sentedalps - alpine space · nancy favre (idheap), alain ferrand (ucbl), tiziana ... recruitment...

175
GUIDEBOOK FOR THE MANAGEMENT OF SPORT EVENT VOLUNTEERS «HOW TO MANAGE HUMAN RESOURCES?» Réseau transfrontalier pour le développement touristique et économique de l’Arc Alpin au travers d’événements sportifs SENTEDALPS Sports Event Network for Tourism and Economic Development of the Alpine Space Written by: Alain Ferrand (UCBL), Nicolas Chanavat (UCBL) In collaboration with: Remy Charmetant (ATDS), Jean-Loup Chappelet (IDHEAP), Joëlle Rizzon (ATDS) and Alberto Gambone (SUISM) Interviews for cases studies were conducted by: Nicolas Chanavat (UCBL), Jean-Loup Chappelet (IDHEAP), Remy Charmetant (ATDS), Jean-Philippe Delage (IUP-THTL), Nancy Favre (IDHEAP), Alain Ferrand (UCBL), Tiziana Fiorini (PTO), Martin Schnitzer (ISOC 2005/TOROC) and Pascal Sordet (ALGOE).

Upload: phamhanh

Post on 08-Jul-2018

219 views

Category:

Documents


0 download

TRANSCRIPT

Page 1: SENTEDALPS - ALPINE SPACE · Nancy Favre (IDHEAP), Alain Ferrand (UCBL), Tiziana ... Recruitment and assignment of ... This guide to volunteer management is the third and final

GUIDEBOOK FOR THE MANAGEMENT OF SPORT EVENT VOLUNTEERS

«HOW TO MANAGE HUMAN RESOURCES?»

Réseau transfrontalier pour le développement touristique et économique de l’Arc Alpin au travers

d’événements sportifs

SENTEDALPS

Sports Event Network for Tourism and EconomicDevelopment of the Alpine Space

Written by:Alain Ferrand (UCBL), Nicolas Chanavat (UCBL)

In collaboration with:Remy Charmetant (ATDS), Jean-Loup Chappelet (IDHEAP), Joëlle Rizzon (ATDS) and Alberto Gambone (SUISM)

Interviews for cases studies were conducted by:

Nicolas Chanavat (UCBL), Jean-Loup Chappelet (IDHEAP), Remy Charmetant (ATDS), Jean-Philippe Delage (IUP-THTL), Nancy Favre (IDHEAP), Alain Ferrand (UCBL), Tiziana Fiorini (PTO), Martin Schnitzer (ISOC 2005/TOROC) and Pascal Sordet (ALGOE).

Page 2: SENTEDALPS - ALPINE SPACE · Nancy Favre (IDHEAP), Alain Ferrand (UCBL), Tiziana ... Recruitment and assignment of ... This guide to volunteer management is the third and final

SENTEDALPS2 3SENTEDALPS

Guide book for the management of sport event volunteers. «How to manage human ressources ? ».Alain Ferrand (Editor), Nicolas Chanavat et al.Chavannes-Lausanne : IDHEAP, 2006

Project co-financed by European Union funds.

© 2006 Sentedalps Consortium,Interreg IIIB Project number CH/1-2/3.3/3

ISBN 2-940177-97-X

Page 3: SENTEDALPS - ALPINE SPACE · Nancy Favre (IDHEAP), Alain Ferrand (UCBL), Tiziana ... Recruitment and assignment of ... This guide to volunteer management is the third and final

SENTEDALPS2 3SENTEDALPS

TABLE OF CONTENTS

1. SENTEDALPS PROGRAMME.............................................................. p.52. GUIDE TO VOLUNTEER MANAGEMENT................................................ p.6

INTRODUCTION1. From organising competitions to organising sports events................ p.92. The characteristics of a sports event................................................ p.103. Differentiating variables for sports events......................................... p.114. Organising a sports event............................................................... p.155. Structure of the guide.................................................................... p.16

CHAPTER 1: THE STAKEHOLDERS IN A SPORTS EVENT................................ p.19 1. The human resources within an organising committee....................... p.192. Volunteers and voluntary work....................................................... p.213. The impact of the stakeholders on the volunteers programme............ p.264. Conclusion................................................................................... p.31

CHAPTER 2: THE STRATEGIC PROCESSES OF VOLUNTEER MANAGEMENT........... p.331. Governance of the general strategy for the volunteers programme.......p.332. The principles of human resources management applied to volunteers. p.383. Design and set up a quality system.................................................. p.514. Conclusion.................................................................................... p.56

CHAPTER 3: THE OPERATIONAL PHASES OF VOLUNTEER MANAGEMENT............p.591. Phase 1: Planning the volunteers programme....................................p.602. Phase 2: Defining the number and types of volunteer required............ p.673. Phase 3: Recruitment and assignment of volunteers.......................... p.734. Phase 4: Integration and training of volunteers................................. p.815. Phase 5: Operational management.................................................. p.896. Phase 6: Evaluation, follow up and conservation................................p.947. Support Processes......................................................................... p.99

CHAPTER 4: CASE STUDIES.................................................................. p.1031. Winter Universiades 2005: Innsbruck/Seefeld - Austria...................... p.1052. 32nd America’s Cup 2007: Valencia – Spain..................................... p.1153. IAAF Cross Country World Championships 2005: Saint-Etienne/Saint-Galmier - France............................................... p.1254. 20th Winter Olympic Games 2006: Turin - Italy................................ p.1315. Athletissima 2005: Lausanne - Switzerland...................................... p.1436. Grand Raid Cristalp 2005: Valais – Switzerland................................. p.1497. 49er Olympic Class Sailing World Championships 2006: Aix les Bains – France.................................................................... p.155

CONCLUSION..................................................................................... p.161

REFERENCES...................................................................................... p.163

APPENDICES...................................................................................... p.167

Page 4: SENTEDALPS - ALPINE SPACE · Nancy Favre (IDHEAP), Alain Ferrand (UCBL), Tiziana ... Recruitment and assignment of ... This guide to volunteer management is the third and final

SENTEDALPS4 5SENTEDALPS

ACKNOWLEDGMENTS

Massimo Albertan Min University of Turin, Interfaculty School of Kinetics Science (S.U.I.S.M). Professor

Paolo Balocco University of Turin, Interfaculty School of Kinetics Science (S.U.I.S.M). Professor

Joào Benito Garcia America’s Cup Management. Off-shore volunteers manager

Paul Bergeri ALGOE. DirectorMax Bouchet-Virette Event and Resources Consulting. Deputy DirectorMario Burgay Torino Provincial Administration: Department for

Tourist and Sport Planning (PTO). DirectorEnrique Caballero European Olympic Youth Festival 2005 Organising

Committee. Secretary GeneralJean Camy University Claude Bernard Lyon 1. ProfessorChristophe Clivaz University of Applied Sciences of Valais: Institute

of Economics and Tourism (IET). ProfessorJean-Loup Chappelet Swiss Graduate School of Public Administration

(IDHEAP). DirectorRémy Charmetant Savoie "Départemental" Tourist Board (ATDS).

DirectorJean Philippe Delage University of Savoie Institute for Tourism,

Hospitality, Transport and Leisure (IUP-THTL). Associate Professor

Jacky Delapierre Athletissima Organising Committee. CEGilles Dyen 2006 49er World Championship Organising

Committee. President Nancy Favre Swiss Graduate School of Public Administration

(IDHEAP). Associate Researcher Giorgio Fantini Torino Organizing Committee for the XXth Olympic

Winter Games 2006 (TOROC). Head of volunteers planning.

Tiziana Fiorini Torino Provincial Administration: Department for Tourist and Sport Planning (PTO)

Marc Gallet FIFA Confederations Cup FIFA 2003. Venue manager Saint-Etienne

Alberto Gambone University of Turin: Interfaculty School of Kinetics Science (S.U.I.S.M). Professor

Jean Luc Garde Rhône-Alpes Regional Council. Head of youth, sport and associations department

Alessandro Giacca Western Alps Committee of the Italian Federation of Winter Sports (FISI AOC).Technical Director

Thomas Junod Swiss Graduate School of Public Administration (IDHEAP). Associate Researcher

Béatrice Lechat America’s Cup Management. Head of volunteers programme

Joëlle Rizzon Savoie "Départemental" Tourist Board (ATDS). General Secretary

Martin Schnitzer ISOC 2005 Deputy General Secretary and TOROC San Sicario Venue Manager

Pascal Sordet ALGOE. Senior consultantPierre Toussaint IAAF World Cross Country Championships 2005 St-

Etienne/St-Galmier Organising Committee. Joint President.

Page 5: SENTEDALPS - ALPINE SPACE · Nancy Favre (IDHEAP), Alain Ferrand (UCBL), Tiziana ... Recruitment and assignment of ... This guide to volunteer management is the third and final

SENTEDALPS4 5SENTEDALPS

1. SENTEDALPS PROGRAMME

SENTEDALPS (Sports Event Network for Tourism and Economic Development of the ALPine Space) is a three-year (2003 – 2006) INTERREG IIIB Community Initiative project co-financed by the European Commission. The project was designed to foster the transfer of knowledge in the field of sports event management by creating a network of partners across the Alpine Space. The network’s main objective is to promote economic development and tourism through the implementation of policies compatible with the principles of sustainable development.

Hosting sports events has become an important tool for promoting a country, a region or a city and for developing local skills and expertise. Therefore, it is not surprising that the Alpine Space has successfully bid to host a large number of major events, including three editions of the Winter Olympics (Innsbruck, Albertville/Savoie, and Turin), as well as many other international competitions. However, the English-speaking world still dominates the field of professional sports event organisation. SENTEDALPS has brought together the experience and expertise of its various partners in order to develop methods and tools that will enable host cities or regions to ensure that the hosting of a major sport event will generate economic and tourism benefits. By combining the skills and specialist knowledge of its partners, the work carried out by the SENTEDALPS network will contribute to the sustainable development of the Alpine Space.

The project has sixteen partners, from Austria, France, Italy, Slovenia and Switzerland. They include representatives of public and private research institutes, regional and local authorities and private organisations (Table 0.1).

Page 6: SENTEDALPS - ALPINE SPACE · Nancy Favre (IDHEAP), Alain Ferrand (UCBL), Tiziana ... Recruitment and assignment of ... This guide to volunteer management is the third and final

SENTEDALPS6 7SENTEDALPS

Table 0.1: SENTEDALPS partners

2. GUIDE TO VOLUNTEER MANAGEMENT

This guide to volunteer management is the third and final booklet to be published by the transnational SENTEDALPS project. The first two booklets, «A guide to bidding for sports events» and «Guide to the organisation of sports events», can be downloaded from the project’s website (www.sentedalps.org).

Why produce such a guide?Divided into four chapters, the guide to volunteer management provides an overview of the processes involved in successfully managing a team of sports event volunteers. As for the first two guides in the series, this third booklet does not attempt to provide a list of «infallible recipes or models» that will guarantee the success of an event in terms of volunteer management; its objective is simply to present the essential strategic and operational factors that must be taken into account. We have identified the key stages in the volunteer management process in order to help organisers structure their approach to volunteer management and thereby effectively and efficiently manage their

Page 7: SENTEDALPS - ALPINE SPACE · Nancy Favre (IDHEAP), Alain Ferrand (UCBL), Tiziana ... Recruitment and assignment of ... This guide to volunteer management is the third and final

SENTEDALPS6 7SENTEDALPS

volunteers - the people at the heart of every event organisation system. The guide also describes the benefits to be gained from a well-managed volunteers programme, both for the organising committee and for the event’s stakeholders, which include the volunteers. Furthermore, a successful volunteers programme will develop and perpetuate the skills and relationships that are formed.

What types of event does the guide address?In line with the bidding and organisation guides produced by the members of the SENTEDALPS project, this guide has been written to facilitate the dissemination of skills and expertise by sharing the experience acquired by the project’s members. The guide focuses on international sports events with a management programme for volunteer human resources and, by extension, any other event likely to implement such a programme.

What are the foundations of the guide?The guide is based on:

• The skills and experience the project’s 16 partners have accumulated in terms of organising, studying and being involved in sports events in the Alpine Space (e.g. 1992 Albertville and Savoie Winter Olympic Games, 2006 Turin Winter Olympic Games, 2005 Innsbruck/Seefeld Winter Universiades, numerous World Championships and many other international competitions). Examples are also given from events organised outside the Alpine Space (e.g. 2003 Athletics World Championships in Paris, 2007 America’s Cup in Valencia, 2003 FIFA Confederations Cup in France and the 2004 Athens, 2008 Beijing and 2012 London Olympic Games) in order to highlight and illustrate certain important points.

• Analyses of written documents (i.e. theses, official reports, dissertations, specialist works, etc)

• Interviews with ten professional organisers who have been involved in international sports event volunteers programmes.

Who is the guide for?

The guide will be of interest to all parties involved in the sports event and

human resources management sectors. However, it is particularly aimed at the

following types of event stakeholder:

• Sports event organisers, most specifically volunteers programme managers

• Local and regional elected representatives• Administrators and civil servants involved in sports, tourism, and economic

and regional development• The sports movement

Page 8: SENTEDALPS - ALPINE SPACE · Nancy Favre (IDHEAP), Alain Ferrand (UCBL), Tiziana ... Recruitment and assignment of ... This guide to volunteer management is the third and final

SENTEDALPS8 9SENTEDALPS

Page 9: SENTEDALPS - ALPINE SPACE · Nancy Favre (IDHEAP), Alain Ferrand (UCBL), Tiziana ... Recruitment and assignment of ... This guide to volunteer management is the third and final

SENTEDALPS8 9SENTEDALPS

INTRODUCTION

The success of a competition, whether it is a planet-wide event capable of changing a city’s geo-tourism or geo-political position (e.g. Olympic Games in Barcelona and in Athens) or a one-day sports meeting with a merely local outreach, depends upon the performance of its volunteers1. As part of the organisational process for the 20th Winter Olympic Games, Turin 2006, the organising committee (TOROC2) recruited a large number of volunteers with very different profiles and statuses, creating a mixture that was both varied and complementary. In total, TOROC was responsible for more than 20,000 people, 91% of whom were volunteers. Whatever the format or nature of an event (e.g. cultural, musical, sporting, etc), the organisers should set up a volunteers programme to manage its volunteer human resources.

1. FROM ORGANISING COMPETITIONS TO ORGANISING SPORTS EVENTS

Until the beginning of the 1980s, sports event owners focused their attention on organising the competition aspect of events. As a result, an organiser’s main concern was to stage an event that met the owner’s specification (i.e. technical content), remained within budget and took place on time. Since then, there has been a considerable increase in the number of events and in the number of stakeholders3 involved. For major events, the media and sponsors have become extremely important, both in economic terms and from a governance point of view. Once mere suppliers of equipment and services, local authorities are now major players in the field as they have progressively integrated sports events into their publicity and sustainable development strategies.

The governance of a sports event is strongly influenced by the strategies adopted by the various parties involved. An analysis of these strategies shows that sports events are organised with three goals in mind: economic, societal and environmental. Events have become more and more commercially orientated due to the financial resources needed to stage them and to the objectives of the media and sponsor stakeholders. Nevertheless, these economic players recognise the significant benefits to be gained by incorporating a societal approach that preserves and improves the well-being of consumers and local 1 We have used Chéroute’s (1989) definition of a volunteer as «a person who freely agrees to carry out an un-waged action for the benefit of others, outside his/her working or family time». We will investigate this concept more fully in the first chapter of the guide.2 TOROC is an acronym for “Torino Organising Committee”, the organising committee of the 20th Winter Olympic Games.3 For the purposes of this guide, the terms “party”, “stakeholder” and “player” are considered synonyms and are used interchangeably.

Page 10: SENTEDALPS - ALPINE SPACE · Nancy Favre (IDHEAP), Alain Ferrand (UCBL), Tiziana ... Recruitment and assignment of ... This guide to volunteer management is the third and final

SENTEDALPS10 11SENTEDALPS

authorities without over-riding the needs of the market. Stakeholders have to show a degree of social responsibility, a principle that also concerns sports event legacies and volunteers programmes.

2. THE CHARACTERISTICS OF A SPORTS EVENT

«A sports event is a unifying social situation with an uncertain outcome, the ability to generate shared emotion and a specific brand equity» (Ferrand, Torrigiani, Camps 2006).

A social situation is a mixture of ways of behaving, thinking and feeling that are exterior to the individual and that have a strong influence on people. This is true for of sports events. Their impact is linked to the fact that they constitute identifying vectors within what can be called «affective communities» (Maffesoli 1988). This emotional contagion would not exist without shared social representations and if the outcome was not uncertain. Thus, viewers will watch a live UEFA Champions League (UCL) football match right to the end, even though no goals are scored. Conversely, a match loses its interest if it is not shown live and the result is already known. These dimensions (i.e. stakeholder involvement, socio-emotional impact and impact on identity) are parts of a brand’s equity. In his classic book on the subject, Aaker (1991) defines brand equity as the «set of brand assets and liabilities linked to a brand, its name and symbol, that add to, or subtract from the value provided by a product or service to a firm and/or to that firm’s customers». According to Ferrand and Torrigiani (2005) there are six dimensions to sports event brand equity:

• Foundations (i.e. history, values, mission, identity).• Brand protection (i.e. legitimacy in the sports system, registered brand).• Knowledge (i.e. fame, image).• Experience (i.e. satisfaction, perceived quality).• Relationships (i.e. loyalty, nature of benefits: functional, emotional,

psychological, social and identity).• Stakeholders (i.e. number, power, legitimacy and relations they have).

