7 Features to Look For in Volunteer Scheduling Software

7 Features to Look For in Volunteer Scheduling Software

Around 77.4 million Americans volunteered for 6.9 billion hours in 2017. With so many people dedicating their time to service, volunteer organizations must find ways to keep track of members and their impact on the communities they serve. 

That’s where volunteer scheduling tools come in. By using a management software system, service organizations can spend less time on paperwork and more time in the field. Here’s what to look for in volunteer scheduling software for your organization.

1. Background Check

Performing background checks is often a crucial step in the volunteer recruitment process, so it should be straightforward for both you and your potential recruits. When it comes to volunteer management software, you want to find one that cuts processing time and paperwork. Accessing screenings directly from one place simplifies the user experience, allowing you to focus on other essential recruitment tasks.

Volgistics has partnered with Verified First to provide a smooth, streamlined background checking process. All you need is a Verified First account and the plugin for your browser — Verified First will pull only the most relevant information from your volunteers’ profiles and contact them for the rest. You’ll typically receive results in two to three business days. 

Verified First has over 120 services available, including the following screenings:

  • Criminal history
  • Drug screening
  • Health care
  • Civil records
  • Identity services
  • Medical license verification

2. Web-Based Management Portal

An online self-service portal allows your volunteers to access their information from anywhere, making scheduling more convenient for everyone. Choose a management software with a user-friendly interface so volunteers can navigate their portal with ease.

Volgistics’ VicNet Online Volunteer Portal allows volunteers to access their schedules and information from any internet-connected device. Using VicNet, they can:

  • Access their profile and contact information
  • View current schedules and past hours served
  • See and sign up for open shifts
  • Receive messages from administrators

You can set the level of access your volunteers have, allowing them to only see and manage the profile information and schedule openings you want to give them access to. With Volgistics, you are in total control.

3. Centralized Communication Hub

Regardless of the medium, you want to keep a solid line of communication open between you and your volunteers to prevent no-shows and missed notifications. Some people prefer to receive updates by email, while others prefer text messages. Your volunteer management system should be able to handle both while simultaneously allowing you to maintain specific channels of communication based on who you need to talk to.

Volgistics pulls volunteers from its database based on the information you enter, so when you need to get in touch, all you need to do is select which groups or individuals you’d like to message.

Let’s say you’re a site manager for an outdoor event later in the week. The weather forecast for the day of the event looks stormy, so you want to make sure everyone scheduled for the event knows to look for news about postponing. Using Volgistics’ system, you can tag all volunteers scheduled for that day and send them the information. Volunteers select which communication method they prefer, so all you need to do is draft and send your messages. 

4. Skill and Preference Matching

Being able to exercise your strengths while serving your community is a rewarding experience. Your volunteer management tool should do more than just store information about your volunteers — it should also be capable of using that information to match volunteers to assignments that will excite them and ignite their passion for your organization’s mission.

With Volgistics’ Volunteer Database Management software, you can easily match volunteers to assignments based on preferences, skills, age, and availability. As long as the information is in their volunteer record, Volgistics can help you select the right people for the job.

For example, if you needed volunteers over 18 and with a specific skill for an event, you can select those on the assignment’s Profile tab, and Volgistics can find matched volunteers for you.

5. Multi-Site Capabilities

Organizations that operate across multiple physical locations may find it helpful to have one centralized database for all volunteers. However, you also want site leaders to have easy access to their own site’s information.

Volgistics’ Site Level Access feature restricts the information available to site leaders so they only have access to information about volunteers from their site. Some advantages of this feature include: 

  • Extra confidentiality for volunteers working exclusively at one site
  • A streamlined user experience that allows site leaders to generate reports on only their sites
  • The ability of your organization’s headquarters to establish organization-wide standards and rules for your site leaders to follow
  • A centralized database accessible only to organization administrators

6. Simplified Volunteer Tracking 

With so much information about your volunteers, you need a logical way to organize it all. You should be able to log hours and access timesheets and statistics easily, so your management software should provide ways to classify information.

Keep track of all your volunteer information using a comprehensive database like Volgistics. We use a simple tab format for volunteer information so you can easily find what you need. Classifications like Flags and Types help you filter volunteers by characteristics or skills, while the search feature enables you to navigate the database easily. You can also track and schedule groups as well as individual volunteers with our group tracking feature. 

For tracking hours, Volgistics also offers an on-site kiosk feature, VicTouch, that serves as an easy touchpoint for volunteers to check in and out of their shifts. From here, volunteers can access schedules and openings, past hours served, and view messages from administrators. All you need is a standard touchscreen-equipped computer or tablet and an web browser.

7. Comprehensive Reporting Capabilities

Once you have the information, it’s time to show your organization’s hard work to your stakeholders. Your volunteer management software should make this step quick and easy. 

Effortlessly generate and print detailed reports with Volgistics’ reporting feature. You’ll be able to create Excel spreadsheets or PDFs at the click of a button, schedule reports to automatically run on certain days, and organize your volunteers in a list.

Choose Volgistics for Efficient Volunteer Scheduling

When you need the best volunteer scheduling software, you need all the tools above and more. That’s where Volgistics comes in. We’ve served over 5,000 organizations tracking over 6 million volunteers. Want to know how Volgistics can serve your organization?Register for a live demo, contact our support team for more information, or sign up for a free trial today!

Choose Volgistics for Efficient Volunteer Scheduling