World Relief Volunteer research

Running head: WORLD RELIEF VOLUNTEER RECRUITMENT

World Relief Volunteer Recruitment Strategies

Meredith L. Wilson

World Relief Nashville Tennessee

1655 Murfeesboro Pike, Nashville, TN 37217

April 15, 2013

WORLD RELIEF VOLUNTEER RECRUITMENT ! 2

Acknowledgements

Acknowledgements for this paper go to the World Relief Nashville Refugee Social Services

Manager Ellen Bohle, World Relief Nashville Volunteer Coordinator Robin Snyder, and World

Relief Nashville Case Worker Shauna Daniels. World Relief employees who agreed to participate

in this research made this paper possible. Lorraina Scholten professor at Belmont University

gave Mentoring and guidance for research formatting. Special thanks to editing completed by

Seiji Inouye.


Abstract

Research was conducted to find the best recruitment strategy for World Relief located in

Nashville Tennessee. Specific questions were asked to find the most commonly used method, the

best method, volunteer retention, and other variable affecting volunteer recruitment. Data was

obtained by interviewing 15 volunteer coordinators of United States World Relief offices by

phone and email. The findings of this study suggest volunteer recruitment strategies such as


utilizing social capital, media, limiting time it takes to train volunteers, and perfecting methods.

Literature collected supports the results of this study.


World Relief Volunteer Recruitment Strategies

World Relief Nashville is a not for profit organization that works with the refugee population in

conjunction with the local church. The organization's mission is to “empower the local church to

serve the most vulnerable (World Relief.org).” Similarly, World Relief’s vision states: “In

community with the local church, World Relief envisions the most vulnerable people

transformed economically, socially, and spiritually (World Relief.org).”

History

World Relief is an international agency, which began in 1944 to help people suffering from the

effects of World War II. During this time World Relief went by the name: The War Relief

Commission of the National Association of Evangelicals (NAE). NAE worked from the United

states, shipping food and clothing to churches in Europe that were in desperate need. In 1950

NAE changed its name to WR and opened 140 feeding centers in Korea. By 1964 WR had

expanded to Taiwan, Egypt, Chile, Burundi, and China providing aid in disease, disasters, and

basic needs. Now WR has offices all over the world, they aid in maternal and child health, AIDS/

HIV, food security, disaster response, microfinance, immigration legal services, anti trafficking,

and more.

The Nashville branch was founded in 1987 by missionary, Lee Eby. Today it is directed

by Nathan Kinser, and has grown to a staff of over 30. The board of directors oversees all of the

WR branches. The board consists of 30 individuals: Rev. Scott Arbeiter (Elmbrook Church), Mr.

Steve Moore (MissionNexus), Rev. John Chung (Park Street Church), John Griffin (AARP), Rev.

Leith Anderson (National Association of Evangelicals), Rev. Paul Borthwick (Development

Associates International), Katherine Barnhart, Dr. Judith Dean (Brandeis University), Tim


Breene, Rev. Casely Essamuah (Bay Area Community Church), J. Stephen Simms (Simms

Showers LLP), Dr. Timothy Ek, David Husby (Covenant WR), Dr. Roy Taylor (National

Association of Evangelicals), Mrs. Kathryn Vaselkiv, Bill Westrate (Veolia Environmental

Services), and Tim Traudt (Wells Fargo).

WR Nashville provides services in the following areas: housing, employment, medical

care, transportation, English language, church mobilization, city bus training, job readiness,

employment assistance for professionals, emergency rent and food assistance.

In Nashville alone they work with refugees from: Afghanistan, Bhutan, Bosnia, Burma, Burundi,

Colombia, Cuba, Eritrea, Ethiopia, Iran, Iraq, Laos, Pakistan, Palestine, Somalia, Sudan,

Vietnam, and Ukraine.

World Relief clients are varied in demographics. Clients come from all over the world,

and many are, at minimum, bilingual. In Nashville most clients live in apartment complexes

surrounding the Nolensville Pike area. World Relief refugees face a variety of barriers after

moving to the United States. Many experience language barriers, cultural differences,

discrimination, health issues, unemployment, lack of transportation, and many other difficulties.

