Volunteer Nation

In this episode, Tobi talks about the common mistakes organizations make when conducting volunteer surveys. Drawing from years of experience and the success of their own surveys, Tobi provides practical tips to help obtain valuable and actionable information from their volunteers.  Surveys are a powerful tool for gathering feedback and insights from your volunteers. Full show notes: 072. Volunteer...

In this episode, Tobi explores the fascinating world of partnering with funders to support volunteer engagement. We will learn about the critical role of capacity building for nonprofits, the importance of aligning strategic goals with volunteer roles, and the need for improved communication, marketing, recruitment, and volunteer experience to meet the expectations of today's selective volunt...

In this episode, Tobi dives into the essential strategies and techniques to effectively structure and manage your volunteer program, even with limited resources. Whether you're a nonprofit executive, volunteer coordinator, or volunteer services director, this episode is packed with practical advice to help you navigate the challenges of organizing and optimizing your volunteer services. Full...

In this episode, Tobi explore the question that lies at the heart of it all: "Why are volunteers important?" We'll delve into the crucial role volunteers play in the success and sustainability of nonprofits, how they bring invaluable support and expertise, and why they are essential for fulfilling missions and making a true impact on society. Full show notes: 069. Why Are Volunteers...

In this episode, Tobi dives into the art of volunteer matching and how it can transform the volunteer experience. We know how important it is for organizations to ensure that volunteers are a perfect fit in terms of mission, values, and organizational culture.  Matching volunteers goes beyond simply filling shifts; it's about finding where they will flourish, harnessing their skills and inter...

In this episode,  Tobi dives into the topic of setting up a new volunteer coordinator for success. With the challenges of engaging busy individuals who have stopped volunteering due to the pandemic, it is crucial for volunteer coordinators to focus on building relationships, recruiting new volunteers, and engaging with the community. Full show notes: 067.  How to Set Up a New Volunteer Coordinator...

In this episode, Tobi interviews Lynn Margherio about the importance of partnering with corporate employee volunteer programs and how this collaboration can benefit nonprofits in terms of impact and engagement. Skilled volunteers can bring immense talent, expertise, and financial support to nonprofits. However, many nonprofits are hesitant to connect with employee volunteer programs. Full show not...

In this episode, we continue to explore strategies to improve volunteer retention and satisfaction, we’re excited to dive deeper into the power of email as a communication tool. While face-to-face interactions are preferred, we understand that sometimes it’s not always possible to have that personal touch. That’s where technology, specifically email, comes in. Full show notes: 065. Using Email to...

In this episode, Tobi dives into the world of communication strategies and explore how leveraging email can significantly improve volunteer retention. But before we get into the details, let's take a moment to understand why email remains a vital tool in today's ever-changing digital landscape. Email offers a unique solution, allowing you to own your list of subscribers and ensuring dire...

In this episode, Tobi had an insightful conversation with Rishma Walji on how to make better decisions. Knowing who you are, how you want to show up, and what's essential to you, is crucial in maintaining boundaries, preventing people from taking advantage of you, and ultimately making better decisions. Rishma Walji is trained as a Naturopathic Doctor and PhD. She spent over 20 years in clini...

Volunteering is an activity that brings communities together and allows people to give back in a meaningful way. However, not all volunteer experiences are created equal. To truly make an impact, organizations must focus on creating exceptional volunteer experiences that not only benefit the organization, but also empower and motivate the volunteers. In today's episode, Tobi discusses differe...

In today's episode, Tobi discusses about training for nonprofits and how we've got it all wrong. When we do launches and promotions at VolunteerPro, we ask our audience of followers why they didn't buy. We want to know what are the barriers that our community of leaders of volunteers and volunteer driven organizations are coming up against when it comes to enrolling in something tha...

In today’s episode, Tobi interviews Sara Lomelin who is an expert in Giving Circles and collective philanthropy. Here at VolunteerPro, we’re also very interested in doing that when it comes to community engagement, volunteer talent, and thinking about new ways we can engage the community in our missions, which is the most important thing right now. Full show notes: 060– Giving Circles and Collecti...

