Why is networking essential for Volunteer Managers?

Networking offers a myriad of benefits, both professionally and personally. It opens doors to new opportunities, such as job offers, business ventures, or collaborations you might not find through traditional channels. Networking allows you to exchange ideas and gain fresh insights, informing you about your field's latest trends and best practices. It also provides access to a wealth of resources and expertise; through your network, you can find mentors, advisors, or partners who can offer guidance and support. On a personal level, networking develops lifelong friendships and connections, enriching your social and professional life.

Networking can lead you to new ideas, meet new people, and have a larger perspective on many things. You can increase your professional knowledge and pass along your successes and failures in order to help others. You also have the opportunity to speak with new potential volunteers and donors for your own organization. Networking can lead to new creativity within yourself and others.

Networking allows one to liaise with both the past, present and future of the volunteering role, function and organisation. It is a very rich environment to understand lessons learnt, both good and bad. and develop a perspective on where to from here, in mapping out a future direction.

People pay attention to those who show up, especially those who show their face consistently. Are you there for the community celebrations AND those long, tough town hall meetings? Some of my best networking has come from organically seeing folks multiple times "out and about" and eventually we were able to connect more quickly and deeply about multiple issues that were both close to our hearts and ruffled our feathers.

Networking can present several challenges. One common issue is the discomfort or anxiety associated with meeting new people, especially for introverts. This can make initiating conversations difficult. Another challenge is maintaining meaningful connections; meeting people is easy, but it is harder to develop deeper, long-lasting relationships. In today's digital age, while online networking platforms provide convenience, they often need more face-to-face interactions, leading to less impactful connections. Finding suitable networking events or groups that align with your professional goals and interests can be time-consuming.

We are all busy these days so networking for volunteers requires an extremely acute focus on time management. Making the most of events and the opportunities is critical. Much better to touch base with all those that have a higher relationship value for a smaller amount of time than spend a lot of time on only a few key relationships and miss out on connecting with the others.

Effective networking strategies involve a mix of careful planning and genuine interpersonal engagement. 1. Set clear networking goals. 2. Attend relevant events (both in-person and virtual). 3. Prepare an effective elevator pitch. 4. Practice active listening. 5. Follow up promptly with new contacts. 6. Utilize social media and professional platforms like LinkedIn. 7. Offer value in interactions (sharing information, support, connections). 8. Regularly evaluate and adapt networking strategies.

Understand what you want and need is important. Focus on the needs primarily, find out who is who, what they do how they can help. Seek introductions to these 'others'. Then likewise focus on the wants.

Aja! Mais importante do que apenas pensar e planejar é colocar em ação! Aqui vale aquela máxima: feito é melhor que perfeito!

Re-engaging with your volunteer networks is important as it is an indicator of one commitment to the organisation or industry. It also provides an opportunity for those networking connections to become stronger, broader and more robust.

Engajar-se em encontros ou redes de ONGs pode ser extremamente benéfico. Tive a oportunidade de participar da rede Empodera, que reúne diversas organizações não governamentais. Dentro dessa rede, um dos grupos de trabalho abordava uma temática comum a várias ONGs: a mentoria de jovens. A troca de experiências nesse contexto foi enriquecedora e proporcionou aprendizado mútuo.

Volunteering networks are different to 'paid' networks and so need to managed accordingly, as the connections can take more time to establish. Those connections may disappear from one year to the next, so knowledge transfer and dissemination can be a significant issue.