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I’ve often heard about the difficulty of recruiting adult help from other Scouters and I wonder, sometimes, if it has to do with the way we ask?
When the coffee is flowing and the discussions range wide we volunteers commiserate with each other. How many times have you heard things like:
“Why are we the only ones who will do this?”
“How come I can’t get anyone else to help?”
“All those other parents are so irresponsible – they think we’re just here to babysit!”
We love the work but are bothered by the fact that we do it all; a perfectly natural, perfectly understandable reaction to the apparent or actual lack of volunteers.
I wonder if we haven’t perpetuated this lack by allowing this resentment to color the way we ask people to volunteer?
When we are totally dedicated to something like Scouting it’s hard to understand why others don’t seem to be. Their lack of commitment and dedication can feel like an affront to our commitment and dedication. That affront causes resentment and resentment is unattractive.
If we stand up in front of a group of parents and plead for help does our resentment show? I’d rather not have someone try to shame or beg me into anything – in fact I am going to be rather resistant to them.
We’ve never really had a lack of volunteers in our troop – sometimes we seem to have too many! We tell every incoming family that we’d welcome their help and we do understand that schedules and commitments can be very tight.
When folks do volunteer we make it clear that we understand they will do what they can do when they can do it.
Are some more dedicated than others? Do some shoulder a bit more of a burden than others? Sure, that’s to be expected.
We do have fun as we work together – it’s really a great time. I think this attracts other folks to join in.
If your appeals for help aren’t having positive results it may be that you’ve convinced yourself that no one cares, that no one will help. People can sense that and it may be your attitude that keeps them away.
Hi Michael
I’m not sure what to say beyond what I said. I’m sure that there are programs that you can pay for (boarding school?) where parents who are just too busy to participate or care can drop their youth off at. If it’s that much of a problem, then you are probably reaching some at risk young men. That’s a good thing. It’s also frustrating when you don’t have enough help.
Hi Michael
“Boy Scouts or the outdoors”. Scouting is not about the outdoors.
Ooooooooops. Is Larry crazy? Here are the aims of Scouting:
Character Development
Citizenship Training
Personal Fitness
This is what we are about. It’s very important for parents to understand this. This is what we are attempting to accomplish with the young men in our care. Firstly, can the parents of your Scouts buy into the aims?
Now we move on to the EIGHT methods of Scouting:
Patrols
Ideals
Outdoor Programs
Advancement
Associations With Adults
Personal Growth
Leadership Development
Uniform
1/8th of Scouting is “Outdoor Programs”. A Scout troop does not have to go camping every weekend to achieve the aims of Scouting. It would be very difficult to work the eight methods without going outdoors some and camping requires a fair amount of logistics, even for a simple outing, but it’s not the main point. Can the parents of your Scouts buy into the eight Methods? Is this something they want for their sons?
Ok, if they are still following along here, the next step is to explain that Scouting is a volunteer program. Like Little League, Indian Guides, Odyssey of the Mind and a myriad of other programs that young people participate in, it is implemented by volunteers. Can the parents of your Scouts buy into a volunteer program? Have they ever coached before? Helped out with water and cookies at a Soccer game?
That is the basis of what we do. We want the values listed above for our sons. We realize that it requires work and dedication to bring this about. How can each one of us help and participate in this endeavor?
Hi Larry,
I appreciate your response. I am enjoying this discussion.
“Can the parents of your Scouts buy into the eight Methods? Is this something they want for their sons?”
Yes, as long that doesn’t involve any work. (Bear with me.)
Here’s what parents want: Eagle Scout for their son, without supporting the troop that creates the infrastructure (i.e., a troop with all the trimmings) to allow a Scout that choses to, on his own, work toward the rank of Eagle Scout.
When I say, “support the troop”, I don’t mean “hand-hold the Scout to Eagle”. I mean providing the infrastructure needed to support what Scouts like to do, which includes an outdoor program. (I omitted he other seven methods of Scouting, as the need in my unit is support for the outdoor program — the “indoor program”, e.g., troop meetings, don’t need lots of adult support.)
I’m not criticizing parents for their choices — I accept they haven’t been convinced that Scouting is a volunteer program and it can’t be delivered without volunteers. My goal is to light a fire under parents that “don’t get it” and encourage them to participate and support the troop. I think parents think from the perspective that they will do what directly supports their son (drive him and some others to a campout). Supporting the troop *is* supporting their son, indirectly, but they don’t see that.
“Can the parents of your Scouts buy into a volunteer program?”
Ah, this is what I’m trying to do. Right now, they aren’t, and my goal is get them to buy into it.
To reach those parents, we need to put ourselves in their shoes; they think:
they’re too busy to volunteer (other priorities)
the troop runs fine without them
there is no compelling reason to step up
I think to encourage a parent to volunteer, we need to answer:
What’s in it for me?
One of the issues I think we see with getting involved is that some adults, and even the youth, view scouting as just another activity.
