Purchase videos on 'Understanding and engaging 21st century volunteers' and 'Social media and volunteer management.'

Whilst there are plenty of ideas for having an effective and healthy volunteer program, we’ve put together a list of the ones that we consider imperative for a truly successful program that is adaptable to most community organisations. Here are 10 commandments, and whist they are not set in stone, we challenge you to think about them and discuss with your colleagues.

Volunteering Queensland's 2017 State Volunteering Conference was a resounding success, enabling volunteer-involving organisations to advance their cause, inspiring programs and people, and increasing overall knowledge and understanding of the volunteering industry. On 8 and 9 June 2017, over 80 delegates from across Queensland came together for the inaugural State Volunteering Conference. The delegates were presented with a wealth of information, strategic and practical advice, support and encouragement through engaging presentations by renowned experts, panel discussions, interactive workshops and networking opportunities that prompted conversation on the volunteering climate. Many of the conference presenters travelled far and wide, from interstate or overseas, to share their knowledge and insights to better the future of volunteering throughout Queensland and the wider Australian community. We would like to extend our gratitude to all of our wonderful and inspiring dignitaries, delegates, presenters, panel members, facilitators, board, staff and volunteers who made the conference such a huge triumph. And, a big thank you to our conference sponsor Queensland Fire and Emergency Services.

We can help you recruit the volunteers you need to advance your cause

New ABS data shows volunteering rates in Australia are declining for the first time in almost 20 years with 75% of people surveyed saying they feel rushed or pressed for time. Results of the Australian Bureau of Statistics 2014 General Social Survey released yesterday provide a snapshot of Australia’s progress on aspects of wellbeing, such as life satisfaction and community participation, and reports that volunteering in Australia has fallen since 2010.

Volunteering Queensland facilitated an engaging workshop on volunteer management at the inaugural Ipswich Visitor Information Centre Volunteers' Conference, held at Woodlands of Marburg in early March. The session 'Be a Volunteer Manager for a Day!' was delivered by Teresa Krumenacher, our Trainer and Assessor, who spoke about how to recruit, retain and reward volunteers. Giving volunteers in attendance a look at what goes on behind the scenes with managing volunteers - aimed at cultivating an appreciation for why staff may do the things they do.

Be inspired, meet volunteers from other organisations and enjoy a great day of express workshops for personal and professional development in August.

Does your organisation benefit from the work of dedicated volunteers? National Volunteer Week is the best time to celebrate their inspiring efforts! Join in this nation-wide event that acknowledges the generous contribution of Australia’s outstanding volunteers.

During National Student Volunteer Week, QUT and Volunteering Queensland held a special project development day as part of the Changemaker Program. The Changemaker Program is a unique collaboration which supports 10 students over 12 months to take an innovative idea with a social justice impact and make it happen. At this event Volunteering Queensland launched two thoughtful new publications.

Accredited training for volunteer managers

A blog post from Mark Creyton our Director of Education, Research and Policy In working with a number of collaborative efforts over the past twenty years between nonprofits, corporates and universities I have come to several counter-intuitive understandings. Top of my list is that collaboration begins alone. Too often the effort to collaborate, whether this be instigated by financial hardship or opportunity, policy change, or good intentions, is rushed and over-anxious. Too many organisations and individuals seek to partner before they have genuinely understood and established themselves. Without a clear identity, collaboration either washes over or colonises and each leads to poor outcomes and a resistance to future efforts to work together.

Imagine you are in a key strategic meeting with a room full of people that look, sound, think and act like you. How many actually need to be there? These days, building a culturally diverse workforce is viewed by most as a powerful strategy for encouraging, innovation and productivity. However the focus seems to have been largely on paid staff rather than on volunteers.

Are you looking to attract young, enthusiastic, tech-savvy Millennial volunteers to your organisation? Volunteering Queensland will help you achieve that goal with our latest publication - Engaging Millennial Volunteers: Understanding a New Breed of Volunteers.

On 19-20 February 2015 we held our fourth annual un-conference, the Innovate Symposium, at the Griffith University EcoCentre. The event brought together over 70 people committed to social justice and sustainable communities (professional practitioners from various sectors, community leaders, grassroots activists, researchers and students). During these two days, we explored the discourse of “soul” – a perspective that allows us to challenge and re-evaluate orthodox ways of thinking, working and advocating.

Dr. Megan Paull’s workshop: Dealing with the tough stuff – Managing the confrontational aspects of working with volunteers, explored the difficult questions on every volunteer manager’s mind. Booked out well in advance, their respect for volunteers was shown by this enthusiasm to understand how to approach challenging issues with due consideration.

We have all experienced occasions when we have entered a room full of people only to discover that you are the odd person out. How does it feel and what are the factors that are most likely to convince you to stay? There are thousands of organisations where you can volunteer your time and experience and it is possible that you have already narrowed down the type of organisation in which you would like to place yourself, based on the work they do and where they are located. What you may not have considered is who else works in the organisation and how you will be treated.

At our State Volunteering Conference, 8 – 9 June, Mercure Brisbane, you will hear from international, national and local experts in volunteerism. You will gain valuable resources to maximise the contribution of your volunteers, enhance the impact of your volunteer program and advance your cause. Over two days, there will be presentations, panel discussions and interactive workshops to equip attendees with ideas, strategies, best practices and new networks.

Today we celebrated the efforts of Queensland’s volunteers and community groups! Minister for Communities, Women and Youth, Minister for Child Safety, Minister for Multicultural Affairs, the Honourable Shannon Fentiman MP, officially launched National Volunteer Week and our ‘Community Resource Handbooks’. Ms Fentiman paid tribute to Queensland’s army of unsung heroes today, as she launched the handbooks to help potential volunteers set up their own groups.

Blog by Mark Creyton Over the years I have facilitated many workshops, forums and conferences in regards to volunteer management and the changing nature of volunteering. It is an important topic and the challenges of working with a much more diverse workforce, the increasingly episodic nature of volunteering and a more complex working environment are all serious topics which need our attention. Yet I feel that there are some other trends which are too often overlooked and which offer great potential for volunteer managers and leaders to improve their volunteer programs. Read on for four of my favourites.

For more than 34 years Volunteering Queensland has worked to advocate, represent, promote and support volunteer-involving organisations to deliver critical and valuable services through the successful endeavours of their volunteer workforce. As per our communication last December, Volunteering Queensland is no longer able to offer free associate membership due to funding constraints and increased operational costs. To continue to both advance our mission and ensure that volunteerism in Queensland continues to develop and flourish into the future we have introduced new affordable paid membership options that deliver many valuable benefits to our members.