Fair Play

with JOHN ARCURI

Successfully Growing Your Volunteer Network

gardless of whether we are meeting with indi- viduals active in Municipal, Provincial or Federal politics, the undeniable fact is, there is a real and tangible shortage of political volunteers in Canada. As unfortunate as that may be, the reason for the shortage is completely understandable. Given busy schedules, fewer and fewer individuals are prepared to make a sustainable commitment to a cause. Peo- ple are simply working more and working longer than they ever have. Given the current economic climate, free time is at a considerable premium. The recent economic downturn, coupled with an increase in the number of credible causes seeking volunteers, has created a somewhat competitive environment in Canada. An environment where a variety of organizations are vying for the atten- tion of willing and motivated volunteers. This can make staffing a successful political campaign or a fundraising program solely with a volunteer base virtually impossible.

A

s a provider of political support services, one question Momentuum is repeatedly asked is “where have all the volunteers gone?”. Re-

their volunteer networks. They recognize that the important work necessary to win an election or to support a riding association still needs to get done, but somehow more efficiently and effectively. It starts with embracing the philosophy that volun- teers are the life blood of any political movement. Therefore they must be treated with the utmost respect and whenever possible rewarded for their efforts. Private sector companies have successfully adopted a culture of fostering and rewarding their customers, employees and members for their loyal- ty and commitment. It simply makes sense to learn from their experience and to do the same for polit- ical volunteers. With so little free time and so much competition, finding and keeping new volunteers can be a daunting challenge. Relying exclusively on traditional methods (mass media, family circles, social events, etc) to identify the next generation of volunteers is not sufficient enough to get the job done.

Volunteer Recruitment & Co-ordination Programs

Many political organizations have begun to

It is extremely important that volunteers know that they are making a difference. Volunteer programs must provide continuous feedback related to the impact that their “individual” efforts are making on the overall goals and objectives of the candidate or political party.

A New Approach

Faced with this new reality, forward thinking political parties are embracing a new approach to recruiting, training, coordinating and motivating

64 Politics | Canadian Edition

work with innovative political services firms like Momentuum who now offer focused volunteer recruitment and training programs which are de- signed to assist in the identification and recruit- ment of new volunteers. These successful pro- grams are geared specifically towards leveraging new technologies to deliver a party’s message to a broader range of “key influencers” and to establish an ongoing interactive dialog to keep these poten- tial volunteers engaged. Similar to voter identifi- cation programs, volunteer recruitment programs efficiently reach out to individuals using the com- munication channel of their choice (mail, phone, email, text message, social network) and clearly and succinctly explain the tangible and often ur- gent need that exists, the concrete tasks that need to be accomplished and the ultimate benefit of ac- complishing these tasks. This is the first step in a series of continuous and interactive communica- tions. Communications that keeps the volunteer informed and engaged and that provides them with a direct and personalized forum to provide feedback to the party. Page 1  |  Page 2  |  Page 3  |  Page 4  |  Page 5  |  Page 6  |  Page 7  |  Page 8  |  Page 9  |  Page 10  |  Page 11  |  Page 12  |  Page 13  |  Page 14  |  Page 15  |  Page 16  |  Page 17  |  Page 18  |  Page 19  |  Page 20  |  Page 21  |  Page 22  |  Page 23  |  Page 24  |  Page 25  |  Page 26  |  Page 27  |  Page 28  |  Page 29  |  Page 30  |  Page 31  |  Page 32  |  Page 33  |  Page 34  |  Page 35  |  Page 36  |  Page 37  |  Page 38  |  Page 39  |  Page 40  |  Page 41  |  Page 42  |  Page 43  |  Page 44  |  Page 45  |  Page 46  |  Page 47  |  Page 48  |  Page 49  |  Page 50  |  Page 51  |  Page 52  |  Page 53  |  Page 54  |  Page 55  |  Page 56  |  Page 57  |  Page 58  |  Page 59  |  Page 60  |  Page 61  |  Page 62  |  Page 63  |  Page 64  |  Page 65  |  Page 66  |  Page 67  |  Page 68  |  Page 69