Currently Tennessee Legislation is relevant to World Relief and their work. In early 2013

Tennessee Legislation has presented House Bill 1326/Senate Bill 1325 which would require

refugee resettlement agencies to track certain information regarding the agency’s clients (H.R.

1326, 108th TN general assembly. (2013). Based on the information gathered, the state will

assess the overall costs incurred by refugee resettlement services; the state will then invoice each

resettlement agency with the amount calculated, which must be paid within one month.


The purpose of this study is to identify the most effective strategy to obtain long-term

volunteers for World Relief. Research will be conducted to find the best way to obtain volunteers

in the Nashville area for World Relief’s Friendship Partners program and Journey Program. The

research will include evidence based practice research in reviewing similar nonprofits’

communications, social media, and outreach techniques. After research has been obtained,

implementation of the research will be given to the director and volunteer coordinator.

Justification

Even though many churches are involved in World Relief Nashville, at the present time World

Relief Nashville has a desire to expand its support base. The match grant program at World

Relief Nashville requires a certain number of volunteer hours per month. Therefore many

volunteers are sent to work in the Match Grant program. This leaves other programs (Refugee

Social Services and Refugee Cash Assistance) parched of needed volunteers.

Furthermore case managers at World Relief Nashville have around 20-30 open cases at

any given time. Because of the number of clients, caseworkers are limited in their time. Case

workers are unable to contribute the separate amount of time required to work on a personal level

with clients. World Relief Nashville desires for all clients in need to have a volunteer who

mentors and builds a friendship with him/her. In order for this relationship to occur volunteers

need to be long term. Although one time volunteers can be helpful, World Relief Nashville’s

greatest need is for the long term volunteer.

World Relief volunteers have proven to advance the well being of many clients in the past

by helping in daily errands, mentoring, and building relationships with clients. In fact much

research proves the benefits of volunteerism in nonprofit agencies. The Families and


Communities Together (FaCT) group believes their volunteers do as much as improving and

assisting organizations’ existence (Volunteer programs: Helping to sustain organizations in lean

times 2011 p. 7) From this organization’s experience it can be understood that that volunteers are

capable of sustaining organizations in the form of time and money. Furthermore the Corporation

for National And Community Service found in 2011 that formal volunteers donated 7.9 billion

hours of their time, which translates to a value of $171 billion (Volunteering and Civic Life in

America 2012). This national statistic shows the potential and benefits volunteers bring to

nonprofits. Based on this information, more volunteers would enable World Relief Nashville in

time and funding.

The goal of World Relief is to enable and empower the church to assist and support

refugees; therefore volunteers within the church are part of World Relief’s aim in helping

refugees. In order for World Relief Nashville to fulfill its mission statement, the non-profit must

obtain a thorough base of volunteer help.

Finally employees must work to utilize resources available. Researching resources for

volunteers will further the work of World Relief and its clients.

Review of Literature

Volunteerism is clearly defined by many; Gaskin and Smith (1997) define volunteering as the

donation of an individual’s time, given without pressure or compensation, solely to help people

and an organization (as cited in Ward and McKillop 2010, p. 367). At its core, volunteering, is

the giving of an individual’s personal time and energy. Volunteering comes in two forms: formal

and informal. Carson (1999) and Finkelstein and Brannick (2007) identify formal volunteering as

the giving of time without pay to an organization’s operations, and informal volunteering as any


kind of support or aid given to individuals outside the household (as cited in Lee and Brudney

2012 p.160). Formal volunteering differs from informal volunteering in regards to it authority.

Formal volunteering is working through or alongside an organization, thereby making the

volunteer a representative of the organization. Informal volunteering is done outside a program

or organization making the volunteer work undocumented. The present study evaluates both

sectors when presented, but most information is based on formal volunteers.

Volunteer Characteristics

Certain patterns have been found as to the nature and characteristics of volunteers. Choi and

DiNitto (2012) found that people are more likely to volunteer if they have a higher education

(Choi and DiNitto 2012, p.111). This could be reflective of the growth of social capital, which is

expanded by participating in higher education, universities, etc (Lee and Brudney 2012 p.167).

Hodgkinson, Weitzman, Noga, and Gorski (1992), Mesch and others (2006), and Wilson (2000)

conclude that women commonly volunteer more often than men (as cited in Lee and Brudney

2012, p. 167).

