
ClubExpress
eCoordinator is a volunteer management solution designed to help businesses in the healthcare sector streamline recruitment, interview scheduling, background checking, training and more. It enables volunteers to track the progress...Read more
Little Green Light helps small and midsize nonprofits manage fundraising and development efforts by offering a cloud-based constituent relationship management database, as well as event planning, activity tracking, mail merges, an...Read more
VolunteerSpot's Web-based volunteer scheduling software is an award-winning coordination tool with features including shift-swap, calendar sync, automatic reminders, service tracking and more. A good choice for all organizations....Read more
YourMembership.com is Web-based membership management software used by associations and other member organizations to manage fundraising, dues renewals and collection, member communications, event registration and more....Read more
VolunteerMatters by Closerware is used by all types of nonprofit organizations to recruit, coordinate and track volunteers, as well as report on schedules and history. Self-service lets volunteers schedule their own tasks....Read more
VolunteerHub is a best-of-breed volunteer management solution for all types of nonprofits. Its functionality enables scheduling and hour tracking, while a self-service portal, calendar and event pages streamline sign-ups....Read more
VolunteerMark is a web-based platform that can help many types of Non-Profit organizations tackle Volunteer and Charity Event Management. We really like the integrated tool to post volunteer opportunities across social media....Read more
ClubExpress is a cloud-based management tool for any association or club. The solution is suitable for arts and cultural clubs, environmental groups, healthcare and hospitals, higher education groups, human services organizations,...Read more
HandsOn Connect is a cloud-based nonprofit management solution for donation management, fundraisers and volunteer management. The solution helps nonprofit professionals organize charity events, send marketing communication, accept...Read more
Here's what we'll cover:
What Is Volunteer Management Software?
Common Features of Volunteer Management Software
Benefits of Deploying Volunteer Management Software
Key Considerations
What Type of Buyer Are You?
Volunteers are a core component of a nonprofit’s success. Because they rely heavily on supporters—whether supporting via donor dollars or volunteered hours—it’s essential to build and maintain a database of volunteers. Volunteer management software helps a nonprofit organization store contact information, a participant's history, availability and more. Volunteer scheduling software also provides outreach tools to contact those who've volunteered for upcoming events, and scheduling tools to track responses and availability.
A Volunteering in America study showed that 25.4 percent of American adults volunteered 7.7 billion hours in 2013. Nonprofit organizations should strive to capture as much of this trend as possible. Beyond capturing the volunteering trend, however, is engaging and nourishing these relationships once they’ve begun. Here are a few benefits of implementing a volunteer tracking software solution:
Feature | Description |
Recruitment | Volunteer management systems include online volunteer applications that sync contact information into the database, diverting the time spent on manual entry to increasing the number of prospects. Customizable directories can also be added to a nonprofit’s sites so that visitors can search for opportunities, role descriptions and site locations. |
Management | An advanced contact management system allows users to organize contact information and history, including volunteer type, frequency, restrictions and more. This allows users to group volunteers, filter search criteria and reach out to appropriate supporters. |
Communication | The communication features allow users to send email campaigns to volunteers, requesting service and adding automated email reminders for upcoming service commitments they’ve volunteered for. Some advanced programs also offer recognition features that automatically award volunteers whose performance has exceeded certain criteria. |
Volunteer portals | Portals allow volunteers to sign into an organization’s site, inquire about upcoming volunteer opportunities, sign up for events and update contact information. Volunteers can also change their communication preferences through portals, opting in or out of particular communications. |
Volunteer schedules | Nonprofit organizations can post upcoming volunteer needs with scheduling features. Prospective volunteers can then peruse opportunities and fill empty slots based on their availability. |
Several features can help nonprofit organizations more effectively manage their volunteers and develop lasting, mutually beneficial relationships with them.
Volunteers are the lifeblood of an organization’s success, particularly those that may not have the assets to pay a full staff. Approaching your volunteer plan strategically can significantly improve relationships, public visibility and overall contribution to your organization’s mission. For more information about nonprofit solutions, visit our nonprofit buyer's guide.
Business requirements: Volunteer management software supports organizations in resolving business challenges and achieving their business goals. A detailed evaluation of the business requirements with all stakeholders is integral to making a knowledgeable purchase. A starting point for the evaluation process is to list out the requisite features and match them to the shortlisted volunteer management solutions.
Size of the organization: The volunteer management software market has a plethora of options that cater to organizations of different sizes. Small businesses look for solutions that have a user-friendly interface, require minimal infrastructure and include training modules. On the other hand, larger businesses look for customized solutions that assist them in resolving specific challenges.
Product capabilities: Volunteer management solutions come with a range of functionalities, such as attendance management, calendar management, event management, volunteer portals and scheduling. Business owners should look for solutions that meet all their needs instead of choosing applications that offer the maximum number of features, most of which may not be relevant.
Number of integrations: Integrations allow the software to interact with other software and third-party applications. Volunteer management software offers integrations with CRM software, event management software and payment-enabling solutions. Users should ensure that their existing solutions integrate with the volunteer management solution. Most volunteer management solutions offer integrations with Salesforce.com, Blackbaud, Google Calendar and Microsoft Office.
Deployment: Cloud-based deployments provide agility and facilitate 24/7 access from remote locations. In addition, cloud solutions offer subscription-based pricing to curb excessive capital expenditure and operational expenses. However, for long-term usage, consider solutions that are deployed on-premise as they incur a one-time expense and will prove to be more cost-effective.
Small and midsize nonprofit organizations: Volunteers are important for every nonprofit. But for small and midsize nonprofits, they are critical to manage all the events and to raise donations. Volunteer management software helps small and midsize nonprofits monitor and engage volunteers. These organizations prefer solutions that provide online scheduling, training modules, registration portals, event management and a volunteer database.
Large nonprofits: Large nonprofits are spread across the whole country and sometimes even globally. Managing and communicating with a large number of volunteers is a huge task in itself. Large nonprofits prefer solutions that can assist them in maintaining the volunteer database, managing the event calendar and sending automated emails. Volunteer communication is a difficult job for any large nonprofit that consumes human and monetary resources. Therefore, one of the most demanded features by these organizations is automated email and text communication functionality.
Associations: Member-based associations, such as clubs, museums, professional groups and trade organizations, have different requirements compared with typical nonprofits. These organizations look for functionalities such as subscription renewals, invoice generation, dues collection and committee management.
Churches and faith-based organizations: These organizations have intense and routine fundraising activities and prefer solutions that offer accounting, event management, facilities management, membership management etc. Moreover, these organizations are usually interested in tracking the attendance of volunteers and monitoring their donations. Decision makers should evaluate their requirements and assess whether they need a best-of-breed church management solution or a volunteer management software for their activities.