Hi Krishna everyone welcome to volunteer management best practices part two. So in uh part one we pretty extensively covered the planning stage uh for engaging volunteers uh and we set aside how important is to look at why you're going to have volunteers in your organization. uh what the scope is for engaging those volunteers.
Uh establishing an ethos within your organization of un of understanding the the importance of volunteers. Uh and then assigning a specific person the designated role of volunteer manager or coordinator. Uh then we looked at uh creating policies and procedures uh so that you know how you're going to interact and work with your volunteers.
Then we started to recruit. So now we've gotten to the recruit stage and continuing on around the uh volunteer management cycle. Uh we're going to cover induction.
We're going to cover agreements. We're going to look at training support and supervision reviewing how the how the volunteer is doing. uh dealing with the issues that may come up and then giving some nice recognition and appreciation to to the uh to the volunteers.
So moving around the volunteer management cycle. So let's look at induction. So what does it mean to induction?
Anyone who works in our uh in our temples or organization, you know, really they should have an induction. We need to take some time out to to give them a bit of background. uh introduce them to the team, give them a little tour, an overview of the role, a breakdown of specific tasks, supervision they're going to get, uh overview of how they fit into the organization, um activities which they're going to be involved in, completion of specific documents that we may need to have on file for them, and clarity that they're on a trial period.
And what does that mean, trial period? Uh, basically it means everyone that comes in should be on a trial period. Why?
Because we don't know if they're going to fit the role. They don't know if they're going to fit the role. Hopefully, we've matched the the skill sets to the role and we have someone supervising them.
So, everything should work, but the best uh bestlaid plans of mice and men means that it's it might not always work out. So there should be a trial period and it should be clear that in that trial period you know if things aren't working out then we try to find another post or position for these persons. So like that there should always be a trial period.
Um and also we should have a volunteer agreement. Um and what this is going to do it's going to clarify the commitment in writing. Uh it also recognizes the importance of their contribution.
we're willing to enter into an agreement and then it can be referred to later as needed. They may say you agreed to do X Y and Zed and you didn't or we may say look this is the agreement that we had. So volunteer agreement.
Next volunteer training. Now this is a real investment in the potential of human resource. the more that we're able to give training just like right now you're taking your valuable time and energy to go through a process of training really hope some of this you're feeling is useful to you um and that would be the point the more that we can invest our time and energy and the mode of goodness to training persons the more that they can come up and thrive the nature of the soul is an underayobia and that means that we're pleasure seeking and we find a lot of pleasure and growth so when we feel like we're learning we're growing we're experiencing something new, we're able to contribute.
So like that, the more that we can train, we can help our volunteers to come up in their in their service. Then after the training, once they get stuck into their role, uh regardless of the words that you know you choose to describe, there needs to be support and supervision. Uh and this is an important uh uh aspect as we mentioned earlier.
there should be the volunteer manager and there should also be a department head if it's if it's not the same person. So both of those persons need to look after them, make sure that they're doing okay, uh supervise them and support them, encourage them. It's not that we just call someone in and we say go over there and wash the pots, then we leave them there for 2 or 3 hours.
Uh nobody to talk to and nothing to do. They and expect them to come week after week after week. And we have to ask them how are you doing?
How are you finding it? Is there anything you're finding awkward? Is there any way that you feel that you can add to the service or any any points that you saw that need to be improved?
Something we could do to make it better. So this is, you know, supervision and support. You have to encourage.
Okay, we understand you're having a difficult time. Uh is there anything we can do to support you or assist you? This is very important.
People have to feel nourished. They have to feel appreciated. And this is this is uh this depicts and the core mentalities that we have about volunteers.
Um sometimes we hear uh volunteers say it or we hear persons who or maybe let's say staff or regulars at the temple who say, "Oh, well, they're just they're only volunteers. " And that's that's kind of a bit of a wrong mentality. Only volunteers.
So um it's it's up to us to make sure that this this wording and and wrong mentality is weeded out of the institution. Another one that may often be used in in our temples and and centers is that um we use volunteers. Yes, we use volunteers for doing this.
We use volunteers for doing that. We use them. We use them.
We use them. But we don't we're not meant to use people. We're meant to engage people.
That's our that's our process to engage people in devotional service. And that's what we're doing. We're engaging these volunteers in devotional service.
And we ourselves may be volunteers and we don't want to feel used. Exactly. So there are other other words we can say we're involving, we need, we rely on, we delegate to, we count on, we allow, we ask, we assign, but not that we use.