Patterns in an individual’s age, ethnicity, and religion also have been found to affect

volunteering. Menchik and Weisbrod (1984) and Schoenberg (1980) point out middle age is the

time period in an individual’s life when volunteering increases (as cited in Lee and Brudney

2012. p. 167). This could be because of social capital, but middle age also can be traced back to

an individual’s desire to give back to the community. Bryant, Jeon-Slaughter, Kang, and Tax

(2003) and Gallagher (1994) find another characteristic in volunteers in racial and ethnic

minorities; they find that individuals of racial and ethnic minorities do not volunteer as often in

formal settings (as cited in Lee and Brudney 2012, p. 174). This does not conclude that ethnic


minorities do not volunteer, but that it is more common for this group to volunteer informally.

Other studies find that individuals involved in religious organizations and nonprofit

organizations are more likely to volunteer (Choi and DiNitto 2012 p.94 and Lee and Brudney

2012 p. 174). This is important information to note in partnering with other nonprofit

organizations, for individuals participating in other nonprofits are more likely to volunteer as

well as individuals involved in religious organizations.

Furthermore other sources concluded that people are more likely to volunteer if they are a

member of a religious or non profit organization, employed, married, have children, or own a

home, because it expands their social capital (p.165-166). These groups of people are exposed to

more volunteering activities through the things they are involved in. For example a parent’s

social capital will expand because of their children’s activities in school, parent teacher meetings,

sports, and other activities. Thereby increasing the chance that the parent will volunteer (Lee and

Brudney 2012 p.165-166).

Although some of these characteristics are generalizations, they are important to note

when recruiting volunteers. Research has shown that individuals with these characteristics are

more likely to volunteer their time.

Recruitment Methods

The research in this literature review has made many suggestions in volunteer recruitment

methods.

Respect and Recognition

Respect and recognition has been noted by many as being of much importance in recruitment

and retention of volunteers (King 2010, p. 12, Gault 2009, Boezeman and Ellemers 2008.) King


(2010) suggests the organization should be flexible and respect the volunteer; the volunteer

should be given tasks that are respectful of their time constraints and also recognized for their

donation of time (p.12). Respect is shown by flexibility and recognition. Gault (2009) even goes

to say that respect can result in retention of volunteers; he finds when volunteers’ time is utilized

and respected, it is more likely that the volunteer will return (¶ 6). He also states that many

nonprofits make it a priority to stress to the volunteers how important they are in helping

individuals; for the volunteers ‘want to know in detail how their work will help our organization

achieve a specific goal (¶ 6).’ Respect and recognition work together as each is applied to

volunteers. For example Energize, a consultation group which helps nonprofits manage

volunteers, strongly recommends respecting volunteers in the form of recognition by suggesting

the organization take care of their volunteers, thanking them, so not to take them for granted (as

cited in Gault 2009, ¶ 6). Furthermore after volunteers are recruited, it has been found that

“recognition activities, training and professional development for volunteers, screening and

matching to appropriate assignments, and using volunteers to recruit other volunteers” are

associated with retention of volunteers (Hager and Brudney 2011, p.151).

Giving to the Volunteer

Some research suggests demonstrating to volunteers what the organization can do for them and

others. King (2010) suggests personally exhibiting the organization’s accomplishments to give

the volunteer interest and show the volunteer what the organization can offer him/her

individually (p. 12). In doing this the volunteer can see the past work of the agency and imagine

what they can give and receive from his/her time spent with the organization.

Variety of Opportunities


Obtaining a long-term commitment from volunteers can be a difficult task, but an organization in

Chicago found that offering short term or one time volunteer opportunities may help in getting a

commitment (Gault 2009, ¶ 5). In giving volunteers a one-time opportunity, the organization is

giving individuals a taste without a commitment. This frees the volunteer from committing to

many hours of training and interviews, and makes the volunteering more attractive. This also

allows the volunteer to see what regular volunteering would look like, if they were to make the

commitment.

Another option noted by Gault (2009) suggests giving volunteers a variety of options to

choose from (¶ 4). By offering a variety of opportunities the volunteer can choose what he/she

feels will be most enjoyable to him/her personally.

