Volunteer Coordination Training
Volunteer Coordination ("VC") Training
Goals: 1) To prepare new employees, particularly entry-level staff, to effectively carry out VC duties at Free Geek 2) To orient new employees to Free Geek's expectations of volunteer conduct, discipline policy, staff conduct, and staff resources on the subject of VC 3) To educate and standardize a set of VC Best Practices across the organization
Training Format: - Trainings for new staff will be 1-hour modules, occurring within the first 2 weeks after hire. - VC Trainer will be Stephen or, in a pinch, another Collective member in VETS. New Hires Training Coordinator will work with the VC Trainer to schedule VC Training. - In addition to training content (outlined below), Stephen will explain his role as Volunteer Coordinator, as well as resources for staff who are seeking to improve their VC skills.
FG Volunteer Categories 1.Adoption: http://wiki.freegeek.org/index.php/Adoption_Program 2.Build: http://wiki.freegeek.org/index.php/Build 3.Interns: Free Geek offers a wide variety of internship positions in different areas of the organization. Some examples: Tech Support, Front Desk, Classroom Teachers, Hardware Grants Shepherds, Prebuild Instructors, Distro Interns. Many intern coordinators use RT (http://wiki.freegeek.org/index.php/RT) to track intake and training of interns after they have filled out the application on our website (http://www.freegeek.org/volunteer/internships/) or in the case of Build volunteers, filled out a post-build application (located on dead trees.) Area Coordinators will train their own staff on how to work with interns in that area, as processes vary from one program/area to the next. 4.Community Service Volunteers: http://wiki.freegeek.org/index.php/Community_Service_Procedure 5.Groups: http://wiki.freegeek.org/index.php/Group_volunteering 6.Agency-Referred: We occasionally work with volunteers who have been referred through outside agencies. Many of these volunteers slot in to one or more of the categories listed above, and so their involvement does not entail added management by staff. Some do require extra staff support, such as LEEP interns who work closely with one or more Reuse Coordinators, and volunteers who need to be supervised on-site by an agency representative due to a disability or other exceptional factor. Ask the Volunteer & Front Desk Coordinator if you have any questions about how to work with these referred volunteers and provide appropriate accommodations. 7.Super Long-Term, or “entrenched.” Entrenched volunteers have been around since before we implemented a variety of formalized procedures and standards for what volunteers were/n't privileged or expected to do. As such, you'll occasionally see that some volunteers have special privileges (e.g. Bob Griggs, Laptops volunteer, is let in early on Fridays so he can work on laptops without supervision) and some present certain challenges (e.g. a handful of Build and Hardware Testing volunteers who don't like to sign in at the Front Desk because we used to not require them to sign in when they would arrive.) Ask your supervisor to confirm which behaviors are allowed and which ones should be discouraged. Example behaviors that are never allowed: Verbal or physical assault and other unsafe behaviors (see http://wiki.freegeek.org/index.php/Volunteer_Discipline_Policy); Wearing open-toed shoes while volunteering; Bringing bags into the building without first getting a staff-approved bag pass.
Volunteer Motivation The range of motivations Free Geek volunteers bring with them is incredibly diverse. Some come here to learn about technology, some volunteer because they are looking for work and want to learn job skills, and others just want to volunteer a few hours and then take home their free computer. We as a staff are the common denominator, and collectively we are all responsible for volunteer retention. Our job, while coordinating volunteers on floor shifts, is to provide substantive task assignments, education and training, and a fun atmosphere.
A crucial aspect of our mission is to make technology accessible. We as a staff work together to carry out that mission by being flexible and responsive to each individual's motivation. It's important to listen to volunteers, ask them how they're doing and respond to their feedback in order to ensure that they are able to work on tasks that match their interest and skill level. If a volunteer seems to be unhappy in their role, work with them and the area coordinator to see if expectations can be adjusted to match what they prefer to do, or if they might be better placed in another area or program.
Effectively Orienting Volunteers to the Work Area
- Physical orientation of space, expectations around use of the space and clean-up
- Introduce staff/instructors and documentation/other resources
- Taking Breaks
- Emergency procedures, location of nearest 1st aid kit and fire exit, etc.
Setting Boundaries for Volunteer Responsibilities
- Where to draw the line between volunteer tasks and staff tasks,how to communicate this distinction
- Be flexible to volunteer's preference, but have specific assignments in mind.
- Always have back-up tasks prepared in case the work is slow.
- Know your priorities so that if there's too much work to get done, your volunteers can accomplish the most urgent tasks.
- NOTE: Each Area Coordinator will need to train their own floor staff on how to manage these priorities.
