A Year-Round Gift: Recognizing Volunteers

How many times have we heard that “it’s better to give than to receive?” Just from my mother alone, I’ve probably heard it over ten thousand times. Of course, this time of year, we’re all thinking about giving, whether it be gifts to family and friends, donations to charities or our time for a good cause. Although the giving spirit emerges faithfully each year around the holidays, there are a group of people who give year-round that often go unnoticed – volunteer leaders. I’m talking about the folks who volunteer to sit on an organization’s board – the people who are hoping to make a difference by giving their time and sharing their ideas. These are the people who strike me as year-round givers. No matter how busy they are with their family, their work, their health, their home or their hobbies, they always find time to volunteer. These volunteers often sit on boards that make decisions or set guidelines for an entire industry. They are sought after for their knowledge, passion and leadership, and rarely ask for anything in return. Many of them are never quoted in a newsletter, much less a newspaper or radio interview, yet they are eager and quick to engage in strategic planning or budgeting. They recognize that the limelight is dim at best; still, most of these volunteers are active in a multitude of organizations. Their selfless dedication is something I admire and appreciate, and I'm grateful for every one of them. No, there’s not much glory in serving as a volunteer leader. But that’s what makes them all so special. They know that there’s no fame or fortune in sitting on a board before they make the commitment, and they give of themselves anyway. What a gift. Happy Holidays!

Creating a Spirit of Giving

It's that time of year again when you hear so much about "giving." In a recent online poll conducted for one of our clients, nearly 50% of respondents said they would donate to a charity this holiday season, and 28% said they would volunteer their time. If you manage a nonprofit, chances are this discussion happens year-round: how do we convince others to give; how do we we recruit volunteers; what makes donors choose our organization? Most of these discussions center around current and prospective donors - in other words, adults. But I've always been more curious in how, where and when "giving" actually begins. How do we raise children to be generous and cheerful givers? What factors determine whether a teen will grow into a regular donor or volunteer? What role do nonprofits play in teaching "generosity"? This may seem a little off-topic for an association management blog, but humor me for a moment. In this post, I'd like to look at some of the factors and lessons that I believe influence giving. A big disclaimer here: these ideas don't come from years of expert studies or widespread research. These are concepts I've noticed in my daily life from serving as a Girl Scout leader, volunteer and from my own childhood. Lesson #1: Giving starts early, and it's best if it starts at home. I work with 6- to 8-year-olds, and it's amazing how ingrained their ideas about charity are even by this age. In our troop, we conducted a service project and asked the girls to bring in stuffed animals they no longer used to donate to a charity. Immediately we had girls pipe up to say, "I don't have anything I can give" or "My mom doesn't want me to donate." Now whether these statements were true or not is really unimportant -- it's the fact that these kids already believed them to be true. If you're a parent, grandparent, aunt, uncle, teacher, etc. -- I believe you have to think about the messages you're sending about giving to the children in your life. Do you portray a model of service or volunteerism? Do you talk to your kids about the charities that you donate to or how you donate? Lesson #2: Giving can be encouraged, but it can't be forced. Guilt works pretty well with adults - just ask anyone who has donated to a charity after receiving those address labels in the mail. But if you're trying to create a spirit of generosity in children, it's a little less effective. Growing up, we had family friends who created a tradition to "teach" their children about giving. Each Christmas morning, after all the presents were opened, each child had to select one of their toys to be given away to charity. Now this might sound like a good exercise, and it might have even worked well with older kids. But for the most part, all this created was resentful and unhappy children on Christmas morning. Instead of learning that there was plenty to go around, they associated "giving" with "losing something" - not a great incentive for future giving. Lesson #3: Giving isn't optional - how you do it is. This may sound in opposition to the previous statement, but hear me out. If giving is something that you put off until you have "more" - whether that's more time, more money, more security or more resources - chances are that it will never happen. There will always be something standing between you writing that check or volunteering your time. (When was the last time you heard someone say they had plenty of time and money?) Instead, I think it's important to teach children that service and giving is something you do regardless of your circumstances in life. We are continually looking for real and meaningful ways that the girls in our troop can participate in service, even at their young ages -- whether it's entertaining the residents of a nursing home or making ornaments for the Trees for Troops program. Lesson #4: Giving comes from a place of acceptance, not judgment. This is actually an easy one for kids - it's the adults that screw it up sometimes. Our words have power and can truly influence how kids see the world around them. What do you tell children about panhandlers on the street? How do you explain to kids why some people don't have homes or can't afford basic necessities? Why are some kids healthy while others are in hospitals? These aren't easy questions, but I think how you answer makes a big difference in how children view the message of charity. I remember a few years back when my mom was approached by a man asking for spare change. Without thinking twice, she dug in her purse and handed him a couple of dollars. Upon walking away, she was confronted by a bystander who reprimanded her, saying "You know he's just going to use it for drugs or alcohol." She didn't respond, but later, as she told me the story, she said, "If he's reached that low of a point in his life that begging seemed like the only option, who am I to judge?" Obviously, there's a time to teach children about effective giving and researching charities -- but sometimes a simple message of understanding and acceptance goes a long way. Lesson #5: Giving comes from knowledge and understanding, not fear or ignorance. Want to create lifelong givers? Show them a need, help them understand that need and demonstrate how their efforts make a difference. This goes for adults too -- all too often, we don't give because we don't really see how our check or time makes an impact. In high school, I had the opportunity to participate in a unique program called Focus St. Louis, an effort to expose students to the challenges and opportunities facing our communities. We visited jails, prisons and healthcare facilities, met with political leaders, volunteered at social service agencies - even spent a night in a homeless shelter. As a relatively privileged middle class kid, these experiences opened my eyes. Education and exposure are powerful tools -- tools that are utilized far too infrequently by nonprofits and charities. And these lessons aren't just for parents or educators - they're lessons that nonprofits and charitable organizations need to be incorporating into their outreach and programs. I have some thoughts on this that I'll share in my next post ... but I'd love to hear how your organization is reaching out to the next generation of givers.