Nelson (2009) makes a few other suggestions in volunteer choices which include giving

volunteers leadership roles, mobilizing volunteers, and fashioning the volunteer recruitment to

each volunteer’s phase in life (Nelson 2009, p. 34). All of these options allow the volunteer to

not only feel they have options and freedom, but also have a sense of importance in the

organization.

Specific Jobs

Much research has expressed the importance of creating specific jobs that require skill for

volunteers. First Freedman (1999) reminds organizations that volunteers who are educated and

well experienced can benefit organizations with their skill and expertise (as cited in Lee and

Brudney 2012 p. 174).

Secondly Gault (2009) suggests to give volunteers options by offering predetermined

specific positions (¶ 4). These positions give volunteers liberty of choice, and allow for personal


skill to be utilized leaving the volunteer with a feeling of belonging and necessity. King (2010)

suggests doing this by looking at the organization’s needs which cannot completed by employees

because of time, then advertise those specific volunteer positions (p. 12).

Susan Ellis, president of Energize an organization which helps organizations recruit and

maintain volunteers encourages organizations to only recruit volunteers after distinct jobs have

been chosen; her research has found it is common for volunteers to quit because they feel

insignificant or underused. Furthermore Ellis notes that when volunteers are engaging in

productive work, they can see how their work is benefitting the organization and desire to

continue to working (as cited in Gault 2009, ¶ 6). Boezeman and Ellemers (2008) find that it is

more likely that an individual will volunteer for an organization by hearing about the support and

tasks they will receive from the organization, than if the individual were to be presented with the

achievements of the organization or building relationships with other volunteers. This

demonstrates how volunteers are drawn to organizations when specific responsibilities are

assigned, as opposed to general volunteering opportunities.

Along with this, Nelson (2009) suggests that the organization use the occupational skills

of volunteers to use volunteers to their full potential. This allows the volunteer to feel as though

they are valuable to the company, knowing that their specific skill is useful to the organization.

Similarly Habitat for Humanity’s senior director of volunteering mobilization says, “We

focus on providing clearly defined, consistent, high-quality programs for our volunteers (as cited

in Gault 2009, ¶ 4).” The volunteers are administered positions and detailed descriptions in their

work. Again this gives the volunteer understanding of their importance at the agency.


FaCT uses an online calendar to draw volunteers to the organization’s door (Volunteer programs

2011, p. 7). The calendar lists specific needs and presents opportunities to volunteer.

Hager and Brudney (2011) suggest going even further by including “...training and

professional development for volunteers, screening and matching to appropriate assignments...”

in order to retain volunteers (p.151). The specific jobs method suggests reaffirming volunteers of

their importance by offering assignments to the already existing expertise of the volunteer.

Staff

Research has proven the importance of staff within the agency as a predictor of success in

volunteer recruitment. Susan Ellis from Energize suggests designating a staff worker to recruit

volunteers (as cited in Gault 2009, ¶ 6). Having an employee who works solely to gain

volunteers has been found to be beneficial in organizations. One study finds that “recruitment

problems are lessened in organizations that invest in training for paid staff members who work

with volunteers (Hager and Brudney 2011, p.152).” If the staff have been educated in their field,

it is more likely they will be successful at recruiting volunteers.

Focus

Another tool suggested in the research consists of concentrating on certain methods only. Hager

and Brudney (2011) point out that utilizing as many different ways to recruit volunteers can be a

hindrance. He finds it is better to focus closely on improving the most effective volunteer

recruitment strategy (p. 152). The organization is more likely be successful in recruitment, if it

were to improve the most profitable method, rather than using many different types of

recruitment.


For example when Habitat for Humanity uses paid advertizing, the marketing is really

about hitting groups of people who are already willing to volunteer (as cited in Gault 2009, ¶ 4).

This organization has found the benefits of targeting specific groups as opposed to blanketing a

population.

Importance of Social Capital

Social, human, and cultural capital continually seems to have an impact on volunteerism as seen

throughout this research. In fact Wilson and Musick (1997) finds “volunteering is a productive

activity requiring human capital, a collective action requiring social capital, and an ethical

behavior requiring cultural capital (as cited in Tang 2006, p. 376).” All three are intertwined and

have an element of effect on the volunteer and the organization.