This model presents the relations inside a complex system that includes volunteers as stakeholders. Potential volunteers are attracted by certain aspects of the event’s brand equity, such as its foundations, their knowledge of the event, their experience and the benefits they expect to receive in return. These benefits can be functional (e.g. develop skills), emotional (e.g. have fun), psychological (e.g. self-fulfilment), identity-related and social (e.g. act in a way that is consistent with one’s values, belong to a group). This is just as true for the 180 volunteers involved in the one-day Athletissima international athletics

Page 11: SENTEDALPS - ALPINE SPACE · Nancy Favre (IDHEAP), Alain Ferrand (UCBL), Tiziana ... Recruitment and assignment of ... This guide to volunteer management is the third and final

SENTEDALPS10 11SENTEDALPS

meeting as it is for the 16,200 volunteers recruited by the TOROC for the 2006 Turin Winter Olympic Games, an event that brought together 15 disciplines, 82 nations and 2,663 athletes for sixteen days of competition under the auspices of the International Olympic Committee (IOC).

3. DIFFERENTIATING VARIABLES FOR SPORTS EVENTS

The organisers of any sports event, whether it is purely local or whether it has an international outreach, have to address the same problems (i.e. volunteers, media, accreditation, etc), although with different levels of complexity and risk. A number of factors can be used to differentiate between sports events. Gresser and Bessy (1999), Desbordes (2000) and Desbordes and Falgoux (2003) have identified the variables that can be used to draw up typologies. The authors of «A guide to bidding for sports events» classified events into three categories according to their media impact. By adopting a managerial approach that allows us to take into account the theme of this guide, we have been able to identify seven variables that can be used to differentiate between sports events (Figure 0.1).

• The rights owner

The rights to an event may be held by a single body, such as the International Ski Federation (FIS) for the organisation of the 2009 Alpine Skiing World Championships in Val d’Isère, or by several bodies, as is the case for the Worldloppet4, which consists of fourteen cross-country ski races, including the Marcialonga, the Engadin Skimarathon, the Dolomitenlauf and the Transjurassienne).

• The mode of organisation

The event may be organised directly by the rights owner, as is the case for the Grand Raid Cristalp, or the rights owner may delegate the organisation to another party, as the International Canoe Federation (ICF) did for the organisation of the 2002 Canoe-Kayak World Championships in Bourg Saint Maurice. Potential organisers may have to bid for the right to organise an event; for example, the cities of Sion and Turin both placed bids to organise the 20th

Winter Olympic Games.

• The juridical form of the event owner and the delegated organiser

The rights owner and the delegated organiser may adopt one of a number of

4 http://www.worldloppet.com/d_news.php?id=20

Page 12: SENTEDALPS - ALPINE SPACE · Nancy Favre (IDHEAP), Alain Ferrand (UCBL), Tiziana ... Recruitment and assignment of ... This guide to volunteer management is the third and final

SENTEDALPS12 13SENTEDALPS

juridical forms: non-profit association (e.g. IAAF and the organising committee for the 2005 Cross Country World Championships at Saint-Etienne/Saint-Galmier), foundation (TOROC), public interest group (GIP) – a statute that allows public bodies and private organisations to carry out common actions for the public benefit (e.g. 2003 Athletics World Championships in Paris), or limited company (e.g. Amaury Group for the Tour de France, or America’s Cup Management (ACM) for the organisation of the 32nd America’s Cup Valencia 2007, etc). The choice of juridical form for the organising body may be dictated by the event owner and/or depend on the mode of organisation, the format of the event, and the legal and fiscal laws of the country in which the event is to be held.

• The stakeholders

The stakeholders in a sports event are the parties who collaborate to ensure the success of the project. Their number can vary significantly, depending most notably on the format of the event. They do not all have the same characteristics, especially in terms of their mission, their power, their sporting legitimacy and the resources they invest in organising the event.

• The governance and purpose of the event

According to Bayle (2005), governance consists of the decision-making process and the way power and control are exercised within organisations. It is a very important point for the rights owner; hence, an organiser must take into account the expectations of all the stakeholders in order to draw up objectives and a strategy for the event. This aspect will be investigated more fully in the first part of the guide.

• The format of the event:

The format depends upon the four characteristics that make up the event’s «calling card». These four characteristics are:

- Human characteristics (e.g. the numbers of people under the direct authority of the organising committee, journalists, delegations or countries, athletes or participants, spectators and television viewers, etc)

- Sporting characteristics (e.g. mono-disciplinary or multi-disciplinary, worldwide or local, mass participation or elite, sporting or promotional, single venue or multiple venue, intermittent, regular and/or composite, etc)

- Time characteristics – the duration and frequency of the event (e.g. whether it is a sixteen day event that takes place every four years,

Page 13: SENTEDALPS - ALPINE SPACE · Nancy Favre (IDHEAP), Alain Ferrand (UCBL), Tiziana ... Recruitment and assignment of ... This guide to volunteer management is the third and final

SENTEDALPS12 13SENTEDALPS

such as the Olympic Games, or an annual one-day competition, such as the Athletissima meeting)

- Spatial characteristics – the place and venue where the event is held (e.g. whether it is outdoors, where it is impossible to predict weather conditions, as for the America’s Cup, or indoors, as for the ice hockey competition at the Winter Universiades). These elements also involve different legal constraints.

• The social, economic and environmental impacts of the event

The hosting and organisation of an international sports event is an occasion for raising the profile and improving the image of a country or a region, especially from sporting, tourism and cultural points of view. Sports events also contribute to highlighting an area’s skills. In addition, major sports events should be organised with an eye on the impact they can have on the sustainable development of an area5. This impact may be economic (e.g. creation of jobs, increase in tourism, etc), environmental (e.g. creation of infrastructures and facilities, taking into account their effect on the environment, etc) and societal (e.g. development of a local identity, health, training, promotion of voluntary work, etc).

Figure 0.1: The seven differentiating variables for sports events

5 In 1987, the BRUNDTLAND commission gave a precise definition of the notion of sustainable development that is recognised throughout the world. It is development that «meets the needs of the present without compromising the ability of future generations to meet their own needs».

Page 14: SENTEDALPS - ALPINE SPACE · Nancy Favre (IDHEAP), Alain Ferrand (UCBL), Tiziana ... Recruitment and assignment of ... This guide to volunteer management is the third and final

SENTEDALPS14 15SENTEDALPS

By combining these variables events can be situated within the constellation of sporting occasions (Figure 0.1). The drawing up of a typology does not, in itself, cast much light on the process of volunteer management; however, some of the variables listed above can significantly affect the way volunteers are managed.

- Rights owners, given their objectives, their power and their sporting legitimacy, can strongly influence the governance of events, particularly in terms of volunteers programmes. By deciding whether to organise the event directly or to delegate the organisation to another body, rights owners can propose, or even impose, commercial and/or societal objectives, as well as specifications concerning volunteer management. If an event is organised with a view to short-term profitability, volunteers are likely to be chosen for their current skills. If it is organised with more societal objectives, it may contribute to the personal development of the volunteers.

- The organiser’s juridical form and the legislation of the country concerned can have an impact on the mode of volunteer management. For example, the organisers of the FIFA 1998 World Cup (GIP) had a certain degree of budgetary flexibility for their volunteers programme; this was not the case for the 32nd America’s Cup Valencia 2007 (private company).

- The format of the event determines the human resources requirements (number and skills) and the way in which they are evaluated (i.e. by venue and/or by function).

- The mode of governance dictates the event’s general strategy and objectives. Depending on stakeholder resources, volunteers may be given a greater or a lesser role.

- Most volunteers are recruited locally, thus they can have a profound influence on the impact of the event (e.g. the 2006 Turin Winter Olympic Games called upon more than 16,200 volunteers). Charmetant (2005)6

points out that the effect of a sports event such as the Olympic Games can last for more than a generation. It can also create a feeling of community and contribute to regional development, as is shown by the numerous voluntary associations founded after the Albertville and Savoie Olympics in 1992.

As was pointed out in the guide to event organisation, every event «is necessarily ephemeral, with no past and no long-term futur...it must be designed to meet the specific requirements imposed by the organisation of a particular event. However, it must also facilitate collaboration with the permanent bodies that will constitute the event’s network of partners.» Once the structure of the organising body has been chosen (e.g. juridical form, mode of governance, attribution of functions, tasks and missions, etc), the stakeholders must be united around a

6 International colloquium, «Major sports events and their impact on the regions involved. Comparison between France – Switzerland – Austria», Turin, 30th and 31st March 2006.

Page 15: SENTEDALPS - ALPINE SPACE · Nancy Favre (IDHEAP), Alain Ferrand (UCBL), Tiziana ... Recruitment and assignment of ... This guide to volunteer management is the third and final

SENTEDALPS14 15SENTEDALPS

common goal. Most major events involve a large number of stakeholders, which can be classified, very generally, into primary and secondary stakeholders7. Every phase of the organisational process requires cooperation between the stakeholders.

4. ORGANISING A SPORTS EVENT

Generally, the process of organising a sports event can be divided into four phases. This process conforms to the definition of a project proposed by Maders and Clet (2002) in their study of project management, that is to say, «an objective to be attained by one or more people working within a precise context, a fixed time-scale and with limited means, and applying appropriate processes and tools». The project management tools and methods that can be used to help achieve a fixed objective are outlined in the guide to organising sports events. However, to perpetuate and capitalise on the skills and expertise built up during the four organising phases, it is necessary to add a fifth phase to the process. This phase fosters the experience gained so it can be applied to organising other events and, more importantly, it ensures this experience contributes to the sustainable development of the host region. Thus, there are five main phases in the process of organising a sports event (Figure 0.2).

1. Conception and structural design phase – dominant theme: IMAGINATION

2. Operational preparation and implementation phase, up until the start of the competition – dominant theme: ORGANISATION

3. Event phase – dominant theme: MANAGEMENT4. Closure and winding up phase, after the competition – dominant theme:

EVALUATION5. Human resources follow up and conservation phase – dominant theme:

PERPETUATION

Figure 0.2: The phases in the sports event organisation process

7 Primary stakeholders are those whose involvement is essential to the existence of the organisation. Secondary stakeholders can influence, or be influenced by the organisation, but they are not essential to its survival.

Page 16: SENTEDALPS - ALPINE SPACE · Nancy Favre (IDHEAP), Alain Ferrand (UCBL), Tiziana ... Recruitment and assignment of ... This guide to volunteer management is the third and final

SENTEDALPS16 17SENTEDALPS

Volunteer management issues affect the organisation of sports events from the very beginning of the project until after the closure of the event; therefore, they must be carefully addressed by event organisers. As volunteers are at the heart of every phase of a sports event project, this guide considers each phase in turn.

5. STRUCTURE OF THE GUIDE

The guide is divided into four chapters. It defines the strategic and operational aspects of the sports event volunteer management process. Most specifically, it investigates three major themes:

• The sports event stakeholders involved in a volunteers programme (Chapter 1)

The human resources under the direct authority of the organising committee are the subject of the first chapter. First, we look at the different types of salaried human resources, and then we focus on volunteers and their place within the system. We then define the notion of a volunteers programme and analyse the interactions between the various stakeholders and their influence on the design and implementation of such a programme. • The strategic processes of volunteer management (Chapter 2)

The strategic processes of volunteer management have been divided into three parts. First, we examine modes of decision-making, and of exercising power and control (i.e. governance) within sports event organising structures. After addressing the determination of a global strategy, we define the key principles of human resources management applicable to volunteers. Finally, we look at the design and implementation of the quality system needed to steer this type of project.

• The operational phases of the volunteers programme (Chapter 3)

Whatever the specific characteristics of an event, the operational management of its volunteers programme can be broken down into six fundamental phases:

- Phase 1: planning of the volunteers programme- Phase 2: evaluation of the requirement for volunteers- Phase 3: recruitment and assignment of volunteers- Phase 4: integration and training of volunteers- Phase 5: operational volunteer management- Phase 6: evaluation, follow up and conservation of volunteers

Page 17: SENTEDALPS - ALPINE SPACE · Nancy Favre (IDHEAP), Alain Ferrand (UCBL), Tiziana ... Recruitment and assignment of ... This guide to volunteer management is the third and final

SENTEDALPS16 17SENTEDALPS

The last section of the chapter investigates the support processes needed for the operational implementation of the programme.

As mentioned above, this guide focuses on international sports events with a human resources management project that includes volunteers and, by extension, all other events that implement this type of programme for their stakeholders.

Figure 0.3 shows the structure and organisation of the guide. The examples given are taken from the seven case studies presented in the fourth and final chapter.

Figure 0.3: The structure and organisation of the guide to volunteer management

Page 18: SENTEDALPS - ALPINE SPACE · Nancy Favre (IDHEAP), Alain Ferrand (UCBL), Tiziana ... Recruitment and assignment of ... This guide to volunteer management is the third and final

SENTEDALPS18

Page 19: SENTEDALPS - ALPINE SPACE · Nancy Favre (IDHEAP), Alain Ferrand (UCBL), Tiziana ... Recruitment and assignment of ... This guide to volunteer management is the third and final

19SENTEDALPS

1. THE HUMAN RESOURCES WITHIN AN ORGANISING COMMITTEE

When setting up a sports event, organising committees rely upon a wide range of people with very different statuses, who are usually managed by a human resources department. Indeed, the success of an event depends on the organiser’s ability to mould into a team a group of people with different origins, skills and profiles, and then to manage them effectively (e.g. the volunteers for the 2006 Turin Winter Olympic Games came from 64 different countries). As we have just stated, this requires situating the volunteers within the «event system». Firstly, we describe a typology of human resources based on their status within the organisation; secondly, we focus on the profiles, origins and motivations of volunteers, and finally we review the legal factors affecting volunteers.

1.1 The four possible categories of human resources within an organising committee

The human resources involved in organising a sports event should have complementary rather than similar profiles and statuses. This complementarity

Each of the five phases in the organisation of a sports event brings together a number of stakeholders. According to Freeman (1984), “a stakeholder is any group or individual that can affect or be affected by the accomplishment of the objectives of the organisation”. Sports events involve a variety of different groups and individuals and their number varies according to the differentiating criteria described above.

The first part of this chapter focuses on the two initial operational phases of the project (i.e. “conception and structural design” and “operational preparation”) in order to situate the volunteer within the “constellation” of parties involved in organising events. To do this, we must examine the specific characteristics, expectations and profiles of volunteers. The features of a volunteers programme also depend on the wishes of the organising committee and on the aims of certain stakeholders. Therefore, the second section of this chapter analyses the interactions between key players and the ways in which they can affect the objectives and characteristics of a volunteers programme.

CHAPTER 1THE STAKEHOLDERS IN A SPORTS EVENT

Page 20: SENTEDALPS - ALPINE SPACE · Nancy Favre (IDHEAP), Alain Ferrand (UCBL), Tiziana ... Recruitment and assignment of ... This guide to volunteer management is the third and final

SENTEDALPS20 21SENTEDALPS

requires achieving a «balance», or «chemistry» between individuals with very different statuses. Nevertheless, whatever the specific characteristics of an event, its organisation will involve four main categories of human resources (Figure 1.1).

Figure 1.1: The statuses of the human resources of an organising committee

• Salaried personnel (employed by the organising committee)

Salaried personnel are directly employed and paid by the organising committee.

• Outside personnel

Outside personnel are made available for all or part of an event but retain their usual employment status and their employer remains responsible for their salaries, social security contributions and insurance and for promotion. This category includes temporary staff, service providers and sub-contractors. Organisers may call upon an employment agency (e.g. Adecco for the 2006 Turin Olympics), event partners or other external service providers to carry out specific and short-term tasks. For example, the organisers of the 1992 Albertville and Savoie Winter Olympic Games asked the employment agency Bis to recruit 136 staff. Other services at this event were contracted out to external service providers (e.g. drivers from Renault).

• Seconded personnel

These are generally civil servants, employed by the state, local authorities, public bodies, or federations, who are seconded to assist with the event. For example, five members of the French Athletics Federation (FFA) were seconded to the organising committee for the 2005 Cross Country World Championships at Saint-Étienne.

Page 21: SENTEDALPS - ALPINE SPACE · Nancy Favre (IDHEAP), Alain Ferrand (UCBL), Tiziana ... Recruitment and assignment of ... This guide to volunteer management is the third and final

SENTEDALPS20 21SENTEDALPS

• Volunteers

The category of volunteers covers every person who contributes to the organisation and running of the event without receiving any payment, financial or otherwise, for their services8.

Tables 1.1 and 1.2 present the categories of human resources involved in the 1992 Albertville and Savoie Olympic Games and the annual Athletissima meeting.

Table 1.1: Categories of human resources involved in the 1992 Albertville and Savoie Olympic Games (source: Official Report of the 1992 Albertville and Savoie Olympic Games).

Table 1.2: Categories of human resources involved in organising the Athletissima meeting

As tables 1.1 and 1.2 show, most of the people under the direct authority of the organising committee are volunteers, whatever the format of the event. Of course, the vast majority of volunteers are employed specifically for the setting up and running of the competition(s). For example, only 50 of the 800 volunteers required for the Athletissima meeting are involved in organising the event ten days before it starts. Nevertheless, organisers must ensure volunteers are aware of the role they have to play in the event system and that they realise their importance to the success of the event.