Hope that makes some sense. and then review. So you've given uh a clear uh induction, there's been an agreement which is set out um everything uh that you expect from them and that they can expect from us.
Uh there there are procedures and policies in place. Uh there's been supervision and support throughout. You've got your volunteer manager and it is their service to meet with the person, the volunteer, the devotey after some time just to have a little sit down.
Not that we wait until there's a problem, but you schedule after at least after the trial period, if not halfway through the trial period, something that should be decided, and this could be part of your policies and procedure statements, but you sit down and you go through a review. How's everything working? Things working out for you?
How you finding it? Are you enlivened? Are you inspired?
Are you enthusiastic to continue? Anything that we can do? Um, and if we have any feedback for them, then that's the time that you give it.
And you might need to save up until then. Not that every day you're going, you can do this, you know, but you have a review to make sure that everything is clearly communicated. Dealing with problems.
Now, this is a difficult one and it's a it's a big issue and we've got quite a number of slides here because as we know uh dealing with persons means issues. It means there's going to be problems that come up. So, there are different ways to deal with and it's always a hard thing to deal with.
It's the hardest part of volunteer management um dealing with difficulties that arise between people. So um we need to deal with these problems as soon as possible uh to avoid things escalating. So there there are certain levels here.
There's not so serious complaints or procedures and we've given a list of like little niggly things that are um how to deal with them like people being late, not attending, constant questioner, uh unofficial spokesperson, appearance, personal hygiene, personality clashes, things like that. So, uh and then there's some possible responses that you can you can have a look at. Uh then there's serious complaints and there has to be a procedure and policies in place.
Uh many of these will probably be uh dictated to by by employment law. Um but either way there should be a clear policy and if someone if a serious complaint it it usually it's one that requires a volunteer being suspended or being asked to leave immediately. So that means it's going to have to be pretty serious.
Uh let's hope we don't get many of those. U we try to avoid those kind of situations. Longtime volunteers and this is one that comes up, believe it or not, that you have someone who's been volunteering for a long, long time.
And you know, people say, "Oh, this person's been around forever. How can we say anything to them? How can we do anything?
" But there has to be a way of of interacting and dealing with these persons. Albeit, it has to be gentle. It has to be vishnava.
has to be done in the proper manner but still there has to be an effective way of addressing or dealing with if there is an issue. Now a lot of times issues can be weeded out and avoided completely if we act in accordance with the mode of goodness and we plan properly and then we institute policies and procedures. We review people, we support them and we supervise them nicely.
We give reviews and and and things like that. And most of the time these problems can be avoided. So anyway, another list here of how you can uh deal with some problems.
U meet with the volunteer as soon as it's obvious that there's the problem isn't just going away. Consider other roles for them. Uh have an make an agreement and then have a review period.
Now the most fundamental and important part of engaging volunteers is that we have to recognize their contribution. There has to be a mood of appreciation, an attitude of gratitude. Um we have to be grateful and we have to show that we're grateful.
There's a saying I heard once that if you're not grateful then you're a grateful. So we have to be grateful to these persons and that doesn't mean just keeping an inside thinking I'm very grateful but it means we actually have to show our gratitude. So in London um and uh in throughout the UK I know in different places and probably across the world I'm not familiar with everywhere but at least one thing that we try to do every year is to have a volunteers thank you dinner.
So even if we don't do something every week or every month, but at least once a year, we g we invite and gather all the volunteers together, we we try to we try to cook the the feast for them without using any of them to cook the feast. We get them a thank you gift. Um we try to do it in a nice place.
We have a nice program, lots of good kan. We make sure everyone gets to be in the cure time because a lot of time your volunteers they're giving up their time while the program's going on. They're the ones who are working and slaving away behind the scenes while the while the festivities are happening and they don't get to take part.
So we have to remember these things and we have to really express our our gratitude and appreciation. So in closing, uh the information in this in this uh presentation is really it's just a summary. Um it's we could go into much more depth, but we're we're just trying to give some food for thought and trying to uh assist you in understanding how important this area of volunteer management is and also give you a few ideas of what you can do to try to make it more in the mode of goodness and prevent uh difficulties and stressful things coming and to maximize uh the involvement of your community and your your uh the possibility of having volunteers who are inspired and enlivened and enthusiastic to help uh in the mission of Sri Chaitananya Maha Pu and Iskan and Shula Praad's movement to really do some wonderful things for the for the preaching.
Okay, thank you very much. Hari Krishna.
