What Happens When Donors Give Time Instead of Money? April 13, 2009

There’s a new trend that you may be experiencing first hand- donors give time instead of money. And this is happening at a time when demand for your services is at an all time high and your resources are stretched thinner than ever. Dan Kadlec discusses this trend in “The Nonprofit Squeeze” from the March 30 edition of Time Magazine.

 

Kadlec cites this statistic showing increased demand for nonprofit services: recent aid requests to the United Way rose +68% vs. 2007. And he adds that 52% of nonprofits have had their funding cut. Truly there is a strong squeeze on nonprofit resources. Kadlec says, “The good news is that volunteers are stepping forward as never before.” AmeriCorps reports that its applications for volunteer service rose +208% in February vs. the same period last year. But this creates its own challenges.

 

Kadlec's article says, "The time-money swap, which is washing over the charity world like a tidal wave during this recession, poses stiff challenges for nonprofits. They can't pay the rent with volunteer hours." Also, when staff is reduced, training and management of volunteers gets harder."

 

“Nonprofits unprepared for what appears to be a historic influx of volunteers risk sending those folks home underappreciated and losing them forever--not just as volunteers but also as cash donors when the economy revives,” says John Power, executive director of the Volunteer Center in San Francisco.

 

If your organization is experiencing this trend, you may be asking how you can manage volunteers to get the most benefit from them today. Here are some suggestions.

First, acknowledge this new reality (even if it’s not permanent). The work of volunteers is going to have to make up some of your lost financial resources. Second, develop a plan to manage these volunteers. This may mean diverting staff from other functions to train and manage volunteers. While this could be a short term loss of productivity, it should help you in the longer term as you benefit from the multiplication of effort. Lastly, consider a tool like GiftWorks Volunteers. This add-in to GiftWorks Fundraising Software gives you simple tools to maintain contact with volunteers, manage their assignments, and track their hours. Take a look at GiftWorks Volunteers.

 

Click here to read the Time Magazine article: “The Nonprofit Squeeze.”