Trends and Issues

Now more than ever, technology is playing an all-encompassing role in keeping nonprofits and volunteer programs going. While volunteer-matching apps and social media platforms have been around for a while, social distancing takes us to a whole other level in terms of technology use. In this issue of Research to Practice, Laurie Mook looks at a study of nonprofits in Hong Kong which explored in-depth how technology reconfigured their volunteer management. We focus mainly on the challenges these nonprofits faced to highlight the limitations and unintended negative consequences of going online. The study also suggests several ways to optimize online volunteer resource management, including how to engage your volunteers while programs are put on hold.

Do you ever feel like you’re treading water in this vast volunteer management ocean? Struggling against perceptions of what you do that simply don’t match the reality? As Meridian Swift writes, “I know I did. It took getting out and drying off to uncover what was missing in my volunteer management career.”

In this e-Volunteerism feature, well-known volunteer expert Swift reviews how leaving the profession helped her gain new perspectives and insights into volunteer management, and helped Swift see that what she really needed, metaphorically speaking,  was a “boat. . . a sturdy foundation that would keep me from treading water.” As Swift writes:

“I began to look at it in a different light. What could have made volunteer management more respected? I dove into researching everything from HR trends, to systems and project management, to ecological symbiosis. Research made me realize that it is we, the volunteer managers, who must control the perception of volunteer management. . . So let’s pull ourselves out of the water and build a boat that lifts high the volunteerism sail.”

Should volunteer professionals expect to be paid for publishing and presenting? Or is there value in blogging and writing about volunteer management in order to share knowledge with peers in the field?

In this Voices, co-editor Allyson Drinnon explores these questions. She taps into the expertise of e-Volunteerism’s own Rob Jackson, a steadfast proponent of writing to expand the profession who shares they four key reasons he writes and why other volunteer professionals should, too. Drinnon also includes her own thoughts on the subject, with additional comments and insights from volunteer management expert Meridian Swift. 

With more and more volunteer recruitment done online, it is important to take a step back and look at who has or doesn’t have the opportunity to volunteer as a result of not having household Internet access. Has digital access changed the demographics of who is being asked to volunteer or to serve in leadership positions such as on a board? In this issue’s Research to Practice, Laurie Mook reviews a study on the influence of household Internet access on formal and informal volunteering. The results confirm that “volunteer recruitment may not always be an inclusive process” and that nonprofits have a role in bridging this digital divide.

With technological advances growing at an ever-frantic pace, questions and concerns have been raised about the intersection of technology and volunteers. Are technological advances such as robotics, artificial intelligence, drones, and computers likely to displace many volunteer professions? Will these advances potentially leave millions out of traditional work roles? And what of voluntary roles? Is it likely that robots and other technology might eventually replace many volunteer roles? And is this a good thing or not?

In this feature, Andy Fryar, e-Volunteerism’s intrepid manuscripts developer who knows a thing or two about technology, explores answers to all of these questions, reviewing possible implications for both the volunteer and paid workforces. If a robot is primed to steal your volunteers, Fryar will let you know.