10 Mistakes Nonprofit Leaders Make When Managing Volunteers

Volunteers are the lifeblood of nonprofits, contributing billions of hours annually to causes that matter. Yet even the most mission-driven leaders stumble when managing these valuable supporters. Common pitfalls like poor planning and lack of recognition can lead to high turnover, wasting precious time and potential impact. Drawing from expert insights and real data, this guide outlines the critical mistakes that U.S. nonprofit leaders should avoid to build stronger, more sustainable volunteer programs.

Mistake 1: Lacking a Clear Volunteer Plan

When you skip the planning phase, volunteers arrive unsure of their roles, timelines, or expectations. The result? Frustration, inefficiency, and people whose skills go completely unused. This issue becomes particularly acute during busy seasons like year-end campaigns or major events, when potential assets quickly transform into disengaged participants.

A solid volunteer management plan includes role descriptions, time commitments, skill requirements, and clear outcomes. Without this foundation, you’re essentially asking people to show up without telling them why.

Mistake 2: Poor Communication

Sporadic emails and word-of-mouth updates leave volunteers feeling disconnected from the mission they signed up to support. When you fail to keep people informed about opportunities, changes, or feedback, confusion and isolation naturally follow.

The numbers tell the story: 25% of nonprofits cite recruitment as a “big problem,” partly due to communication gaps (Hager & Brudney, 2021). When volunteers don’t hear from you regularly, they assume you don’t need them—or worse, don’t value them.

Protip: Implement a central communication hub for automated updates, sign-ups, and reminders to streamline interactions. Platforms like Funraise integrate with POINT to create seamless volunteer engagement touchpoints.

Mistake 3: Skipping Adequate Training

Throwing volunteers into tasks without proper onboarding leaves novices overwhelmed and experts underutilized. Since backgrounds vary widely—from college students to retired professionals—generic instructions fail to bridge skill gaps or leverage existing expertise.

Research shows that only about half of nonprofits supervise volunteers “to a large degree” (Hager & Brudney, 2021), risking errors, safety issues, and burnout. Whether you’re managing event volunteers or ongoing program support, structured training sets everyone up for success.

Mistake 4: Ignoring Recognition and Appreciation

Here’s a troubling trend: recognition efforts fell from 35% to 31% of nonprofits adopting appreciation practices “to a large degree” between 2003 and 2019 (Hager & Brudney, 2021). When you overlook gratitude, you’re essentially treating volunteers as disposable, which drops retention rates sharply.

Those who feel appreciated show higher engagement and often convert to donors—a dual benefit for your organization. Recognition doesn’t require elaborate galas; personalized thank-you notes, social media shout-outs, or milestone celebrations work wonders.

Protip: Track volunteer hours and achievements in your database to trigger automated appreciation messages at meaningful intervals—Funraise makes this seamless with integrated volunteer management features.

Mistake 5: Manual or Ineffective Scheduling

Spreadsheets and sticky notes lead to overbooking, no-shows, and wasted administrative time. Chaotic scheduling means volunteers arrive to find either no work available or too many helpers for too few tasks—both scenarios breed frustration.

Digital scheduling tools allow people to self-select shifts based on their availability, sending automatic reminders to reduce no-shows. This frees your team from endless coordination emails to focus on mission-critical work.

AI Prompt for Volunteer Program Analysis

Want to assess your volunteer program’s weak spots? Copy and paste this prompt into ChatGPT, Gemini, Perplexity, or our custom tools and calculators:

Analyze my nonprofit's volunteer management approach and identify the top 3 improvements. Our organization: [ORGANIZATION TYPE], Current volunteer count: [NUMBER], Main challenges: [CHALLENGE 1, CHALLENGE 2], Current tools used: [TOOLS/NONE]. Provide specific, actionable recommendations with implementation steps.

Simply fill in the four bracketed variables with your information for a customized roadmap to better volunteer engagement.

Mistake 6: Mismatching Skills to Tasks

Too often, nonprofits operate with a “warm bodies” mentality—anyone who shows up gets the same generic assignment. This approach wastes specialized skills and creates underwhelming experiences for people eager to contribute meaningfully.

Consider this: 28.3% of Americans (75.7 million people) volunteered formally in 2023, contributing 4.99 billion hours worth $167.2 billion economically (AmeriCorps, 2023). Mismatched roles squander this incredible resource. Instead, treat volunteers as strategic partners by playing to their passions and professional backgrounds for 2x retention impact.

Mistake 7: Treating Volunteers Like Unpaid Staff

Unlike employees, volunteers prioritize mission alignment and personal growth over clocking hours. Piling on mundane tasks or demanding corporate-level commitment signals you don’t respect their contribution—leading directly to burnout.

Remember: the value of a volunteer hour reached $33.49 in 2023 (Independent Sector). This economic lens reminds us that volunteers are investing significant value. Honor that investment with meaningful work and the flexibility they seek.

Protip: Create a “volunteer bill of rights” that explicitly outlines what volunteers can expect from your organization, including flexibility, meaningful work, and clear communication.

Mistake 8: Neglecting Feedback Loops

Your volunteers interact with your programs in ways staff never will—they spot inefficiencies, experience communication gaps, and notice community sentiment. Without channels to capture these insights, valuable ideas die unheard.

Only about one-third of nonprofits fully implement volunteer assessment practices (Hager & Brudney, 2021), missing crucial program intelligence. Set up anonymous digital suggestion boxes quarterly to capture honest feedback, then—crucially—act on it and report back on changes made.

Mistake 9: No Retention Strategy

Recruitment is identified as a “big problem” for 25% of organizations (Hager & Brudney, 2021), yet many leaders treat volunteers as interchangeable rather than investing in retention. The irony? Keeping existing volunteers engaged costs far less than constantly recruiting new ones.

Build longevity through milestone celebrations (50 hours, 1 year, etc.), clear progression paths, and integration into your broader supporter community. Funraise’s integrated tracking shows how volunteer retention reduces the constant rehiring cycle while building a foundation of committed supporters.

Protip: Track key metrics like volunteer return rate, average tenure, and conversion to donor status. Fewer than one-third of nonprofits measure these indicators, putting you ahead simply by paying attention.

Mistake 10: Failing to Leverage Technology

In an era where 62% of nonprofits struggle with recruitment partly due to outdated tools, technology isn’t optional—it’s essential for competitive volunteer programs. Sticking to manual processes wastes hours on administration while missing data-driven insights that could transform your approach.

Modern volunteer management platforms sync data to your fundraising system, tracking hours while identifying conversion opportunities. For example, Funraise integrates volunteer management through POINT, allowing you to see which volunteers might become donors, board members, or peer-to-peer fundraising champions. You can start with Funraise’s free tier with no commitments—perfect for testing whether integrated technology transforms your approach.

Unconventional hack: Gamify engagement with leaderboards in your volunteer app. Friendly competition around hours logged or tasks completed boosts participation while making tracking effortless.

Building a Volunteer Program That Lasts

In 2023, formal volunteering rose 22% post-pandemic (AmeriCorps, 2023), signaling tremendous opportunity for nonprofits that get volunteer management right. The organizations thriving with volunteers aren’t necessarily those with the biggest budgets—they’re the ones who avoid these ten critical mistakes through intentional planning, genuine appreciation, and smart technology.

Start by auditing your current approach against this list. Which mistakes resonate? Pick one or two to address this quarter, implement changes, and measure the impact. Your volunteers will notice—and stick around to help you achieve your mission for years to come.