2. VOLUNTEERS AND VOLUNTARY WORK

The word volunteer is derived from the Latin word «voluntas», which means will. For the purposes of this guide, we have adopted Chéroute’s (1989) definition of

8 The notion of volunteer is examined in detail in the second part of this section

Page 22: SENTEDALPS - ALPINE SPACE · Nancy Favre (IDHEAP), Alain Ferrand (UCBL), Tiziana ... Recruitment and assignment of ... This guide to volunteer management is the third and final

SENTEDALPS22 23SENTEDALPS

a volunteer as a person who «freely undertakes to carry out an unpaid action to benefit others, outside his/her working and family time».

In France, according to the Voluntary Work Study and Information Centre (Halba and Le Net 1997), an action can only be considered voluntary work if five conditions are met:

1 Volunteers are people who make a commitment (notion of commitment)

2 of their own free will (notion of freedom),

3 without expecting any return (notion of a non-profit action),

4 in an organised action (notion of belonging to a group or a structure)

5 to serve the community (notion of common interest).

Generally, voluntary work gives volunteers the satisfaction of doing something for the general good, an objective and a place in society. It can fulfil a range of desires, such as extending one’s circle of friends and acquaintances, gaining experience, acquiring new skills and obtaining recognition through helping others. Ferrand-Bechmann makes an important point in «Bénévolat et solidarité» (1995): although volunteers do not, as a rule, receive any financial compensation for their efforts, they should be reimbursed for any expenses they incur. In extreme cases, the non-reimbursement of expenses may lead to social selection, with only the better off being able to «afford» to give freely of their time.

2.1 Profiles and origins of sports event volunteers Studies have shown that sports events draw their volunteers from a wide range of socio-demographic groups. Table 1.3 illustrates this diversity by presenting the socio-professional profiles of the volunteers at the 1992 Albertville and 2006 Turin Winter Olympic Games. Two-thirds of volunteers for the 2006 Olympics were in work or students (at 87%, the figure was even higher for the 1992 Games).

• Employed volunteers Volunteers with paid employment that take part in a project without receiving any financial compensation. In order to be available for the event, such volunteers often take holiday, sometimes unpaid.

• Retired volunteers Volunteers who were already retired (or had taken pre-retirement) before joining the organising committee.

Page 23: SENTEDALPS - ALPINE SPACE · Nancy Favre (IDHEAP), Alain Ferrand (UCBL), Tiziana ... Recruitment and assignment of ... This guide to volunteer management is the third and final

SENTEDALPS22 23SENTEDALPS

• Student volunteers

Volunteers who are registered for a training course with a secondary or higher education establishment. Sometimes, they may be taken on as trainees (in France, such trainees are paid at 30% of the minimum wage so they can cover their costs).

• Volunteers without a profession

This category includes all volunteers who do not have paid employment and who are not retired or students.

Table 1.3: The socio-professional diversity of volunteer human resources: examples of the 1992 Albertville and Savoie and 2006 Turin Olympic Games

For some events, a large majority of the volunteers are students. This was the case for the 2005 Innsbruck/Seefeld Winter Universiades, where 90% of the volunteers were students (average age 25). However, the volunteers at most sports events come from a wide variety of backgrounds. The data for the 2006 Turin Olympic Games, presented in Figure 1.2, show there is a large degree of heterogeneity in the ages of volunteers, as 47% were aged between 18 and 35, 20% between 36 and 54 and a third were over 55.

Figure 1.2. Ages of volunteers at the 2006 Turin Olympic Games (Source: TOROC)

Page 24: SENTEDALPS - ALPINE SPACE · Nancy Favre (IDHEAP), Alain Ferrand (UCBL), Tiziana ... Recruitment and assignment of ... This guide to volunteer management is the third and final

SENTEDALPS24 25SENTEDALPS

Furthermore, the data presented in Table 1.4 show that the ratio of men (2/3) to women (1/3) remained relatively stable between the 1992 and 2006 Winter Olympic Games. However, the 32nd edition of the America’s Cup has recruited as many women as men, suggesting that the numbers of women volunteers are increasing.

Table 1.4: Percentages of male and female volunteers at the 1992 Albertville and Savoie and 2006 Turin

Olympic Games

2.2 The motivations and expectations of volunteers

In this section we look at volunteers’ needs and expectations; two parameters organisers must take into account when designing a volunteers programme. In this respect, one of the objectives of the 2006 FIFA World Cup in Germany was unequivocal: «give pleasure and joy to all the stakeholders in the event, volunteers as well as spectators»9. It should be noted that this programme was supported by the sporting bookmaker ODDSET, which was both an official partner of the programme and a national supplier for the event.

Interviews with a range of volunteers involved in the organisation of numerous sports events10 have allowed us to identify two main types of expectation. These expectations are listed in table 1.5. Volunteers whose motivations are mostly altruistic are generally looking for an opportunity to «acquire new professional skills and experiences»; however, they may also expect to «be given a uniform and accessories and be provided with meals during the event». These benefits may be considered functional (Table 1.5).

9 http://fifaworldcup.yahoo.com/06/fr/041018/1/17oxcpy.html10 Interviews and information were collected from volunteers who took part in the following events: 2006 Turin Winter Olympic Games, 1998 FIFA Football World Cup in France, 2003 FIFA Confederations Cup in France, 2005 Innsbruck/Seefeld Winter Universiades, the Andrézieux-Bouthéon PTA tournament, etc).

Page 25: SENTEDALPS - ALPINE SPACE · Nancy Favre (IDHEAP), Alain Ferrand (UCBL), Tiziana ... Recruitment and assignment of ... This guide to volunteer management is the third and final

SENTEDALPS24 25SENTEDALPS

Table 1.5: Benefits sought by volunteers

Volunteers’ motivations can vary enormously and may depend on age, sex, social class, etc. The culture of each country can also have an impact. For example, there is a greater commitment to voluntary work in English-speaking countries than in Japan. Table 1.6 presents the motivations of Australian volunteers. They correspond to those in the previous table except for the sense of duty (feel obliged) and the religious reasons.

Table 1.6: Motivations of Australian volunteers (Source: Australia Sports Commission 2000)

In Europe, there is no shortage of potential volunteers for large sporting events such as the Olympic Games (Chappelet 2001). For example, 42,000 applications were received by the TOROC for the 2006 Olympics. Nevertheless, as well as presenting certain advantages, the heterogeneous nature of the potential

Page 26: SENTEDALPS - ALPINE SPACE · Nancy Favre (IDHEAP), Alain Ferrand (UCBL), Tiziana ... Recruitment and assignment of ... This guide to volunteer management is the third and final

SENTEDALPS26 27SENTEDALPS

volunteers also presents difficulties the organiser has to take into account when designing and implementing the volunteers programme.

3. THE IMPACT OF THE STAKEHOLDERS ON THE VOLUNTEERS PROGRAMME

Event owners have a significant influence on how human resources, including volunteer human resources, are managed. This influence is mostly exercised through the event specification. Although the level of detail will vary from one event to another, such specifications generally cover aspects such as human resources requirements (i.e. numbers, skills, expertise, etc) and the characteristics, goals and position of stakeholders, including the organising committee. We begin by defining the concept of a volunteers programme and by presenting a typology for characterising such programmes. We then analyse the stakeholder interactions that shape an event’s objectives and characteristics.

3.1 The volunteers programme

In the case of a sports event, the volunteer management programme encompasses the programming of all the volunteer human resources management actions (i.e. before, during and after the event). Of course, its main objective is to have the right people in the right place at the right time, and to do this at a much lower cost than if the required number of people had to be paid. However, saving money is not the only managerial objective. For many participants, the volunteers personify the event and volunteers play an essential role in promoting the event during the competition phase (Chappelet 2001). On an operational level, we have divided the volunteers programme into six phases. The first three phases are aimed at acquiring the necessary volunteer human resources (i.e. scheduling, needs analysis, recruitment and assignment). The objective of the final three phases (i.e. integration and training, operational management, evaluation, follow up and conservation) is to maintain and cultivate these human resources.

A number of volunteers programmes were analysed for this guide. The results show that their objectives can be situated along two bi-polar axes.

The two poles marking the extremes of the first axis are:

- The operational production of the event, which involves executing the tasks covered by the volunteers’ posts within the organising committee.

- Assuring continuity within a social development framework (i.e. notion of legacy), which involves valorising the skills acquired by the volunteers and facilitating their integration into the social fabric.

Page 27: SENTEDALPS - ALPINE SPACE · Nancy Favre (IDHEAP), Alain Ferrand (UCBL), Tiziana ... Recruitment and assignment of ... This guide to volunteer management is the third and final

SENTEDALPS26 27SENTEDALPS

The second axis is also bi-polar.- The development of collective skills, in order to work as a team. - The development of individual skills, in order to encourage volunteers to

take part in future events.

Superimposing these axes defines four sectors, as shown in Figure 1.3.

Figure 1.3: The organisational and societal objectives of an event

Sector 1 characterises programmes whose objective is to allow all the volunteers to effectively fulfil their functions within the organisation and to carry out associated tasks.

Sector 2 corresponds to programmes that are adapted to the volunteers’ expectations from a long-term skills development perspective. Thus, a volunteer’s involvement in the event is a stage in his/her personal fulfilment (this may be motivated by career objectives) in a given environment.

Sector 3 refers to programmes that focus on the development of the collective skills needed to work in a team within the framework of the event.

Sector 4 relates to the development of collective skills from the point of view of valorising the expertise acquired and thereby facilitating the professional and/or social integration of the volunteer.

It must be stressed that a volunteers programme may have several objectives. For the purposes of this guide we will examine volunteers programmes belonging to each of the categories defined above. Of course, it is the organiser’s role to ensure «their» volunteers are operational and to take into account the societal dimension of the project.

Page 28: SENTEDALPS - ALPINE SPACE · Nancy Favre (IDHEAP), Alain Ferrand (UCBL), Tiziana ... Recruitment and assignment of ... This guide to volunteer management is the third and final

SENTEDALPS28 29SENTEDALPS

3.2 The stakeholders involved in the volunteers programme

Each event has an owner and sometimes a delegated organiser. The organisers of major sports events usually set up an organising committee, one of whose main tasks is to manage the human resources required, including the volunteers.

Organising committees are always in close contact with the relevant sporting bodies and for some events the organising committee will include members of these bodies. For example, the organising committee of the 2009 Alpine Skiing World Championships at Val d’Isère (non-profit association formed under the Act of 1901) has five stakeholder members: the French State, the Rhône-Alpes Region, the «département» of Savoie, the town of Val d’Isère and the French Ski Federation (FFS). These entities actively participate in preparing the event. Bernard Catelan (Mayor of Val d’Isère and President of the organising committee) and Jean-Claude Killy (Executive President of the organising committee) stress: «the involvement of these various stakeholders allows us to go beyond the mere sporting aspects of the event and introduce a dimension that will influence the structure, environment and sustainable development of the area»11. Expressing their gratitude to the stakeholders, they also maintain that «without them (the stakeholders), it would not be possible to organise the World Championships we dream of holding».

In general, the success of an event depends on four main types of stakeholder (Figure 1.4):

Figure 1.4: The four main types of sports event stakeholder

11 http://www.ffs.fr/news/index.asp?Debut=1&Reference=1064

Page 29: SENTEDALPS - ALPINE SPACE · Nancy Favre (IDHEAP), Alain Ferrand (UCBL), Tiziana ... Recruitment and assignment of ... This guide to volunteer management is the third and final

SENTEDALPS28 29SENTEDALPS

- Sports bodies, a category that includes the Olympic and sports movement (e.g. international and national federations, leagues, local authorities, professional clubs, etc) and sports personalities, who often take on the role of event ambassadors, particularly for volunteers programmes (e.g. Olympic medal winner Jean Claude Killy for the 1992 Albertville and Savoie Winter Olympic Games; Alberto Tomba and Piero Gros for the 2006 Turin Winter Olympic Games).

- Public authorities, such as the State, regional and local councils, city and town councils, etc, whose involvement is vital.

- Economic partners, such as the media, sponsors, etc.

- Civil society, which gives an event credibility (e.g. professional bodies, trades unions, universities, etc).

3.3 Objectives and characteristics of a volunteers programme

The volunteers programme concerns all the stakeholders in an event; however, it is the most important stakeholders that will define the programme’s objectives and characteristics. According to Mitchell, Agle and Wood (1997), an organisation’s influence is dependent on its power, legitimacy and urgency.In a sports event context, power can be economic (e.g. the amount of the television rights compared with the budget for the event), political (e.g. legislative power) and organisational (e.g. expertise related to the organisation of the event. Legitimacy is linked to whether the organisation’s existence and actions are seen as desirable and appropriate with respect to the history, morals, habits and beliefs of the host community. Urgency is a measure of the importance of a stakeholder’s involvement, taking into account the organisational phase, the time available and the criticalness of the situation (e.g. the organisation depends on the commitment of a sponsor).

Thus, it is possible to define the importance of each stakeholder with regard to the volunteers programme. In the case of the Turin Winter Olympic Games, the involvement of primary stakeholders, such as the IOC, TOROC, the Italian government and the local authorities, was essential to the success of the event. Secondary stakeholders, such as the media, sports federations, and training institutes, etc, can influence or be influenced by the sporting organisation, but they are not necessarily essential to its survival (Clarkson 1995, Mitchell, Agle and Wood 1997, Polonsky 1995). Unlike the primary stakeholders, secondary stakeholders only play an intermediary, or even accessory role in the system.Primary stakeholders will have varying degrees of involvement in the societal

Page 30: SENTEDALPS - ALPINE SPACE · Nancy Favre (IDHEAP), Alain Ferrand (UCBL), Tiziana ... Recruitment and assignment of ... This guide to volunteer management is the third and final

SENTEDALPS30 31SENTEDALPS

objectives of an event, just as they will have different amounts of interest in its volunteers programme. Bowen (1953) affirmed that, in a context of economic liberalism, companies have social responsibilities. As Marsden and Andriof (1998) stated, «good corporate citizenship is about understanding and managing an organisation’s influences on and relationships with the rest of society in a way that minimises the negative and maximises the positive». During the 1990s, the concepts of «corporate responsibility» and «corporate citizenship» emerged to provide an alternative to the concept of CSR («corporate social responsibility»).

This latter concept applies to the stakeholders of a sports event. In fact, each stakeholder has a different sensitivity and different societal objectives, which contribute to the orientation of the event’s organisation from a corporate social responsibility (CSR) point of view. This situation will affect the management of human resources and, most particularly, the conception and implementation of a volunteer management programme. Table 1.7 presents the primary stakeholders of the 2006 Turin Winter Olympic Games.

Table 1.7: The primary stakeholders of the 2006 Turin Winter Olympic Games

The Olympic Games volunteers programme was defined mainly by the TOROC, the IOC and the local authorities. The data given in Table 1.7 show that they were important (primary) stakeholders and sensitive to the issue of volunteers, as well as to corporate social responsibility (CRS). Analysis of the case studies carried out for this guide have allowed us to divide volunteers programmes into three categories based on their main objectives.

• Type 1: Use of the volunteers’ existing skills (T1)

In this case, we cannot really talk about skills development, and even less so about personal advancement or development. Volunteers are recruited for the skills they already possess and/or to carry out tasks that do not require any specific expertise. In such cases, personal advancement and skills development

Page 31: SENTEDALPS - ALPINE SPACE · Nancy Favre (IDHEAP), Alain Ferrand (UCBL), Tiziana ... Recruitment and assignment of ... This guide to volunteer management is the third and final

SENTEDALPS30 31SENTEDALPS

are not a priority for the organisers; therefore, they give little, or no place to training sessions in their volunteers programme The key point is the immediate use of the volunteers’ existing skills (e.g. 2005 Cross Country World Championships).

• Type 2: Functional organisation of the event (T2)

This second type does not take into account the societal dimension of the volunteer (i.e. social development and long-term valorisation). Training is limited to developing the skills of the people concerned so they can carry out the tasks required by their posts within the organisation (e.g. Grand Raid Cristalp).

• Type 3: Combination of organisational and societal objectives (T3)

This type of volunteers programme combines organisational and societal objectives. Actions are carried out to ensure volunteers are trained to perform their allotted tasks «well» (individually and collectively) so the operational implementation of the event runs smoothly. However, the training is also oriented towards ensuring social development (notion of legacy) by valorising the skills acquired by the volunteers and thereby facilitating their professional and/or social integration. In this type of context, one objective cannot be dissociated from the other (e.g. 2006 Turin Olympic Games).

