If you’re working as a supervisor for a nonprofit organization, you know that supervising volunteers is pretty much the same as supervising a paid staff. The only difference is that volunteers need a little more motivation since there is no monetary compensation involved. If you’re new at this endeavor, you’ll find these steps helpful in volunteer supervision.
Orientation
It is imperative to give volunteers a general orientation not only of the task that they would be doing but also about the entire organization including its history, mission, and purpose of service. It’s a must to show volunteers how their services can be of great use for the community. This way, it would be easier for them to be motivated to do volunteer work. If they don’t understand how the organization works, it’s possible that they may lose interest in the volunteer job.
Performance expectations
Right after the orientation, volunteers should be briefed about the performance expected of them. To do this, you should review the job description, explain in detail that tasks that need to be done to fulfill the responsibilities, explain the structure of work, identify authority, and review housekeeping details.
Supervisor expectations
You should also provide what the volunteers can expect of you such as accessibility at what time of the day, your fair and equitable treatment among volunteers, honest feedback, and many others. Be sure to let the volunteers ask you if they have any questions about you that are related to your work.
Volunteer training and feedback
Finally, you need to train the volunteers. It’s your responsibility to show them how things are done in the organization. If you’re able to train good volunteers well, you’ll be able to expect excellent performance from them. Be sure to give feedback for positive reinforcement. Be specific and timely in giving your feedback. Instead of saying, “You did a great job!” tell the volunteer what exactly it is that he did that earned him the praise.