Challenges of an All Volunteer Organization

Q. What are the challenges facing an all volunteer organization?   –Michael

A. Well, first off, “All Volunteer” screams “Non Profit” to me.  If people are not being paid for their time, it goes against logic to think they’re for profit. So based on that, there is something else driving their actions for the organization.  The motivation is there to do things faster and leaner.  When Bill Gates got started in his garage in the 70’s, it could be said that was an all volunteer venture.

Open Source is a solid example of a distributed organization of staff who are not paid for their contributions.

I came up with a list of the top 20 things that face an organization composed of unpaid staff:

1. Funding for staff eduction and training
2. Centralized data sharing for the organization
3. Funding for computer security to protect client data
4. Project management
5. Purchase Workstations, printers, laptops
6. Office consumables ie: printer cartridges, paper, office supplies
7. Email and spam control
8. Calendaring and client appointment scheduling
9. Electronic communication with clients
10. Electronic management of clients and caseload
11. Management of volunteers
12. Management and promotion of sponsors and gifts in kind
13. Marketing and press releases
14. Funding to improve database for better searches and reports
15. Financial management software and donation tracking
16. Fundraising
17. Transportation costs to client sites
18. Childcare for staff and clients
19. Tracking correspondence
20. Phone and fax