Professionalisation of volunteer management

Autonomy

ValuesIndependence

RecognitionExpertise

Support

More than a job/function

FOR

Bureaucratic

Exclusive

Inefficient

Irrelevant

Contradictory

Costly

AGAINST

discourse, rather than a destination

how we organise ourselves

as practitioners

Key question

Opportunity

Different fields – sectors - disciplines

OpportunityBut only if we can

move together

Key challenge

LeadershipWe need to lead,

not leave it to others

Key challenge

State Market

Key influencers on professions

VM – “off the radar” strategy

Professionals

Professional body

The profession

Professionals

Professional body

The profession

How to build our own profession?

Principles

Knowledge

Scope

Ongoing development

Entry

Practice model

Six components of a profession…

1. KnowledgeA profession needs to set out the specialist knowledge of its practitioners.

What knowledge underpins our profession?

Technocratic Reflective

Industrial societyScientific thoughtRational approach

Objective knowledgeMonolithic body of

knowledgeStandardised training

Post-industrial societyLearning through action

Embraces complexity

Subjective knowledgeContext is everything

Knowledgeable practitioners

Volunteer Management –The Complete Handbook?

Technocratic

TechnocraticStandardised volunteer management training

Volunteer Management –Knowledgeable practitioners

Reflective

2. Scope of the professionA profession needs to set out what professional volunteer management is.

What areas are covered by our profession?

Qualifications – what are you qualified to do?

Competencies – what are you competent to do?

Capabilities – what are you capable of doing?

2. Scope of the profession

3. Practice modelA profession needs to set out broad models of practice.

What model of practice fits with our profession?

3. Practice modelA profession needs to set out broad models of practice.

Trust – we’re the experts and they’re our clients

Contractual – service providers and service users/consumers

Partnership – realise outcome together

Volunteer manager

BeneficiaryVolunteer

HR manager

BeneficiaryEmployee

Teacher

PupilParent

4. Entry into the professionA profession needs to set out the criteria required for entry.

How do we see entry into our profession?

Non-regulated VMs

Regulated VMs

Sequential

Buddying Mentoring

Apprenticeships Community

Integrated

5. Ongoing profession developmentA profession needs to set out expectations of practitioners continual development.

What framework for continuing professional development do we need for our profession?

Status Career

Standards Learning

Threat Opportunity

6. Ethical frameworkA profession needs to set out its founding principles and values.

What principles are essential to our profession?

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649 639611 601 598 594

550

Supportingvolunteers

Respectingthe gift of

volunteering

Openingvolunteering

to all

Promotingdiversity

Flexibility The freedomof the

volunteer

Acceptingchange

Providingchoice

Creativity

Vo

tes

wei

ghte

d

Principle #1 - Freely chosen giving

Principle #1 - Freely chosen giving

• Question of freedom – free to join/ free to leave• Choice – encourage active choice • Giving – recognise that volunteering is not

contractual – it’s a gift• Supporting volunteering – the difference/value

that vm brings• Open access – ensuring diversity and access to

volunteering

695654 637

609 592 575 561

Buildingmutuallybeneficial

relationships

Fairness Fosteringengagement

Partnership Connectingpeople

Public benefit Empathy

Principle #2 - Mutually beneficial relationships

Principle #2 – Mutually beneficial relationships

• All about relationships – skill of vm in networking and connecting people

• Understanding the balance – insight and empathy into needs of volunteer and service user

• Knowledge of motivation – learning and challenge• Fairness – question of equality

687 673

617 614588

570

Ensuringvolunteering isappropriately

resourced

Acting in anaccountable and

transparentmanner

Leadership Measuring andevaluation of

impact

Planned use ofresources

Encouraginglearning

Principle #3 - Ensuring volunteering is appropriately resourced

Principle #3 – Ensuring volunteering is appropriately resourced

• Value for value – understanding the value of volunteering and vm

• Value in a broad sense – shouldn’t restrict ourselves to explaining value in monetary terms

• Accountable and transparent• What is appropriately resourced?• Leadership in vm is very distinctive

685

666

653 651 650 648

604

582

Acting lawfully Respectingpeople's rights

Listening to thevoice of those

engaged

The enjoymentof volunteering

Recognising andcelebrating

achievements ofthose engaged

Trustworthiness Promoting thevoice of those

engaged

Personal growthof thoseengaged

Principle #4 – All about people

Principle #4 – All about people

• All about people – principle is not to lose sight of the person at the heart of the process

• Respect people’s rights and acting within the law• Enjoyment – sense of perspective• Listening to those engaged – less so about

promoting voice

Key learnings

• We need to move together• Principles and values that support reflective practice• Standards and rules may come later, but not initial

focus• Next step - present examples of how these

principles can be applied to practice

1. Knowledge - What knowledge underpins our profession?

2. Scope of the profession - What areas are covered by our profession?

3. Practice model - What model of practice fits with our profession?

4. Entry into the profession - How do we see entry into our profession?

5. Ongoing profession development - What framework for continuing professional development do we need for our profession?

6. Ethical framework - What principles are essential to our profession?

How to build our own profession?

6.5%7.1%

21.9%

26.5%

28.4%

9.7%

0.0%

Less than 12 months 1 -2 years 3 - 5 years 5 - 10 years 11 - 20 years Over 20 years Don't know

How long have you been involved with volunteer management?

56.8%

11.6%14.2%

17.4%

0 - 25% 26-50% 51-75% 76-100%

What proportion of your time do you spend directly managing volunteers?

1.9%

34.4%

25.3%

27.9%

9.1%

1.3%

16 - 24 25 - 34 35 - 44 45 - 54 55 - 64 65+

How old are you?

46.2%

58.0%

82.5%

18.2%

46.9%

Develop acampaign

Develop training Develop goodpractice guides

Commission furtherresearch

Develop reflectivelearning materials

What should AVM do next once these principles of volunteer management are agreed?