4. CONCLUSION

Although volunteers are essential stakeholders in the organisation of events, an authoritative definition of voluntary work has yet to be drawn up. In Europe, the status of volunteers is currently being examined and volunteer status is being actively discussed in France and in Belgium, where an act of parliament covering volunteers’ rights was passed on 3rd July 2005 and published in the Belgian Monitor on 29th August 2005. The European Volunteer Centre (CEV) and the Association of Voluntary Service Organisations (AVSO) are jointly carrying out a research project entitled «The legal status of volunteers in Europe». Its purpose is to provide complete and practical information on voluntary work and the law for a large number of European Union member – and future member – states. As a result of the evolution of this social commitment, governments and public authorities are gradually taking initiatives to protect, support and promote the work of volunteers. As there is currently no precise legal framework for voluntary work, the objective is to define a suitable legal status for volunteers that will enable them to carry out their work effectively. 2001 was declared International Year of Volunteers by the General Assembly of the United Nations, inspiring the IOC to organise a number of actions to pay homage to its volunteers. The use of volunteers, which is an integral part of the history and «traditions of the sporting

Page 32: SENTEDALPS - ALPINE SPACE · Nancy Favre (IDHEAP), Alain Ferrand (UCBL), Tiziana ... Recruitment and assignment of ... This guide to volunteer management is the third and final

SENTEDALPS32 33SENTEDALPS

and associative worlds, touches the very essence of sports events» (Charmetant et al 2005).We have listed the different categories of human resources that work within organising committees, paying special attention to the characteristics of volunteers. The objectives and characteristics of a volunteers programme depend on the convergence of the interests and objectives of the primary stakeholders. These stakeholders possess varying degrees of power, legitimacy and urgency. They do not all have the same sensitivity to societal objectives and, in particular, to the corporate responsibility and corporate citizenship that can influence the management of human resources and volunteers. The volunteers programmes that result from these influences can be classified into three categories: «use of volunteers’ existing skills», «functional organisation of the event» and «combination of organisational and societal objectives». In conclusion, it is worth highlighting the fact that the organising committee occupies a central place in this system and it has a profound influence on the volunteers programme. Nevertheless, the members of the organising committee cannot always impose their will; therefore, they must solicit the support of other primary stakeholders. This is true for both the strategic orientation of the organisation and its governance.

Page 33: SENTEDALPS - ALPINE SPACE · Nancy Favre (IDHEAP), Alain Ferrand (UCBL), Tiziana ... Recruitment and assignment of ... This guide to volunteer management is the third and final

SENTEDALPS32 33SENTEDALPS

1. GOVERNANCE OF THE GENERAL STRATEGY FOR THE VOLUNTEERS PROGRAMME

During the organisation of a sports event, the rights owner (or delegated organiser) is at the centre of a network of stakeholders, who themselves have rights, power, legitimacy and obligations. The dynamic of this system must be controlled (governance) in order to define a strategy for the management of «its» volunteer human resources. Thus, the general volunteer management strategies adopted for events such as the 1998 FIFA Football World Cup (organised by a Public Interest Group) and the 32nd America’s Cup (organised by a private company, AC Management) may differ13.

This second chapter is divided into three sections covering the factors that affect the governance and strategic processes12 of volunteer management and thus the ins and outs of volunteers programmes. The strategic management of a volunteers programme involves defining objectives, setting up the policies and plans required to meet these objectives and allocating the resources needed to implement these policies. The primary stakeholders identified in chapter 1 will be mostly responsible for drawing up the strategy, although the organising committee’s mode of governance (i.e. how decisions are made and how power and control are exerted by the bodies that organise sports events) will also have an affect. This aspect will be developed in the first section of this chapter, in which we consider volunteers programmes from a collective project point of view. When a strategy has been defined, the processes required to implement it must be considered. A global approach to human resources management should be taken and a quality system should be set up to ensure the expectations of the event’s stakeholders are met at the lowest possible cost.

CHAPTER 2THE STRATEGIC PROCESSES OF

VOLUNTEER MANAGEMENT

12 We define strategy as «the discussions, decisions and actions undertaken to determine general aims and precise objectives, to decide the means needed to achieve these aims, to implement the resulting actions and activities, to monitor the performances related to this implementation and to achieve the goals» (Marchesnay 2004).13 Interview with Béatrice Lechat concerning the mode of volunteer management for the 32nd America’s Cup Valencia 2007, Valencia 21st March 2006.

Page 34: SENTEDALPS - ALPINE SPACE · Nancy Favre (IDHEAP), Alain Ferrand (UCBL), Tiziana ... Recruitment and assignment of ... This guide to volunteer management is the third and final

SENTEDALPS34 35SENTEDALPS

The different forms of governance will influence the strategy and implementation of a volunteers programme. Above all, there is political governance, which covers the obligations and recommendations of the rights owner. For example, the IOC, FIFA14 and IAAF15 may draw up volunteers programme specifications. However, they can only, at best, provide recommendations for how that programme can be extended into the long term as part of a social development project. In order to reinforce the transfer and conservation of skills and expertise, the IOC, in partnership with the University of Monash (Australia) set up a company called Olympic Games Knowledge Services (OGKS) in 2002. In 2004, the IOC bought the University’s shares in the company and took full control.

In the first section of this chapter, we look at how to define a global strategy for a volunteers programme that takes into account the expectations of the primary stakeholders. This is followed by an analysis of the programme as a collaborative project.

1.1 Reconcile the strategies of the stakeholders in the volunteers programme

This is mostly a question of systemic governance (Henry and Lee 2004). It involves the cooperation and accommodations between an event’s stakeholders and the authorities involved. Here, the main difficulties result from the diversity of the interested parties and their objectives, which may be difficult to reconcile. This is especially the case when implementing a system of governance that combines operational objectives relating to the organisation of the event and societal objectives aimed at ensuring social development before, during and after the event.

From this perspective, it is necessary to arrive at a shared vision of corporate social responsibility (CSR), as well as a consensus on the objectives (functional and social), the strategy to adopt and the resources to commit. These objectives can be attained via different modes of governance, including a cooperative mode (Aoki 1984) in which the stakeholders are encouraged to cooperate rather than suffer the consequences of a conflict. This mode of governance is particularly suited to sports events, as the stakeholders must work together to achieve an operational balance. The system functions by creating «stakeholder value». Such approaches are based on the principle that the success of an organisation must be measured according to the satisfaction of the parties involved. The management of the players in the system is perceived as both a means and an end. Societal responsibility is a collective issue; hence, society is best served when the system adopts a sustainable development approach.

14 FIFA = International Federation of Football Associations.15 IAAF = International Association of Athletics Federations.

Page 35: SENTEDALPS - ALPINE SPACE · Nancy Favre (IDHEAP), Alain Ferrand (UCBL), Tiziana ... Recruitment and assignment of ... This guide to volunteer management is the third and final

SENTEDALPS34 35SENTEDALPS

We have highlighted the fact that some stakeholders, such as local authorities and sporting bodies, have a greater interest in promoting social development than others. We talk about the legacy of an event that, as Charmetant (2001) pointed out, can «take several years to prepare, last only a few days, but have effects that continue to be felt for more than a generation» (e.g. Olympic Games, America’s Cup, etc). Sponsors have also understood the importance to their development of societal issues. For example, the sporting goods manufacturer Asics fitted out all the personnel at the 2006 Turin Winter Olympic and Paralympic Games. Other organisations may adopt a strictly functional and short-term vision, considering the volunteer solely as an event-related resource.

1.2 The volunteers programme as a collective project

A volunteers programme is capable of creating value and of providing a link between the event’s stakeholders. It can be considered an element of relationship marketing, which, according to Sheth and Parvatiyar (2000), is a «continuous process involving a commitment to cooperative and collaborative activities and programmes involving partners and users, with the aim of creating or increasing the economic (and/or social16) value of the whole at a lower cost». There are three phases in the development of this process:

• Achieving stakeholder agreement on the programme’s objectives (phase 1)

• Choosing the stakeholders needed for the programme and gaining their

commitment (phase 2)

• Designing the volunteers programme (phase 3)

In the following section, we examine the operational implementation of each of these three phases. Event managers must master all three, as the process is an iterative one during which the programme progressively develops.

PHASE 1: ACHIEVING STAKEHOLDER AGREEMENT ON THE PROGRAMME’S OBJECTIVES

At this stage, the primary stakeholders must make a certain number of decisions concerning the principles and objectives that will structure the event’s volunteers programme. We recommend preceding this work by a stakeholder introduction phase (i.e. history, mission, vision, objectives, business, etc) so the parties can get to know each other better. This can be done in the form of a participatory seminar. Next, «brainstorming» sessions should be held in order to answer some key questions.

16 Added by the authors.

Page 36: SENTEDALPS - ALPINE SPACE · Nancy Favre (IDHEAP), Alain Ferrand (UCBL), Tiziana ... Recruitment and assignment of ... This guide to volunteer management is the third and final

SENTEDALPS36 37SENTEDALPS

• What are the objectives we want to achieve by hosting this sports event (societal and/or commercial)?

If there is agreement on the societal objectives, a number of related questions need to be addressed.

• Do our societal objectives involve a volunteers programme?• Which volunteers are involved?• What type of development are we talking about (i.e. personal,

sustainable)?• What is the geographical region concerned?• Do we want the volunteers programme to contribute to regional

development? If so, which region?

The answers provided by these joint working sessions can be used to draw up a two-point summary of the structuring principles and objectives of the event’s volunteers programme. Table 2.1 presents the elements retained for the volunteers programme for the 2008 Beijing Olympic Games. Table 2.2 shows the objectives and stages of the 1992 Albertville and Savoie Winter Olympic Games volunteers programme.

Table 2.1: Objectives and operational planning for the 2008 Beijing Olympics volunteers programme (source BOCOG)17

17 http://www.beijing-2008.org/upload/xingdong/jihua.doc

Page 37: SENTEDALPS - ALPINE SPACE · Nancy Favre (IDHEAP), Alain Ferrand (UCBL), Tiziana ... Recruitment and assignment of ... This guide to volunteer management is the third and final

SENTEDALPS36 37SENTEDALPS

Table 2.2: Objectives and stages of the Albertville Olympic Games’ «Programme Equipe 92» (Source

COJO)

PHASE 2: CHOOSING THE STAKEHOLDERS NEEDED FOR THE PROGRAMME AND GAINING THEIR COMMITMENT

Once agreement between the primary stakeholders has been achieved and confirmed, the organisers must decide which stakeholders to actively involve in the volunteers programme. They must also determine which secondary stakeholders should be involved, taking into account the principles and objectives of the programme and the resources needed to achieve them. The results of this phase can be summarised in a table, such as Table 2.3.

Table 2.3: Contributions and benefits provided by an event’s stakeholders

Page 38: SENTEDALPS - ALPINE SPACE · Nancy Favre (IDHEAP), Alain Ferrand (UCBL), Tiziana ... Recruitment and assignment of ... This guide to volunteer management is the third and final

SENTEDALPS38 39SENTEDALPS

PHASE 3: DESIGNING THE VOLUNTEERS PROGRAMME

This third and final phase falls within the province of operational governance, also called «good governance». It involves adopting managerial practices that are ethically consistent with the design, implementation and evaluation of the programme. We will now focus almost exclusively on this domain.

The structuring principles and objectives of a volunteers programme determine the profiles to be looked for amongst potential volunteers, how they will be combined, their levels of responsibility and the period for which they will be involved with respect to the phases of the event. We will look at all these aspects in the following sections of the guide. Accepting the proposition that sporting feats only achieve their true value when they are shared by «all», organisers should ensure the largest possible number of volunteers (depending on the format of the event) have the opportunity to witness the event. In this way, the sporting spectacle is transformed into a warm and friendly celebration.

2. THE PRINCIPLES OF HUMAN RESOURCES MANAGEMENT APPLIED TO VOLUNTEERS

This section shows how applying some of the fundamental principles of human resources management can contribute to the success of a volunteers programme. Our presentation is organised around two major elements of human resources management (Cuskelly and Auld 1999): «acquiring» human resources and «keeping» them. Nevertheless, the particularities of sports events, together with our desire to combine organisational efficiency with regional development, lead us to examine, in a second section, the construction of a collective identity, the status of team member and the access of volunteers to managerial responsibilities.

2.1 The fundamental principles of human resources management

To achieve the objectives that have been fixed, it is essential to follow good human resources management practices. This involves steering human resources with the required skills towards the achievement of a specific goal in a given period and in a given context. Such steering must take into account each team member’s personal expectations and motivations (Figure 2.1).

Page 39: SENTEDALPS - ALPINE SPACE · Nancy Favre (IDHEAP), Alain Ferrand (UCBL), Tiziana ... Recruitment and assignment of ... This guide to volunteer management is the third and final

SENTEDALPS38 39SENTEDALPS

Figure 2.1: Processes and objectives of a volunteers programme

In the field of sports event organisation, managers must not forget that the performance of «their» volunteers is linked to:

• The volunteer’s ability to carry out the allotted task• The volunteer’s level of commitment and the effort applied to carrying out

the allotted task• The support provided by the organisation (e.g. rewards18, communication,

mobilisation, logistics, etc).

Of course, the strength of a team depends upon each member’s individual skills (e.g. technical, linguistic, etc) and on their ability to cooperate in a coordinated, collective project. Successful organisations are not only composed of talented people, they also have a real «house culture» with common values and a common language. The ephemeral context of a sports event does not make achieving this fundamental aspect of volunteer management easy.

Human resources management optimises the efficiency of a team by constantly adapting to the dynamic relationship between needs and resources. First, the skills needed to achieve the objectives that have been fixed must be defined. Here, skills encompass both theoretical (e.g. legislation, design, etc) and practical (use of a computer programme, analysis, synthesis and oral

18 As we have already stated, rewards for volunteers are never financial

Page 40: SENTEDALPS - ALPINE SPACE · Nancy Favre (IDHEAP), Alain Ferrand (UCBL), Tiziana ... Recruitment and assignment of ... This guide to volunteer management is the third and final

SENTEDALPS40 41SENTEDALPS

presentation methods, etc) knowledge. The gap between the skills required to successfully complete a task and the skills possessed by the people recruited must then be assessed.

Such gaps can be reduced through recruitment, training, changing the way work is organised and through redundancies. Adjustments are made in a specific context defined by local legislation, which can vary from one country to another (as pointed out in the first chapter). All the members of an organisation must feel an acceptable balance has been achieved between their contribution and their reward; otherwise their commitment to the organisation may suffer (Figure 2.2.).

Figure 2.2: The individual contribution-reward balance (adapted from Brabet 1993)

To do this, a manager must take the time to discern each team member’s expectations and motivations (i.e. the reward that motivates the person most). Indicators can be drawn up to measure whether expectations are met, to evaluate a volunteer’s working methods and to identify ways and means of improving the situation and thus optimising the volunteer’s contribution to the project.

There are as many ways of managing a team as there are teams. It is important to emphasise that each team member expects individual attention. Our approach builds on the approach adopted by Viargues (2004) and is based on the traditional, two-dimensional model of human resources management (Cuskelly and Auld 1999) mentioned above. Firstly, we focus on the phases involved in obtaining the resource (planning, needs evaluation, recruitment and assignment). Secondly, we look at the phases required to ensure the loyalty of these resources (integration, training, operational management, evaluation, monitoring and conservation).

Page 41: SENTEDALPS - ALPINE SPACE · Nancy Favre (IDHEAP), Alain Ferrand (UCBL), Tiziana ... Recruitment and assignment of ... This guide to volunteer management is the third and final

SENTEDALPS40 41SENTEDALPS

2.2 Recruiting volunteer human resources

Before cultivating the «loyalty» of volunteers, a strategy to obtain their initial «commitment» to the project must be defined. Drawing up a strategy that follows the principles of human resources management should facilitate the search for volunteers with the desired profile.

Once the budget for the programme has been agreed (often based on experience), the actions making up the volunteer management project must be designed and planned. As part of this planning phase, it is recommended to evaluate the magnitude of the sports event and to structure and plan the volunteers programme in order to ensure it is implemented as smoothly as possible (see part 1 of chapter 3).

Before recruiting, a manager must look forward to the operational phase in order to evaluate the human resources the organising committee will need in order to carry out its mandate and meet its objectives. Charmetant (2006) points out that this fundamental phase will ensure volunteers are not recruited for tasks that do not exist, thereby leading to frustration. According to Lechat (2006), the needs analysis should not only cover job content and associated skills, but also the period of involvement, working times, training dates, number of jobs and the resources needed19 (see part 2 of chapter 3). In addition, Fantini (2006) maintains that job profiles should be flexible in order to allow rotation between posts. Finally, project managers must take into account the cultural dimension of voluntary work in the host country.

The aims of the recruitment phase20 are to ensure a mutual commitment between the organisers and the volunteer and to evaluate the motivation and the skills of each volunteer, in order to ensure the «right» person is appointed to each post. «Favouritism» of any sort cannot be tolerated during this phase. Managers should pay particular attention to the management and recruitment of the people charged with selecting applicants. These selectors must be properly trained and reliable, as selecting the right people is a highly skilled task, and each selector must be given clear and individual objectives. Finally, the volunteer recruitment campaign can be facilitated by identifying organisations likely to contain potential volunteers («sourcing»), and then launching targeted pre-recruitment actions, and by involving well-known figures as ambassadors for the project. Some experts believe this phase should result in the signing of a contract or a formal undertaking; others, such as Charmetant (2006), recognise that volunteers remain free, whether or not a contract is signed. It is now the

19 Whatever the specific characteristics of an event, recruitment managers should expect a 5 to 10% negative response rate and a withdrawal rate of between 15 and 30%; hence organisers should allow for the creation of a team of multi-skilled reservists.20 Chelladurai defines recruitment as the process of finding a number of competent applicants and inciting them to apply. This is followed by a process to select a person from this group of qualified individuals.

Page 42: SENTEDALPS - ALPINE SPACE · Nancy Favre (IDHEAP), Alain Ferrand (UCBL), Tiziana ... Recruitment and assignment of ... This guide to volunteer management is the third and final

SENTEDALPS42

manager’s responsibility to cultivate the volunteer’s loyalty (Bouchet Virette 2006). It should also be noted that «the larger the event, the easier it is to recruit volunteers» (Enrique Caballero 2006).The assignment phase is closely linked to the recruitment phase. It involves assigning volunteers, after consultation, to the posts to be filled, each of which has a certain level of responsibility21. This aspect will be discussed in the second part of this section. The definitive assignment of volunteers can only be made once the selected applicants have been tested «in the field».

