I’m a fan of micro-volunteering. I’ve written about it a few times, but I’m not blind to its challenges. You’ve got more names on your volunteer roster than ever, but somehow you’re still scrambling. Fewer people show up consistently, roles are going half-filled, and the same core group is carrying even more of the weight. Over the past years there has been a noticeable decline in volunteer commitment.
The Benevity State of Corporate Volunteering 2026 report found that while the number of corporate volunteers more than tripled since 2019, the average hours per volunteer dropped from 16.4 to 12.7 per year. Which is a lot. And it’s not just corporate volunteers; it’s happening across the sector. More people want to test the waters, but fewer want to dive right in. If your program was built around committed regulars, chances are you’re struggling. Don’t be hard on yourself, though. This isn’t a local problem or a reflection on your leadership; it’s a sector-wide shift.
Most of us know why there is a decline in volunteer commitment.
- The increasing mobility of our lifestyles, where people are expected to bounce between jobs, homes, even cities, on a regular basis.
- Increasing options for people’s spare time. As Rob Jackson has often said (and I’m paraphrasing) organisations aren’t competing with each other for volunteers, we’re competing with Netflix.
- The desire for convenience. We all want the things we do to fit neatly into the spaces we have for them, rather than have to shuffle other things around to make room for them.
But the real risk isn’t what you might think.
The temptation is to try to convert micro-volunteers into committed ones. But that will just aggravate the issue, because as soon as they feel that you’re trying to convert them (rather than leaving the decision in their hands), they’ll walk away and you’ll have to start over.
The real risk is designing your program around the volunteers you wish you had rather than the ones you actually have. Let’s face it, the problem is not the volunteers; they still want to help, just on their terms. The problem happens when you are not set up to deal with their terms.
Instead of trying to figure out how to get volunteers to give more, ask “how do we design our program to deliver real impact without or with few long-term commitments?” What policies need to change? How can roles be rewritten? How do we adjust our systems? And so on.
Here are a few ideas to start with.
- Review your roles. Which ones genuinely require long-term commitment, and which ones just evolved that way? Identifying them can be harder than you might think; status quo bias tends to step in and make us think that the way we are doing something now is the only right (or possible) way of doing it. Getting a brainstorming group together often helps.
- Create an intentionally segmented engagement model. Try not to think of micro-volunteers as “less than” committed ones. Have equally impactful roles for micros, regulars, and deeply invested volunteers. You wouldn’t set a table with just spoons; don’t try to fill your roster with just regulars. A fork is not better than a knife. They are different tools for different needs. Each type of volunteer commitment has its place and its value.
- That doesn’t mean you should silo them. Give every volunteer an easy way to move between segments – if they choose Not just from micro to regular, or regular to invested. The other way as well. This is important if a volunteer is aging out. They may not be able to be as invested as they used to be or would like to be, but that doesn’t mean they want to walk away altogether. Make it easy for them to reduce their commitment, to become a micro-volunteer if that fits their changing abilities.
Surprise, surprise. The world has changed.
Volunteers’ expectations have changed with it. I know; change is hard. Trying to fight a decline in volunteer commitment, though, is exhausting and will burn you out. As a friend of mine says “In a fight with reality you will lose, but only every time.” The leaders and programs who are thriving are the ones who are building programs that are flexible enough to meet current volunteers’ needs and expectations – while still focusing on the mission.
Take a deep breath, step back, and have a look at your volunteer program. Was it designed for today’s world, or a volunteer world that no longer exists?
