17 June 2014
Make the most of your volunteers
Volunteers make a critical contribution to many New Zealand organisations. The individual efforts of these people help professional groups to achieve established goals, so appropriate volunteer management strategy is hugely beneficial for realising the full value of their contribution.
Co-ordination of volunteer teams and groups is important to obtain desired results, services or targets. By having structures in place for managing volunteer programmes, organisations can expect improvements in outcomes and ensure more efficient use of volunteer time.
Chief Executive of VNZ Vanisa Dhiru explains, “Volunteers should be managed in a way which is most beneficial to everyone involved. They give their time for free, and it is important for them to be doing work that will have a direct, positive impact on your cause.”
Volunteering New Zealand (VNZ) makes a conscious effort to encourage high standards of volunteer management. “Our Best Practice Guidelines for Volunteer-Involving Organisations have been established to make it easier for groups to think about volunteering an a holistic way and right throughout the organisation.”
National Volunteer Week aims to recognise the efforts of volunteers throughout Aotearoa, and VNZ encourages organisations to do the same. “It’s those people that lead and manage volunteers who will be the real drivers of thanking volunteers this week. They are the people that are in the best place to say thank you to any volunteer in any environment.”
A range of ideas and tools for showing appreciation for the work that volunteers do during the year can be found on our website: www.volunteeringnz.org.nz/news-events/events/nationalvolunteerweek
For more information on VNZ’s Best Practice Guidelines, visit: www.volunteeringnz.org.nz/volunteerorganisations/bestpractice
Volunteering New Zealand (VNZ) is an association of New Zealand organisations that have a commitment to volunteering, such as volunteer centres, national and other organisations. Their mission is to promote, support and advocate for volunteering. www.volunteeringnz.org.nz
ENDS