Battle the Nationwide Workforce & Volunteer Shortage

All industries are suffering from a lack of workers and employee retention. This isn't news to you, as you are struggling with this, as well as volunteer retention. As we move towards a post-pandemic world, we are seeing most offices are back open and life is operating as normal, which leaves less time for people to volunteer for their favorite nonprofits.  

As a cooperative purchasing organization, we want to help you with any pain you may be feeling from a lack of staff or volunteers. 

Labor Shortage

There are a variety of reasons nonprofits are struggling to fill vacant roles and retain their staff. People are burnt out or stressed over childcare. On top of that they are seeing higher salaries and growth opportunities elsewhere. Living costs continue to be on the rise, forcing employees to change employers or work multiple jobs. 

Yes, workforce shortages are being seen everywhere but when you are an understaffed nonprofit organization, communities can suffer. You serve the public and offer services that some can't get anywhere else, which makes your work vital. This is where the issue lies. It is hard to run a business with limited staff, but it is even harder to provide a nonprofit service while understaffed. 

While you are struggling to fill roles, the demand for your services is rising. Natural disasters are occurring nationwide, healthcare needs are always rising, and more and more children are being home-schooled and joining tutorial services. If you are asking yourself, “What do I do about this?”, you’ve come to the right place! 

Employee Attraction & Retention

The key to working towards a fully staffed organization lies in attraction and retention. Evaluate what you are offering your employees and try and fill in any gaps. Do you offer remote work flexibility? Do you offer health benefits? How is your overall culture perceived? Do you have a smooth and painless hiring and onboarding process? 

The way you are seen in the community affects if people want to work for you. This is a great chance for you to assess your overall brand. Do you have a consistent color scheme and logo? Are you on social media? These are ways to get in front of people and create the sense of community that we all desire to feel at work.  

Volunteer Attraction & Retention

Although volunteers are not paid and benefit-receiving employees, they are still vital to your success. There are many ways to attract and retain volunteers, including the suggestions below: 

• Create a sense of community. We all want to feel like we belong somewhere.

• Encourage open communication and make sure their voices are heard. Interact in different ways. (Email, social channels, text messages) 
• Don’t make it a hassle to volunteer for your organization. Be thorough in selecting volunteers but make the process seamless for them.  
• Make sure you are clear on requirements, time commitments, etc. Don’t leave any questions unanswered. 
• Be appreciative of the time or money they donate to your mission. Consider having “swag” to give them or send handwritten thank you notes.  
• Have a thorough training process. Make sure everyone is on the same page and feels comfortable completing the tasks at hand.

Volunteers make your mission possible, keep them motivated! 

Cooperative Purchasing Strategy

If you haven’t heard of cooperative purchasing, we're so glad you are here! At OMNIA Partners, we utilize a lead agency process to create a portfolio of competitively solicited and publicly awarded contracts available to all members. Membership is free and you can start utilizing our agreements immediately. Our job is to help you keep costs low while fulfilling your mission. 

How can we help you during the labor shortage? 

Sterling, an OMNIA Partners background screening supplier, and Sterling Volunteers are pleased to service thousands of nonprofits of all sizes, nationwide. As a leading provider of background screening and identity services, Sterling is dedicated to creating safe environments for staff and volunteers so you can stay focused on fulfilling your organization’s mission. 

Making donations and volunteering for your nonprofit easy is important to retention. E-commerce and online donating are making this possible! Supplier Partner Amazon business not only helps you save money, but you can also utilize their platform to create wish lists and connect your Donation Driver account for one seamless transparent process. Beyond that, the streamlined approach that Amazon Business brings will give you time back to focus on your employees and volunteers. 

To automate and streamline your administrative tasks, look to supplier partner UKG. UKG for Nonprofits is able to help you attract, retain, and engage quality talent while also managing the employee lifecycle from pre-hire to retirement so you can provide services in a safe, cost-effective, and compliant manner. UKG for Nonprofits provides the automated tools and real-time visibility you need to manage costs, minimize compliance risk, and improve interactions with your members and community with a single, unified platform. Overall UKG allows you to minimize time spent on administrative duties and spend more time making a difference.