Social capital in regards to volunteering is defined by Choi and DiNitto (2012) as

“individuals’ trust in others and in their own community as well as to their social embeddedness/

connections, which are all likely to increase opportunities for volunteering through mutual trust,

information sharing and pooled resources (p. 96).” It is a the way in which organizations know

who to contact when in need of volunteers. Similarly Lee and Brudney (2012) state that social

capital comes from “interactions with people” through careers, partnerships, homeownership,

religious involvement, and children (p.163). Through these connections can come referrals and

recommendations.

Habitat for Humanity, in specific, does not rely completely on paid advertising to gain

volunteers, but instead they use “school groups, churches, corporate boards, sports organizations,

and civic associations (as cited in Gault 2009, ¶ 4).” This group relies heavily on their social

capital to gain volunteers. Similarly FaCT connects with volunteers through the employees of the


FaCT’s board members and other companies who include annual volunteering in their mission

statement; The main source of their volunteer success the director says comes from social capital

(Volunteer programs 2011, p. 7). Therefore social capital has a major impact on the ability of an

organization to reach out and recruit volunteers.

Personal Contact

Using social capital in the form of personal contact with a staff member has proven to be helpful

in the recruiting and retention process. Choi and DiNotto (2012) concluded that nonprofit

employees, board members, and staff should “personally contact potential volunteers... and invite

them to attend organizational functions and meetings of volunteers as well as clients in need of

volunteer services (p.111).” When an individual is personally contacted and asked to volunteer,

the organization is able to speak one on one, talk about a specific position, and explain the

organization’s need for that individual personally. The FaCT program and other programs like it

find their success comes from, “investing in volunteer outreach and management, including

coordination, communication, and recognition (Volunteer programs: 2011, p.7).” These programs

have found that by reaching out and directly communicating with individuals, their organization

is able to boost their volunteer numbers.

Keeping a volunteer involved in the agency throughout his/her volunteer work

contributes to the volunteer’s retention. It has been found that the more events and meetings

volunteers attended the longer and more frequently the volunteers will volunteer; this is found to

be caused by the recognition the volunteers received, and the community built between

volunteers (Choi and DiNitto 2012, p.114). Involving the volunteer in these meetings creates


unity among other volunteers and the agency, which causes the volunteer to stay for a longer

period of time.

Cultural Capital

Bourdieu (1984) defines cultural capital as “consumption of specific cultural forms that mark

people as members of specific classes (as cited by Jeannotte 2003, p.38). Through individuals’

placement in society and culture certain ideas are formed; Wilson and Musick (1997) find

cultural capital involves “certain values and ethical resources (as cited by Tang 2006, p.377).”

Furthermore Choi and DiNitto (2012) find that cultural capital refers to individuals’ belief

system and moral compass which influence to volunteer (p. 96).” Therefore if cultural capital

shapes values and religious beliefs, and those values cause an individual to desire to volunteer,

cultural capital has an effect on volunteering.

Human Capital

The Organization for Economic Co-operation and Development (2001) defines human capital

has been defined as “the knowledge, skills, competencies and attributes embodied in individuals

which facilitate the creation of personal, social, and economic well-being (as cited in Jeannotte

2003, p. 37).” Similarly human capital is shaped by an individuals’ “...health status and other

tangible resources such as availability of time, education, and income (Choi and DiNitto 2012, p.

96).” These definitions show that an individual’s social capital also has an impact on how

individuals volunteer. All areas of human capital reflect the capacity an individual has to

volunteer.

Based on this literature a study was conducted to find the best way to recruit volunteers at

World Relief Nashville. With this research in mind the following methods were put into action.


Participants

Purposive sampling is geared for a study of a particular agency, for a specific purpose, and

studies a subset of a population (Types of Sampling, 2002-2003). Therefore a Purposive sample

was chosen for this research project, as the sample group is a subset of a specific population:

World Relief offices located in America. Secondly the purpose of this study is to benefit the

World Relief agency specifically and has a distinct purpose making the best sampling technique

purposive.