Far too frequently, the organising committee concentrates all its energies and attention on the volunteer «acquisition» phase and neglects the integration of the selected applicants. However, it is just as essential to maintain the volunteers’ commitment for the entire period of their missions, as it is to recruit the right people. When this commitment is transferred to other events, it can be regarded as part of the event’s «legacy». The «conservation» of volunteers is the final phase in the process of ensuring a long-term commitment from volunteer human resources.

2.3 Cultivating the loyalty of volunteer human resources

As stated above, managers of volunteers must never forget that volunteers can, by definition, withdraw at any moment (Charmetant 2006). Managers must maintain the commitment of their volunteers by giving a meaning to their contribution. Developing a volunteer’s sense of worth and sense of responsibility are strategic ways in which managers can cultivate loyalty and thereby avoid having to repeat the recruitment process. The management of volunteer turnover can be costly in terms of time and availability, etc.

Of course, the success of this integration phase depends on the qualities of the individuals recruited and, perhaps above all, on the way in which volunteers are integrated into the team. Therefore, volunteer recruitment should be followed by team-building and integration actions that go much further than mere technical training. They should give volunteers a global picture of the event and involve them in collective actions before the day they start work on their allotted task.

According to Sordet (2006) and Bouchet Virette (2006), it is essential to involve all the members of the organising body (e.g. executive managers, unit managers, team leaders, etc) in the integration programme, in order to «set the tone» of the event and to motivate the volunteers. Senior managers should welcome new members of the team personally to wish them well, present the integration programme, explain evaluation methods and criteria, tell them about the daily life of the organising committee, and establish the programme for future meetings. If the integration objectives do not appear to have been

Page 43: SENTEDALPS - ALPINE SPACE · Nancy Favre (IDHEAP), Alain Ferrand (UCBL), Tiziana ... Recruitment and assignment of ... This guide to volunteer management is the third and final

43SENTEDALPS

reached, the volunteer human resources manager must analyse the situation with the team member and the unit manager and draw up an action plan to modify the process.Managers must try to instil a feeling of belonging and invoke a sense of responsibility amongst all the stakeholders (e.g. unit manager, volunteer, etc).They should also build a climate of confidence and identify the personal motivations and expectations of each volunteer. This process of «appropriating» volunteer team members by managers begins with integration and training actions and continues with team-building actions.

The aim of the training phase is to motivate and prepare volunteers to carry out their allotted tasks to the best of their ability. As Bouchet Virette (2006) suggests, it is best to start training as late as possible (e.g. 3 months before the event starts). Nevertheless, integration actions should start as soon as the applicant is recruited (see chapter 3, phase 4) and the different types of training should be adapted to individual needs. Role-playing activities are recommended, especially for the trainers, who, like the selectors, must be trained and reliable. This integration phase should also be used to develop the team values previously set out to the volunteers. The permanent representatives of the organising body must be the first to incarnate these values (exemplarity).

The operational management phase should ensure the right people are in the right place at the right time by giving the volunteers the means they need to function effectively. To prepare a team of volunteers to collaborate effectively and efficiently, unit managers, assisted by the volunteer department managers, should instil and share with all the team members a common language, common values and a common project. Unit managers must also set individual and collective objectives, organise and delegate the work amongst the team, check facts and make decisions based upon them. Managers must have both the technical skills and human qualities necessary. As was explained in the guide to event organisation, «in order to ensure a permanent balance between usable resources, qualitative results and deadlines», managers must adopt a steering and adaptation system that can integrate the 20% of «circumstantial» uncertainty. In fact, the control we have over the management of volunteer human resources will always remain «relative» because, by their very essence, sports event projects involve a large number of independent variables.As stated above, the manager’s job is to give meaning to the actions of the people who volunteered to help in the organisation and running of the event. Hence, volunteers must be made to feel they are an integral part of the project. Managers can achieve this by setting the course to follow through defining objectives (e.g. the objectives of the 1992 Albertville and Savoie Olympic Games were to strengthen a tradition, share the exploit, make the Games a friendly celebration and meet the challenge of excellence), values and a common language. The fixing of objectives is fundamental to the steering

Page 44: SENTEDALPS - ALPINE SPACE · Nancy Favre (IDHEAP), Alain Ferrand (UCBL), Tiziana ... Recruitment and assignment of ... This guide to volunteer management is the third and final

SENTEDALPS44 45SENTEDALPS

process. These objectives must be motivating and ambitious but also realistic. Each objective must be set in agreement with all the team members (e.g. assure the transport of all the members of delegation X within an authorised perimeter and between X o’clock and X o’clock). In addition, team managers must determine, in advance, the indicators that will be used to measure whether objectives are met and ensure each team member has a clear understanding of the role they are to play.

In this phase, it is essential to be able to delegate, that is to say transfer power to another team member, who may or may not have volunteered to carry out and manage the task, without handing over responsibility. Good managers know how to delegate. Furthermore, volunteers must be given information, in a structured way, throughout the event (e.g. briefings and debriefings that bring together unit managers, members of the volunteer human resources department and the executive director, etc).

Finally, the post-event phase consists of evaluating the programme in terms of operational efficiency (e.g. players, processes) and according to primary stakeholder perceived quality and satisfaction. Evaluating consists of analysing the situation in order to identify possible ways in which improvements can be made should another event be organised in the future. Managers must not be frightened of expressing their opinions face to face or of providing volunteers with precise constructive criticism.

As Chappelet (2000) points out, «the unpaid nature of the work carried out by sports event volunteers does not in any way exempt them from such checks. In fact, it is essential for the success of a major event, where a few imperfections can be forgiven at the beginning but where perfection is increasingly important towards the end». In some serious cases, volunteers may have to be told they are no longer required. A small number of volunteers may also withdraw their services; therefore, it is necessary to have a pool of volunteers who can step in to fill any gaps. Through control, verification, guidance and steering it is possible to ensure that objectives are met. Although evaluation is essentially a post-event process, volunteers and the actions they carry out must be monitored throughout the event, so team managers can introduce any necessary corrective actions. For monitoring and evaluation to be effective, two criteria have to be met. Firstly, the indicators used must be clear, defined in advance and suited to each volunteer. Secondly, the approach must be aimed at making progress and not at inflicting sanctions.

The final evaluation phase is part of the process of ensuring the long-term conservation of volunteers and, therefore, of building the event’s legacy. It

Page 45: SENTEDALPS - ALPINE SPACE · Nancy Favre (IDHEAP), Alain Ferrand (UCBL), Tiziana ... Recruitment and assignment of ... This guide to volunteer management is the third and final

SENTEDALPS44 45SENTEDALPS

involves valorising the skills acquired and capitalising on the experience gained in order to further to the sustainable development of the region.

2.4 Motivation, reward and communication

Over and above the actions contained in the six phases of the volunteers programme, the organising committee must continuously motivate and reward their volunteers by regularly providing them with information. To do this, managers must take the time to discover each team member’s expectations and motivations (i.e. the form of reward that will motivate them the most).

Providing volunteers with recognition for the work they do is one of the main elements of the programme. The objective is not only to thank volunteers who make a decisive contribution to the success of the organisation but also to leave a legacy for future generations. Strengthening the cohesion of the group and developing a feeling of belonging, recognition and consideration for volunteers can contribute to the overall success of the programme. Therefore, an event organiser must adopt the mindset that, «as each person’s task is vital to the running of the event, it is important to let each volunteer know that his/her contribution is valued» (Delapierre 2006).

The human resources team should initiate team-building actions, but they must then allow «team leaders» (i.e. direct managers, heads of teams) a certain amount of room for manoeuvre in organising internal (to the team) recognition and reward actions. It is also the human resources team’s responsibility to ensure a budget is allocated for this and that rewards are distributed equitably. An «entertainment/reward» programme should be carried out during the event, with the emphasis on the exclusivity of the action.

Whatever the format of the event, reward actions should be carried out during the whole organisation process. Before the event such actions may take the form of sending volunteers a special newsletter, promotional objects (e.g. brooch, tee-shirt, poster, etc), invitations to test events, CDs or DVDs and photos of the integration day. During the event, volunteer rewards can take the form of invitations to certain competitions, free meals, accommodation, volunteers’ parties (meals, theme evenings, etc), gatherings away from the event, free admittance to certain competitions outside working time and free transport. Post-event rewards can take the form of a thank-you letter, an evening event (meal, party, etc), presentation of a diploma, or even the validation of university credits.

Page 46: SENTEDALPS - ALPINE SPACE · Nancy Favre (IDHEAP), Alain Ferrand (UCBL), Tiziana ... Recruitment and assignment of ... This guide to volunteer management is the third and final

SENTEDALPS46 47SENTEDALPS

Table 2.4: «Rewards» for volunteers at the 2006 Turin Winter Olympic Games (source TOROC)

As Schnitzer (2006) suggests, the final “test event” can provide an opportunity for presenting volunteers with their uniform, the wearing of which will instil a sense of pride. Accreditation is also an important form of reward that organisers should not overlook.

As the programme advances, it is advisable to provide information on specified occasions, or at other precise moments (e.g. when the volunteers are given their accreditation or their uniforms). However, the rewards should not be so great as to become the main motivation for volunteering. The best strategy is to provide rewards progressively.

Page 47: SENTEDALPS - ALPINE SPACE · Nancy Favre (IDHEAP), Alain Ferrand (UCBL), Tiziana ... Recruitment and assignment of ... This guide to volunteer management is the third and final

SENTEDALPS46 47SENTEDALPS

Inset n°1: Principles of informing, motivating and compensating volunteers

• Keep in permanent contact with the volunteers (e.g. e-mail, telephone, text messages, newsletters, etc). Ensure volunteers receive news of the organising committee at least once a month

• Build a team and motivate its members - requires the involvement of the managers of each unit

• The behaviour of members of the organising committee must be exemplary and this should be shown to the volunteers at the start of the project

• Provide equitable rewards for volunteers carrying out the same role. This is especially important for volunteers working at different venues (e.g. provision by the sponsoring partner of transport for drivers - 2003 FIFA Confederations Cup in France, in Lyon and in Saint-Étienne)

• Provide rewards gradually throughout the pre-event, event and post-event phases

• Maintain a balance between contribution/reward throughout the event until the end of the final task. This can even encourage people to take part in other events (long-term conservation).

• It should be noted that the Albertville COJO referred to its volunteers as team members in order to emphasise that they were an integral part of the organising body and that they needed to work together as a team

• Create a specific brand and logo for the human resources and the volunteers programme in order to create a feeling of belonging to a team (e.g. «Noi 2006», «Equipier 1992», «Comm Unity 05», etc)

• For the recruitment campaign, use the present tense (to give the idea that the team already exists), use simple and direct language, together with the colour red, which symbolises passion.

• Organise special events to mark significant moments in the organisation process

• Motivate the volunteers and make them aware of their responsibilities, but without generating fears: find the correct balance between the fact that a volunteer is an «ordinary person» (to avoid scaring away potential applicants) and, at the same time, a «special» person (to stimulate cohesion within the team)

• Provide a unisex uniform for all, from the top to bottom of the hierarchy, thereby simplifying logistics and providing a strong symbol of belonging and cohesion for all members of the organising committee, whatever their status. Uniforms should make the people who wear them feel proud to do so

• Get to know each and every volunteer well, so thank you messages can be personalised

• Ensure structured communication with the volunteers during the event (briefings and debriefings with direct managers, approachability of the volunteer human resources team, etc)

• Managers should «appropriate» their volunteer team members, from the start of the integration and training stages.

• Organise an exclusive programme of events and rewards during the event

• Provide formal recognition in the form of exclusive thank-you and appreciation actions for the volunteers

Page 48: SENTEDALPS - ALPINE SPACE · Nancy Favre (IDHEAP), Alain Ferrand (UCBL), Tiziana ... Recruitment and assignment of ... This guide to volunteer management is the third and final

SENTEDALPS48 49SENTEDALPS

Communication is also an important element of the volunteer management process. One of the basic principles of the programme is to provide information in a progressive way, so that enthusiasm grows as the volunteers’ anticipation builds. Organisers must manage communication by planning regular actions throughout the organisation process. The volunteer human resources department must provide people with the information and data required for their development within the organisation; however, organisers should avoid giving too much information at once. It is much better to maintain regular contact with the volunteers, ensuring they receive news at least once a month during the run-up to the event (Bouchet Virette 2006).

The fluidity and quality of the information processed is a key factor in any organisation’s success. Organising committees must ensure there is structured communication with its volunteers before, during and even after the event. During the operational phase, managers must provide their volunteers with the information they need in order to give them a sense of purpose, that is to say, a perspective, a collective project, values, pleasure, etc. Furthermore, when managers present a planning chart, they must highlight key elements and remind the volunteers of the founding values of the sporting project they have committed themselves to. Team members will always have more information to give their managers than their managers already have at their disposal; therefore, it is the manager’s responsibility to initiate the upwards, downwards and transversal communication needed for staging an event.

Different communication tools can be used, depending on the nature of the information and the recipient, etc. These tools include Internet (which can be used for e-mail, newsletters, personalised messages, sending files, contracts, teaching materials, etc.), face-to-face interviews, especially during the recruitment phase, meetings, telephone calls and planning charts, etc.

In conclusion, managers should ensure each person has a clear role to play and that a climate of trust is built up, in order to facilitate communication within the team.

2.5 The central elements of volunteer management for sports event projects

We have highlighted the strategic managerial elements involved in setting up a volunteer project for any type of sports event, whatever its specific characteristics. The following section looks at how the phases described above can be put into practice and at the tools required for implementing them.

We start by describing the elements we feel are central to the successful running

Page 49: SENTEDALPS - ALPINE SPACE · Nancy Favre (IDHEAP), Alain Ferrand (UCBL), Tiziana ... Recruitment and assignment of ... This guide to volunteer management is the third and final

SENTEDALPS48 49SENTEDALPS

of a volunteers programme. As was the case at the 1992 Winter Olympics, human resources management for a sports event must be efficient, completely autonomous, creative, have a spirit of initiative and a heightened sense of team organisation and management, as well as the curiosity to examine what is done elsewhere and the readiness to adapt the experience of other events to the current situation (notion of benchmarks). Senior management has a capital role to play in this respect. Having a charismatic leader capable of galvanising the teams, especially the volunteers, as Jean Claude Killy did for the 1992 Winter Olympics, is a major advantage. Organisers should also set up a rapid decision-making process capable of eliminating anything that is not essential. The event must be delivered on time, so it is essential to set up risk and volunteer management strategies (Charmetant 2001). Managers should remember that « changing the way the volunteers issue is addressed can modify the event’s identity, as volunteers have a significant role to play in developing the atmosphere and personality of the event » (Charmetant et al. 2005).

2.5.1 Define a statute: that of team member

The cohesion between the different categories of person involved in organising an event is very important. As we stated earlier, an «event is a temporary system, a material and immaterial organisation whose demise is pre-ordained» (Charmetant 2001) and this system is composed of men and women of different ages and nationalities and with different experiences and training. We support the idea that members of the organising committee should be treated equally, no matter what their status or the task they have been allocated. Some authorities feel that volunteer human resources should fulfil different roles to the three other categories of personnel (i.e. salaried, outside and seconded staff). Others, such as the organising committee for the 1992 Albertville and Savoie Winter Olympic Games, have developed the team member concept. The term «team member» covers all the people under the direct authority of the organising committee who work for the success of the event, whatever their status22. Having a single status provides a solution to the problem of working relationships between volunteers and other members of the organising committee (paid staff), which can sometimes be conflictual. It is also a strong factor in bringing people together and creating a common identity. The slogan «make volunteers professionals and professionals volunteers» perfectly expresses the desired mentality.

2.5.2 Volunteer profiles and their combination

Once the principles and objectives of an event’s volunteers programme have 22 Reminder: the four categories of human resource involved in organising an event, under the authority of the organising committee, are salaried staff, contracted staff, seconded staff and volunteers.

Page 50: SENTEDALPS - ALPINE SPACE · Nancy Favre (IDHEAP), Alain Ferrand (UCBL), Tiziana ... Recruitment and assignment of ... This guide to volunteer management is the third and final

SENTEDALPS50 51SENTEDALPS

been set out, guidelines defining volunteer profiles (i.e. origins, skills, etc) and how they are to be combined can be drawn up. The organisers must find the «right formula», «balance» and «chemistry» needed to ensure the programme is a success. In the organisation guide, we stated that «a shrewd alchemy must be found between sportspeople, experts and local people on the one hand and staff, volunteers and external service providers on the other». In this domain, we have identified a number of principles, which can be taken as recommendations, for building a group of volunteers. Firstly, it is inadvisable to place in the same team volunteers who already know each other from outside the event. Of course, volunteer resources managers must use the experience of their volunteers, but they must be careful not to reunite a complete team (e.g. volunteers for the transport pool), as this may lead to overconfidence amongst the team members. It is better to introduce newcomers who can learn from more experienced team members and thereby promote social mixing. The French football team’s victory in the 1998 FIFA World Cup brought together all social classes and all the generations – an excellent example for other sports events to emulate. Local applicants should be favoured in order to strengthen and/or create a common regional identity.

The cultural diversity of the members of the organising committee, and particularly of its volunteers, is enriching. The volunteers for the 2006 Turin Winter Olympic Games were drawn from 64 nationalities; however, this figure does not tell the whole story, as 77% of the 16,200 volunteers were from the «Olympic Region» and 95% were Italian (Figure 2.3).

