Many organizations have great groups of volunteers that never cause a problem. Even volunteer groups that have occasional problems are filled with wonderful people that just occasionally run into problems. In general, most people willing to volunteer are mature and selfless enough to ignore their problems or work through them enough that they are still able to meet an organization’s goals. By a certain point in time, most people know there will be occasional personality conflicts and they just deal with them.
Unfortunately, when working with people, especially large groups of people, you might occasionally run into problems that are not easily resolved. No matter how kind and generous people might be, there are sometimes occasions on which they can just not get along. As the manager of your organization’s volunteers, your job is to manage these conflicts and avoid them whenever possible. How can this be done?
Avoiding Problems
Your first defense in dealing with conflict within a group of volunteers is to prevent it from happening to begin with. Avoiding conflict takes some planning and will require you juggle a bit when it comes to your volunteer team. Unless you need to focus for hours on how to handle people, it is worth a little extra effort to avoid conflicts. If you need to step up a bit more or ask others to step up a bit more to prevent problems, chances are it is worth it. Protecting the good of the group is more important than making things as convenient as possible. However, if you are focusing all your energy on conflict prevention, it might be time for a different approach.
Utilizing Scheduling
Scheduling is one of your biggest responsibilities as a volunteer manager. Make the most of your time and effort by implementing volunteer management software. This tool can be one of your best tools when it comes to preventing problems. If there are people in your group who do not get along, use scheduling to keep them apart as much as possible. Hopefully your team can work together in the best manner possible to achieve its goals and ensuring nobody is distracted by conflict is an important part of this.
Using Conflict Resolution Techniques
If scheduling is not enough and people who do not get along have no choice but to work together, conflict resolution techniques can help. There are courses available that train you in conflict resolution, so if you find you deal with conflict among volunteers on a regular basis, it a class might be worth the investment of time and money. Keep in mind these resolution techniques will only work if everyone is focused on the same goals. If a volunteer is there only to cause problems, no amount of conflict resolution is going to help.
Knowing when to Let Go
…which brings us to the point where you need to know when to let go because a person has a different agenda than your team of volunteers and your organization. If you have a person in your group that seems bent on causing problems, you need to let this person go, regardless of anything he or she might bring to the table. Read more from www.volunteermatters.com.
Unfortunately, when working with people, especially large groups of people, you might occasionally run into problems that are not easily resolved. No matter how kind and generous people might be, there are sometimes occasions on which they can just not get along. As the manager of your organization’s volunteers, your job is to manage these conflicts and avoid them whenever possible. How can this be done?
Avoiding Problems
Your first defense in dealing with conflict within a group of volunteers is to prevent it from happening to begin with. Avoiding conflict takes some planning and will require you juggle a bit when it comes to your volunteer team. Unless you need to focus for hours on how to handle people, it is worth a little extra effort to avoid conflicts. If you need to step up a bit more or ask others to step up a bit more to prevent problems, chances are it is worth it. Protecting the good of the group is more important than making things as convenient as possible. However, if you are focusing all your energy on conflict prevention, it might be time for a different approach.
Utilizing Scheduling
Scheduling is one of your biggest responsibilities as a volunteer manager. Make the most of your time and effort by implementing volunteer management software. This tool can be one of your best tools when it comes to preventing problems. If there are people in your group who do not get along, use scheduling to keep them apart as much as possible. Hopefully your team can work together in the best manner possible to achieve its goals and ensuring nobody is distracted by conflict is an important part of this.
Using Conflict Resolution Techniques
If scheduling is not enough and people who do not get along have no choice but to work together, conflict resolution techniques can help. There are courses available that train you in conflict resolution, so if you find you deal with conflict among volunteers on a regular basis, it a class might be worth the investment of time and money. Keep in mind these resolution techniques will only work if everyone is focused on the same goals. If a volunteer is there only to cause problems, no amount of conflict resolution is going to help.
Knowing when to Let Go
…which brings us to the point where you need to know when to let go because a person has a different agenda than your team of volunteers and your organization. If you have a person in your group that seems bent on causing problems, you need to let this person go, regardless of anything he or she might bring to the table. Read more from www.volunteermatters.com.
