Articles by CharityChannel Members
CharityChannel members who have years of experience in their field may apply to join a Contributor's Panel. Once accepted to a panel by the panel's editor, the member will work with the editor to determine article topics and to prepare an article that is ready for publication. With tens of thousands of colleagues in the CharityChannel professional community, this is a key opportunity to give back to your profession by sharing your hard-won expertise and wisdom.
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Are You "Keeping Them Coming Back"? Contributed by:
Susan MoscareilloWednesday, April 06, 2005 (8 years 39 days ago)
What exactly "keeps volunteers coming back"? What are the obvious and not so obvious components of creating and sustaining a successful volunteer program?
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You Can't Always Get What You Want: The Frustrations of Being Really Good at What You Do and Still Striking Out (Sometimes) Contributed by:
Susan MoscareilloWednesday, March 09, 2005 (8 years 67 days ago)
Even .300 hitters strike out more than they make contact. Even when you're doing your best as a manager of volunteers, some times, things don't turn out the way you wish they would.
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Elevating Our Message: Thoughts About the "Bad Words" of Volunteer Management Contributed by:
Susan MoscareilloWednesday, February 09, 2005 (8 years 95 days ago)
The times "they are a changin" -- it's time to "updump" the words we use to describe the valuable work that volunteers do and elevate the language we use in conveying the value they bring to our nonprofit agencies.
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Would You Volunteer for You? Contributed by:
Susan MoscareilloWednesday, January 12, 2005 (8 years 123 days ago)
Our past experiences as volunteers may offer valuable insights into how we manage our volunteer program today.
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Keep Your Sunny Side Up: One Dozen (Suggested) Rules to Live By as a Manager of Volunteers Contributed by:
Susan MoscareilloWednesday, April 28, 2004 (9 years 17 days ago)
Despite our best intentions and all the books and articles we've read about motivating our volunteers -- about discovering and pursuing the practices that will make them productive and keep them around -- sometimes things go wrong.
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Secrets of the Nonprofit Ladies Luncheon League: What "They" Won't Tell You About Managing a Volunteer Program Contributed by:
Susan MoscareilloFriday, July 25, 2003 (9 years 295 days ago)
We have read all the books and articles. Taken the classes that tell us how to recruit and train and keep volunteers. Knowledgeable and enthusiastic, we begin our careers as managers of volunteer programs thinking that if we follow all the formulas we will be successful in reaching our goals. Psst -- it doesn't work that way. It's more complicated than books will tell you. So if everything isn't going as smoothly as you thought it would, it's probably that you haven't yet learned the "tricks of the trade" that experience will teach you.
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Observations of a Surprised Director of Volunteers: The Joy of Helping Your Volunteers Bloom Contributed by:
Susan MoscareilloWednesday, July 16, 2003 (9 years 304 days ago)
I guess we never know people as well as we think we do. How else can you explain, despite hours of conversation, that I didn't know that my new volunteer was shy?
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'I'm Bored': The Words That Can Lead to Positive Change in Your Volunteer Program Contributed by:
Susan MoscareilloWednesday, June 18, 2003 (9 years 332 days ago)
You know my volunteer Harvey. I wrote about him in the VMR article, "Selling the Volunteer Program: It All Begins With You." Harvey is a retired salesman who does the cold calling to prospect for new volunteer groups for our Baltimore Ronald McDonald House. Harvey always keeps me thinking. This week, as we sat discussing his assignment for the day, he said: "This is a good idea you came up with. I like to be challenged. I need to be challenged." Uh, oh. I didn't know he was bored.
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Becoming the Best You Can Be: Creating Yourself as a New Volunteer Manager Contributed by:
Susan MoscareilloWednesday, April 09, 2003 (10 years 37 days ago)
Three years ago, as a fledgling volunteer manager hired to direct the volunteer program of the Baltimore Ronald McDonald House, I faced unexpected professional challenges. I was surprised to discover that the volunteer program I inherited was understaffed, disorganized and mediocre in quality.
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Selling the Volunteer Program: It All Begins With You Contributed by:
Susan MoscareilloWednesday, February 05, 2003 (10 years 100 days ago)
One of the most important lessons I ever learned about selling came from the man who installed a new roof on my house. The weather was good, business was good and he was a happy man. "But," he said, "in another month, my guys will be sitting around with no work." Why, I asked?
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Back to Basics in 2003: Communicate, Listen and Improve Contributed by:
Susan MoscareilloWednesday, January 08, 2003 (10 years 128 days ago)
The strongest performers in any field know that success builds from a solid foundation of planning, fundamentals and training. Make a commitment now to begin 2003 with a review of the basic elements of your volunteer program, from applications to written policies, with the goal of making them more effective and empowering for the volunteer staff they support.
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From Denial to Resolution: Helping Your Volunteers Cope With Grief Contributed by:
Susan MoscareilloWednesday, December 04, 2002 (10 years 163 days ago)
It is an overwhelming statistic - 2.4 million people die each year in the United States. That means that 19 million people find themselves newly bereaved of friends, family - or clients they have served as volunteers. Do you know how to help your volunteers deal with the loss of a client they have served, come to know and care about? Whether your agency serves the elderly, sick or other populations at risk, eventually you will have to tell your volunteers that someone they have served has died.
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Meet Generation Jones: The Potential Volunteers You May Be Missing Contributed by:
Susan MoscareilloWednesday, July 24, 2002 (10 years 296 days ago)
Generation Jones: (1) Twenty five percent of the U.S. population (2) Someone born between 1954-1965 (3) A practical idealist.
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Your Personal Signature: The Management Style That Empowers Your Volunteer Program Contributed by:
Susan MoscareilloSunday, July 21, 2002 (10 years 299 days ago)
When people talk about what makes the volunteer program of a non-profit agency successful, many factors are discussed such as meeting recruiting goals, excellent training and talented volunteers that provide substantial value added to the agency budget.
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'Segmenting' Your Volunteers: How to Avoid The Dreaded 'Dry Spell' Contributed by:
Susan MoscareilloWednesday, June 12, 2002 (10 years 338 days ago)
Small businesses often fail for one specific reason: the business loses its big-spending customers who comprise a small percentage of their customer base.
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Trust: The Unseen Component of Your Volunteer Program Contributed by:
Susan MoscareilloWednesday, June 05, 2002 (10 years 345 days ago)
Our ability to trust has been compromised on so many levels since September 11 that I guess it was natural that a lunchtime conversation with one of my very wise volunteers would turn to trust, and how it is created and sustained between an agency and its volunteer staff.
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Putting the Power of 'Value Added' to Work for YOUR Volunteer Program Contributed by:
Susan MoscareilloWednesday, April 24, 2002 (11 years 22 days ago)
When media salesmen are trying to sell more air time to their clients using the concept of "added value," they’re talking about extra benefits that will stretch their clients' dollar.
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Do You Have a Volunteer Satisfaction Plan? Contributed by:
Susan MoscareilloWednesday, February 20, 2002 (11 years 85 days ago)
As the director of a volunteer program, you carefully recruit, screen and train your volunteers. Have you created a plan with measurable results to retain your volunteers?
CharityChannel's WE REVIEW
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