Figure 2.3: Origins of the volunteers at the 2006 Turin Winter Olympic Games (source: TOROC)

Page 51: SENTEDALPS - ALPINE SPACE · Nancy Favre (IDHEAP), Alain Ferrand (UCBL), Tiziana ... Recruitment and assignment of ... This guide to volunteer management is the third and final

SENTEDALPS50 51SENTEDALPS

2.5.3 Define the levels of responsibility given to volunteers

The role of volunteers in organising an event varies according to the characteristics of the event. Volunteers can be assigned to managerial positions (e.g. volunteer coordinator, manager, even vice-president or president of the organising committee); however, most will be involved at an operational level. To have an impact on personal and regional development, volunteers must be given responsibility and tasks must be delegated to them. It is also necessary to define the level of involvement of the different types of volunteer, as well as the organisational phases of the event in which they will be involved. We have identified three levels.

• L1. Assist and apply • L2. Take part and produce• L3. Manage and create

3. DESIGN AND SET UP A QUALITY SYSTEM

Quality systems allow «things to be done well at the first attempt». According to Détrie (2001), quality management is a «collection of methods and practices aimed at rallying the entire organisation around satisfying stakeholder expectations on a sustainable basis and at the best possible cost». In a volunteers programme context, the most important points to be extracted from this definition are:

• The objective is to satisfy the expectations of the stakeholders, especially those of the organising committee/volunteer couple.

• These expectations must be identified in order to design and implement a suitable volunteers programme.

• Setting up a quality management system involves putting in place the necessary organisation, defining processes and attributing resources.

• Implementing the quality system must not result in a cost premium, that is to say, «overquality».

Despite the benefits provided by quality systems, they are rarely applied to the organisation of sports events. However, some events, such as the Grand Raid Cristalp mountain bike race, have implemented quality systems and are undergoing accreditation. From a volunteer management point of view, this implies analysing the satisfaction of all the interested parties and carrying out a social study of the event. The Valais Excellence23 «team management tool» also 23 Starting from the idea that the success of a tourist region is linked to the professionalism and excellence of the services on offer (sports events are considered tourism promotion tools), the Valais Excellence project provides simple tools that can help organisations implement an integrated management system: environment - quality - safety - finance - human resources

Page 52: SENTEDALPS - ALPINE SPACE · Nancy Favre (IDHEAP), Alain Ferrand (UCBL), Tiziana ... Recruitment and assignment of ... This guide to volunteer management is the third and final

SENTEDALPS52 53SENTEDALPS

touches upon human resources management, as it covers the definition of the skills each team member needs.

Rather than providing a detailed review of quality management systems, the aim of this section is to present some basic principles that can be applied to all types of event and the tools required to apply these principles.

3.1 Initiate the quality process

When embarking on a quality process, organisers generally set out their main objectives, particularly for the volunteers programme, in a written statement (commonly referred to as a letter of commitment). This document reiterates some of the questions involved in the strategic analysis and provides brief answers (Table 2.5).

Table 2.5: Mission, values, vision and strategic axes

Despite sometimes being considered a simple declaration of intent serving no real purpose, this letter of commitment is extremely important, as it guarantees the system’s long-term survival and affirms its importance to the organising committee.

3.2 Define and implement a quality process

We have stated that a quality system requires setting up an organisation, defining processes and attributing resources. According to Mongillon and Verdoux (2003), “process management can be defined as the result of team work to identify, share, clarify and improve the processes that add value” for an organisation’s stakeholders. In operational terms, it involves allocating the resources needed to design and implement the volunteers programme and assigning them to the actions to be carried out within this programme (Figure 2.4). Quality processes are formed by the succession of these actions.

Page 53: SENTEDALPS - ALPINE SPACE · Nancy Favre (IDHEAP), Alain Ferrand (UCBL), Tiziana ... Recruitment and assignment of ... This guide to volunteer management is the third and final

SENTEDALPS52 53SENTEDALPS

Figure 2.4: Relationships between resources, actions and processes (adapted from Mongillon and Verdoux 2003)

In order to improve quality through the operational steering of the programme, three types of process have to be defined and implemented (Figure 2.5):

• The management processes involved in determining priorities, objectives, communication methods, information processing methods and operational control methods.

• The operational processes directly involved in setting up the volunteers programme. On a macro level, this corresponds to the six volunteer «acquisition» and «conservation» phases presented in the previous section.

• The support (or functional) processes that are indispensable to the smooth running of the operational processes. They make use of the organisation’s resources (i.e. information system, logistics, administrative management, IT management, etc) and contribute most notably to managing communication with the volunteers, motivating them and compensating them.

Page 54: SENTEDALPS - ALPINE SPACE · Nancy Favre (IDHEAP), Alain Ferrand (UCBL), Tiziana ... Recruitment and assignment of ... This guide to volunteer management is the third and final

SENTEDALPS54 55SENTEDALPS

Figure 2.5: The three types of process involved in a volunteers programme

The architecture of this guide reflects a process-based approach to volunteer management. Organisers must define the processes and procedures according to the specific requirements of their particular event24.

3.3. Involve the stakeholders in a problem solving approach

Let us consider a hypothetical volunteer recruitment programme that is failing to attract people from the host region’s sporting organisations. Such a situation is highly unsatisfactory, both for the organising committee and for the local authorities, who want the event to have a social impact on the region. The discrepancy between the reality and what is desired or desirable is too great. To reduce this discrepancy, it is necessary to increase the stakeholders’ ability to identify problems, collect and analyse information and draw up operational solutions. In order to do this, we recommend creating a working group of competent and interested parties who can combine their experience, opinions and suggestions to investigate possible answers to a given problem.

A variety of methods, with different numbers of phases, can be applied. The method presented below (Table 2.6) has seven stages and was developed by the management consultants INergie (http://www.inergie.com/).

24 A grid for carrying out an auto-evaluation of the situation can be downloaded at www.pepps.org (Global scoring PEPPS quality audit).

Page 55: SENTEDALPS - ALPINE SPACE · Nancy Favre (IDHEAP), Alain Ferrand (UCBL), Tiziana ... Recruitment and assignment of ... This guide to volunteer management is the third and final

SENTEDALPS54 55SENTEDALPS

Table 2.6: The stages of a problem solving system

3.4 Measure the perceived quality and satisfaction of the stakeholders

According to the ISO 9000 standard, quality is the ability of a product or a service to satisfy the expectations of users at the best possible cost and in the shortest possible time. On the one hand, as mentioned in chapter 1, volunteers hope to receive a reward (symbolic and material) that corresponds to what they feel they can and should receive (contribution/reward balance). On the other hand, managers must never give promises to volunteers unless they are certain they can keep them (Schnitzer 2004). Volunteers are aware that rewards will vary according to criteria such as the length of their commitment, their role within the organisation and the format of the event. Obviously, the Turin 2006 organising committee had a much bigger budget than the 2005 European Olympic Youth Festival in Monthey, particularly in terms of volunteers. Everyone has a tolerance zone between the «service» they expect and what they consider adequate, below which they will get the feeling that the organisation does not provide a quality service. Levels of expectation can be influenced by several factors. These include explicit promises (e.g. free board and lodging, uniforms, etc), word of mouth and past experience (e.g. from another event). The motivations and expectations of volunteers are presented in chapter 1.

As Jean-Claude Killy has pointed out (quoted by Charmetant 2001): not only do volunteers programmes give volunteers an opportunity to take part in an event – and this participation should provide «the memory of a lifetime for each and every one of them» – they also allow volunteers to meet new people, communicate and carry out tasks to which their skills are suited. The

Page 56: SENTEDALPS - ALPINE SPACE · Nancy Favre (IDHEAP), Alain Ferrand (UCBL), Tiziana ... Recruitment and assignment of ... This guide to volunteer management is the third and final

SENTEDALPS56 57SENTEDALPS

quality perceived by volunteers can be evaluated using a questionnaire based on questions derived from interviews with the different categories of people involved. The human resources satisfaction questionnaire (paid staff and volunteers) for the Grand Raid Cristalp is drawn from the «Swiss level II quality label for tourism» (www.valais-excellence.ch). This questionnaire covers five dimensions: operations and responsibility, services offered and commitment, components of the event’s image, knowledge of the event and suggestions, as well as socio-demographic data related to the event.

The services offered and commitment section of the Grand Raid Cristalp questionnaire can be used to measure perceived quality, as respondents indicate the importance of their expectations with respect to the service provided and their level of satisfaction with respect to each expectation. By averaging the responses for each respondent, the volunteers can be classified into one of the four categories shown in Table 2.7.

Table 2.7: Analysis of the performance of the volunteers programme compared with the importance of expectations

With recurrent events, such as the Athletissima meeting and the Grand Raid Cristalp, evaluating levels of satisfaction allows measures to be taken to reduce discrepancies for the next event. For one-off events, these data can be used to capitalise on the experience gained.

4. CONCLUSION

To conclude this chapter on the strategy and processes of volunteer management, we would like to stress the fact that organising a sports event gives the different stakeholders an opportunity to present a particular image of themselves and their history in relation to the host region. The event’s identity, which is the result of the connotations and significance the stakeholders impose on a physical and subjective reality, is an important factor in building the desired image. An event’s stakeholders are just as varied as its human resources, which is why it is important to create and/or strengthen a common identity. Volunteers must be central to this identity, as they generally constitute a large majority of an event’s human resources (e.g. 98% of the members of the organising committee of the 49ers Olympic Class Sailing World Championships at Aix les Bains were volunteers).

Page 57: SENTEDALPS - ALPINE SPACE · Nancy Favre (IDHEAP), Alain Ferrand (UCBL), Tiziana ... Recruitment and assignment of ... This guide to volunteer management is the third and final

SENTEDALPS56 57SENTEDALPS

Figure 2.6: The volunteers programme management system

Figure 2.6 provides a schematic view of a volunteers programme management system, showing the elements that must be taken into account and the relationships between them. This system is founded on the creation and/or strengthening of a common identity linked to the host region: the men and women involved are at the heart of this identity. Despite their differences, we recommend giving all volunteers the status of team member. The stages of a volunteers programme can be divided into two groups according to their ultimate objective: «acquisition/commitment» and «conservation». To be successful, such programmes must apply three key principles: communicate, activate, reward.

In addition, applying a quality management approach to a volunteers programme facilitates the design and implementation of the processes required to provide the level of service demanded by the organising committee (at the best possible cost) and to satisfy the expectations of the essential stakeholders, at the centre of which are the volunteers. The application of quality principles and tools provides the following benefits:

- For all the stakeholders - satisfaction and conservation - For volunteers and professionals - commitment, cohesion and loyalty - For the organising committee - improved operational efficiency (i.e. reliability and reactivity, empathy), differentiation and attraction.

Page 58: SENTEDALPS - ALPINE SPACE · Nancy Favre (IDHEAP), Alain Ferrand (UCBL), Tiziana ... Recruitment and assignment of ... This guide to volunteer management is the third and final

SENTEDALPS58 59SENTEDALPS

However, introducing a quality system often involves overcoming a number of obstacles, such as the internal culture of the stakeholders, insufficient experience in implementing quality systems, time limits, and a lack of managerial commitment and expertise.

A volunteers programme quality system is just one element in the quality management of any sports event project. As we have said, some events, such as the Grand Raid Cristalp (certification pending), have achieved, or are in the process of achieving quality certification. Their «Team Management Tool» human resources management system evaluates the performance of the whole team and of the individuals involved, as well as providing a format for job descriptions. It can also be used to define the tasks each team member has to carry out and the skills needed to accomplish these tasks.

Quality accreditation adds to an event’s prestige and guarantees a certain organisational quality, thereby increasing its credibility and providing extra recognition. Setting up a continuous improvement process for a volunteers programme can benefit all the parties involved (i.e. the organisers, the sponsors, the local authorities, the spectators, the volunteers, etc), if their expectations are taken into account (Favre 2006).

A quality label may be a key factor in influencing a potential sponsor’s choice, as an accredited event may be preferred to a non-accredited event. Thus, local authorities and sponsors may more readily provide financial aid to events that follow quality procedures with the aim of promoting sustainable regional development and the societal objectives (level L3) mentioned above.

Page 59: SENTEDALPS - ALPINE SPACE · Nancy Favre (IDHEAP), Alain Ferrand (UCBL), Tiziana ... Recruitment and assignment of ... This guide to volunteer management is the third and final

SENTEDALPS58 59SENTEDALPS

CHAPTER 3THE OPERATIONAL PHASES

OF VOLUNTEER MANAGEMENT

Running a volunteers programme for a major international sports event, such as the Olympic Games, involves a great many people over a number of years. A successful programme requires rigorous planning and organisation right from the inception of the project. Whether a sports event is itinerant or recurrent, organisers must be able to adapt to the inevitable unforeseen eventualities.

Once the global strategy for a volunteers programme has been defined, it must be translated into concrete actions in the field. Without going into the details of specific cases, this chapter looks at how the operational phases of a volunteers management programme can be put into action. We have divided the operational management process into six phases that incorporate the principles of human resources management and the requirements of a quality system. As stated above, the first three phases involve recruiting volunteers and ensuring their commitment to the project. The last three phases concern their involvement in the event and fostering their loyalty. This operational management phase requires close interaction, cooperation and synergy between the members of the human resources department (which generally contains the volunteer human resources service), other sections of the organising committee and any outside bodies involved in the recruitment and assignment phases (e.g. universities, tourist boards, etc). It is also necessary to implement the support processes the organisers need for this type of programme, that is to say, logistics and the administrative management of the volunteers.

Although a gross simplification of a highly complex reality, the linear presentation adopted here was chosen for reasons of clarity. We must stress the fact that volunteers programmes must be continuously evaluated, steered and, if necessary, adapted as the situation evolves.

Page 60: SENTEDALPS - ALPINE SPACE · Nancy Favre (IDHEAP), Alain Ferrand (UCBL), Tiziana ... Recruitment and assignment of ... This guide to volunteer management is the third and final

SENTEDALPS60 61SENTEDALPS

PHASE 1: PLANNING THE VOLUNTEERS PROGRAMME

The first of the six major organisational phases is the volunteers programme planning phase. This phase is crucial because it is here that the tasks required to fulfil the programme are identified, coordinated and scheduled. The management of the project must be designed and programmed according to its objectives, technical content, time limits and available resources.

1. OBJECTIVES

A volunteers programme must be carefully planned and organised in order to define the timing and location of all the phases and stages needed to complete it successfully. The volunteers programme planning phase uses the planning budget as a basis for defining the phases to be carried out, the resources required (i.e. human, financial, material) and the procedures and tools that will be used before, during and after the event. Each phase must then be divided into stages, the person responsible for each stage must be nominated and, in certain cases, performance indicators and evaluation criteria will need to be chosen. This planning work enables the details of each phase to be defined (e.g. precise duration, coordination to be set up, potential overlaps, etc).

2. PROCESSES

Although every event is organised differently, a certain number of stages are common to all. These stages, which vary in size and content according to the specific characteristics of the event, are presented in Figure 3.1.

Figure 3.1: The stages in the planning of a volunteers programme

2.1 Assess the size of the event

As for the event project as a whole, it is recommended to look at previous editions and to judge the «dimensions» of the event (Bouchet Virette 2006). This is an essential stage for every phase of the programme because it gives a concrete appreciation of what the planning and organisation of the volunteers programme will require by providing answers to key questions, such as:

Page 61: SENTEDALPS - ALPINE SPACE · Nancy Favre (IDHEAP), Alain Ferrand (UCBL), Tiziana ... Recruitment and assignment of ... This guide to volunteer management is the third and final

SENTEDALPS60 61SENTEDALPS

- How were the volunteers programmes for previous editions planned? - What can be transferred to my event? - What are the key success factors? - What are the errors to avoid?

Previous editions can be analysed by referring to organisers’ reports and by carrying out interviews with key stakeholders in the event’s volunteers programme (e.g. volunteers, unit managers, volunteers programme managers, senior managers, etc). However, such investigative interviewing and research are not enough on their own; they should be complemented by pragmatic on-site analyses of other events. This may mean attending preceding editions of the same event (e.g. representatives of the 2006 Turin Olympic Games went to the 2002 Salt Lake City Olympics) or analysing the organisation of an event with a similar format (e.g. representatives of the 2005 Saint Gamier/Saint-Etienne Cross Country World Championships went to Lausanne to observe the Athletissima meeting). Although good practices at one event may not necessarily be suited to another for a variety of reasons (e.g. culture of voluntary work, etc), observation missions to prior events are capital to the success of an event project. This recommendation is particularly pertinent for newcomers to event organisation.

2.2 Identify the key operational phases

The next stage is to identify and draw up precise plans for the successive and/or concomitant operational phases of the project (Lechat 2006). If volunteer management is to be optimised, each individual phase must be structured and planned. As well as creating a comprehensive list, these phases should be designed to evoke the interest of potential stakeholders. Each sports event is unique; however, certain phases in the process are unavoidable.

• Needs analysis

The «exact» number of volunteers needed to successfully host the event must be determined, taking care to only allocate personnel to tasks and posts that actually exist (Charmetant 2005). This work should be based on the rights owner’s specification and on analyses of past and/or similar events. The numbers and types of volunteer human resources needed depend on the format of the event. Evaluation sessions can be used to list the tasks to be carried out and to define the number of posts required. For each venue (e.g. the 2006 Turin Winter Olympic Games were held at fifteen different venues) and/or department, unit or function (e.g. marketing), managers must identify which tasks are absolutely indispensable, and then classify them according to whether they are to be assigned to salaried staff, contracted employees, seconded personnel or volunteers.

