A Volunteer-led Task Force for Volunteer Engagement - Museum-style

“Ownership” and “doing things the way we’ve always done them” were two of the few items listed when asked, “What might staff have to let go of in order to embrace a more fully collaborative culture of volunteer engagement?” What’s to gain by embracing such a model of volunteer engagement? The list was much, much longer. It was part of an honest, lively conversation between about 65 staff and volunteers at the Virginia Museum of Fine Arts (VMFA) this week.

I am writing while on a flight returning from a very full day with VMFA leadership, one of JFFixler & Associates’ clients.  Our time together was a wonderful potpourri of inspiring art and breathtaking architecture with a dash of Southern hospitality. The VMFA has undertaken a capital project, renovating its building while also adding a new wing, underground parking garage, and outdoor sculpture garden. And, the dedication and leadership of the VMFA’s Volunteer Engagement Task Force are as inspirational as the art. We talk a great deal in our work about the importance of self-directed teams and how so many volunteers in today’s society are seeking the opportunity to be authentic leaders. Here was a volunteer-led task force, carefully cultivated by the president of the 55-year old VMFA Council, the volunteer “auxiliary” that, through its 200 active Council members and 400 associate Council members, provides many of the day-to-day volunteers for the Museum.

Twenty months ago, the leaders of the Council recognized that the world around them was changing and that the long-standing traditions of the Council may not be effective in a world with shifting demographics and technologies. And less than two years away was the grand opening of the new VMFA so they would need more volunteers than ever before. They took charge of their own future and established a task force to study the trends and make a plan. In the midst of that study, they attended a conference where Jill Friedman Fixler spoke, got copies of our book Boomer Volunteer Engagement: Collaborate Today, Thrive Tomorrow, and, using it as their guide, set to work. As a result, they have marched forward, methodically implementing the recommended steps that are key to successfully engaging volunteers. I can hear these wonderful women chuckling now as they read this, because the past twenty months have not felt methodical for them, I know. However, here is what they have achieved because they were thinking strategically along the way:

Identified a need: The Museum would reopen in May 2010, requiring the skills of hundreds of volunteers to help with the opening and to serve thereafter. Completely volunteer run, the Council has been the source for the day-to-day volunteers in the institution and would be relied upon again. Meanwhile, with demographic and economic shifts, the Council’s old ways of recruiting and retaining volunteers would not necessarily work moving forward. They needed new strategies.

Established a task force: Tina Stoneburner, the Council President, along with other Council leaders, put together a Task Force of skilled, dedicated, and connected women who bring a variety of important talents to the table. They range in age and tenure, including longtime volunteers and new ones, women with business skills, museum management experience, human resource connections, and more.  This team was carefully cultivated and, together, are more than a task force – they are, as they like to say, simply a “force”!

Studied trends: The team set out to read, to learn, to gather information about what is happening in the volunteer world and to identify best practices from which they could learn. They used Boomer Volunteer Engagement and our newsletters as their text, as well as other publications and sources.

Assessed the Museum’s needs: Last year, they began partnering with staff at the Museum to identify volunteer opportunities that would be most critical to fill by the opening. The library and the shop will need skilled volunteers for operations. Visitor Services will need volunteers to help with hospitality, traffic flow, information, and more. Together, they wrote position descriptions for these opportunities.

Began broadcasting the opportunities: With 200 “active” members and hundreds of associate members, the Council Task Force is focusing on “cultivating from within” their existing pool of resources. Since January, they have hosted salons in people’s homes where they present a PowerPoint about the new building, share the need for volunteers in these key areas, and collect interest/commitment forms from those who attend.  The response rate has been overwhelming and the salons have been highly successful. They will have held 9 total by next week, with 10-22 people at each, and will have reached about 150 of their active members through this tactic.

Gained leadership support: Throughout this process, Tina and the team have dialogued with the Museum’s leadership, including Director Alex Nyerges who suggested that my meetings with the VMFA be scheduled so that we could bring the Museum’s Trustees and entire staff into the conversation as well.

With just a few short months until opening, this “Force” has much to do – and they have set the stage for success by having taken these critical steps and by strategically involving the right people in the conversation along the way.  Their work thus far and the success they will experience are a testament to the foundation they’ve laid over the past year. Will there be bumps in the road? No doubt. But, they’ve begun the conversations that will ensure that, together, staff and volunteers will find the solutions.  When I asked staff and volunteers about what they would need to let go of in order to embrace collaborative volunteer engagement, there were wise nods and understanding that doing things the “old” way wouldn’t work. But what kept people chatting and buzzing was the long list of what could be gained by embracing a new model. The possibilities are as elegant and inspiring as the new building they are about to open.