Virtual volunteering is already well-established in the US and enables employees to volunteer at their place of work via the internet and email. It can also be called online volunteering and e-volunteering.
Virtual employer supported volunteering can be as varied as offline employer supported volunteering. It can involve:
Technical assistance:
Creating a web page; developing a database; graphic design; offering a particular expertise (legal, HR management, etc.); translating text from one language to another; proof-reading; online research; data crunching; inputting volunteering opportunities into online databases
Direct assistance:
Tutoring a young person; mentoring another volunteer or someone training for a particular kind of job; moderating an online discussion group; managing other online volunteers.
With the increasing importance of Information and Communications Technology in every day life, virtual volunteering is likely to become more popular.
As an alternative to usual volunteering, virtual employer supported volunteering can allow more and different people to volunteer who may not otherwise be able to get to the volunteer-involving organisation owing to their work schedule, home obligations or a disability. The technology used also offers an easy way to contact and monitor the volunteers.
If you would like to start a virtual employer supported volunteering programme the following steps have been recommended by the United Nations Volunteers’ www.unv.org virtual volunteering expert:
1. Starting up
• First, make sure you are ready to involve virtual employee volunteers!
• Ask for e-mail addresses on your volunteer application form
• Ensure regular access to e-mail & web
• Become familiar with the dynamics of online culture.
• Start using the email to communicate with current volunteers.
• Create Web versions of all materials given to volunteers at orientations/training.
• Join an online discussion group.
• Create an online discussion group for current onsite volunteers.
• Don’t do any activity online that you don’t already do offline! (if you don’t run a face-to-face mentoring program, don’t try to do one online)
• Identify and create assignments for virtual employee volunteers.
• Create an application or use www.netaid.org and orienting system for virtual employer supported volunteers.
• Create a way to track virtual employer supported volunteers’ progress, e.g. solicit regular feedback etc.
Management information is available via www.netaid.org and www.serviceleader.org
2. Confidentiality and safety
• The internet is no less or more dangerous than face-to-face encounters.
• Adapt your current offline confidentiality and safety standards to online settings.
• More than anything else, confidentiality is a training issue.
3. How to recruit virtual employer supported volunteers
• DON’T DO IT until you meet all criteria for being ready!
• Recruit from your current offline employer supported volunteers.
• Recruit from others’ web sites, particularly Netaid.org
• Recruit from your own web site.
• Recruit from online discussion groups.
4. Keys to success
• Recognise virtual employer supported volunteers’ contributions to the same degree as onsite volunteers.
• Keep in touch with virtual employer supported volunteers online and, as possible, via phone and postal mail.
Case study
E-mentoring in an inner city Leeds school
This project was developed by an inner city Leeds school, the University of Leeds, Business in the Community and Computer People.
The school was finding that its traditional mentoring scheme was becoming time consuming, could be disruptive to lessons, required a great deal of coordination, and did not enable contact out of term time.
The school decided to try mentoring via email, with the following objectives:
• increase IT literacy standards
• promote use of IT in real life context
• increase standards of literacy
• encourage more frequent communication
• facilitate flexible time- giving
• compare with traditional mentoring
Problems they encountered at the beginning of the project were the poor literacy & IT skills of students, that it was associated with letter writing and it was too anonymous. Solutions to this were that students were given email training and the mentor and mentee met ‘face to face’ every six weeks
Recommendations for future ementoring projects were that:
• ensure system in place prior to launch
• select mentees from same IT class
• build e-mail into IT lessons
• select mentees with better literacy standards
• incorporate with face to face, particularly at beginning
The ementoring pilot was a success. The mentors appreciated the fact that they did not have to travel to the school. The mentees appreciated the fact that communication between the mentor and mentee was more frequent, and that they could maintain contact during school holidays.
It is was also found to be cost effective for both parties, and ementoring improved the IT skills & literacy of the mentees, as well as putting IT into a real life context.
