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Shared Interest Volunteering 2015-16 The following report includes information gathered through three key surveys carried out this year (2015-16); a Volunteer Motivation survey (March 2016), a staff survey about volunteering (April 2016) and our third Volunteer Survey (May 2016). The report is sectioned into themes and information from each of the surveys is presented throughout. Introduction At the time of writing this report (June 2016) Shared Interest has 67 active volunteers and 23 inactive volunteers. Inactive volunteers include 6 enquirers and 16 volunteers. The reasons for this inactivity are; poor health (3), other commitments (3) or loss of communication for over 12 months (10). Of our active volunteers; 47 are ambassadors, 15 active members, 9 administration supporters (7 data entry and 2 office volunteers). It should be noted that some volunteers carry out more than one role for example data entry and active member. Of those responding to our Volunteer Survey (approximately 50% response rate), 67% had been volunteering with Shared Interest for over 3 years, with 24% volunteering for over 6 years. This demonstrates a commitment and dedication from our volunteers which we must continue to nurture as it is a valuable element of our volunteer network. Many long standing volunteers have strong, respected networks in their area which can be utilised in their roles. Understanding our volunteers’ motivations (see page 4) helps us to harness their long term support and identify what we can do to encourage newer volunteers. It is also important to note that volunteers continuing their involvement for long periods of time must continue to be engaged with to understand their changing motivations, interests and support needs.
How long have you been volunteering in your main volunteer role with Shared Interest? 3% Less than 1 year 21%
21%
12% 43%
1 - 2 years 3 - 5 years 6 - 10 years
Graph 1 - Volunteer Survey 2016
As well as understanding how long volunteers have been active for, it is also useful to understand how frequently they undertake activity in order to help us manage the expectations of new volunteers and understand where we can support volunteers further. The majority of our volunteers carry out their role a few times per year, and we know from 1|Page
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tracking events activity that the most popular times of year for activity remain Fairtrade Fortnight (Feb – Mar) and around autumn (Sept – Oct).
How frequently do you carry out your main volunteer role? 0% A few times a month
23% 13%
64%
A few times a year Once a year
Graph 2 - Volunteer Survey 2016
Our volunteers take pride in their work and their connection to Shared Interest and this contributes to their motivation. When asked what they were most proud of about their Shared Interest volunteer involvement we received wide and varied responses. Some comments included; -
Feeling able to contribute to the benefit of the organisation Being available to represent SI if the opportunity arises Very pleased to be part of SI Society, which I think is a wonderful organisation I am representing SI and do my best to be professional and fit with the four principles I have a strong belief in what the company achieves so very happy to promote whenever People who listen to a presentation enjoy it and find it interesting. Somebody once said to me, “You gave us a lot to think about.” Meeting new people at events and sharing their experiences. One-to-one conversations that I know have led to new members’ and ‘that I think I have influenced a few people to open accounts.’.
Many are also proud of the role they play in the bigger picture of supporting fair trade organisations and producers or being part of a global movement -
Making a real difference with real beneficiaries’ and ‘Making a difference for people in resource poor settings to improve their financial situation and their self-esteem.
It is vital that we continue to engage with our volunteers to find out what they enjoy, and are proud of, as it will guide future communications and engagement. Failing to do so would lead to a loss of motivation and potentially end their volunteering relationship with us. Valuing our volunteers To develop our understanding and harness greater support it is imperative that we ask why they continue to volunteer with us. How we value our volunteers, through the recognition, 2|Page
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reward and the support we offer is greatly influenced by this. To ensure we are rewarding and recognising their contributions meaningfully, we need to know why they volunteer now and at frequent intervals. Reasons for volunteering may not change but we must never assume. In March 2016, we undertook our first discreet volunteer motivations survey. This was a short, five question, survey aimed at understanding, and providing evidence, of the main motivating factors of our volunteers. The results below show the variety of reason our volunteers support Shared Interest. The common motivations include; putting their time and skills to good use, to make a difference and to give something back. Other comments including; making new friends, learning new skills or experiences and feeling part of a team were less evident but still valued by some volunteers. While it is helpful to understand common motivations it must also be recognised that volunteers are individuals with unique combinations of motivations and these should be understood and recognised accordingly.
