In today’s rapidly evolving social‑impact landscape, volunteer engagement is undergoing a fundamental shift. In a recent conversation on our podcast, volunteer‑engagement specialist Karen Knight shared insights drawn from her own career—one that began unexpectedly, with an 11‑year‑old reading bingo numbers at her grandmother’s care home—and has led to advising organisations on how to build robust volunteer programs.
From cabinet‑maker to volunteer‑program strategist
Karen’s story highlights both personal discovery and systemic barriers. Having grown up on a cattle farm on Canada’s west coast and worked as a cabinet maker, she decided to pivot when she questioned the purpose of her work – “why am I making rich people’s houses fancier?” she asked herself. She realised she wanted a role that “changes things.”
Despite her leadership experience, she found the not‑for‑profit sector slow to recognise someone without a traditional degree. A friend suggested she start her own consultancy helping organisations engage volunteers. “It’s what you’d love to do and you’re good at it,” she was told—and so she did.
What’s changed – and what remains the same
Over the course of her work, Karen has seen major changes in how organisations engage volunteers:
Flexibility and project‑based roles
Pre‑COVID, volunteers often signed up for a shift every week or every other week and did the same thing repeatedly. Karen notes that now people “don’t want that anymore”–they want more autonomy, more flexibility, and clearly defined projects with a beginning, middle and end.
This aligns with emerging research: one study found that allowing volunteers to choose tasks aligned with their needs increased their motivation and likelihood to stay engaged.
Meaning and team‑belonging
Karen emphasises two key attraction factors: make it impactful, and make people feel part of a community. She gives the example of a livestock‑rescue organisation in British Columbia: the work is hard, dirty, even dangerous—but volunteers line up because they know it matters.
Supporting this, research shows that organisations with well‑managed volunteer programs are significantly better able to deliver services, adapt and lead.
Motivations beyond altruism
Volunteers are motivated not only by mission, but by opportunity: to build networks, gain skills, avoid loneliness, and find community. Karen explains that organisations which offer roles that allow volunteers to connect their own career ambitions, or feel part of a team, will attract and retain volunteers.
Navigating power imbalances
A critical theme in the conversation was the risk of “saviourism”: well‑intentioned volunteer programs that perpetuate a top‑down “we know what’s best for you” model. Karen argues that most organisations were built on such frameworks, and moving beyond them means letting communities lead. She recalled a US art gallery that “stripped its volunteering program right to the ground” and rebuilt because the existing culture was unworkable.
Building from the ground up
If an organisation is building a volunteer program from scratch, Karen recommends doing the legwork before recruitment:
- Define what volunteer roles will and will not be (for example, avoid replacing paid staff with volunteers).
- Develop policies, strategy and clear objectives first.
- Think of volunteers as an investment in impact, not just free labour.
As she says, “you want to be using that resource wisely… this is an investment in impact.”
Leading from every side
What gives Karen unique credibility is that she has served as a volunteer, led teams of volunteers, and sat on boards. She says without all three perspectives she couldn’t offer effective guidance. When approaching a board for funding volunteer training, she knows to speak their language: risk, cost, and impact. These, she says, are the three things boards evaluate when making decisions.
Avoiding burnout — for volunteers and their leaders
Burnout is real in the volunteering world. Karen’s advice: revisit your “why,” know your limits, and surround yourself with people who will help when you’re running out of steam. For volunteer leaders: protect your own boundaries (for example, don’t answer emails on weekends) and ensure no one person is indispensable through job‑shadowing.
“If you walk away in three months, never come back” is the risk if you don’t allow yourself a break.
The rewards
Karen recounts one especially impactful story: a food‑security organisation in Ontario. At first it had 25 volunteers and chaotic systems, covering a handful of schools. Through improved volunteer‑management systems and software it grew to 200 volunteers and expanded across 20‑30 schools, significantly increasing its reach. The lesson: “It’s not all about just getting more volunteers, but having everything go smoothly.”
The trends: what’s ahead
Looking ahead, Karen points to two major areas: technology and geopolitics. On the tech side, organisations will need to integrate AI and digital tools to manage volunteers effectively. On the geopolitical side, she warns of risks: “Organisations working with marginalised communities… are getting their funding cut. People who would volunteer will be scared to be seen associated with that type of organisation.”
Broadly, external research supports this changing landscape. A 2023 report found that 64.4 % of nonprofits had increased demand for services, yet fewer volunteers and less staff. Meanwhile, trends point to more flexible, remote and skills‑based volunteering being key in coming years.
What this means for social‑impact organisations
For organisations wanting to meaningfully engage volunteers, the story is clear:
- Position volunteer roles as impactful and connected to the mission—no matter how small the task.
- Offer flexibility, allow people to engage in the ways and times that suit them.
- Build the community and team‑feel around volunteering.
- Invest in strategy, systems and leadership for volunteers just as you would for paid staff.
- Be aware of power dynamics, let communities lead, and avoid paternalistic models.
- Lead with self‑care and sustainable volunteering practices—not endless expectation of over‑commitment.
In this moment of reinvention post‑COVID, volunteer engagement is less about “just bring more people” and more about “bring the right people, for the right roles, in the right way.” As Karen’s journey suggests—from cattle farm volunteer to consultant through tradesman‐turned‑changemaker—the path to impact is rarely linear, and volunteering is no longer a one‑size‑fits‑all model.
As organisations reposition, this is an opportune moment to re‑imagine what volunteering looks like and how it delivers value—both to the cause and to the volunteer.