The sample group is all of the United States based World Relief offices. These individual

offices were chosen as a sample, because of their great likeness to World Relief Nashville. All of

the offices share the same mission, values, and vision. Furthermore all World Relief locations

function under the guidance of an overarching leadership team. The similarities within all of the

locations of World Relief reduce the amount of administrative factors that could affect the

implementations of the results of the research.

Participants included each location’s volunteer coordinator or employee that fulfilled a

similar role. International offices are not included in this study, because of differences in cultural

volunteer populations, language barriers, and contact barriers. World Relief locations were

chosen for a study population, because World Relief Nashville can identify with other World

Relief locations. World Reliefs share a mission statement, therefore all locations work toward

gaining more volunteers.

Method

Materials


World Relief locations, volunteer coordinators, and contact information were found on the World

Relief Website. A question table was formulated for interviewing each location, which included

qualitative and quantitative questions (see table 1). Each location was contacted by phone and/or

email. During phone interviews, Garageband was used to record the conversation between the

interviewer and the World Relief location’s representative.

Data Collection

A program evaluation was conducted in spring 2013, using questionnaires and open-ended

interviews to gather evidence from a purposive sample of World Relief volunteer coordinators

located in the United States. The questions and interviews gathered information as to how the

organization obtained volunteers for their location.

Data was collected by phone call and email using questionnaires and a open-ended

interview method. The questions asked dealt with the employee’s view on success of volunteer

recruitment tactics, retention numbers, and other factors occurring in recent years. Charts were

created to track responses, observe patterns, and find correlations among the data.

Ethical Considerations

Permission was given by the Nashville World Relief director to carry out the program evaluation.

All participants were informed of the study and its purpose and were asked to participate prior to

the interview.

Results

Data was taken from March 28-April 12, 2013. Of the 24 locations contacted, 21 locations

responded, and 15 locations obliged to be included in the research. However all locations were

not able to answer all of the research questions. All numbers are taken in regards to the 15


locations which responded (i.e. if 6 responses were given out of the total number of 15

interviewed, the response rate was 40 percent).

For chart 2 (quantitative) answers to question 1 were put into months; when range of

months was given, the median number of months was used (i.e. 3-6 months was listed as 4.5

months) to find the average amount of time volunteers stay at World Relief. The response rate for

question 1 was 67 percent. Of those responses it was found that 24 months was the longest time

volunteers stay, 2 months was the least amount of time of stay; 7.85 months was the average

length of stay; 6 months being the median and mode amount of time of stay;

Answers to question 3 were put into length of days, any data that was given as 4 hours or

less was translated at .5 based on an 8 hour work day; 8 hours or less of preparation translated to

1 work day and so on. When a range of hours was given, the median number was used in the data

set (i.e. 4-6 hours translated to 5 hours, 2-6 weeks translated into 28 days, etc).With a 93 percent

response rate the longest amount of training took 30.5 days; the least amount of time taken was

half a day; the average amount of time was 10.86 days; and the median amount of time was 8.5

days; half of a day was the most frequent amount of time listed.

Data gathered for question 4 was translated into number(s) of individuals. For every

range of individuals given, the median number was used (i.e. 30-35 volunteers translated to 32.5

individuals). For numbers given that included inequalities, the starting number plus 1 was used

as the data point for that location (i.e. more than 50 volunteers translated as 51). Numbers were

rounded to whole numbers, because of the units of analysis. With an 80 percent response rate, the

most amount of volunteers was 101, the lowest was 2 volunteers; the average amount of weekly


volunteers was found to be 36 individuals; the median and mode both were found to be 30

volunteers.

Chart 1 evaluates the different recruiting methods used by United States World Relief

locations as asked in question 2 and question 4 in Table 1. Each location was asked questions 1

and 4 in an open-ended manner. Therefore all answers were compiled and put into column A

(recruiting methods). The recruiting methods were only included in chart 1 if more than 1

location had used the method, or if it was listed as that location’s best or least effective method.

All locations that gave a response to questions 2 and 4 were assigned a number for

confidentiality purposes, which then translated to the chart to represent their office. Under each

location was listed the number of weekly volunteers that location had in order to see if higher

numbers would result in more recruitment methods or using the same methods. Many locations

used similar or the same methods; these methods were then tracked to find the dominant or most

common recruiting method.