Volunteer Motivations - March 2016 8 7 6
1
5
2
4
3
3
4
2
5
1
6
0
7 8 9 10
11 12
Graph 3 - Volunteer Motivation survey 2016
In addition to identifying motivations we also need to know if they are being satisfied and ultimately guide our support to encourage greater feelings of achievement. The top three motivations mentioned above were explored further in the full Volunteer Survey carried out in May and showed most volunteers felt these motivations were well or somewhat achieved (see Graph 4 overleaf). However, it is evident that work still needs to 3|Page
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be done to support and maintain the achievement of these motivations. In areas such as feeling actions are making a difference or enabling volunteers to give back we must work to illustrate more clearly the impact of our volunteers and improve the KPIs we use to evaluate their impact. Not surprisingly none of the volunteers were motivated by the number of hours contributed so it is important that we review the KPI’s and reflect the value volunteers hope to bring to themselves and the organisation.
How well do you feel you are achieving each of these motivations 30 this is not a motivating factor for me
25
20
not sure
15 10
not achieved
5 somewhat achieved
0 Skills and Actions are Actions are time are put making a enabling you to good use difference to give back
Graph 4 - Volunteer Survey 2016
When asked what they felt would help them achieve their motivations volunteers responded with a variety of suggestions including continue doing what we do in terms of support, communication and information, they just needed longer to get into the role (relevant for new / recent starters) which could involve improved support at this key stage in their volunteer journey (through the introduction of a check-in call around 3 months after induction training), further support in finding opportunities to make a contribution was identified as a key area for improvement by many and again the introduction of a support plan (or similar) will assist in identifying a volunteers personal goals for their involvement and how we can support them with this. We should also reflect on alternative methods we can apply to encourage the achievement of these motivations which may involve the development of new networks, resources or support mechanisms such as the Skype forum. To understand in more detail what their experiences are, and to compliment the Staff Survey, we asked volunteers to note three words that describe what it is like to volunteer at Shared Interest. The results are shown in the wordle below, the larger the font size the more volunteers said that word.
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Graph 5 - Volunteer Survey 2016
There are many positive words: ‘interesting’, ‘enjoyable’ and ‘worthwhile’, among others, which is a strong message of contentment and encouragement from volunteers. However, as with the staff survey, ‘challenging’ also appears strongly and alongside frustrating. While it is not easy to determine if people mean challenging in a positive way or not it is helpful to consider this within the context of some of the other comments made in the survey. For example, when asked how strongly they agree with a number of different statements the most disagreed with comment related to feeling informed about the results of their activity (see Graph 6 below), which could well be linked to feelings of frustration among volunteers and lead some to feel their roles are challenging. This further reflects the anecdotal evidence that volunteers are frustrated at the lack of opportunities to carry out their roles. While it is a challenge for us to attribute the actions of a volunteer, in contributing their time, skills, knowledge and passion for Shared Interest, to the impact of our lending on customers it is important that we consider ways to draw volunteers closer to the impact their actions have. Reiterating the comment made earlier that, volunteers do not seek to contribute hours, but are volunteering to make a positive contribution towards achieving our organisational mission. We therefore need to ensure that how we inform volunteers of the impact of their work is accurate, appropriate and meaningful.
The following statements relate to how you feel about your role with Shared Interest.
Strongly Disagree Disagree
I feel my skills are well utilised I am aware of what is expected of… I am aware of what I can expect from… I get relevant and appropriate… People value the contribution… I have clearly defined responsibiliti… I carry out interesting activities I feel informed about the results of my…
30 25 20 15 10 5 0
Agree Strongly Agree
Graph 6 - Volunteer Survey 2016 5|Page
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When asked for further information about why they disagreed with any of these statements there were some trends in responses which back up the ideas above around ensuring meaningful, appropriate and accurate feedback loops are in place to communicate impact back to volunteers. The most common comment made (from 20% of respondents) was around not receiving information about investments made, as a result of their activity. This has been discussed on many occasions but continues to be a frustration for volunteers. The recent introduction of a share capital map in the volunteer newsletter illustrates what share capital has come in regionally form volunteer activity. It should be noted however that not all volunteers’ activity is related to raising share capital and therefore care should be taken to not assume this map will provide all volunteers with the impact measure. Other ways of demonstrating volunteer impact should be explored. Comments related to volunteers feeling they had not taken up sufficient opportunities and responding to this frustration will be part of the support plan mentioned above. Finally, some frustrations came from a lack of defined role, in particular the ambassador role, which some felt led to difficulty in demonstrating impact. While efforts have been made to develop role outlines for each volunteer role these will be reviewed and feedback from volunteers carrying out these roles sought to ensure they are accurate and relevant. The lists below show the top ways in which volunteers feel recognised: -
Receiving encouragement/support/feedback from staff Involvement and inclusion (i.e. Skype, communications, celebration cards) Being thanked for their activity
And the top reasons volunteers don’t feel recognised: -
Not having done any activity Not being supported to do activity
In addition, understanding how volunteers feel rewarded, shows what we do well in terms of the gestures we use to demonstrate our appreciation and recognition of their work. The top ways in which volunteers feel rewarded are through: -
The opportunity to volunteer Being able to learn through volunteering Feeling a valued part of the organisation Positive feedback from audiences they engage with Occasion cards (birthday, Christmas etc.)
