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Monday Sep 01, 2008
What becomes of an ex-volunteer?
Two months ago I left the organisation I'd been volunteering with since I was a kid. It was a fairly amicable split (at least on my part) and I'd been planning it for a while. The reasons that I left aren't that important (nor particularly interesting); what is more significant is what happens now.
When you leave an established job, unless you've been disciplined out or made redundant by evil new management, the chances are when you have your farewell drinks won't be the last time you remain in contact with the organisation or it's employees. The level you stay in touch is really up to you: from setting up your own consultancy that your old company then hires you back to do the work you were previously doing whilst in their pay, through to an occasional drink with your former colleagues when you happen to be near their office.
Good managers recognise that as an ex-employee you have tremendous knowledge and experience about what they do, and often it's a good idea to keep you on side. Quite often that's informal; I've occasionally taken calls or emails from my previous place of work asking "how did you do that when you were here?" or "can you remember the code for this thing?". And generally I'm happy to answer them.
But with volunteering it's a bit different. Because there is no payment involved, any contact you have with an organisation is "volunteering", and once you step down from being a volunteer for them, then it needs to be a total split. In a lot of ways, that's a good thing; otherwise you get the infamous voluntary sector workload-creep, and suddenly you find that despite leaving the organisation you are still doing things for them and worrying about them.
However, it also means that volunteer organisations aren't very good at building on best practice: if someone has been doing a role for a while and then leaves, you need them to be able to explain why they made the choices they did in their role, so others don't have to go through the same learning experience. Volunteers, like employees, can have huge knowledge bases about a particular area of your organisation's field of work.
And whilst employees have to give notice periods, volunteers can be here-today-gone-tomorrow. They can leave right in the middle of a project or event. I've known projects that have come to a standstill as a result of a key volunteer leaving. How many websites are there which haven't been updated since a volunteer webmaster quit – often forgetting (or refusing) to pass the login details on?
As for me - I'm not quite sure what my next move is. But, I've already had several invites to be involved in things for the organisation I left. On the one hand, it's flattering to be recognised for the contribution that I can make. On the other, I left for a reason. That should tell them all they need to know.
Posted by Olly Benson ( 8:24 AM ) Link to this post Comments[4]
I just want to know, did the experience of volunteering leave you a better person. What were the good and bad experiences. Our organization is offering some volunteer opportunities and we would like to hear your side of the story to ensure that we avoid some of the mistakes of hosting an international volunteer. We also want you to visit the site and recommend someone you know who could be intrested to volunteer in Africa.
We have seven positions but if we get more, we can always recommend them to our partners, especially one foundation that is working in the rurall Rift Valley Region, the samwelkadie foundation, www.samwelkandiefoundation.org
We believe in building formidable partnerships and we would never forget work being done by our partners.
Would you mind emailing me of the successes that you think are in direct relation to your volunteerism.
Thanks Agai,
And let that Sipirt of Volunteerism continue,
Once A Volunteer, Always A Volunteer....In other ways.
Posted by Patrick Njuguna on September 17, 2008 at 01:28 PM GMT+00:00 #
so tecnicaly i am still a member as the county office officer told me so i now just pop in on meeting nights when i can and help with colections
i am thinking of taking up a more full membership again but i will talk to the superintendant first to arange training
the first superintendant has long gone
Posted by christopher mark panton on October 09, 2008 at 07:26 AM GMT+00:00 #
When I was absent last week, I was asked to pay double this week?
Is this correct practice? Am I being ripped off?
Posted by Fleur on October 14, 2008 at 11:48 PM GMT+00:00 #
Earlier this year a new Manager was appointed to the Volunteer Centre and within three months I was told I was no longer wanted - no explanation, no apology, no thanks from the Volunteer Centre for all the work I had done for them. Other members of staff in the building were very upset by this but as a volunteer, not a paid member of staff, I had no option but to leave.
Not only was I extremly upset by this, but I now cannot search for a new opportunity because for obvious reasons I don't wish to have any further contact with the local Volunteer Centre. For the first time in my adult life - and I'm a fit 62 year old - I am no longer volunteering.
Posted by Liz on October 15, 2008 at 09:37 AM GMT+00:00 #