A group of service and volunteering leaders came together in 2009 to collectively think about increasing the impact of volunteering. I, like many, was on the “supply” side of volunteering, having a large “supply” of Disney VoluntEARS ready and willing to get involved. Most of the volunteer activities were worthwhile and made a positive impact, but many projects were really more an opportunity to engage the volunteers. The question for many was, and increasingly is today, how do we ensure that the recipient organization, and those they provide services to, get as much or more out of the volunteering than the person volunteering? Changing the equation from the supply side to the demand side was a big part of the answer. This is where that group, formed five years ago, has made great strides. That group is Reimagining Service.
Reimagining Service has sought to “convert good intentions into greater impact”. It has inspired new research and practices as well as several initiatives that have changed the way organizations from all sectors are engaging volunteers, including the Civic 50 and the Nonprofit Service Enterprise Initiative. The Service Enterprise Initiative is the one that I am most proud of and hope that it continues to scale. It started as a partnership between CaliforniaVolunteers and Reimagining Service. “A Service Enterprise is an organization that fundamentally leverages volunteers and their skills across all levels of the organization to successfully deliver on its social mission.” Through a local cohort, nonprofit executives go through a program of trainings and coaching to help them more effectively use volunteers. The Service Enterprise Initiative will continue on and be led by Points of Light.
While the work of Reimagining Service will live on, the initiative will sunset this month. The campaign objectives have been met. We continued for a year longer than anticipated, created some additional research, and saw ideas and concepts instituted. The Reimaging Service Council is made up of an amazing group of people and I am proud to have served with them. Our executive director, Kaira Esgate, and our chair, Bobbi Silton of Gap, Inc., took our work well beyond our initial expectations. To close out Reimagining Service, a final report has been prepared that summarizes lessons learned, emerging practices, as well as areas of work that still remain. The report is filled with good information and I encourage you to download, and share, with your colleagues. All Reimagining Service resources, including research, case studies, and toolkits, will remain online at www.ReimaginingService.org
To view the report, please visit: http://bit.ly/1xrxfck