And the top things which mean volunteers don’t feel rewarded: -
Frustration at lack of own activity Not feeling involved in organisation
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Making our volunteers visible Due to the remote nature of many of our volunteers we must work hard to demonstrate to them, and others including staff, members, Council and Board, the contributions they make to Shared Interest. It can be difficult for our volunteers to feel that their contributions are recognised and visible. This is generally because they carry out their activity remotely or because their activity is not obviously linked to our mission. This sentiment is reflected by staff with 50% feeling their knowledge of volunteers is poor or average and many wanting to know more about our volunteers. Words such as ‘perception’ and ‘guess’ occur regularly in staff survey responses.
How would you rate your knowledge of volunteers and volunteering at Shared Interest now? Poor
Average
19%
Good
Excellent
8%
42% 31%
Graph 7 - Staff survey about volunteering 2016
So, how do volunteers feel they contribute to our mission? Volunteers contribute to our mission predominantly through enabling us to raise awareness and investment but also through supporting us with engagement and support activities with existing members. For example; helping with the members’ survey or with mail outs. Although obvious to some, it is vital that we communicate how these activities enable us to fulfil our mission. What is key though is how volunteers feel they are contributing to our mission, of which the following are some key responses: -
-
To make people aware of the organisation and to help achieve its mission. SI cannot achieve this mission without sufficient funds, which depends on increasing the number of investors as well as the amount they invest. Volunteers are vital in spreading knowledge of SI and its work. Enhance the role of paid staff They provide an additional resource to achieving this - the outer ring on an archery target, where the more central rings are provided by staff, directors and partner organisations.
Our role is to ensure volunteers feel visible, and hence valued, for their contribution to Shared Interest and that this is meaningfully linked to the mission of the organisation. Understanding that many volunteers are motivated for reasons of feeling they can give 7|Page
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back, make a difference and volunteer their time, skills and knowledge usefully we must respect and value them accordingly, relating back to the need to develop new KPIs for volunteer impact. How do staff perceive the role of volunteers? In looking at how we enable volunteers to be more visible to stakeholders we need an understanding of perceptions of volunteers currently. Encouragingly, our staff team agree with many of the statements about the contributions volunteers make to Shared Interest, (shown below). There are areas where some further activity could improve their understanding, particularly around reputation, quality, cost and innovation. A few respondents indicated that they disagreed with a statement and it will be important in the future to better understand the basis for this. Where respondents have indicated they are unsure it would suggest a lack of information, experience or knowledge.
