Case 7B: Asking For Help And Then Rejecting The Work Product.
Case 7B: Asking for Help and Then Rejecting the Work Product
This is a common problem on volunteer boards that are tightly controlled by Executive Administrators or officers who prefer to do everything themselves. They tend to micromanage the organization. They seldom delegate assignments, or once delegated, reject the volunteer’s work product because they consider the person’s effort inadequate, unnecessary, or duplicative.
For example, in this political organization, a volunteer was asked to provide table decorations, but when she arrived to put them out, she was told by the President that they wouldn’t be used because the tables were too small to accommodate decorations at all. Ouch. Very bad planning on the President’s part. When you ask …show more content…
Notwithstanding legitimate excuses (e.g., lack of time, family crisis, career responsibilities), you were probably very disappointed. And, if this person volunteered to lead the fundraising effort in your organization and then dropped the ball, you were probably in big trouble. This is what happened to me while I chaired this volunteer board’s largest community outreach program.
What do you do when a key volunteer doesn’t produce? Or vanishes without giving any excuses? Although you may feel like firing this person, terminating volunteers isn’t a healthy way to run an organization. I believe there are more “humane” ways to handle the situation.
First, resist the temptation to get even. Second, schedule a private meeting with this volunteer. Reassure him/her that nothing said at your meeting will be blabbed to anyone else. Confidentiality and trust are key. Third, find out what motivated this person to volunteer in the first place (see Table 7). Once you understand this person’s motivation and subsequent reasons for not following through, ask the volunteer to recommend a solution. This approach not only shows you respect the volunteer’s generosity, but also allows him/her to come up with an alternative solution (or even a substitute). If the volunteer cannot recommend a solution, be prepared to suggest some solutions yourself and (optimally) get their agreement on how to proceed. Table 9 suggests some additional strategies for engaging volunteers who don’t
This is a common problem on volunteer boards that are tightly controlled by Executive Administrators or officers who prefer to do everything themselves. They tend to micromanage the organization. They seldom delegate assignments, or once delegated, reject the volunteer’s work product because they consider the person’s effort inadequate, unnecessary, or duplicative.
For example, in this political organization, a volunteer was asked to provide table decorations, but when she arrived to put them out, she was told by the President that they wouldn’t be used because the tables were too small to accommodate decorations at all. Ouch. Very bad planning on the President’s part. When you ask …show more content…
Notwithstanding legitimate excuses (e.g., lack of time, family crisis, career responsibilities), you were probably very disappointed. And, if this person volunteered to lead the fundraising effort in your organization and then dropped the ball, you were probably in big trouble. This is what happened to me while I chaired this volunteer board’s largest community outreach program.
What do you do when a key volunteer doesn’t produce? Or vanishes without giving any excuses? Although you may feel like firing this person, terminating volunteers isn’t a healthy way to run an organization. I believe there are more “humane” ways to handle the situation.
First, resist the temptation to get even. Second, schedule a private meeting with this volunteer. Reassure him/her that nothing said at your meeting will be blabbed to anyone else. Confidentiality and trust are key. Third, find out what motivated this person to volunteer in the first place (see Table 7). Once you understand this person’s motivation and subsequent reasons for not following through, ask the volunteer to recommend a solution. This approach not only shows you respect the volunteer’s generosity, but also allows him/her to come up with an alternative solution (or even a substitute). If the volunteer cannot recommend a solution, be prepared to suggest some solutions yourself and (optimally) get their agreement on how to proceed. Table 9 suggests some additional strategies for engaging volunteers who don’t