Deciding that your organization needs volunteers isn’t as simple as looking at a pile of work that can’t be done with existing staff and saying, “We should get some volunteers.”

It’s a decision that shouldn’t be made lightly – volunteers can be a positive addition to your organization, but your organization needs to answer some questions to find out if you’re able to support volunteers.

Why do we need volunteers?

Can volunteers add capacity to the organization? Will volunteers be needed for a specific project or will they be helping your organization for a longer period? Before you start recruiting volunteers, make sure that your organization knows what kind of work volunteers will be doing with the organization.

What role does our volunteer program play in our overall mission?

Laying out exactly what the volunteer’s role with your organization is will help your organization to understand how volunteers can be helpful and help to ensure that volunteers have a positive experience working with your organization.

Does staff understand the pivotal role that volunteers play in our efforts?

Making sure that staff understand the role of volunteers in the organization helps staff to identify work that volunteers can assist with and make a more welcoming environment for volunteers.

What are the benefits to the individual who volunteers in our organization?

Understanding the answer to this question helps to give your organization a sense of what the recruiting message can look like and what your organization can do to help retain volunteers.

Are the volunteer opportunities for clearly defined?

Having a clear position description that are flexible can help volunteers and staff know exactly what volunteers’ role with your organization will be. This will make finding work for volunteers easier and volunteers will know what to expect on their first day.

Who do we want as a volunteer?

If your organization is looking for a certain kind of volunteer, knowing who that person is can help to inform your recruitment strategy and help you to narrow your outreach for volunteers.

Are we prepared for the response from volunteers?

Before you put out your first call for volunteers, make sure there’s a plan in place to process people who want to volunteer. Who will screen and place volunteers? Will the volunteers need training? Who will do it? Making sure there’s a plan for responding to volunteer inquiries will help to reduce the amount of time between a potential volunteer expressing interest in your organization and the person starting to volunteer.