To what extent do you agree with the following statements Volunteers enhance the reputation of the organisation Volunteers support Shared Interest in achieving our mission Volunteers raise awareness of the organisation Disagree
Volunteers deliver work we otherwise couldn’t afford to do
Not sure Agree
Volunteers enhance the diversity of the organisation’s workforce Volunteers bring innovation to our work Volunteers carry out their activities to a high-quality 0
5
10
15
20
25
Graph 8 - Staff survey about volunteering 2016
Encouragingly, staff offered many positive comments regarding our involvement of volunteers including that: -
Volunteers provide the word of mouth approach that is vital to our work. Volunteers are vital to our organisation to spread the word of the work we do. Very dedicated and committed people as like staff are. They are the unsung heroes of Shared Interest
This suggests that there is an appetite for understanding and recognition of volunteer activity among staff. ‘They should be maybe more recognised for the contribution they make’. 8|Page
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Future Challenges and Opportunities A key indicator of our volunteer’s satisfaction in their role is whether or not they would recommend volunteering with us to others. In the 2016 volunteer survey 96% of respondents said they would, reasons they gave included: -
A chance to make a difference by increasing opportunities of fair trade producers A better understanding of SI's work and the opportunities to communicate that and enthuse others. Learning more about what shared interest does and meet new people The satisfaction it brings in helping others, but also the opportunity to work with such a nice bunch of people
It should be noted that while not a strong motivation for volunteers (see Graph 3) the social aspect of volunteering was mentioned in this section by nine respondents. When asked what would prevent them from recommending volunteering with Shared Interest the key issues were: -
-
Lack of opportunity (although it is unclear if this is lack of opportunity to recommend volunteering or the lack of opportunity to carry out volunteer activity) Frustrations relating to feeling unappreciated or that SI is a ‘difficult sell’ That the type of volunteering (including frequency, location etc) was not ‘conventional’
These responses show where we can improve our volunteer offering to attract new volunteers to the organisation. This may include review of the role outlines, as mentioned previously, responding to existing volunteers frustrations including opportunities to carryout activity. The last of these responses for not recommending volunteering is reflected in staff comments (from the Staff Survey) relating to the involvement of volunteers in new areas of the organisation and in new roles. Following the recent introduction of our positive statements we felt that it was important to reflect on our volunteers perceptions of these. In particular, how we support and engage with our volunteers and also set an understanding of the culture of Shared Interest. Although there were some areas where volunteers disagreed with our application, we can be encouraged by the majority of volunteers feeling that the statements are applied well. As work develops internally we will continue to explore their application to our relationships with our volunteers and continue to reflect on these in our interactions with, and our encouragement of volunteers applying these values to their role.
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Considering these statements how well do you feel we are following these in our relationship with you our volunteers? 16 14 12 Strongly Agree
10 8
Agree
6
Disagree
4
Strongly Disagree
2
0 Be Fair
Be Responsible
Be Positive
Be Innovative
Graph 9 – Volunteer Survey 2016
For the first time we asked our volunteers to identify what they saw as the key priorities for volunteering at Shared Interest. Many responses referred to continuing what we already do, or specified priorities for them personally; -
As you already do - accepting what people have to offer Keep up the good work. Motivate volunteers. Increase work force Volunteers #1 role should be to grow our pool of investors - so volunteers need to get in front of potential investors through talks with "like-minded" groups We should attend more community events so as to raise awareness of what we do.
Some for our consideration include; -
Bringing volunteers together to support each other. Encouraging volunteers to get involved and make the most of their skills. Increasing a diverse range (and number) of volunteers Building relationships with volunteers, stability of staff contacts Providing interesting opportunities
We will continue to develop opportunities for volunteers to engage with each other and staff. This will include building on opportunities within member events, thorough training sessions and encouraging meet ups both organised by us and themselves. Remote activity such as Skype forum’s and the volunteer newsletter (which provides volunteers with the opportunity to share their activity with each other) will also remain important. We will also continue to look at how we can increase the volunteers’ visibility among staff and vice versa. Volunteers were sent a summary of the findings of the Volunteer Survey which can be found at the end of this report, titled ‘You Said, We Listened’.
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We continue to have ongoing recruitment for active members and ambassador roles resulting in an increase in enquiries. New applications were also received as a direct result of the volunteering workshops held at our member events. We will however be reviewing the role outlines and creating a matrix to match skills, motivations and our requirements to ensure roles are accurate, effective and inspiring to potential volunteers. Any new volunteering opportunities will be developed in consultation with staff working in areas where volunteers may be involved. Measuring the Impact of our volunteers
Why does Shared Interest involve volunteers? What key changes do we want volunteers to make? What mechanisms and resources are required to support volunteering at Shared Interest? How do we maximise positive volunteering experiences for volunteers and staff? How do volunteers help Shared Interest achieve our mission? How does Shared Interest help volunteers achieve their motivations for volunteering? What do we want to be able to say about our volunteer involvement?
