Non-profit organizations have much to teach for-profits about leadership development. The very success of nonprofits is heavily dependent on volunteerism and healthy volunteerism is heavily dependent on a deep understanding of leadership, specifically, a leadership structure that allows many people to flourish instead of a few. In every non-profit organization and for every event, you can bet someone is creating the structures within which volunteers can not only co-exist but thrive as they move collectively towards the mission.
The leadership stakes are high for nonprofits and having built and led high-functioning volunteer teams over the years, I can point you towards the following concepts.
Meaningful mission. The reason people volunteer is to add more meaning to their lives, to be a part of something bigger than themselves. Nonprofits, by definition, operate on meaningful mission. The key is to connect people to the meaning of the mission in ways that make sense for them and help them shine.
Yes, that means you will have to have conversations with each volunteer in order to help them find their fit within the mission.
And, yes, you will need to regularly point your teams back to the big missional narrative whenever you sense a lagging of energy. Nonprofit work is both good for and hard for the soul.
Distributed Leadership. Leadership doesn’t have to be hierarchical to be effective. Most people have some area in which their experience or skill or even heart equips them to take lead. Create as many opportunities as you can to showcase the contributions of your team. Even people who say they don’t like to be in charge are able to lead out of their unique viewpoint or skillset.
Maybe it’s an artist creating an art project for kids to do and leading them through that.
Maybe it’s a teenager who thinks in lists and creates an event “to-do” list and then helps volunteers find their role within the list.
Maybe it’s a writer who creates a script for an educational session.
Communications. The old adage “you can’t overcommunicate” still holds water, especially within volunteer teams. It is easy for a volunteerism to become background noise to the fabric of their lives—jobs, families, sports teams, churches. Make sure your communication honors the additional time commitments people have, but is also thoughtful, thorough and consistent.
Volunteers are bumped into leadership simply by being “in the know”. It’s important that they know what’s going on and have been given clear language for the mission, both overall and specific to the event.
Also, keep in mind that one-on-one communication is still the most powerful way to connect with your volunteers. All those group emails and social media posts aren’t effective if they are getting lost in the online noise.
Celebrations and Laments. Many nonprofits spend energy and resources on the mission but neglect the many volunteers who are on mission with them. Take time to celebrate “wins” and even lament “losses” together. Now I’m not talking about an annual volunteer banquet. I repeat. I am not talking about an annual volunteer banquet.
I am talking about intentionally building space for reflection along the journey. Deep breathe, listen with humility and do not get defensive. These are not “us v. them” exercises; rather, just “us” learning from each other. Bringing volunteers into these types of conversations builds leadership in subtle and not-so-subtle ways that strengthen the overall mission.
This can look like a lot of things but here are just a few ideas I have seen work well.
Casual post-event team debrief dinner where you talk about what worked and what didn’t. Take notes, end your time with a review of these notes and refer to them for your next event.
Slightly less casual post-event team family dinner where you ask various team leaders to share a “win” from the event. Maybe even videotape these segments prior to the event so that it can be shared beyond this gathering.
Impromptu Happy Hour to celebrate the work being done and the people doing the work.
Volunteer online surveys. Keep them simple and keep them anonymous. Share results in an email or at the next team training, followed up by conversation of how the organization can improve. Then actually follow through and make it better.
Developing leaders is not rocket science but it is more often than not, a long game, requiring intentionality, humility and patience. It’s not always easy to “prove” success as typical business metrics don’t apply. However, as the organizational culture improves and your volunteers become evangelists, the spirit and message of the mission will move into new spaces and make the difference you seek. And isn’t that the point?
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