Volunteers in the Public and Nonprofi t Sectors 127
clients. It serves to encourage broad support for the volunteer program,
as well as to ensure that the creation of volunteer jobs balances the needs
of clients, paid staff, and volunteers (Fisher & Cole, 1993).
The following questions should be considered in the develop-
ment of volunteer positions and position guides (Fisher & Cole, 1993,
pp. 30 – 31):
What are the characteristics, strengths, and needs of the target
population?
What qualifi cations will volunteers need in order to serve this
population effectively through the program?
What are the preferences of the target population regarding service
delivery by paid staff or volunteers?
How do the possible volunteer positions relate to the overall mission
of the agency?Ellis (1995) recommends that boards play key roles in supporting
volunteer programs. She suggests that they should expect reports on vol-
unteer involvement and schedule time to discuss volunteers; moreover,
board members should refer volunteer candidates to the agency and
carry recruitment materials to distribute, and they should take part in
volunteer recognition events. Ellis also advises agencies to remember that
board members themselves are volunteers despite their legal and fi duciary
responsibilities, and attempts should be made to link board members and
direct service volunteers from time to time.
As important as it is for board members to understand the benefi ts
of volunteers, it is more important for paid staff to support volunteer
programs. Employees must not feel that volunteers are clients who need
attention. Volunteers and staff must be trained to work with each other.
Volunteers need to know their scope of authority and when to retreat
from interfering with employees or clients.
Organizations that have volunteer programs must also decide
whether they need to add a position, such as a volunteer coordinator, to
administer the volunteer program or if existing employees can assume
the responsibilities. According to Farr (1983, p. 18) major program man-
agement responsibilities include:
Obtaining and maintaining support for the volunteer program
Developing, monitoring, and evaluating the volunteer program
budget- • • • • •