Enhancing Volunteer Participation: How to Keep them Interested
By Mark Yanick, MA

After you have recruited volunteers to your coalition, the next step is retaining them. Serious consideration should be given to keeping members involved, energized, and productive. For example, coalition volunteers need to know the expectations for their involvement up front. Provide each volunteer with a job description. Let them know how much time is required for each task. Do not waste time in meetings or discussions that are not pertinent to their role in the coalition. Understand that their time is valuable and acknowledge this with them. Here are some more suggestions:

Delegate tasks. Many people are reluctant to volunteer because of the time commitment. Avoid perpetuating this fear and be careful not to overload one person with a huge assignment. Instead, break down projects into smaller, more manageable pieces that can be completed by several members.

Make the experience more meaningful. Allow volunteers to take ownership of projects. Give them the freedom to be creative. Upon a project’s completion, be sure to provide public and personal recognition for good work—through awards, newsletter articles, verbal kudos at meetings, thank you gifts, etc.

Create networking opportunities. In forming committees, strive for balance—not only in terms of personality types, but also professional interests. Let prospective committee members know with whom they will be serving. Allow enough time for networking and discussion.

Create opportunities for personal and professional development. Bring outside speakers and trainers in to provide new, relevant information, skill building, professional training, or personal development for coalition volunteers. Examples might be: stress and time management, current drug trends, pharmacology, grantwriting, etc.

Provide technical assistance. Let volunteers know whom they can call with questions or concerns, and be sure that their concerns are dealt with in a timely manner. Communicate with them regularly providing information they can use in their coalition member/volunteer capacity.

Make the work enjoyable. Work to maintain a collegial, supportive, healthy, and safe environment for coalition members and volunteers. Show appreciation for their time by providing meals and other comforts when the work takes them away from their families/homes during meal times.

Establish a regular time and place for meetings. Attendance is likely to be improved if members have adequate advance notice of meeting dates and times. Consider an annual calendar with this information.

For further questions or information about this topic, please contact training@cadca.org.