Volunteer Discipline Policy Background In order to understand the proposed volunteer policy, you should become familiar with the groups that we broke volunteers and offenses into. Volunteers are broken down into four categories: short term, established volunteers (meaning that they've been here for at least 6 weeks), unpaid interns, and interns paid by an outside agency (outside interns). Offenses at Free Geek have been broken down into four categories as well: Unforgivable -- stealing or physically harming others Malicious -- rudeness, baiting or insulting others, repeatedly ignoring instructions, disrespect of others, exhibiting aggressive behavior toward humans or machines, or exhibiting severely disruptive behavior Well-meaning mistake-makers -- pretty self explanatory Slackers -- also self explanatory Volunteer Discipline Policy Many of these offenses are dealt with by enacting our volunteer discipline policy. The policy is broken down into steps: (Step 0) The first time you notice behavior that isn't appropriate, think, "Can this volunteer's behavior be re-channeled?" Work with the volunteer. Ask them if they're unhappy with the task they've been given or if there's something else they'd like to be doing. Almost anyone can do cleaning or pulling apart floppy disks. If they're very energetic, is there some cardboard they can break down? If a build volunteer is taking up too much time because they lack computer skills and are therefore messing things up a lot in card sorting, perhaps they should go through the adoption program first. If you can't re-channel the volunteer for some reason, move on to step 1. Document what you did, and/or that you thought about this step. 1.Talk to the volunteer, letting him or her know that Free Geek has a policy regarding the behavior they are exhibiting. This may be as easy as saying, "Yelling in other peoples' ears and getting all up in their personal space isn't allowed at Free Geek. If I see you doing it again, we're going to have to have a talk." It's important to be specific about the behavior. If at all possible, say it with a staff person in earshot. Document the incident. 2.If the behavior happens again, you and another staff person should talk to the volunteer. Let them know what you've noticed them doing, and try to find out what's going on -- why are they doing it? Be flexible and make changes to their time here and the task they do according to their needs. Also, let them know what will happen if they continue behaving in the same way (i.e. let them know the next two steps of this policy). If applicable (if they're an outside intern and have an outside sponsor), call or email the sponsor to let them know what happened and the steps you're taking. Document the behavior you saw and what happened during the conversation. 3.If the same behavior continues, they get one more warning. Another staff person must be present. Let the volunteer know what you saw them doing again, and that if you see it again, they will be kicked out of Free Geek (or, if applicable, you'll call their outside sponsor and tell him or her not to give credit/paychecks to the intern). Document the incident. 4.If the behavior happens yet again, the volunteer is kicked out of Free Geek. Do this with another staff member, and document, document, document. Written Agreements and Documentation IMPORTANT: If the behavior/situation seems to be escalating and it doesn't look likely that it will go away by itself, the involved staff member should compose a letter for the volunteer and a staff member to sign. This may happen at step 2 above, but staff should talk to each other and use common sense regarding this. The letter should outline the offenses and actions already taken as well as the rest of the steps of the discipline policy. It should note that the steps will be put into effect if the volunteer's behavior continues to be a problem. The letter should also include the terms agreed upon by the volunteer and the staff member (for example, if the volunteer agreed not to bring in his or her GameBoy any more because it was too distracting, this should be noted). This letter should be printed out and the volunteer (or volunteer's guardian if he/she is a minor) should show his/her acceptance of it by signing it. The relevant staff member should sign it, too, then make a copy for Free Geek's records. The original should go to the volunteer. Documentation: this means that you create a ticket in the VolunteerIssues RT queue. Include when, where, who, what, why, how, and what step of the discipline policy you used. If you do not have access to the VolunteerIssues RT queue, send an email to the staff list with the same information, so we all know what happened and what step of the discipline policy you've enacted. See Documenting a Volunteer Issue Courses of Action Now, courses of action according to volunteer type and offense category: Volunteers who commit 'Unforgivable offenses' are kicked out of Free Geek, no matter what kind of volunteer they are. This is geographically inclusive (i.e. a volunteer who restricted from entering Free Geek's general facility is also not allowed in the store), as it is hard to restrict a person from one area and not another. The time period for the volunteer's dis-inclusion from Free Geek should be decided on a case-by-case basis. Many of these cases will require some investigation to be sure we know what went on. Volunteers who do something 'Malicious' should be run through the steps of the discipline policy. Volunteers who are 'Well-Meaning Mistake-Makers': go through the steps of the discipline policy with a soft touch. Concentrate on step 0 and try to find a volunteer task in which they cause the least damage. The discipline policy also applies to those who are 'slackers', although it's important to weigh the time we'll be spending with slackers against the energy it takes to enact the policy. The rule of thumb would be if someone is goofing off and not getting in the way, it's not as big of a deal as someone who is preventing non-slackers from getting work done, or encouraging others to slack off as well.
