Valuing Volunteers

Once a quarter, our church staff attends a half day training day in which we can pick two workshops that are taught by fellow staff members in their area of expertise.

Today I went to a workshop on volunteers lead by Erik Rees and got some pretty good stuff. One thing that stuck out was his training on how to Value volunteers. His acrostic:

Visit (one on one coffee, lunch etc.)
Affirm (cheer them on, lend them support and encouragement)
Listen (be available, be open to input and suggestions)
Update (keep them informed and in the loop)
Educate (train them)
Shepherd (care for them)

I think our team does a pretty good job in most of these areas, but we aren't doing so strategically. Today was a good reminder that being intentional in these areas will help ensure all the bases are coverd.
Bottom line: If a volunteer feels valued, he or she is more likely to stick around for a while.

As I was finishing up this post, Josh Griffin informed me that he posted on the very same thing!
a) I'm too lazy to change my post
b) Maybe it's an important concept....at least two of us think so!