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Outcome
Indicator
Data source(s)
Confident and accurate communication about Shared Interest
% of volunteers feeling well equipped after induction training Number of volunteers receiving further training
Training feedback forms, narrative from check in sessions (see Valerie profiles)
Appropriately resourced volunteers
Empowered volunteers seeking their own opportunities for activity
New audiences reached
Feedback about what resources are useful
Use of resources by volunteers (aggregated by resource type) Number volunteers initiating own activity Volunteers sharing their experiences with each other
Number of events attended ∞ How many events would return to
Numbers attending Skype forum and other training opportunities (see Valerie training sessions – NOT induction training) Narrative from informal communications (inc. what is missing / difficult about resources), volunteer survey
Resource requests and orders (Valerie)
Event feedback forms, Narrative from check in sessions and survey results Skype forums, newsletter content, ad hoc communications, volunteer events
Event feedback information (Event KPIs) Event feedback information (Event KPIs) informal conversation
Baseline (2015-16) 90%
Target (2016-17) 92%
35% (20 volunteers)
40%
QRs, need for something between Enquiry pack and postcard, display stands popular, customer case studies (13), more customer news (4), more vol news (2) X QRs X Enquiry packs X Postcards etc 50
Encouraging ways other volunteers have found to make new contact – to be added to vol. newsletter 95 (70 by volunteers)
Actual (2016-17)
Target (2017-18) 95%
Benchmark data
45%
36% (volunteers receiving ANY 1 training)
96%
n/a
n/a
55
60
n/a
105 (80 by volunteers)
120 (90 by volunteers) 75
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Motivated, Satisfied and engaged volunteers
Number of volunteers – aggregated by region ∞ Investment brought in due to volunteer activity ∞ % volunteers whose motivations are being met (well or somewhat) Volunteers’ goals / expectations being met % volunteers who would recommend volunteering with SI
Valerie
70
72
75
Valerie / Tarka
£330,000
£360,000
£380,000
Volunteer survey, informal communications
73%
75%
80%
Narrative from check in sessions and survey results
n/a
Volunteer and exit data
96%
survey survey
n/a
96%
96%
90% (645 agree 2 strongly)
Helping Out – 2006-7 http://www.ivr.org.uk/component/ivr/helping-out-a-national-survey-ofvolunteering-and-charitable-giving 1
2
Anecdotal evidence from National Trust who are the only known organisation to measure this
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YOU SAID, WE LISTENED You carry out your main volunteer role a few times per year.
With this information we are better able to manage expectations of potential and new volunteers.
Feeling part of Shared Interest is important to you but some of you felt isolated when carrying out your role.
We will work to develop networking within and among volunteers to encourage a sense of belonging, learning and sharing. We will look at how we can increase the connections and contact between volunteers and staff and this will mainly be remotely.
Making a difference is important to you.
We are working to improve how we communicate this difference to you. Initiatives such as the new share capital map and sharing new case studies through to how, and when, we say thank you are all important in doing this.
Your motivations for volunteering with Shared Interest are varied and changeable.
We endeavour to engage with you on a personalised level to help maintain your engagement and motivation in your role and to support you through any changes to your involvement.
You felt we could do more to support you in generating opportunities in your local area.
While this is always a challenge as we are not in your local areas we are developing new materials in response to your ideas on how we can help you. These include a postcard for groups / organisations to invite a volunteer to run a stall, deliver a presentation etc, a newsletter template for you to use with local newsletters / media and call outs to members to encourage them to invite Shared Interest to events in their area.
You felt you received support when you needed it.
We are working on developing how we support, engage and motivate our volunteers on an ongoing basis and will be implementing new initiatives around this in the coming few months. We will be in touch with you all to arrange an opportunity to discuss this with you individually.
You would recommend volunteering with Shared Interest to others.
We will be developing our volunteer involvement and looking at what roles we have available for new volunteers.
You would like more information about the impact you have on Shared Interest achieving our mission.
We are developing new ways in which to show the impact of your involvement on our work, bearing in mind the diverse roles you have.
You found volunteering with Shared Interest to be ‘interesting’, ‘challenging’ and ‘worthwhile’.
We look forward to continuing to support, encourage and work with you to achieve Shared Interest’s mission.
We welcome any comments or feedback you may have about your volunteering with Shared Interest. Contact Sally or Alan on volunteers@shared-interest.com or 0191 233 9103 14 | P a g e
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