In today's episode, Tobi talks about how to improve your recruiting volunteers on your website. Tobi worked with many coaching clients around their volunteer recruitment strategies, and she have taken a look at many websites. So today, she's going to share all that information down to some of the most common things she saw that are missing and how can you make these changes on your websi...

In today's episode, Tobi interviews Lucas Meijs about innovative models in volunteerism research. Lucas has been writing about and researching volunteerism for three decades. The discussion revolves around the idea that articles about volunteerism often miss some of the key things and build up a certain model of thinking about volunteers and volunteerism. The focus is usually on volunteers th...

In today's episode, Tobi features Dacher Keltner and discusses the compassionate instinct, bringing wonder and awe back into our lives, and becoming more resilient. Dacher Keltner is a professor of psychology at the University of California Berkeley and the faculty director of UC Berkeley's Greater Good Science Center. He is a renowned expert in the science of human emotion, studying com...

In today's episode, Tobi interviews Dr. Elisabeth Clemens from University of Chicago who is an expert in how volunteerism sits and civic society sits in building our nation here in America.  Dr. Elisabeth is the William Rainey Harper Distinguished Service Professor of Sociology at the University of Chicago. Her recent awards-winning book, Civic Gifts: Voluntarism and the Making of the America...

Today's episode, we are talking with Faiza Venzant on how to get your Certified in Volunteer Administration credential. Faiza Venzant, CVA is the Executive Director of the Council for Certification in Volunteer Administration. With over 20 years of leadership experience in volunteer engagement, she continues this work with a goal of centering community amongst the profession, improving equity...

Today's episode, we're going to talk about National Volunteer Week 2023. Our theme is a year to be grateful. A year to be grateful, and Tobi shares some of the things she's grateful for. Gratitude is a mindful practice that encourages us to take an abundant view of the world. In the nonprofit sector, it is quite easy to adopt a scarcity mindset and believe that there isn't enou...

In today's episode, we are going to be talking with Marianne Chance about promoting a healthy workplace culture for volunteers, not only for volunteers, but in our nonprofits in general. Marianne Chance is the the founder of Work Warrior and she is described as a brilliant, hilarious, awesome sauce and so engaging, you'll forget to eat your snacks. Marianne has trained over 20,000 people...

We are pleased to discuss and bring to our audience a new research report from my friends at VolunteerMatch and how we connect hopeful and helpful data from today’s volunteers. In today’s episode, we have Darcy Hughes and Jennifer Bennett.  Jennifer is the Director of Education & Training joined VolunteerMatch to formalize and manage the organization’s volunteer engagement program. With her br...

April, which is worldwide volunteer month, is set to start. I wanted to take some time to reflect on the significance of volunteering. And I want to go way beyond the fluff. We all talk about, we're all getting together, we're working in community, we're helping our nonprofits meet their mission. These are all important things, but there is so much more power and volunteerism out th...

In our 50th Volunteer Nation episode, Tobi talks about how to use volunteer quotes to inspire leadership and resilience. These are the volunteer quotes we usually see in newsletter, in social media, et cetera. They're usually a little bit cliché or they've just been used overused, and they start to lose their meaning.  Tobi also what shares some of the quotes she shared with her team on...

In this week’s episode, Tobi offers a peek behind the curtain at the process of developing new VolunteerPro curriculum – in this case, for our newly updated VolunteerPro Membership learning hub! She’s also sharing some of her key takeaways when it comes to developing online learning that will be enormously helpful to anyone tasked with developing new training for volunteers or coworkers. Full show...

In this week’s episode, we welcome guest Dr. Mary Hyde from AmeriCorps to share some fascinating results from the most recent Volunteer Engagement and Civic Life census supplement.   These results shine a light on both the enduring spirit of volunteerism in America – even during the height of the pandemic – and what the data can tell us about future trends in formal and informal volunteering.   Th...