Roles and responsibilities of a volunteer coordinator

Volunteering does not just happen. Most organisations need to take time to consider and coordinate how and when they will use volunteers. Depending on your organisation, you might decide to appoint a volunteer coordinator to do this work.

What is a volunteer coordinator?

A volunteer coordinator plays a vital role by driving your volunteer management program and providing ongoing support to volunteers. They also become the main point of contact for your volunteers.

Appointing a volunteer coordinator recognises the importance of volunteers to the organisation, and the importance of planning ongoing volunteer management. It also helps your volunteers feel satisfied that they are making an important contribution.

Appointing a volunteer coordinator

Think about where the role sits within your organisation and who it reports to. Consider how your volunteer coordinator will be involved so that their input can be included in decision making processes, meetings or consultation across the organisation.

Some organisations will also find it useful to include the volunteer coordinator on the management committee or board to have their experience and expertise available at that level.

Depending on your organisation, your volunteer coordinator might also be a volunteer, or it could be a paid position.

What does a volunteer coordinator do?

Every organisation functions differently and has different needs, so the position and role of volunteer coordinator may need to be adapted to suit your particular needs, and may well change as an organisation grows and develops.

A key role for volunteer coordinators is matching the skills, experiences and expectations of volunteers to available positions.

Volunteer coordinators could be responsible for the following activities – but remember, not all organisations need all of these or will manage them in this way:

Recruitment and selection

Working out how many volunteers are needed and for what roles
Developing position descriptions for each role
Planning how and where to recruit volunteers and posting adverts
Interviewing volunteers
Completing relevant checks (like a police check or working with children check)
Planning for volunteer retention and replacement
Developing policies and procedures.

Orientation

Developing an orientation kit, volunteer handbook or introductory programs
Evaluating the orientation program
Presenting or managing the orientation for all new starters
Providing training or demonstrations in use of office equipment or specific tools.

Training and development

Arranging training and education opportunities
Conducting performance review or evaluation
Conducting a skills audit or organisational review.

Rewards and recognition

Developing ways to recognise and reward volunteer efforts
Promoting the recognition program
Managing volunteer communications such as social functions, newsletters or social media.

Management

Helping volunteers feel welcome and supported
Developing and managing policies, procedures and standards for volunteers
Looking after the volunteer database and records
Planning and goal setting
Rostering and organising volunteers
Delegating projects and tasks
Managing any associated budgets and expenditure
Communicating with people from diverse backgrounds
Resolving conflict or managing the grievance process.

Workplace safety

Identifying risks and understanding their impact
Developing policies and procedures that will eliminate or reduce those risks
Implementing, promoting and evaluating these policies and procedures
Maintaining current and appropriate Public Liability and Volunteer Personal Accident insurance policies.

Tools and resources

ClubsOnline (WA) - Club's Guide to Volunteer Management
Produced as a guide for sport and recreation clubs in WA, this booklet has great information on the key roles of a volunteer coordinator and includes ideas, a checklist and a sample action plan.

Volunteering Australia - Best practice
This section of the Volunteering Australia website lists resources and publications for volunteer coordinators, on topics including recruitment and screening processes, working with culturally diverse volunteers and recognising volunteers.

Volunteering Queensland - Resource Central
A collection of useful resources, checklists and templates for volunteer coordinators covering all topics for volunteer program management.

Volunteering Victoria - Training services
A list of Volunteering Victoria's training programs for program managers and volunteer coordinators. Also lists other organisations that provide management training.