Sparked - microvolunteering. By The Extraordinaries.

New Blog Address!

Hi all. We've moved to a new blog address:

blog.sparked.com

We've copied over everything you see here, there. So be sure to head over there to find the latest.

A few questions about microvolunteering... answered.

Reposting some questions we recently received about microvolunteering from Randy Tyler (http://www.randytyler.org).

1. What specific routine and meaningful micro-volunteering tasks can be performed in what (reasonable/realistic) time frame and how will these said micro-volunteering tasks mesh (conceptually and in practice) with similar/same virtual volunteering tasks?

Design, human resources, marketing/promotion, social media, translation, web development -- any discreet project that can be completed in a reasonable amount of time. 
Check out our success feed to see examples: http://www.Sparked.com/success or read our blog to get more detailed breakdowns of case studies: http://blog.beextra.org/nonprofit-successes

2. For those micro volunteers involved with sensitive information or non-profit clients, what type and extent of screening will/should be undertaken?

That's up to the nonprofit. We're simply the facilitator. 

3. With limited resources, how will a non-profit manage (e.g., screen, co-ordinate, appropriately assign, supervise, document and evaluate) numerous volunteers involved in micro volunteering (such as, 100 volunteers involved in two minute tasks)?

They don't need to manage microvolunteers, that's the whole point. 

Traditional volunteering: Outline a problem --> write up a volunteer job description --> post that job description on numerous websites --> wait for resumes/applicants to come in --> screen --> interview --> appropriately assign --> supervise --> document and evaluate --> possibly repost volunteer job description if the first candidate didn't work --> repeat. With this arduous process, it's no wonder nonprofits often can't afford the cost of bringing more volunteers in the door, despite the overwhelming need for more skilled help. 

Microvolunteering: Outline a problem --> write up a challenge post --> watch the responses come in and participate in the dialogue --> decide which response was the best one and give out an award of excellence. Done. 

4. What motivates individuals to engage in what types of micro volunteering?

Traditional volunteering: decide that I want to volunteer --> search for opportunities --> submit application --> wait for phone call from nonprofit --> interview --> schedule time in my busy life to get involved --> drive down to a physical location or call into a webinar to get trained --> commit to long term engagement --> repeat. With 60-hour workweeks, kids, errands, and the stress of everyday life, most people can't afford to go through this process on a regular basis, if at all. 

Microvolunteering: decide that I want to volunteer --> log on to Sparked and tell the system what my interests/skills are --> begin volunteering within 60 seconds. Done. 

5. Are there certain types of non-profit organizations (based on such variables as: mission, structure, size, geographic area, resources and/or budget) that are best suited for micro volunteering (meaning micro volunteering efforts will result in the most impact, however that may be defined, for the non-profit)?

We have over 1,000 nonprofits that have signed up and we are growing at a rate of 10-30 organizations everyday. They range in size from a small organization in rural Africa to a massive global organization with headquarters in D.C. 

6. Are there specific types of tasks with certain types of non-profit organizations which attract specific micro volunteers?

Challenges are grouped by cause, nonprofit, or skill. Designers tend to stick to design challenges. Social media experts to social media challenges. The variance comes with each person's unique affinity for a particular cause. 

7. Continuous recruiting is a significant resource drain. What methods and strategies will assist in retaining micro volunteers?

Each new company we sign on as a customer brings thousands of employees into the fold. 

8. What specific types of devices using what type of Internet connections are best for micro volunteering?

A computer or laptop.

9. What motivates non-profits to embrace micro volunteering?

See question #3.

Microvolunteers to the rescue: Website Hack

The nonprofit: Chimpanzee Sanctuary Northwest (CSNW) was founded in 2003 to provide sanctuary for chimpanzees discarded from the entertainment and biomedical testing industries. Located on a 26-acre farm in the Cascade mountains, due east of Seattle. CSNW is one of nine sanctuaries in the country that cares for chimpanzees.

The challenge: Help! Our website has a persistent hack.

 

The result: After almost a year of dealing with a persistent website hack that caused CSNW to show up in searches as having pornographic content, and having several people attempt to help eradicate the hack only to have it return 24 hours later, Diana was at her wit's end. So she gave sparked a try, and asked microvolunteers to look into the issue.  Thanks to SIX awesome Sparked volunteers Diana was not only able to locate and remove the hack, but to amend her security settings to prevent it from returning ever again.  Thanks to Jitendra, Matteo, Kiera, Joe, Jason and Christopher, 2011 is already off to a great start for CSNW.

 

Microvolunteers to the rescue: Tricky Translation

The nonprofit: Ronald McDonald House Charities of Greater Cincinnati provides a supportive "home away from home" for families and their children receiving medical treatment at Cincinnati Children's Hospital Medical Center, regardless of their ability to pay.

The challenge: Translate our welcome letter into Arabic.

 

Photo: Volunteer playing with Children, courtesy of RMHC Cincinnati

The result: The Ronald McDonald House of Greater Cincinnati hosts families from all over the world -- many of whom do not speak English.  Because of this, says Lisa, Meals and Activities Coordinator for the facility, "we try to have our forms and documents translated into multiple languages so everyone can be properly informed of our policies and procedures."  But professional document translation is expensive, and for some languages, the results of an automated translation generator can be unreliable.

So when Lisa needed the organization's welcome letter (and house rules) translated into Arabic, she posted a challenge on Sparked asking for help from microvolunteers. And she got it: Eyad S. took the document, and in his spare time, translated it from English into his native Arabic.  Thanks to his efforts, RMHC of Cincinnati can now welcome families from Arabic-speaking countries in their native language, further fulfilling the organization's mission of creating a "home away from home."