Each location’s recruitment methods were then recorded using an X, B, or L. Locations

were asked to list their recruitment methods, most effective, and least effective. So X represents

a location’s use of a recruitment method; B represents the location’s idea of what method works

best; and L represents that location’s idea of what does not work well. Of the 15 locations

interviewed 4 responded with a best and least effective answer, 3 responded listing only the best

methods used, 3 responded with list of methods but only labeling some as least effective. And 5

locations listed methods, not labeling the methods least or most effective.

The research conducted concluded that there is no correlation between the number of

volunteers and the number of recruitment methods used. The best recruitment methods listed


were as follows: University Recruitment (1 best out of 9 uses), Church Partnerships (4 best out

of 6 uses), Website/Media/Advertisement/Radio (3 best out of 12 uses), Refugee Testimonies (2

best out of 2 listed), Word of Mouth (2 best out of 7 listed), and Team Model (1 best out of 1

listed). The least effective methods were found to be: church volunteer fairs (4 least out of 12

listed), University Recruitment (1 least out of 7 listed), Letters/emails to Churches (2 least out of

4 listed), Word of Mouth (1 least out of 7 listed), volunteer meetings (1 least out of 4 listed), and

Cold Calling (1 least out of 1 listed).

The last question was asked open ended in regards to how prominent World Relief is in

the location’s city (question 4). Of the 15 locations interviewed, all answered Question 6. Of

those locations 2 responded saying their location is well known, 6 responded that their location is

not well known, and 7 responded that their location was well known in the Church but not well

known in the general public. Chart 3 was made to find if there is any correlation with the number

of weekly volunteers to how well-known World Relief is. The chart divides the answers into 3

sections: well-known, not very well-known, and known in the church but not in public. Each

location that felt “well-known” was listed in the “well-known” column by the number of

volunteers that location gave to question 4; and each location that felt their office was “not very

well-known”, was represented in the not very column by the number of volunteers given in

question 4 and so forth. When locations did not have the number of weekly volunteers working

at their location, their location was represented with an X.


Table 1 ��


Table 2 !


Table 3

Discussion

Based on the research conducted and the results found the following conclusions were gathered.

The data suggests that the average volunteer time for World Relief volunteers is 7-8 months. The

amount of time it takes World Relief locations to prepare volunteers has a wide range, however

an average amount of time it takes to prepare volunteers before going into the field was found to

be 10 -11 days. The amount of volunteers for each location is greatly varied, but the average

amount of volunteers is 36 individuals.

The results for the most common recruitment method imply that church fairs, volunteer

fairs, and media such as websites, advertisements, radio shows, and social media are the most

widely used methods. The best and least effective methods have been found to be insignificant in

Well Known Not Well Known Known in Church

12 30 50

X 40 7

2.5 27

10 32

101 85

X 30

X

Average 12 36.7 38.5

Total Offices 2 6 8


the total number of locations interviewed, for only 3 out of 15 locations responded with least and

most effective methods.

Most offices have concluded being well known in the church atmosphere, but not well

known in the general population. The data collected suggests that World Relief’s recognition is

uncorrelated the number of weekly volunteers, for the there is not a significant difference

between number of volunteers in unknown locations and locations identifying themselves as well

known by the church.

Nashville World Relief’s volunteers usually stay for one year, this is longer than the

national average, which implies that World Relief Nashville is successful in maintaining

volunteers. World Relief Nashville is below the average time it takes to prepare volunteers for

fieldwork. . The average amount of weekly volunteers has been found to be 36, World Relief

Nashville utilizes 36 volunteers weekly. Based on this number World Relief Nashville is close to

the average number for World Relief locations interviewed. Similarly some of the most common

recruitment methods have been used by World Relief Nashville such as: church fairs, volunteer

fairs, World Relief website, social media, and Google searches.

Implications for Practice

The findings of the present study have important implications for the Nashville World Relief

location. Although World Relief Nashville is similar to many other locations in the United States,

some locations used methods that were uncommon but effective for their location.

