Are you familiar with IKEA? I get that you have probably HEARD of them. But…have you ever purchased something from IKEA? (Or do you know anyone who has, because you might have heard about their experience if so…) IKEA has made a name for themselves by creating good quality, discount priced home furnishings, with TERRIBLE directions. But, honestly, what do you expect? They have to do something to keep the prices low. I’m concluding that they save in the ‘direction making’ department.
My husband cringes when I tell him I am making a trip to the store. A couple years ago, I bought an a sectional sofa from them. It came in 28 pieces. (No, really. The picture evidence is below.)
In very few instances, it is worth it to us to suffer through the ‘building’ process. Most often, we take our business elsewhere.
When we purchase from IKEA…we KNOW what to expect.
The ‘business’ we choose to conduct with IKEA is influenced by our expectations.
Expectations and how they are communicated, matter. They influence our decisions. This holds true, even for our volunteers.
What Do You Expect?
As a leader, what expectations do you have for your team? Do you expect the people on your team to show up on time? Are they expected to prepare in advance? Is there an expectation for those you lead about attire, attitude, and action that you want them to take?
The real question that begs to be asked, however, is does your team understand your expectations?
Here’s what I have found…
Often when what we get, is not what we expect, it is because our expectations have not been clarified for our team.
Our volunteers EXPECT that our expectations will be communicated clearly.
If you are the only one who knows your expectations…then truly, WHAT DO YOU EXPECT?
I believe that when a leader does not clarify their expectations and hold their team to those expectations, it is breeding ground for an unhealthy team culture, potentially unsafe environments and for a revolving door of volunteers.
Unmet Expectations
I remember one particular season in my career, that was daunted with unclear ‘expectations’. The expectations shifted depending on who I was interacting with.
That analogy that ‘the left hand does not know what the right hand is doing’; it was entirely true. I experienced the repercussions of it. I can look back and identify clearly how much disruption, frustration and lack of forward progress was caused from the inconsistent expectations.
These are the same results that unclear expectations will garner with the team we lead.
Since volunteers are not paid, if their expectations of you, as the leader, are not met -or- if they do not understand what is expected of them, they typically will not stick around for very long.
Unclear expectations are not the only reason that a volunteer team may be unhealthy. But if the goal is to build healthy, sticky volunteer teams, then THIS is a great place to start.
What is a sticky volunteer or a sticky volunteer team? Don’t miss THIS ARTICLE on that very topic!
If your team, next week, showed up and only performed based on the measures, expectations, policies, procedures, vision that you have cast and trained them on, over the last quarter, what team would you be walking in to?
If you find yourself cringing at the answer to that question. You aren’t alone. It is so easy to make excuses for not ‘pressuring’ or ‘asking’ too much from volunteers.
The truth is…They Want You Too!
Volunteers WANT to do GOOD.
Most volunteers are showing up to serve on your team, because they genuinely want their life to make a difference.
Volunteers are counting on their leader, to outline exactly HOW they can best accomplish that.
Do I have you convinced yet about WHY expectations are important? Next, let’s talk about WHAT can be done to help ensure that your team knows and understands the expectations of their role.
The Strategy.
1. Set Realistic Expectations
It is crucial to decide in advance what each role on your team should include. Brainstorm a best case scenario, which might not be your current scenario. Too often a leader will look at ALL the things that need to be done and divide those tasks up among the handful of volunteers on their team.
This is counter productive if you want to develop a healthy, sticky team.
If you have a service leader, room leader, production coordinator, greeter, small group leader, worship team member, admin position, check-in team member; decide what are reasonable expectations for each role.
2. Write it Down
You can set this expectation on yourself; consider that if it’s not written down, it’s not real. Write down the expectations at every level. Create role descriptions for every role on your team, from the leaders to the curriculum prep team.
Implement a volunteer handbook. Include everything from dress code, timeliness, weekly communication, all the way to safety procedures. Leave no stone unturned.
Put everything that a volunteer or a leader on your team needs to know and do, in writing.
3. Accountability
By putting in place a measure of accountability, we communicate to the team what we value. The will know what we expect, by what we inspect. If an expectation is that everyone serving with babies and crawlers is to wear shoe covers, then we have to inspect that, every single week.
And, the most crucial step is that we have to ADDRESS it when the expectation is not being met.
These conversations are so challenging when our mindset is that ‘they are just volunteers.’
It is not as challenging when we have the mindset that, if we don’t help hold them accountable, we are holding them back from being all that God has created them to be.
I recommend to lead with vision and use the ‘sandwich method.’
Identify to them, something that you see them doing well. Next, call attention to the expectation that is not being met and how meeting it, will help to further the mission. Finally, wrap up with something that you appreciate and give a charge for how you believe God is going to continue to use them.
4. Remind.
If we don’t keep the expectations in the front of everyone’s mind, they will get pushed to the back. I believe that is self-explanatory. Just to be even more clear, an annual training event is not frequent enough of a ‘reminder.’
Here are some of the avenues available to remind the team about the expectations:
- Group texts
- Email blasts
- Social media page
- Printed material inside environment
- Team huddles
5. Celebrate
What gets celebrated, gets repeated. When we attach our celebrations to the vision we help our team learn which actions to repeat.
For example; ‘I watched all the kids running away from their parents and into your environment today. They have such a close relationship with you because you show up consistently to see them. You really communicate to them (and their parents) how valuable they are and how important it is for them to learn about Jesus. This points our volunteers to the importance of showing up consistently to serve…ALL day long.
Let’s Keep Our Priorities in the Right Order
Can I be bold for a minute?
I understand that you need to GROW your team. The pressure is likely heavier in this season than any other. You are in good company. Leaders ALL OVER are looking to grow their volunteer teams.
The challenge is that if you bring new volunteers onto a team that is unhealthy, with unclear expectations (among other challenges), you will loose those new volunteers even faster than you found them.
There is no time better than today to start laying out expectations for your team. And then, the answer to ‘What do you expect‘ can be a positive one FILLED with stories of wins. (And many opportunities to celebrate all that God is doing through your team And then get ready to celebrate as they rise to the occasion.
These next few weeks, I’ll be sharing tips and strategies that will help you build a healthy, sticky volunteer culture! (There might even be some free resources as well. Make sure to ‘subscribe’ to ensure you don’t miss any of it!)
Cheering you on!