F-M DOVS Volunteer Management Conference

Managing Risk: Balancing Aversion and Innovation

Topics will explore how balancing aversion and innovation to risk impacts our volunteers, programs and agencies, now and in the near and far futures. Our current streaming event will consist of 20 minute presentations, followed by a moderated discussion.

Is Soft Risk Hiding in your Volunteer Engagement Strategy?

Jennifer Bennett, CVA

This session is designed to help attendees identify soft risks in their organization and give them the tools to make the necessary changes to their organization’s volunteer engagement process and their culture of volunteer engagement, and to mitigate these risks.

Taking Smart Risks and Piloting Innovation

Lindsay Baker, CVA

In our desire to manage risk, we sometimes hesitate to develop new programs, explore alternative ways of engagement, or adapt to trends in the field. But what might happen if we don’t risk innovation in our volunteer programs? In this session, we will explore the delicate balance between risk and opportunity. Discover how to manage risk, test new ideas, and introduce fresh approaches through pilot projects designed to help you transform your program. Learn a proven step-by-step process to pitch your pilot, get staff on board, and evaluate its success. Find out how “failure” leads to success and why stepping outside of your comfort zone is always worth the risk.

Safe and Sound: Volunteer Management Check Up For Your Volunteer Program

Lori Gotlieb

As an administrator of volunteers, one of your key responsibilities is to protect your clients and volunteers from harm, and your organization from liability. But how can you be really sure that you have the all the necessary risk management systems in place? Are your policies and practices sufficient? Are your interview questions getting you the information you really need? Are your screening procedures appropriate? We will present practical tools and strategies so you can be confident that you have minimized the inherent risks in your program.

You will learn how to:

build a best practice foundation to minimize risk including policies, procedures, and position descriptions
work with staff to avoid the grey zone
ask the right questions to screen potential volunteers and learn how to say no
develop a volunteer support system to minimize ongoing risk

Managing Risk through Program Design

Sarah Olivieri

Are you using a program design that’s left over from the industrial revolution? If so, you may find it hard to bring about meaningful progress when it comes to managing risk. In fact you probably struggle to innovate for your mission as well. Our program design determines what we can and can’t do well. If we want to supercharge our ability to innovate, change, and successfully manage risks then we need to change the model we use to imagine our organizations. In this workshop you will learn a new model for program & organizational design and leave with tools to help you implement it in your nonprofit.

We will end the day with a panel of local Volunteer Managers sharing their experience pivoting in 2020!!

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