Page 62: SENTEDALPS - ALPINE SPACE · Nancy Favre (IDHEAP), Alain Ferrand (UCBL), Tiziana ... Recruitment and assignment of ... This guide to volunteer management is the third and final

SENTEDALPS62 63SENTEDALPS

• Recruitment and assignment

The successful organisation and running of a sports event project requires the collaboration and management of people with complementary skills and statuses. The first step in achieving this is to recruit senior-level managers, who should be highly experienced people to whom the tasks of designing, planning and organising the volunteers programme can be entrusted. In this guide, we focus on the «recruitment and assignment» of volunteer personnel by addressing the following questions:

- What type of recruitment strategy should be adopted? - When should recruitment start? - Which procedures should be used? - Which types of organisation and people should be targeted? - How can the wishes of the volunteers and the needs of the organisers be reconciled? - Who should carry out the interviews?

The main objective of this phase is to ensure a reciprocal commitment between the volunteer and the organisation by ensuring the profiles of the applicants chosen match those of the posts to be filled.

• Training and integration

The different types of training (general, specific, on-site, etc) are designed to make volunteers operational by bridging the gap between the applicants’ profiles and the post to be filled. Training is also a vital element in mobilising and motivating volunteers.

Volunteer human resources can make up more than 90% of the people under the direct authority of the organising committee (e.g. the 1,167 volunteers needed for Switzerland’s largest mountain bike race, the «Grand Raid Cristalp», represent 98% of the organising committee’s human resources). Organisers must take into account potential conflicts arising from the collaboration between volunteer and salaried personnel. They must also ensure that their volunteers feel part of the collective project and that they are fully integrated into the system right from the preparation phase. This leads us to two further questions:

- How can volunteer personnel be integrated into the organising committee? - What actions are necessary?

• Operational management

Page 63: SENTEDALPS - ALPINE SPACE · Nancy Favre (IDHEAP), Alain Ferrand (UCBL), Tiziana ... Recruitment and assignment of ... This guide to volunteer management is the third and final

SENTEDALPS62 63SENTEDALPS

During the event, the members of the volunteers programme provide the managers of each functional unit with day-to-day assistance and support. Asked to solve a wide variety of problems requiring particular attention (e.g. ordering uniforms for volunteers, replacing volunteers who withdraw, responding to new needs, etc), these managers are in continuous contact with the volunteers (management of the volunteers centre). Moreover, the objective of the team leaders and team managers is to help volunteers successfully carry out their specific tasks within the collective project. The goal is to have the right people in the right place at the right time.

• Evaluation, follow up and conservation Plans for this post-event phase should be drawn up at the beginning of the project. Its objective is to capitalise on the experience and skills gained in order to be better armed for organising future events. The evaluation phase should also allow the satisfaction of the stakeholders involved in the programme unit managers, salaried members of the volunteers programme, volunteers, (etc) to be measured. In addition, this phase should be used to help salaried staff find new employment and to thank volunteers and representatives of the «resource organisations» involved, in order to maintain their commitment (for other initiatives). It is also necessary to organise the termination of contracts with salaried staff and to manage aspects relating to finance, accounts or equipment. For example, a report on Aix les Bains’ experience in managing volunteers (110 volunteers were used) for the 2006 49ers Olympic Class Sailing World Championships will be drawn up and sent to the next organisers of this international regatta and to organisers of other similar events. Whatever the format of the event or the number of volunteers involved, this final stage should not be neglected.

2.3 Identify the support processes needed to implement the operational phases

As was pointed out in the section on quality systems, the support processes needed to define and implement these operational processes must not be neglected. Hence, it is necessary to ensure the logistics (e.g. prepare the locations to be used for training, etc) and to deal with the administrative side of volunteer management.

2.4 Structure and sizing of the organisation

The relationship between resources, actions and processes, as defined in the section on setting up a quality system, determines the structure and sizing of the organisation. Table 3.1 illustrates this aspect through the example of TOROC’s “Noi 2006” volunteers programme.

Page 64: SENTEDALPS - ALPINE SPACE · Nancy Favre (IDHEAP), Alain Ferrand (UCBL), Tiziana ... Recruitment and assignment of ... This guide to volunteer management is the third and final

SENTEDALPS64 65SENTEDALPS

Table 3.1: Structure of the planning and operations department for the «Noi 2006» volunteers programme of the 2006 Turin Winter Olympic Games (adapted from Fantini, TOROC 2006)

2.5 Programming

The structuring and sizing of the organisation generally leads to modifications to the previously defined operational phases. Whether or not this is the case, these phases must be scheduled. Figure 3.2 presents the schedule for the phases of the 2006 Turin Olympic Games volunteers programme, called «Noi 2006». This timetable mostly covers the phases of recruitment and assignment, training and operational management during the event.

Figure 3.2: The stages of the «Noi 2006» volunteers programme of the 2006 Turin Winter Olympic Games (adapted from Fantini, TOROC, 2006)

Page 65: SENTEDALPS - ALPINE SPACE · Nancy Favre (IDHEAP), Alain Ferrand (UCBL), Tiziana ... Recruitment and assignment of ... This guide to volunteer management is the third and final

SENTEDALPS64 65SENTEDALPS

3. TOOLS

This point provides answers to the question: what tools do we need to succeed? The planning of tasks and missions allows an operating manual to be drawn up in the form of a reference schedule for all the parties involved in the volunteers programme. This can be based on the following elements and tools:

• Observation sessions (e.g. prior editions or events of a similar scale)• Organisers’ reports• Semi-directive interviews with managers of prior editions or of notable

events25 - aimed at identifying good practices and at capitalising on experience

• Project management software (MS Project, etc)• Management or planning charts (Gantt, etc)• Operations manual - a reference document covering all the operational

procedures relating to the success of the volunteers programme (e.g. opening/closing of the volunteers centre, meal times, etc).

3. HUMAN RESOURCES

Skilful human resources management is the key to a successful volunteers programme. The number and characteristics of the people required to achieve the objectives must be determined. A volunteer budget must be drawn up in consultation with the members of the volunteers programme as soon as possible. Even if volunteers are not paid, their participation in the project engenders expenditure (e.g. accommodation, food, transport, training, integration, etc). The accuracy with which this budget can be drawn up and the amount of flexibility that must be built into it, will vary according to the event.

«Senior» managers (ticketing director, accreditation director, project leader, etc) must define the tasks to be carried out and timetable them.

Figure 3.3 presents a generalised view of the main interactions, at the operational level, between the key players in the programme and the volunteers.

25 The objective is to collect as much relevant information as possible. To do this, the interviewer should provide the interviewee with clear guidelines before the interview.

Page 66: SENTEDALPS - ALPINE SPACE · Nancy Favre (IDHEAP), Alain Ferrand (UCBL), Tiziana ... Recruitment and assignment of ... This guide to volunteer management is the third and final

SENTEDALPS66 67SENTEDALPS

Figure 3.3: The main players in a volunteers programme (operational level)

Volunteer organisation and management can be very complex (see the 2006 Turin Winter Olympic Games case study), as some events, due to their format, involve a large number of stakeholders. During the event phase of the programme there is often a significant increase in the number of parties involved and this can lead to problems. For example, volunteers cannot work effectively and efficiently if they are given conflicting orders26.

5. KEY SUCCESS FACTORS

• Follow established procedures• Take into account strategic decisions• Recruit experienced people for «senior» posts and to manage the

volunteers programme • Set up observation sessions• Make a realistic estimate of the budget needed to carry out the

programme• Draw up, in advance, a structured timetable for the successive and/or

concomitant phases of the programme • Define the resources needed for each phase (i.e. human, financial and

material)

26 Interview with volunteers at the 2006 Turin Winter Olympic Games (San Sicario Fraiteve venue).

Page 67: SENTEDALPS - ALPINE SPACE · Nancy Favre (IDHEAP), Alain Ferrand (UCBL), Tiziana ... Recruitment and assignment of ... This guide to volunteer management is the third and final

SENTEDALPS66 67SENTEDALPS

PHASE 2: DEFINING THE NUMBER AND TYPES OF VOLUNTEER REQUIRED

Once the tasks included in the volunteers programme have been defined, planned and organised, a detailed analysis of the personnel needed to carry out the programme must be made in order to determine the number and types of volunteers required. Depending on the format of the event, this analysis can be carried out for each functional unit (marketing, accreditation, security etc) or for each venue (for multi-site competitions, such as the Universiades). The event’s rights owner may provide the organisers with a more or less detailed specification for volunteer requirements. This is both a help and a constraint that has to be considered in relation to previous experience. The procedure involves identifying global human resources needs (i.e. salaried staff and volunteers).

«Defining the number and types of volunteers required» is a fundamental phase that affects many of the actions included in the programme (e.g. the number of uniforms to order, etc). The first step is to prepare a list of operational posts to fill, which can be used as the basis for an organisation chart. Then, a detailed job description should be drawn up for each post, listing the tasks to be carried out, together with the skills, qualifications and qualities required. This preparatory work will facilitate the recruitment and assignment of applicants.

1. OBJECTIVES

The number of volunteers required is often overestimated, as organisers see volunteers as a cheap resource and therefore give themselves a large margin of error to allow for unforeseen circumstances and for volunteers who withdraw from the programme. Organisers must plan for a 15 to 30% dropout rate, the 5% of applicants who turn down the post offered and the volunteers needed to form a team of reserves. At the same time, they must be careful not to take on too many volunteers. This can only be avoided by making projections into the running phase of the event. As Charmetant (2005) points out, the main objective is to «analyse the overall requirement for volunteers, based on tasks and posts that really exist and that are essential for organising the event».

2. PROCESS

The process involved in this second phase is shown in Figure 3.4. We will examine each stage in detail.

Page 68: SENTEDALPS - ALPINE SPACE · Nancy Favre (IDHEAP), Alain Ferrand (UCBL), Tiziana ... Recruitment and assignment of ... This guide to volunteer management is the third and final

SENTEDALPS68 69SENTEDALPS

Figure 3.4: Stages in defining the number of volunteers required

2.1 Diagnosis and design of the needs evaluation method

The diagnosis of the situation is based on the rights owner’s specification. In addition, prior experience can help give an initial idea of volunteer requirements in terms of overall number and categories. For example, the organisers of the 2005 Innsbruck/Seefeld Winter Universiades based their evaluation on a previous edition of the event, held at Muju-Chonju in Korea (1997), and, more specifically, on their own needs analysis and on the regulations of the International University Sports Federation (FISU, www.fisu.net). They saw that the human resources requirement for the Korean Games peaked just before the event, at which point 200 people were involved. Analyses of previous events should take into account cultural differences and the attitude towards voluntary work in the host country (Chappelet 2001, Schnitzer 2004). The organisers’ actions should also be coherent with their strategic decisions, which may cover the combination of different types of human resource (the «ideal cocktail»), as well as the levels of responsibility to be given to volunteers.

2.2 Preparation of an operational organisation chart

After completing the needs analysis, an organisation chart should be drawn up to enable the organisers to define the staffing levels for each of the functional units that make up the organising body (organising committee). This chart can also be used to define the posts to fill (one chart per venue for multi-venue events). It will facilitate the recruitment and assignment of the volunteers required. Figure 3.5 shows the organisation chart for one of the competition venues at the 2006 Turin Winter Olympic Games. Total personnel needs should be evaluated before determining the numbers of volunteers required.

Page 69: SENTEDALPS - ALPINE SPACE · Nancy Favre (IDHEAP), Alain Ferrand (UCBL), Tiziana ... Recruitment and assignment of ... This guide to volunteer management is the third and final

SENTEDALPS68 69SENTEDALPS

Figure 3.5: Organisation chart for one of the competition venues at the 2006 Turin Winter Olympic Games (Source: TOROC)

2.3 Definition of volunteer requirements by functional unit

Depending on the format of the event, the programme managers should organise evaluation sessions to define the tasks to be carried out and calculate the number of posts to be filled. This overall analysis of the tasks required, which can be done by functional unit (e.g. accreditation) or by venue (for events such as the Universiades), involves discussions with the unit managers and the managers of the volunteers programme. For each venue (of which there were fifteen for the 2006 Turin Winter Olympic Games) and/or department (e.g. marketing), this evaluation will identify the tasks that are essential to the success of the event. These tasks fall into two general categories: those to be carried out by salaried, contracted or seconded staff27, which should be identified first, and those to be entrusted to volunteers. This classification should take into account the strategic considerations discussed in chapter 2. The final action in this stage is to transform the tasks to be entrusted to volunteers into a number of posts to be filled (i.e. equivalence in personnel).

27 Organisers are able to insist on salaried staff for sensitive functions such as ticketing and accreditation. This was the case at the 2003 FIFA Confederations Cup in France where these functions were mostly carried out by salaried personnel

Page 70: SENTEDALPS - ALPINE SPACE · Nancy Favre (IDHEAP), Alain Ferrand (UCBL), Tiziana ... Recruitment and assignment of ... This guide to volunteer management is the third and final

SENTEDALPS70 71SENTEDALPS

The person responsible for evaluating this need should allow for a withdrawal rate of between 15 and 30%. In addition, a negative response rate of 5% should be expected and a reserve team should be formed. According to Bouchet Virette (2006), «these volunteers may be asked to put on a suit to greet a prestigious guest, and then to carry out a safety-related task, both on the same day…».

2.4 Definition of needs with respect to the different organisational phases

This evaluation is used to define the number of volunteers each functional unit will need before, during and after the event. Table 3.2 illustrates this point by presenting the number of volunteers recruited by ISOC 2005 for each function. The number of volunteers involved in the organisation of the event gradually increased to reach a maximum during the event. The need to plan for sufficient human resources for the closure and dismantling of the event cannot be stressed too strongly. For these purposes, it is possible to use new resources or volunteers who did not take part in the other phases of the event.

Table 3.2: Example of a volunteer management chart for ISOC 2005

Page 71: SENTEDALPS - ALPINE SPACE · Nancy Favre (IDHEAP), Alain Ferrand (UCBL), Tiziana ... Recruitment and assignment of ... This guide to volunteer management is the third and final

SENTEDALPS70 71SENTEDALPS

2.5 Compilation of job descriptions

The next stage is to draw up a precise profile of the person required for each post shown on the organisation chart (i.e. skills, qualifications and qualities needed) and a detailed description of that person’s role (i.e. tasks to carry out, prerogatives, hierarchical position). The job description covers the type of skills required and the ways in which they will be used. Job descriptions may be laid out as follows: title, mission, position in the structure and chain of command, activities and performance criteria. Table 3.3 presents a job description adapted from an example used for the 32nd America’s Cup.

Table 3.3: Typical job description (adapted from an example used for the 32nd America’s Cup. Source: Béatrice Lechat)

Page 72: SENTEDALPS - ALPINE SPACE · Nancy Favre (IDHEAP), Alain Ferrand (UCBL), Tiziana ... Recruitment and assignment of ... This guide to volunteer management is the third and final

SENTEDALPS72 73SENTEDALPS

2.6 Preparation of job summaries

For each post, a job summary should be drawn up showing the organisation chart of the unit (depending on the format of the event), the volunteer requirement sheets (management chart) and the job descriptions. These job summaries provide working documents for the recruitment and assignment of human resources.

3. TOOLS AND SUPPORT PROCESSES

• Observations sessions (e.g. previous editions or events of a similar size)• Organisers’ reports (e.g. the «volunteers programme» service of the OG is

based on the experience of…)• Semi-directive interviews with managers of previous editions or notable

events28 - aimed at identifying good practices and capitalising on experience

• Interviews with unit managers (e.g. accreditation unit) in order to establish their needs

• Table showing functions in terms of numbers of posts• Operational organisation chart• Management chart• Job descriptions• Job summaries

4. HUMAN RESOURCES

Close collaboration between the volunteers department, which is responsible for identifying needs, and the unit managers is essential to the success of this fundamental phase and to the success of the project as a whole. Formal working sessions (evaluation) between the unit managers and the volunteers programme are vital. Such evaluations can be contracted out to a service provider, as was the case for the America’s Cup Valencia 2007, where consultants were brought in for this task.

5. KEY SUCCESS FACTORS

• Analyse the specification drawn up by the rights owner • Analyse previous events, taking into account the cultural dimension and

attitudes towards voluntary work in the host country

28 The objective is to collect as much relevant information as possible. To do this, the interviewer should provide the interviewee with clear guidelines before the interview.

Page 73: SENTEDALPS - ALPINE SPACE · Nancy Favre (IDHEAP), Alain Ferrand (UCBL), Tiziana ... Recruitment and assignment of ... This guide to volunteer management is the third and final

SENTEDALPS72 73SENTEDALPS

• Draw up an organisation chart to allow the organisers to define the staff numbers each functional unit within the organising body (organising committee) will need. This tool can also be used to calculate the number of posts to be filled

• Evaluate overall staffing needs before focusing on volunteers.• Organise evaluation sessions to define the tasks to be carried out and the

number of posts required • Categorise the tasks to be assigned to salaried personnel and those to be

entrusted to volunteers• Transform the tasks to be given to volunteers into numbers of posts to be

filled • Allow for a reserve of «multi-purpose» volunteers• Allow for defections • Plan the human resources required for the closure of the event • Take a global approach to human resources requirements• Define missions and posts that «really» exist • Draw up a detailed and comprehensive job description (i.e. tasks to carry

out, skills, qualifications and qualities required)• Anticipate in the best possible conditions • Make projections for the operational phase• Do not under evaluate the resources needed for the programme• Draw up the job summaries needed for the following phase.