Conduct Guidelines The Free Geek Community Technology Center is a community organization that survives on volunteer and member service hours. Without these individuals, the program will not function. Many different people from many different backgrounds are participating. For everyone to get along and for the experience to be rewarding for all involved, everyone needs to respect each other. The following behaviors are considered unacceptable and will result in your dismissal from the program: Taking parts and/or equipment that you have not earned through your service hours. This constitutes stealing and will not be tolerated. Entering hours into your account that you have not worked. Threatening, or otherwise verbally or physically intimidating staff, volunteers, members or anyone else. Use of racist, sexist and/or homophobic language.
- How these guidelines are applied in floor areas
- How to coach a volunteer out of becoming volatile: change
context, keep it light, offer help, ask them to take a break, offer a new task or new work environment. If escalation continues, get a collective member.
De-escalation
Is there an immediate physical threat?
Emotions are contagious – we react to them faster than conscious thought.
Remain Calm
Re-direct – change space/body language
Re-focus the problem
W stands for WHEN… When you … State the specific behavior you don’t like.
I stands for I… I feel … Express your feeling or thought.
N stands for NEED… I need/want … Specify what it is that you want to change.
Some Tactics are: •Simply listening •Distracting the other person •Re-focusing the other person on something positive •Changing the subject •Use humor (sparingly) to lighten the mood (be very careful with this!) •Motivating the other person •Empathizing with the other person •Giving choices •Setting limits
Remain calm -- Listen - really listen! Avoid overreaction. Validate! “I understand why you might be upset.” (This does not indicate that you agree with them.) Remove onlookers -- or relocate to a safer place. (Onlookers can become either “cheerleaders” or additional victims.) Send an onlooker for help. Watch for non-verbal clues or threats. Bring in another trained person to assist whenever possible. There is less chance of aggressive behavior if two people are talking to one person.
Documentation!
Volunteer Appreciation!
VCI Committee: http://wiki.freegeek.org/index.php/Volunteer_and_Community_Interface. The VCI Committee shares primary responsibility with the Volunteer & Front Desk Coordinator to initiate, maintain and advance avenues for volunteer appreciation at Free Geek, as well as other Volunteer Programs tasks like responding to comments placed in the Comment Box. Established avenues for volunteer appreciation are described below. There is a standing invitation for any staff (assuming they have the available time) to participate in these volunteer appreciation efforts or to bring new ideas to the table. Assuming lack of time to participate on these levels, all staff who note exceptional contributions from specific volunteers are highly encouraged to pass on the volunteers' names to area coordinators so those efforts can be acknowledged.
Geek Love notes: these are colored slips of paper sitting in a plastic envelope mounted on the wall across from the public cork board in the hallway by the Volunteer Desk. These are available for any staff to write messages thanking specific volunteers or groups for work done well. Geek Love notes should be filled out and posted on the wall early and often.
Milestones: Volunteer Appreciation Rewards are presented to volunteers based on hours of volunteer time logged. Currently, rewards are given at 300, 600 and 1000 hours, and at thousand-hour increments thereafter. Additionally, each month a display in the Staff/Volunteer Kitchen should be updated to publicly acknowledge volunteers who have reached milestone hour totals and to thank them and volunteers generally.
Volunteer spotlights. At approximately monthly intervals, two volunteers are chosen via a nomination process to be highlighted with a photo and short bio on the Volunteer Appreciation display in the Kitchen.
Gift certificates/t-shirts/other perks: At the discretion of area coordinators, some volunteers may occasionally be given small gifts thanking them for doing something exceptional. Currently Free Geek does not specifically account for Volunteer Appreciation expenses, so the process for approving a purchase is the same as other expenditure purchases: http://wiki.freegeek.org/index.php/Staff_Spending_Guidelines. Some items can also be acquired through soliciting in-kind donations from local businesses. Giveaways of Free Geek t-shirts must be cleared in advanced through the Sales Coordinator.
Annual Volunteer BBQ: this event is our big-splash outdoor BBQ/concert/raffle/trivia contest day, open to all FG volunteers, to thank them for their tireless support. Coordinated by a cross-section of staff and spearheaded by the Volunteer & Front Desk Coordinator.
Holiday Party: this is our other annual volunteer appreciation event, held around Christmas time. Past events have involved lots of food and drinks, showings of A Christmas Story, costumes, and white elephant gift exchanges.