Five World Relief locations found that using volunteer recruiting websites, such as

volunteermatch.com, have been effective in gaining volunteers. Two of the World Relief

locations have used radio and newspapers as a way to recruit. These options are not widely used,


however they have been found to be effective in recruitment and advertising. Two other locations

report using refugee testimonies to recruit volunteers and have found it to be the most effective at

their location.

The Miami location in particular was set apart from all other locations in its recruitment

strategies, and it should be particularly noted. This location has been extremely successful in it

recruitment and connection to the community. This location uses a weekly radio show, volunteer

meetings, informational meetings and churches to recruit volunteers. The church mobilizer has

connections with over 500 pastors and has partnered with other nonprofits to benefit refugees of

World Relief. He has made these connections by going to local church services, meeting with

pastors, and speaking at churches. Through networking this location is known by government

officials, the Department of Immigration, and many other individuals. However this location did

not have a number of volunteers working weekly, for all the volunteers are informal. Even

though there is no record of the amount of weekly volunteers, this location has more than enough

volunteers helping their office. Similarly Miami This success story although unique, allows the

Nashville office to see a picture of what World Relief can look like in harmony with the

community.

The research gathered implies there is no connection between amount of recruit methods

used and amount of weekly volunteers. This data relates back to Hager and Brudney (2011),

which claims more methods does not equal more volunteers (p.152). But perfecting methods,

which have been successful, can aid in gaining more volunteers.

The literature reaffirms the data collected in regards to time to prepare the volunteer for

fieldwork. Based on a study by Gault (2009) individuals are more likely to commit to a short-


term volunteer opportunity, before they make a long-term commitment (¶ 5). By keeping the

preparation time for volunteers low, it can be concluded that individuals are more likely to make

a commitment.

A few offices are congruent with the literature in regards to personal contact. As

mentioned before, Choi and DiNotto (2012) suggest contacting individuals directly for

recruitment. Two offices reported that the most success for recruiting volunteers comes from

contacting pastors after attending the pastors’ church service.

All of the offices interviewed listed some kind of social capital as one of their recruitment

strategies. The literature and research in this study corroborate the importance of social capital in

volunteer recruitment.

Limitations

Some limitations were found while collecting the data, which could affect the overall

conclusions. Out of all 25 World Relief locations 15 locations responded. This sets limitations on

the conclusions of the data as to its significance. The data was collected by both phone call and

email, after phone calls alone were found to be inadequate. Email was found to give

straightforward answers, whereas phone calls seemed to offer longer more detailed answers. This

could be caused by the volunteer coordinators’ ability to read over the questions in the email

prior to the interview and consider specific answers, as opposed to answering the questions

immediately over the phone. Furthermore because the questions were open ended, individuals

were not given a list or gauge to go by. If all were contacted by e-mail the data might possibly

have the same consistency in answers and vice versa with phone calls. Secondly some agencies

had only been open for a short period of prior to interviewing: Memphis 8 months, Columbus 14


months. This means the data could have been different if the location had been there for multiple

years. Similarly some of the volunteer coordinators had been at their location for a year or less,

and concluded their office did not have information available at this time. Furthermore some

individuals had records on file that they could share concrete numbers, but other volunteer

coordinators had only rough guesses.

Other limitations for this study involve the difference in location, population, and

community between locations. Some locations are located in rural areas and others are located in

highly populated areas. Similarly some locations may be located in an area highly populated by

churches, whereas other locations do not have as many churches surrounding their office.

The questions were constructed in a qualitative and quantitative form, which means some

of the data was compared in numbers but others were conclusions drawn by the personal

experience of the volunteer coordinator. The qualitative information is therefore biased, but

patterns are still found throughout the data gathered.

Future Research

More research would aid in gaining beneficial information for World Relief volunteers. Further

study into the current research would be needed to evaluate the correlation between other factors

such as demographics of volunteers and length of stay, number of church connections and

number of weekly volunteers, etc.

Outside of the data collected other factors could be correlated with the agency’s ability to recruit

volunteers. For example research could be conducted to find if there is a connection between the

volunteer coordinator’s education, degree, and/or length of stay at World Relief and the number

of volunteers recruited. Also it would be beneficial to collect data from the perspective of the


volunteer and church congregations in order evaluate his/her experience and its correlation to

retention.

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Documents

World Relief Volunteer research