Volunteers. Volunteerism. Volunteer Management. Titles used to get more views on volunteer management blogs!

I haven’t blogged for a while. Been so busy with life and work. That happens. I’ve realised my blog is part of my life but not all of it. I come back here now and then to share A STORY or to impart some wisdom according to DJ Cronin!

I do have lots of stories to tell. But I was intrigued by an email I got today from Susan J Ellis. At the most recent Volunteer Manager conference in the US a group convened consisting of bloggers who blog about volunteer management. There happens to be a few. I imagine maybe 30 around the globe but I may be wrong.

A bloggers group met there. People who blog about volunteerism and volunteer management. And I admire them as I admire Susan (who I think is the reason so many of us have a voice today and for the fact that we consider ourselves a profession!)

Anyway I could not make this conference due to the fact that I could not gather a dollar to attend. (Happens to many volunteer coordinators around the world who are sometimes lucky to get a few coffee vouchers throughout the year)

And that kind of thinking led me to realise that I want to be there for those people who coordinate or lead or manage volunteers but have no budget! Its ok for me to say “If you are serious about your career then you will spend 70 bucks of your own money to join your “professional Association” If you are serious about being a volunteer management professional then you should spend hundreds if not thousands of your own dollars on professional development.

 Most of your regular volunteer coordinators or managers cannot afford professional development. And Guess why? Most of your regular volunteer coordinators or managers are poorly paid! And most of them get no budget. Yes….no budget….not just a small budget! Sometimes trainers and consultants forget this. This should not be the case because this needs to be a serious organisational policy! But there is no one there to push this through organisations. Or peak bodies are too busy dealing with Governments lack of intelligence of all matters volunteering.

But back to the bloggers group for I digress!

Groucho Marx once said that he would never want to be a member of a CLUB that would accept his membership. I’m wondering about a bloggers group and hoping that this blog gets their first debate going!

Blog about people who will never afford professional development because their organisations place no value on volunteer management

 Over to you