Volunteers want influence and recognition

12.12.2022 l Latest news

What does it take to recruit and retain volunteers in civil society organisations that have been set up to help vulnerable groups? This is the focus of the research project MATCH, which was initiated by VELUX FONDEN and carried out by researchers from Aalborg University in collaboration with the Danish Centre for Voluntary Social Work.

The research project has looked at elements that are important for recruiting and retaining volunteers in associations and voluntary organisations. The study has focused, in particular, on voluntary organisations targeting socially vulnerable citizens, and provides new and useful knowledge about the best ways to recruit and retain people in the voluntary sector.

“My hope is that the organisations will use the conclusions of the study to reflect on their own practices. The study can inspire organisations to adjust or rethink how they communicate with potential volunteers and how they can retain the volunteers they already have,” says Professor Lars Skov Henriksen from the Department of Sociology and Social Work at Aalborg University, who has headed the three-year research project.  

The conclusions of the MATCH project show that it pays to work strategically to create the right organisational environments that motivate volunteers. Both when it comes to recruiting new volunteers and retaining existing volunteers. The study shows, among other things, that:

• Providing regular support to volunteers in the form of, for example, sparring with managers or other volunteers plays a big role in terms of retaining volunteers as well as their job satisfaction.
• Volunteers see well-planned training programmes and ongoing feedback as recognition of their commitment.
• A lot of young and older women are engaged in voluntary social work. Organisations have difficulty recruiting men, volunteers aged 30 to 60, and people from ethnic minority backgrounds. Focusing on broader recruitment can pave the way for creating more sustainable voluntary communities and cater for the needs of the target groups to an even greater extent. 

At the Danish Centre for Voluntary Social Work, the results of the study provide food for thought.

“The study shows that the work of creating motivating organisational environments involves a number of dilemmas that organisations need to address. It demands a lot of the organisations, because they must always take a reflexive approach to recruiting and retaining volunteers, balancing the ambivalence between being clear in their expectations and giving the volunteers the space they need to unfold and develop their voluntary work,” says Mette Hjære, chief consultant at the Danish Centre for Voluntary Social Work. 

The MATCH study was initiated and financed by VELUX FONDEN.

“Our goal in initiating the study has first and foremost been to create new research-based knowledge about what civil society organisations can do themselves, for example organisationally in order to strengthen their recruitment and retention of volunteers for social initiatives and offerings. With more solid knowledge, it’s easier to think of new solutions or take potential challenges into account,” says Vibeke Lybecker, head of programme for VELUX FONDEN’s Social Initiatives in Denmark.