Here are 98 different ways to thank and support your volunteers.
- Create a climate in which
volunteers can feel motivated
- Say ‘thank you’ often, and mean it
- Match the volunteer’s desires with
the organization’s needs
- Send birthday cards. Send a card at
Christmas
- Provide a clear role description
for every volunteer
- Make sure new volunteers are
welcomed warmly
- Highlight the impact that the
volunteer contribution is having on the organization
- Show an interest in volunteers’
personal interests and their outside life
- Tell volunteers they have done a
good job
- Give volunteers a real voice within
the organization
- Set up a volunteer support group
- Provide meaningful and enjoyable
work.
- Always have work for your
volunteers to do and never waste their time
- Send ‘thank you’ notes and letters
when appropriate
- Smile when you see them!
- Say something positive about their
personal qualities
- Involve volunteers in
decision-making processes
- Give a certificate to commemorate
anniversaries of involvement
- Develop a volunteer policy
- Allow volunteers the opportunity to
debrief, especially if they work in stressful situations
- Let volunteers put their names to
something they have helped to produce or to make happen
- Differentiate clearly between the
roles of paid staff, trainees and volunteers
- Have a volunteer comments box and
consider any suggestions carefully
- Make sure the volunteer coordinator
is easily accessible and has an ‘open door’ policy
- Provide insurance cover
- Supervise volunteers’ work
- Have a vision for volunteer
involvement in your organization
- Do not impose new policies and
procedures without volunteers’ inputs
- Ask volunteers themselves how the
organization can show it cares
- Permit volunteers to attend
seminars, conferences and workshops from time to time
- Give volunteers a proper induction
- Celebrate the year’s work together
- Offer to write volunteers letters
of reference
- Accept that different volunteers
are able to offer different levels of involvement
- Accept that an individual
volunteer’s ability to commit may change over time
- Ask volunteers’ opinions when
developing new policies and strategies
- Make sure the director (especially
in large organizations) shows her/his personal appreciation of the volunteers’
work
- Pass on any positive comments about
volunteers from clients to the volunteers themselves
- Provide the opportunity for ‘leave
of absence’
- Add volunteers to memo and e-mail
distribution lists
- Set solid goals for volunteers and
keep communicating them
- Provide car or bike parking for
volunteers
- Give the volunteer a title which
reflects the work they do (not just ‘volunteer’)
- Consider providing, or paying for,
child care for volunteers who are parents
- Inform the local press about the
excellent work of your volunteers
- Undertake individual supervision
and support sessions
- Always be courteous
- Maintain regular contact with
volunteers, even if they work ‘off-site’ or at odd hours
- Allow volunteers to ‘get out’
without feeling guilty
- Keep volunteers informed of changes
in structure and personnel
- Provide adequate clothing and name
badges if appropriate
- Use quotes from volunteers in
leaflets and annual reports
- Devote resources (time and money)
to volunteer support
- Count up how many hours volunteers
contribute and publicise this
- Ensure all paid staff and trainees
know how to work effectively with volunteers
- Provide accredited training
- Hang a volunteer photo board in a
prominent position
- Give volunteers the opportunity to
evaluate their own performance and role
- Do not overwhelm volunteers
- Build volunteers’ self-esteem by
giving them a sense of ownership of their work
- Always be appreciative of
volunteers’ contributions
- Ensure volunteers have adequate
space and equipment to do their work
- Provide excellent training and
coaching
- Recognize that volunteers play a
unique role
- Have an annual volunteer award
ceremony
- Focus on the problem, if there is
one, not the personality of the volunteer
- Create two-way communication
processes
- Have occasional lunches, dinners,
barbecues, picnics, etc
- Create a volunteer notice board
- Set up a volunteers forum
- Allow volunteers to get involved in
solving problems
- Pay for an eye test if they sit in
front of a computer all day
- Review the progress of volunteers
on a regular basis
- Reimburse out-of-pocket expenses
- Conduct an exit interview when a
volunteer leaves
- Have a ‘volunteer voice’ section in
your newsletter
- Be honest at all times
- Provide constructive appraisal
- Make volunteers feel good about
themselves
- Don’t treat volunteers as ‘second
class citizens’
- Ensure confidentiality for your
volunteers
- Present an occasional inexpensive
gift
- Provide volunteers with a ‘rights
and responsibilities’ charter
- Don’t bully them into doing tasks
which they have made clear they don’t want to do
- Give free membership to your
organization
- Ensure you have adequate support
skills yourself
- Ask why volunteers are leaving or
have left
- Throw a volunteers party
- Use surveys as a way of eliciting
your volunteers’ views
- Provide free refreshments during
coffee and tea breaks
- Celebrate United Nations
International Volunteer Day (5 December each year)
- Suggest sources of help and support
for personal problems
- Allow volunteers to air legitimate
grievances and make sure they are dealt with swiftly
- Send a card or flowers if
volunteers are ill or bereaved
- Encourage them to sit on committees
and attend meetings
- Ensure a safe and healthy working
environment
- Allow volunteers to take on more
challenging responsibilities
- Make sure that
every volunteer has equal access to support
For additional details on volunteer
recognition, contact the Volunteer Center of Cedar Valley at (319) 272-2087,
information@vccv.org, or visit www.vccv.org.