I believe many adults are as conditioned to the adult led/youth participant model as the youth are.
Michael, I’ve heard these too. I’m sure most of us have.
“they’re too busy to volunteer (other priorities)
the troop runs fine without them
there is no compelling reason to step up”
and a perennial favorite, “oh I couldn’t do that!”
When I do get adults along for an outing, I take the time to point out what we are
seeing, what the patrol method is, talk about getting to watch many “ah ha!” moments and being along on a journey not many parents get to experience.
The “what’s in it for me” is a tough thing sometimes.
I try to point out as much as I can and share the scouting vision. My hope is that along the way they begin to figure out there is a “what’s in it for me” that fits them.
So far what works the best is direct one to one conversation about what that adult could do to help in some specific way. I approach them with something I think they would be good at and I let them know I am thinking specifically about them and their skills. Sometimes it’s like convincing a scout he has the ability to do something he’s not accustomed to doing but, so far this approach is having better luck than any other methods I’ve tried.
Clarke and Larry, thanks. I read and re-read these responses and listened to the podcast twice. Forgive me, Clarke, if I’m taking this out of context, but I think this statement sums up why it’s hard to develop a cogent case for volunteering:
“It’s a little frustrating trying to explain this to people who haven’t been through the whole process – you just can’t know what I am talking about.”
Successful marketing identifies a “unique selling proposition”. To recruit volunteers, we need to think from the perspective of parents who weren’t exposed to Boy Scouts or the outdoors as a youth. While reasons to volunteer are obvious to Scouters, they aren’t to parents who lack a Scouting experience. Please help me answer (from a parent’s perspective):
Why should I volunteer for the troop? What’s in it for me?
What do you have so far?
I don’t have an effective recruiting message at this point. WOSM recognizes the issue but doesn’t offer much of a solution. Excerpt:
* The “Volunteers in Scouting Toolkit” (WOSM, 2006) says that it is not sufficient to expect adults to volunteer for roles in Scouting and to continue doing those roles just because it is a good thing to do.
* “Volunteers in Scouting Toolkit 2 – Recruiting and Retaining Adult Volunteers” (WOSM, 2009), emphasises the need for a comprehensive approach to managing all stages of the Adult Volunteer life cycle in order to attract and retain the adults we need to enable us to deliver the Mission of Scouting. It focuses on ensuring we recruit the right Adult Volunteers and then helping them to form a bond with the Association so that they may stay with us longer.
What I’ve been saying:
Scouting has made me a better parent.
Alas, I get no traction with this one in my unit.
I do like your statement, Clarke:
The years you spend in Scouting with your son cement some common points of reference and experiences that you’ll always share.
“What’s in it for me?”
What do you want your son to learn between 11yrs old and 18yrs old? School, church, and sports are all important. They generally all teach what Scouting teaches to a small number of kids. Scouting provides opportunities for essentially all young people to learn.
I’m probably not saying this very well. Here is an example. A certain military academy assembles the freshmen. The leader steps forward and asks all of the high school football team captains to step forward. He then asks all of the Eagle Scouts to step forward. These candidates are then immediately given leadership positions in the class. As a parent, ask yourself, what is the probability that my son will be captain of his football team? What is the probability that my son will achieve Eagle Scout?
I tell parents what my sons told me after their first couple of weeks in the dorm at college. Essentially, both of my sons ended up as the de-facto leader of their floor. Even to the point that my eldest son was usually consulted above the RA. Many of the young men who had not been Scouts were basket cases. A Scout, regardless of where he ends up in the advancement process, is often more prepared to handle life than a non-Scout.
So can anyone suggest a unique selling proposition to recruit adult volunteers? Scouts with involved parents are more likely to stay in Scouting, but not all parents buy into the BSA brand, even if their son does.
To successfully recruit volunteers, I need to answer the question parents really want to know: “What’s in it for me?”
What’s in it for parents?
When your boy is ten or eleven you don’t understand what’s about to happen. His task will be to differentiate himself from his family and parents, he’ll be looking for the boundaries. You simply can’t know this until you have been through it. It’s not tragic and awful but it’s challenging for most.
If you are involved in Scouting with him you will maintain a connection, you’ll see him working and playing with his friends from a perspective few parents enjoy. You’ll have the other adults in Scouting to help you through rough spots; your son will respect and listen to them long after you are old news.
It’s a little frustrating trying to explain this to people who haven’t been through the whole process – you just can’t know what I am talking about. The years you spend in Scouting with your son cement some common points of reference and experiences that you’ll always share. You get to spend time together without being in each other’s way, it’s a great thing.
“Just don’t make it an exclusive group…”. This is a very good point. The SM and CC need to be very intentional about this.