Feeling Uninspired?

Yesterday I came in to work in the worst mood – ever. Sometimes the worst part of being in a bad mood is when you can’t figure why you’re upset in the first place. Some accuse waking up on the wrong side of the bed, others contribute it to bad sleep, and many say “It’s just one of those days.” Well, I woke up on the same side of the bed I always do, I slept fine and nothing really made it, in particular, “one of those days.” Call it a funk, if you will. I would blame it on the weather, but I particularly like those cloudy days with a chance of snow; so, I have no idea why I was in such a foul mood. I’m of the opinion that you can always (well, generally) turn a negative into a positive, so good thing I woke up in such a horrid mood, because it inspired my blog for this week and provided me the content for an otherwise blank slate. Being in a funk and feeling uninspired got me thinking – what inspires our clients, our members and their industry? Everyone has some kind of drive or motivation that keeps them or their businesses alive. We talk about social media a lot at Drake & Company, but I really believe that adding social media into the equation of a business or “modus operandi” can really inspire and motivate our clients. For example, one of my clients is holding their own social media teleconference, where those of us who are more experienced in the realm of social media can help answer questions and show those who are less experienced how they can tailor social media for their business. Even though some may be apprehensive, I think there’s an obvious excitement in the air. Who wouldn’t want to learn more about how to help their business or mission? If you never learn, you’ll never know – and to get ahead of competition you have to be in the know, or you’re out and left behind in the dust of your competitors. I think it is great that this client saw a need and felt inspired to help their members. At little cost to them they are bringing a slightly disengaged group of members together to help one another generate ideas for using social media to their advantage. It helps those who are feeling uninspired to feel excited and motivated and it helps those of us who are already inspired by social media to become even more impelled to help others. The concept seems basic but sometimes it is the little things or the most generic of concepts that really take flight and make the most difference. So, if you notice that your clients or members seem to be in a “funk” or “bad mood”, don’t blame it on the economy, the weather or waking up on the wrong side of the bed – find a need a fill it. Look for the uninspired and give them something to be inspired about – even if it is basic. Oh, and I did eventually come out of my funk. My box of Mallow Mars at home inspired my bad mood to disappear….

Transformative vs. incremental change and the association management company model

Change is good, right? Sometimes transformative change is necessary. Blowing up the system and starting over can be the best way to go to give your organization and your members a fresh start. Other times incremental change is better suited to the needs of an association.

I recently had discussions with two groups with different needs and different perspectives on how to achieve their goals.

Group A needed transformative change, but feared it; Group B needed incremental change, but didn't think it was drastic enough. Generally, organizations and people do not like transformative change. They may ask for it, but often it's unwelcome and met with resistance, or worse -- declining renewals, dropping conference attendance and lack of participation. Transformative change can also rally members, energize leaders and grow an organization, depending on how change is used. Marketing is a great example of incremental change affecting an organization more positively than transformative change.

Associations spend vital resources to market membership, conferences, publications and merchandise to current and prospective members. Group B's volunteer leadership thought a transformative change in marketing would increase membership and restore revenue -- its revenue declined sharply in since a merger with three groups in 2001. Much of the decrease was due to membership losses, which has prompted the volunteer leadership to consider moving away from a stand-alone staff to an AMC.

We proposed a wait-and-see approach regarding marketing to the board. Group B's current staff recently implemented a new campaign and has seen an uptick in renewals. At the end of the campaign we would review the successes and failures of the strategy, then emphasize the successful messages.

The mind is a crowded place. Unique things (iPhone, Toyota Prius) stand out and familiar things (Coca-Cola, Nike) stand out. Although there is no formula for unique, there is a formula for familiar: repetition. Patience is required for the current messaging to make an impression on current and prospective members. If that message is changed mid-course, it's like starting over from scratch because you loose much of the equity you've built. Whereas, with thoughtful incremental change, we could take the best of the so far successful (retention is up 9%) marketing campaign and continue to build upon it.

In contrast, Group A needed to transformative change to create an identity for itself. As an umbrella group of another, larger association, the organization was looking at us to help them incorporate as an independent association. Stifled by a huge trade association, outrageous fees for management services and lack of attention, Group A needed to take this huge step to insure their association thrived.

But moving to an AMC was a massive shift in management philosophy. And for an organization that was not on stable financial footing, it was a scary proposition to leave "home." When it came time to make a decision, instead of opting for transformative change, they chose no change because the familiar, while it will diminished member value, was an easier solution financially.

Transformative or incremental, change can be good when used strategically. Being open to all possibilities can help save money, energize current and potential members and add value to your organization. For an AMC, we have to help associations understand when either approach is needed.