menu_open Columnists
Karen Knight

Karen Knight

Castanet

We use cookies to provide some features and experiences in QOSHE

More information  .  Close

'Coffee break volunteering'

'Coffee break volunteering'

Years ago, I knew a woman who had the busiest schedule I’ve ever seen. Between her full-time job, her kids’ sports and caring for her elderly mum,...

12.09.2025 3

Castanet

Karen Knight

Immediate response needed

Immediate response needed

I’ll never understand why leaders of volunteers in some organizations put off answering volunteer inquiries. Why is this a problem? Someone reaches...

05.09.2025 2

Castanet

Karen Knight

Abundance of volunteers

Abundance of volunteers

A couple of weeks ago, I wrote an article about how to keep volunteers engaged when things were slow. What if your problem, though, is the opposite?...

29.08.2025 3

Castanet

Karen Knight

Finding potential volunteers

Word of mouth is probably the most effective way to recruit volunteers that there is. Your current volunteers are the best people to spread that word....

22.08.2025 3

Castanet

Karen Knight

Volunteer engagement

Every volunteer program has its natural rhythms. Some months are buzzing with activity—festivals, campaigns, big events. Other times, things go...

15.08.2025 2

Castanet

Karen Knight

Impact of volunteers

You’ve probably heard you should include a volunteer impact story in your recruitment drive, or have been asked to supply them for funding requests....

09.08.2025 4

Castanet

Karen Knight

Reducing volunteer turnover

You spend a ton of time recruiting, training, and building relationships with a volunteer, only to have them disappear. Sound familiar? While a...

01.08.2025 2

Castanet

Karen Knight

Solving problems, tensions

A few weeks ago, I attended a local gathering of the BC Non-profit Network. One of the presenters, JP Baker, spoke about “solving problems vs...

25.07.2025 3

Castanet

Karen Knight

High performing volunteers

As a leader of volunteers, creating and leading a high-performing team is perhaps the most important thing you do. Just as every leader is different,...

18.07.2025 3

Castanet

Karen Knight

Volunteer challenges

A new Statistics Canada study shows a significant dip in volunteering participation from 2018 to 2023. Since it was released, I’ve seen a number of...

11.07.2025 5

Castanet

Karen Knight

Hard-to-find volunteers

Let’s face it, if your cause doesn’t involve children or animals, you will have a harder time recruiting volunteers. But what happens if your...

04.07.2025 3

Castanet

Karen Knight

Volunteer wellbeing

When we talk about volunteer safety, most people picture things like lifting heavy boxes or navigating a slippery walkway. Physical safety is...

27.06.2025 2

Castanet

Karen Knight

Help with volunteers

You will not have heard the term, “fractional leader of volunteers.” That’s because I made it up. If yours is a smaller social impact...

20.06.2025 3

Castanet

Karen Knight

Long-time volunteers

The conversation goes something like this: “She’s an amazing volunteer. She’s so passionate, and puts so much time and effort into the cause. In...

30.05.2025 3

Castanet

Karen Knight

Improving volunteer plans

You know as well as I do volunteer programs are never “one-and-done”. As your program grows and evolves, so must the systems and processes that...

23.05.2025 2

Castanet

Karen Knight

Better volunteer training

Refresher training is an often forgotten part of keeping volunteers happy and productive. That was driven home to me when I was on a call the other...

16.05.2025 3

Castanet

Karen Knight

Successful grant proposals

Volunteer program budgets are small and too few leaders even try writing grants to supplement them. Whether they need money to improve technology,...

09.05.2025 7

Castanet

Karen Knight

You are making a difference

Have you ever wondered if you’re really making a difference? Day after day, you do everything you can to support those who support your cause. But...

02.05.2025 5

Castanet

Karen Knight

A culture of excellence

From program delivery to community outreach, from communications to advocacy, volunteers are responsible for so much in the running of our...

25.04.2025 4

Castanet

Karen Knight

Volunteers of all ages

How age diverse is your volunteer program? I have often written about the value of having a team that brings a wide range of differing world views....

18.04.2025 3

Castanet

Karen Knight

Volunteers who feel trapped

Has this ever happened to you? You volunteer for a small role with an organization. You do a few shifts, then the leader asks if you can take on a few...

11.04.2025 4

Castanet

Karen Knight

Volunteer fulfillment

What keeps volunteers coming back? What makes them feel invested, dedicated and eager to contribute? I believe the key lies in the power of volunteer...

04.04.2025 3

Castanet

Karen Knight

Families volunteer together

Last week I watched a recording of a keynote speech by the late Susan J. Ellis, volunteer advocate extraordinaire, pulled from the Susan J. Ellis...

28.03.2025 5

Castanet

Karen Knight

Benefit of senior volunteers

Supporting senior volunteers is both a responsibility and an opportunity for organizations that engage volunteers. As the workforce sees an increasing...

21.03.2025 3

Castanet

Karen Knight

Helping volunteers succeed

I just finished watching a TED talk called “The Seven Pillars of Unlocking Potential” by Anirudh Krishna. It was fantastic, and I felt the...

14.03.2025 4

Castanet

Karen Knight

Sleep and leadership

There is a frightening correlation between sleep deprivation and ethical issues. Among the risks to good ethical behaviour—greed or fear, for...

07.03.2025 3

Castanet

Karen Knight