Great Post on a common issue…
Frankly, I feel about 10% – 15% of the population that finds Scouting are either natural born leaders who will step forward to volunteer or highly responsible folk who would never think of not lending a hand. The other 85% – 90% of adults may need to be taught how to volunteer. Instead of asking if someone would like to sign up to help – assign a specific, but small task you are pretty sure they have the experience to successfully deliver. Follow that success with a larger task, …
It also never hurts to have other adults seeing your volunteers having fun and sharing fellowship. Just don’t make it an exclusive group…
Hi Bill
It sounds like you do things very similar to how we do them. I really like your three points!
As I’ve said before, my CC and I tell new folks that we’ll take care of everything they don’t want to do. Then we ask, “What would you like to do?” That gets them thinking about the things they like to do (camping?, hiking?, leading?, managing money?, etc.). The secret here, in my opinion, is that folks doing what they like to do tend to stay in their position longer. The more turn-over you have the fewer volunteers you have, usually.
Also, stability breeds stability. A unit that is constantly stirred up by politics and people coming and going is not a place where people tend to stay. A very stable SM and CC will go a long ways to promote longevity and stability.
It may take a while. In the one Troop that I started it took about two years. In the second Troop that I got involved in, it also took about that long to stabilize the leadership.
So what’s a good measure for stability? When people only stay one or two years, then you may have too much turnover. Good tenure is four to eight years for major jobs (SM, CC, Advancement, Treasurer, Outdoor, Quartermaster). That doesn’t mean that there may not be a good reason why someone leaves after a year or two, it just means that it shouldn’t be the norm. It may take two years and two or three Webelos Dens coming in to recruit the volunteers that you need.
Feed those people. Ok, maybe I’m old fashioned. We have dessert after every Court of Honor and a full pot-luck dinner before our COH in August (after Summer Camp!). We adults feast on every campout. Flank steak, salad, veggies, fresh bread, coffee, pie, cake, cobbler, beef stew (slow cooked), dutch oven lasagna, etc. Feed those people. They will come back 🙂
There’s only a few of us who are brave/foolish enough to take on any and every task that needs tackling. For the remaining folks, I’ve found that it’s absolutely critical to ask for specific help and to ask one on one. Standing up at a Pack Meeting or Court of Honor and pleading “We need help!”, will get you nowhere fast. A better approach is to single someone out and ask them to help with something very specific, like “Could you go through all of the donated uniforms and sort them?”.
Like Michael said, some will gladly do as you asked and then disappear, but some will ask for more.
Clark,
Good commentary!
When new families join, we tell them:
1) to pick their level of contribuition – once a year/month/week/day – and sign up for whatever they want
2) its a guilt free Troop, just say Yes or No, no explanations/excuses needed or wanted
3) if we ever lack what we need, we just won’t do whatever it is.
We have not lacked for volunteers, though we sometimes have those scheduling problems to adapt to.
As a leader, I have learned the hard way that imputing motives to others is what leads to resentments or misunderstandings. So rather than imagining a parent thinks we are a babysitting service, asking a few questions will reveal much.
Lastly, the general appeal is useful to let everyone know of a specific need of the Troop, and sometimes you are pleasantly surprised by who volunters, but often the direct invitation to an individual works best.
Good stuff Bill!
Guilt Free Troop – excellent!
“As a leader, I have learned the hard way that imputing motives to others is what leads to resentments or misunderstandings. So rather than imagining a parent thinks we are a babysitting service, asking a few questions will reveal much.” Very insightful – ask questions instead of drawing conclusions.
My challenges are 1) recruiting an adequate number of engaged volunteers, 2) fitting the volunteer to the right job, and 3) convincing volunteers to take more than a minimum of training. I find that a parent unfamiliar with Boy Scouts as a youth (like me) can’t truly understand the benefit of Scouting until attending live training that demonstrates the patrol method. For me, that course was Scoutmaster/Asst. Scoutmaster Specific Training and Intro to Outdoor Leadership Skills (IOLS). Unfortunately, the title scares off potential volunteers (if I take the training, I’ll be expected to become the Scoutmaster).
I use an incremental recruiting method (ask a parent to do one small task, then work up from there — sometimes they take on more, often not).
I’ve tried to find a “unique selling proposition” to recruit adult volunteers, without much success. Most BSA National Council recruiting material targets boys; little is aimed at adults. What does exist assumes the adult already buys into the BSA brand — not so in my troop.
Background: I am in an urban area (Maryland suburb of Washington, DC) with busy parents who weren’t exposed to Boy Scouts or the outdoors as a youth and aren’t sold on the value Scouting brings to their son. IMO this is why parents don’t volunteer — they don’t understand what’s in it for them (or their son).
Scouting Association (UK) http://scouts.org.uk/ and Scouts Canada http://scouts.ca/ have a little volunteer recruiting/marketing material.
Recruiting volunteer managers, The Scout Association, UK
http://scouts.org.uk/supportresources/search/?cat=562,565
Scouting Volunteer Recruitment Guide, Jumpstart to Growth, Scouts Canada
http://www.scouts.ca/js2g/
I think existing literature doesn’t address the “What’s in it for me?” from the perspective of the Scout’s parent.
Has anyone found such literature or have other thoughts?