Volunteer roles

Being flexible to cater for each person’s situation is key when looking for ways to attract and retain volunteers in your club. Communicating the types of roles and the commitment is the first start to encouraging volunteers to get involved.

Some examples of different approaches to volunteering include:

Project based roles

Project based volunteering refers to someone taking on a task or role for a specific outcome. This type of volunteering is very specific, has a designated timeframe and is normally shorter than taking on a broad role. Project based volunteering can be good for those with specific skill sets, not able to commit to a whole season or those looking to get experience and skills.

Examples include:

• Planning a dedicated social event
• Developing a strategic plan
• Applying for a grant application

Event day helpers and rosters

Event day helpers are a great way to include new volunteers, players or people with limited time. Utilising a roster system to help plan and manage event days can help spread the load across more people.

TIP: Engage your helpers when designing the roster and allow them to pick their day and time to fit around their schedule.

Volunteer roster template, opens in a new tab AFL ClubHelp

Examples:

• Canteen
• Scoring and timing matches
• Match day set up / pack up

Dual roles

Many people may not have the time to commit to a role or are new to volunteering. Supporting the person to undertake their role with a friend or other club volunteer may encourage them to jump on board and halve the commitment required.

Some examples include:

• Co-coaches
• Team manager
• Assistant committee member (to help succession plan)

Virtual tasks and roles

Many tasks do not always need someone to attend in person at club meetings, matches or training sessions. Think about how people can contribute remotely.

TIP: Make sure to still engage virtual volunteers as if they were around the club regularly with ongoing communication, training, check-ins and recognition to make sure they feel valued and part of the community.

Some examples to consider could be:

• Transcribe recorded minutes from a committee meeting
• Produce the club newsletter
• Social media coordinator
• Team and player weekly registration
• Match day score upload

Task based

Sometimes people may be willing and able to help out but have limited time to commit. Asking someone to complete 1-2 tasks not only means the commitment required is clear but, it also means they may be able to fit it in to their schedule. This can be a great way to reduce the commitment of volunteers with larger workloads by giving some of their tasks to others.

Examples

• Deliver food items for game day
• Taking photos
• Taking registrations
• Managing uniforms