Every day, millions of Ontarians get up, take a shower, have breakfast and make their way to work. But for 2.3 million of them this year, the work they will be performing will have nothing to do with salary, benefits or paying down their credit cards.
They’re volunteers. And the contributions they make, out of kindness, commitment to a cause or the genuine desire to give something back to their communities, are the equivalent of 200,000 full-time jobs worth an estimated $6-billion to the province’s annual economy.
Ontario’s volunteers give more than 422 million hours of their time every year in support of activities, projects and programs they care about. Research has shown that the people most likely to volunteer are in their peak parenting years – the mid-30s to late 50s – when little league, school activities and neighbourhood projects take centre stage in their lives. After that, the numbers start to taper off. It’s a trend that doesn’t bode well for a population like ours, with a large aging demographic.
Yet ironically, therein lies the good news, the glimmer of light at the end of the tunnel. The boomers are reporting back to work – unpaid work, that is. Over the next few years, millions of Canadians in their fifties and sixties will be leaving the workforce, but not necessarily to retire. These just-barely seniors will be healthier, wealthier and more highly skilled than any generation of its age has ever been before. They’ll have a lot of giving left to do, and a great reserve of energy, experience and know-how with which to do it. With the right approach and strategy, Ontario’s charities and not-for-profit organizations will be able to convince many of them to redirect their passion, talent and business savvy where it’s so badly needed: into volunteer activities in their home communities.
As the Chair of the Ontario Trillium Foundation’s Board of Directors, I have seen the enormous difference that volunteers can make in their communities. OTF provides funds to not-for-profit and charitable organizations that depend on the work of tens-of-thousands of volunteers in Ontario. Their contributions help to leverage what the Foundation provides, extending the reach of those dollars and maximizing their impact.
What should volunteer-seeking organizations do to attract and engage them? First off, ask them! By far, the most effective and reliable recruiting tool is a direct invitation, especially from a friend or other trusted source. Good people know other good people.
Finding them is one thing; retaining them is another. The boomers will approach their volunteer activities with the same sense of purpose and set of expectations they had in their careers. Keeping them coming back will involve conscious effort and a bit of strategy. Here are three key considerations that any good volunteer-engagement plan should include, especially when targeting the boomers.
Make it personal. Some boomers will see volunteering as a means to an end, a way to spend time with family and friends while supporting a cause to which they feel a personal attachment. For others, there may be an underlying, and probably unstated, payoff: social ties, a sense of belonging or a connection to community.
Make it specific and meaningful. The work must be well-structured, well-understood and well-managed. Most volunteers want to help improve their communities, socially and economically. Let them know their work matters. Don’t waste their time.
Make it fun and rewarding. Boomers will want their volunteer experience to yield returns on more than one level. Give them meaningful learning activities and new opportunities. Acknowledge the extensive experience they will surely bring to your organization. Help them to transfer their personal and professional skills in ways that have a positive and obvious impact in the community. Don’t let those good deeds go unnoticed. Remember one of the cardinal rules of volunteer engagement is recognition. You can never thank people enough.
This year, let National Volunteer Week (April 15-21) mark the start of your organization’s commitment to finding, recruiting and enthusiastically welcoming the new, older volunteer. Not-for-profit organizations need to draw from this wellspring of talented people who are looking for meaningful ways to channel their passion, use their experience and give back to their communities. There is, and will continue to be, a wealth of grey power out there, with the energy, ideas and experience to make a world of difference, in our biggest cities and in our smallest hamlet. They’re ready to roll up their sleeves and work again. And we need them.