability, and reinforcing relationships with all team members.

Instructor: TBD
Cost: Members – $90.00, Non-Members – $145.00

Creating a Volunteer Handbook

A great volunteer handbook is a key foundation in setting up volunteers for success. By clearly outlining policies, procedures, and guidelines for acceptable conduct in a clear way that is engaging to read, you can ensure that your volunteers are able to achieve true excellence. This workshop will teach you how to determine what information you need to include in your organization’s handbook and how to clearly outline the roles and responsibilities of staff and volunteers. Bring your handbook-in-progress, along with your laptop, to spend the morning putting together your best handbook yet.

Instructor: Lola Dubé-Quibell 
Cost: Members – $90.00, Non-Members – $145.00

Discipline and Dismissal

Discipline and dismissal, though among the most difficult parts of any manager’s job, are unavoidable. There are ways to do it respectfully, honouring a volunteer’s humanity while ensuring that essential organizational standards are met. This workshop will teach you models which can be used to help a volunteer take ownership of, and solve inappropriate behaviour problems, or facilitate the volunteer’s resignation if problem-solving is not possible.

Instructor: Kathy Magee
Cost: Members – $90.00, Non-Members – $145.00

Fostering Effective Staff-Volunteer Engagement

Volunteerism does not happen in a vacuum. Volunteer success depends on effort and commitment from everyone in an organization. Senior leadership need to endorse volunteerism as a key success factor; paid staff need to embrace the opportunity to collaborate with unpaid staff; volunteers need to feel excited by the chance to contribute to your organizational mission. Planning for effective staff engagement will set the foundation for success.

Instructor: Nikkie Snagg
Cost: Members – $90.00, Non-Members – $145.00

Orientation and Training

Volunteers who are well-trained and who understand the organizational context of their role will be more effective and will have more reason to continue volunteering. This workshop will explore orientation and training, and how each fits in with volunteer onboarding. You will come away with strategies to develop orientation and training practices at your organization which are based on current research in adult learning and best practices in the field of volunteer management.

Instructor: Cédric St-Amour
Cost: Members – $90.00, Non-Members – $145.00

Volunteer Screening

Screening practices begin when an organization creates a new position. It is an ongoing process used to select volunteers for specific roles, and it should continue as long as a volunteer is involved with the organization. The 10 Steps of Screening give clear guidelines for developing screening policies. These policies show an organization’s commitment to safe and meaningful volunteer engagement.

Instructor: Kathy Magee
Cost: Members – $90.00, Non-Members – $145.00