Local Volunteer Centres are prepared to respond to many training needs,

 

 

The Canadian Code for Volunteer Involvement provides voluntary and nonprofit organizations with a philosophical framework for involving volunteers at the governance, leadership and direct service levels. The Code outlines the values, principles, and standards for effective volunteer management and development practices within organizations. It also includes the Organizational Standards Checklist, which assists organizations to evaluate and improve their volunteer programs.

 

 

 

The Volunteer Management Audit has been developed as a tool for nonprofit and charitable organizations to assess their volunteer resources program. This audit tool is composed of seven sections which provide important information about volunteer involvement and management practices within your organization. Volunteer Centre trainers and consultants can assist your organization in reviewing its practices and offer additional information and tips to make your organization’s audit process a valuable process. Please note that it is not necessary for your organization to have adopted the Canadian Code for Volunteer Involvement in order to complete the audit.

 

 

 

The purpose of this training is to provide an overview of the key findings of the 2000 National Survey of Giving, Volunteering and Participating (NSGVP). It presents a “top of the trees” look at the 2000 NSGVP. Using tools and exercises, participants are encouraged to reflect upon and discuss management implications of the key findings.

 

 

 

Voluntary organizations often identify the need to consult stakeholders in the development, design, delivery or review of service and programs. The Hosting a Facilitated Discussion workbook and training session have been developed as a tool to assist organizations in collecting stakeholder information and comments in a practical way. By participating in a training workshop on facilitated discussions and following the steps in the workbook, voluntary organization staff and/or volunteers can systematically capture stakeholder comments and data and develop strategies to integrate this information into program design and delivery.

 

 

 

Any organization that provides programs for children or other vulnerable people has a moral, ethical, and legal duty to protect the participants in their programs. This "Duty of Care" is the single most important reason for implementing a screening policy. The goal of training on Screening is to assist organizations in their efforts to protect people from harm. To protect participants in volunteer programs, Volunteer Canada recommends a 10-step screening process for organizations. These Safe Steps will guide organizations in considering the risks they face, selecting the appropriate candidates for positions, and ensuring - as much as possible - that these candidates do not cause harm.

 

 

 

VIVE educates participants about the importance of mission and organizational climate in enhancing volunteer effort in all-volunteer groups. This workshop assists participants in developing skills and techniques to maximize and improve the quality of their work and to foster volunteer motivation and participation. Most volunteer management training is geared towards highly structured, well-resourced organizations; this unique workshop targets those organizations where the majority of volunteer work takes place ---grassroots volunteer groups.

 

 

 

The role of volunteering has changed and the voluntary sector faces many challenges: changing demographics, changing expectations of volunteers; concerns of risk management, a rethinking of governance theory. Volunteers have changed: they have less time to give and greater skills to offer. By adapting learnings from a wealth of human resources and corporate theory, A Matter of Design provides an exciting new perspective on engaging volunteers. By challenging organizations to fundamentally rethink the involvement of volunteers, starting with an analysis of mission and moving through the elements of volunteer involvement, this thought-provoking training examines how to create volunteer opportunities that both help the organization fulfill its mandate and are satisfying for volunteers. The resource will give you the theory, and the trainer/consultant will walk you through the process, step-by-step, using helpful templates and examples of small, medium and large voluntary organizations.

 

 

 

Many nonprofits are finding innovative and exciting ways to enhance resources by involving the business community to meet this challenge. Businesses and corporations are willing to give generously to the community, but they expect returns on their investments. They have realized that collaborations with nonprofit organizations can be a win-win partnership. Improving public image, broadening the client base and good publicity are just a few ways businesses identify the benefits of a partnership with a nonprofit organization. As competition for business support increases, it is essential for nonprofit organizations to change their focus and position themselves carefully: presenting opportunities to increase, not drain, business revenues.

 

 

 

Accessibility can be created through the cultural and physical environment of voluntary organizations. This training session will guide your organization through an in-depth examination of the issues and barriers related to involving people with disabilities as volunteers. Offering useful information, practical tips and advice, this training provides a framework to help organizations create an accessible and welcoming workplace. It also assists organizations in developing partnerships with organizations that serve the disability community.

 

 

 

Employer support for volunteer activities of employees is an exciting new trend in volunteerism in Canada. Increasingly, employers are taking an active role in employee community involvement. Everything from posting volunteer opportunities on the company bulletin board to paid time off for a special project, employers are contributing employee time and talent to communities across the country. How can your organization start its own program? This training session will help you establish goals, define relationships and evaluate the outcomes of an employer-supported volunteer program. Discover how you can encourage a new, dynamic three-way partnership between employers, agencies, and your community.

 

 

 

Once again, Baby Boomers are poised to change the world. Over the next five years, Canada’s population of older adults will triple in number. By 2006, Canadians over 50 will be almost 15 million strong. For a manager of volunteer resources, this population shift presents unique opportunities and challenges. With the experience and expectations of Baby Boomers in mind, this training session outlines dynamic, new strategies to recruit and retain older adults as volunteers.

 

 

 

Along with their enthusiasm and energy, youth bring a fresh perspective to volunteering. Young people are looking for new experiences and new skills. Managers of volunteer programs can be hard-pressed to meet the demand for interesting youth-specific volunteer positions with the appropriate level of oversight and opportunity. This workshop offers practical suggestions for engaging youth in your organization for the benefit of the volunteer, the organization and the community.

 

 

 

Increasingly, voluntary organizations recognize that playing an active role in influencing government policy is key to achieving their missions. At the same time, government acknowledges that the voluntary sector has a valuable and crucial role to play in shaping effective public policy. Yet many voluntary boards of directors face challenges regarding how to engage in policy dialogue and often lack in the skill set to do so successfully. In response to this need Volunteer Canada has developed a manual and training workshop to build capacity and support voluntary organizations and their boards of directors in their policy dialogue efforts.

 

 

 

The results of the National Survey of Nonprofit and Voluntary Organizations (NSNVO), and the Satellite Account of Nonprofit Institutions and Volunteering have recently been released. The results reveal just how large, wide-ranging and important the sector is in Canada, as well as some implications for those who work to promote and enable volunteerism.