Recreation: Volunteer Recruitment and Onboarding Risk Management

Wednesday, January 24 | 11:00 - 12:15 p.m.


Session Description:
Those who supervise and support volunteers must balance creating rewarding, safe experiences for volunteers with meeting organizational needs and managing risk. Using a risk management lens, this volunteer engagement primer will highlight best practices for recruitment, screening, placement and training. This session will also include strategies and tips for navigating a unionized workplace. Come prepared to share your experiences and to develop strategies & practices that will strengthen your organization's volunteer engagement.

Need for Session: 
Community engagement done well strengthens community and serves as a source of civic pride. Most local government is moderately- to highly-reliant on volunteers to help them accomplish goals and deliver services. Effective volunteer engagement can build community and augment services, but it requires an organizational commitment to adequate resources, a culture of respect and informed policy and consistent practices. For well-established volunteer "˜programs", this best practices primer will be a valuable review; for organizations newer to volunteer engagement, this primer provides crucial information. How best to involve volunteers in your organization is a valuable discussion

Speaker:
Patrick Tefft, CVA, City of Kirkland

Patrick Tefft, CVA has 25 years experience in volunteer engagement within government and nonprofit organizations. He advocates for informed best practices, clearly-communicated expectations, respect of the volunteer and risk management review. Tefft earned a Certificate in Volunteer Administration in 2012; renewed in 2017. He is the Volunteer Services Coordinator with the City of Kirkland, which engaged 4,472 volunteers in 2016.