PHASE 3: RECRUITMENT AND ASSIGNMENT OF VOLUNTEERS

The organising committee of the 1992 Barcelona Olympic Games received more than a million applications for the 46,000 posts that needed to be filled. In order to avoid causing frustration, the recruitment and assignment phase must follow a well-defined process that usually begins with the launch of a targeted recruitment campaign («sourcing») and ends with a definitive assignment that, depending on the event, may result in the signature of a contract (e.g. 32nd America’s Cup Valencia 2007).

The success of this «recruitment and assignment» stage of the volunteers programme is directly dependent on the needs analysis stage. «Recruit early to recruit less» is a good general maxim to follow. One-on-one interviews should be carried out by reliable and well-trained selectors, who will select applicants on the basis of the job summaries drawn up during the previous phase. These summaries should ensure there is a good match between the profile of the applicant and the post to be filled. Modifications can be made by managers following test events, which will, for example, reveal areas that need more volunteers or tasks initially destined for salaried personnel that can be attributed to volunteers (e.g. ski instructors for the 1992 Albertville and Savoie Olympic Games).

Page 74: SENTEDALPS - ALPINE SPACE · Nancy Favre (IDHEAP), Alain Ferrand (UCBL), Tiziana ... Recruitment and assignment of ... This guide to volunteer management is the third and final

SENTEDALPS74 75SENTEDALPS

1. OBJECTIVES

The goal is to ensure a reciprocal commitment between the volunteer and the organisers. The organisers must ensure the profiles of the applicants match the posts to be filled. It is also essential to evaluate each applicant’s motivations and expertise. This is a skilled task requiring dedicated and well-trained selectors (often volunteers): only «quality» selectors are capable of choosing the «right» volunteers.

2. PROCESS

Figure 3.6: The stages in the volunteer recruitment and assignment process

Figure 3.6 presents the main stages of the operational process.

2.1 Analysing and designing a recruitment and assignment action plan

The «recruitment and assignment» process should be begun by collecting the information needed to design an action plan for this phase. This analysis involves evaluating previous events in order to identify key stages and to ascertain the resources required to implement the plan.

Notwithstanding the recommendation to evaluate previous events, which applies to every phase of the volunteers programme, the first, fundamental step in producing an action plan is to specify applicant profiles based on the job summaries drawn up in the «volunteer requirements evaluation phase»29. For specific profiles, the qualities sought should be categorised as «indispensable», «desirable» or «useful», in order to avoid searching for an applicant with an extremely rare profile and/or recruiting a person who is not capable of applying the skills the post requires. Such poor matches between jobs and resources may, sooner or later, demotivate a member of the team, or even lead that person to withdraw from the project.

29 As stated in the previous section, the evaluation phase is completed by the preparation of job summaries consisting of “organisation charts, job descriptions” and management charts”.

Page 75: SENTEDALPS - ALPINE SPACE · Nancy Favre (IDHEAP), Alain Ferrand (UCBL), Tiziana ... Recruitment and assignment of ... This guide to volunteer management is the third and final

SENTEDALPS74 75SENTEDALPS

2.2 Launching a targeted recruitment campaign

Whatever the event, it is not advisable to launch an appeal for volunteers to the general public, as this may attract an unmanageably large number of applicants30 and/or applicants who do not meet the organiser’s needs. The recruitment campaign should be aimed at specific target audiences. An atmosphere of trust between the representatives of the organisations contacted («sourcing targets») and the organising team is a key factor in the success of a recruitment programme. For example, the annual Athletissima international athletics meeting recruits its volunteers through the region’s athletics clubs, with priority being given to people who have already volunteered at regional meetings. For its part, the 32nd America’s Cup worked with local universities, sailing schools, water sports clubs, the water sports federation and the city of Valencia (the first year). In order to recruit 1,428 volunteers, the organisers and heads of department at the Monthey 2005 EYOF targeted local companies and schools. This is not an isolated case. For the 1992 Albertville and Savoie Winter Olympic Games, the Ministry of Education, universities and certain companies31 were actively involved in the recruitment and assignment of volunteers. A shortage of applicants is rarely a problem; the main difficulty tends to be recruiting people with the qualifications needed. In order to find the specific skills and expertise required, the recruitment process must be planned in detail and in advance.

2.3 Publicising and promoting the recruitment campaign

The volunteers programme must be given a specific brand in order to create a feeling of belonging to the team (e.g. Noi 2006 for the 2006 Turin Winter Olympics). Furthermore, in order to promote the recruitment campaign it is advisable to use: the present tense, in order to give the idea that the team already exists, simple and direct language, and the colour red, which symbolises the volunteers’ passion for the event (Fantini 2006).

Event ambassadors can also play a fundamental role in attracting volunteers and they are an integral part of any volunteer recruitment strategy. Most sports events choose popular former champions; for example, the Olympic champions Alberto Tomba and Piero Gros were chosen as ambassadors for «Noi 2006».

The 2004 Olympic Games in Athens used «messengers of the volunteers»: well-known people who were recognised for their contribution to sport and to other sectors. These people worked alongside the organisers to spread the message that volunteers were vital to the success of the event.

30 As was the case for the 1992 Barcelona Olympic Games.31 The Olympic project was used to reinforce internal communication and motivation policies at Renault and at SNCF. 2,500 volunteers from companies belonging to the Coubertin club (national sponsors), including the Bis employment agency, which was also involved in the 1968 Grenoble Olympics, were under the direct authority of the organising committee.

Page 76: SENTEDALPS - ALPINE SPACE · Nancy Favre (IDHEAP), Alain Ferrand (UCBL), Tiziana ... Recruitment and assignment of ... This guide to volunteer management is the third and final

SENTEDALPS76 77SENTEDALPS

In addition, and depending on the format of the event, the recruitment and assignment phase can be used to publicise the event. For example, a local television channel followed five volunteers for the 32nd America’s Cup Valencia 2007 throughout 2006 for a thirteen-week series on the people involved in the event. Recruitment managers must have good relations with the media (especially the local media). For smaller events, such as the 2005 Innsbruck/Seefeld Winter Universiades, «the volunteer recruitment campaign is an opportunity for promoting the event that must be optimised» (Schnitzer 2004).

2.4 Setting up the recruitment service

As Lechat (2006) points out, the second stage is to put the recruitment programme into operation (e.g. computer processing of applications, choice and training of selectors, selecting applicants, setting up premises for interviews and organising the interview process, etc). This phase requires careful logistics, as its success depends upon the careful administration of a specialist database and rapid communication with the volunteers (automatic e-mails, contact groups, event website, online application forms directly linked to the database, etc).

The volunteer human resources management team is responsible for choosing and training the selectors who will interview the applicants. It must recruit well-trained (notably through the use of role plays) and reliable selectors who are aware of all the posts to be filled. For the 32nd America’s Cup Valencia 2007, a recruitment guide was written to aid the selectors. Based on the premise that only a «good» selector can choose «good» applicants, the organisers should pay particular attention to this stage. During the recruitment period (which can be decentralised), it is advisable to carry out a daily debriefing with the selectors.

2.5 Applications management

Applications management is based on the creation of a database of available information, which should be accessible from the beginning of the «sourcing» stage. Information provided on application forms should be automatically transferred to the database so it can be used as a decision-making tool (writing reports and progress summaries). For all events, whatever their characteristics or size, this process comprises a number of essential stages that require attention to detail and forward planning.

• Application forms

The first stage involves filling in an official application form, generally available online at the organising committee’s website (e.g. www.americascup.com/fr, www.france2007.fr, www.london2012.org/en). This is an opportunity for the organisers to collect the maximum amount of personal data about an applicant

Page 77: SENTEDALPS - ALPINE SPACE · Nancy Favre (IDHEAP), Alain Ferrand (UCBL), Tiziana ... Recruitment and assignment of ... This guide to volunteer management is the third and final

SENTEDALPS76 77SENTEDALPS

(e.g. surname, first name, age, e-mail address, telephone number, size for uniform, etc), which must be treated with due care. In addition, applicants are asked to express their preferences: both geographical (e.g. choice between three venues - Paris, Saint-Etienne and Lyon - for the FIFA Confederations Cup France 2003) and functional (e.g. marketing, transport, human resources, accreditation, etc). The resulting database is an essential management tool for the organisation.

• First filter

Applications are then examined to ensure they meet a number of pre-selection criteria (e.g. availability, skills, preferences, proximity, etc). Applicants who do not pass this first hurdle are notified as soon as possible. Such cases are rare but possible; i.e., when an applicant cannot be available for the pre-defined (at the strategic level) minimum period. For example, applicants for the 2003 Paris Athletics World Championships had to be at least sixteen years old on 21st August 2003, be available for 2 or 3 days in March 2003 for training sessions and from 21st to 31st August 2003 for the event. Another eliminatory factor was having accommodation in the Île-de-France region for the period of the voluntary assignment. For the 2006 Turin Winter Olympic Games, 40,000 applications were received for the 16,200 posts to be filled. The average ratio of applicants to posts for the events studied in preparing this guide was two to one.

• Calls for interview

The selected applicants are called for interview by e-mail and/or by telephone and/or by post.

• Interviews

The objective of the face-to-face interviews is to assess the applicant’s commitment to the project (rights and duties). Volunteers are pre-selected and pre-assigned following an individual interview in which the selector identifies the missions most suited to the applicant’s availability, skills and motivations. Selectors should be given clear and precise guidelines to enable them to match an applicant’s profile to the posts available. Interviews appear to be essential for most of the posts to be filled, but they are time consuming and require qualified personnel. However, they allow the information provided by the applicant to be checked, from telephone numbers and e-mail addresses to t-shirt size, availability, job preferences, associative and professional experience, etc. During the interviews, which will last between 15 and 35 minutes, the speaking time should be more-or-less balanced. Selectors must base their decisions on the relevant job profile; they must not allow themselves to be taken in by

Page 78: SENTEDALPS - ALPINE SPACE · Nancy Favre (IDHEAP), Alain Ferrand (UCBL), Tiziana ... Recruitment and assignment of ... This guide to volunteer management is the third and final

SENTEDALPS78 79SENTEDALPS

people who talk very well or by impressive qualifications, nor should they favour applicants who have the same interests or the same training as them, or who are from the same area. Favouritism in any form must not be allowed.All the information collected should be carefully filed in computer form. The interview must be prepared to meet the needs of the recruitment profile and the pre-established job definition. The classic protocol outlined below is recommended for all events, whatever their specific characteristics:

- Presentation: selectors should present themselves, the organising committee, the way the organisation functions and the evaluation methods that will be used. The selector will then answer the applicant’s questions on these themes.

- Selectors’ questions: on the applicant’s motivations (e.g. Why does the person want to join the organising committee?), experience, career ambitions, etc.

- Applicants’ questions: applicants should be invited to ask any questions they may have.

- Conclusion: explain the next stages of the recruitment procedure and the communication tools that will be used. Do not raise the question of possible rewards.

In exceptional cases (e.g. applicants from foreign countries or who live a long way from the competition site), the interview can be carried out by telephone.

• Second filter

Applicants with whom it is not possible to form a reciprocal commitment are informed as quickly as possible. The «best» are taken on.

• Selection

Each selector proposes the best match between the posts to fill and the applicants. Volunteers are pre-assigned to a post on the basis of the selector’s recommendations, the number of applicants chosen for that post, the best match between the requirements of the post and the applicant’s profile and availability. The selectors’ recommendations are approved or over-ruled by the volunteer human resources team, and then by the heads of departmentIt is extremely important to hold regular debriefings with the selectors, as «a lot of time can be saved at this stage» (Lechat 2006).

• Pre-assignment (and sending out of contracts)

Once the volunteer human resources team and the unit managers have approved the selectors’ choices, successful applicants are sent letters (by e-mail

Page 79: SENTEDALPS - ALPINE SPACE · Nancy Favre (IDHEAP), Alain Ferrand (UCBL), Tiziana ... Recruitment and assignment of ... This guide to volunteer management is the third and final

SENTEDALPS78 79SENTEDALPS

or by post) giving details of the tasks they will be expected to carry out (e.g. dates and times of integration sessions, training, name of the team leader, work schedules, etc). Applicants are thereby informed of their assignments and may be sent a contract, usually by post. Organisers will ask potential volunteers to accept or refuse the post offered as soon as possible to give them time to appoint another applicant if necessary. The objective is to recruit, pre-assign and integrate the volunteer as early as possible.

2.6 Assignment of volunteers

The volunteers department is generally responsible for the pre-assignment of volunteers. However, for most events, individual unit managers must evaluate «their» human resources in the field before definitively deciding upon the composition of their teams. Therefore, definitive assignments are only given once the volunteer has been integrated, trained and evaluated, notably during test events. This is another example of the need for the reactive steering and flexibility in event organisation that was evoked in the introduction.

3. TOOLS AND SUPPORT PROCESSES

• Organisation of state-of-the-art logistics (i.e. computerised processing of applications, making of appointments, selection, etc)

• Online application forms. In recent years, it has become standard practice to put application forms online, thereby allowing volunteer databases to be created directly and avoiding the need to manually enter data provided by volunteers in paper form

• Internet site: has become indispensable, especially for the recruitment phase, but also throughout the training process (it is the most frequently used communication tool)

• Logistics (e.g. premises, selectors, training sessions, organising appointments, interviews)

• Ambassadors of the volunteers programme • Press conferences (to promote the recruitment campaign)• Recruitment letter and/or contract• Recruitment guide setting out the keys to a good selection interview

and selection criteria (e.g. match between profile and post, availability, motivation)

Page 80: SENTEDALPS - ALPINE SPACE · Nancy Favre (IDHEAP), Alain Ferrand (UCBL), Tiziana ... Recruitment and assignment of ... This guide to volunteer management is the third and final

SENTEDALPS80 81SENTEDALPS

4. HUMAN RESOURCES

The recruitment and assignment process involves five stakeholders: the volunteers programme manager, the volunteer selector (or recruiter), the unit manager, the applicant and the ambassadors. Depending on the event, the organisers choose selectors from amongst the volunteers who played the biggest roles in previous competitions (e.g. 32nd America’s Cup Valencia 2007). In general, these selectors should have personnel management experience (not necessarily in the sports event field) and be familiar with all the posts to be filled (Bouchet Virette 2006). Selectors are trained to choose the right volunteer for each post by interviewing the applicants and matching the profiles to the posts to be filled. They then transmit their conclusions to the unit managers, who are responsible for the final decision on the functional and geographical assignment of each volunteer. Some organisations, such as AC Management, have drawn up a recruitment guide (for selectors) for this process.

Ambassadors also play an important role in the recruitment strategy. They are usually popular former champions, such as the Olympic champions Alberto Tomba and Piero Gros, who were ambassadors for the Turin Olympic Games and, in particular, for the recruitment of volunteers.

5. KEY SUCCESS FACTORS

• Recruit trained and reliable selectors and give them precise objectives• Target the communication actions of the recruitment campaign with the

help of reliable people • Involve good ambassadors• Recruit early to recruit less• Ensure interviews are friendly (they are not job interviews!)• Draw up job descriptions• Have a well-defined recruitment process• Avoid favouritism• Train selectors (homogenise the recruitment process)• Integrate the skills of certain partners32

• Take into account the cultural dimension33 • Inform volunteers about the process and the different stages they will have

to go through (e.g. application, interview, training, accreditation, etc).• Match the communication strategy to the recruitment required for the event32 It can be very worthwhile to have a partner for the volunteers programme (e.g. Manpower supplied several recruiters for the FIFA World Cup France 1998). Such cases are examples of a truly concrete partnership.33 The mobilisation in France was not as great as in Greece, where the 2004 Athens Olympics were a real affair of State. In Piraeus, volunteer Greek civil servants and public-sector employees were partly paid by their employers, whereas volunteers from the private sector were given extra paid holiday.

Page 81: SENTEDALPS - ALPINE SPACE · Nancy Favre (IDHEAP), Alain Ferrand (UCBL), Tiziana ... Recruitment and assignment of ... This guide to volunteer management is the third and final

SENTEDALPS80 81SENTEDALPS

- For large-scale events (e.g. Olympic Games, etc): no mass communication to avoid having to turn down large numbers of applications, which is not ideal in terms of public relations

- For smaller events (e.g. Universiades, etc): the recruitment programme can be used to promote the event as well as the volunteers programme.

PHASE 4: INTEGRATION AND TRAINING OF VOLUNTEERS

Volunteers are successful applicants who accept to commit their time and energy to helping organise an event. To ensure volunteers are operational on D-day, organisers must integrate them into the organising committee and train them. As well as technical training, it is vital to carry out team-building and team-integration actions to make sure the volunteers understand and feel an integral part of the organisation.

Particular attention must be paid to this phase, as, just as it is necessary to take on good people, it is also essential to ensure their continued commitment. To do this, volunteers must be made to feel welcome, they must be trained and they must be given a sense of responsibility. In this respect, information sessions combined with fun team-building activities can be used to facilitate group cohesion and communication. This will enable managers to successfully complete their collective tasks before the competition starts. Senior volunteers programme managers, departmental managers and the general manager and president of the organising committee should become involved in these operations in order to «set the tone».

1. OBJECTIVES

The prime objective is to welcome new volunteers to the organisation, to involve and integrate them into the project, and to generate a feeling of belonging. It is important for volunteers to feel useful to the organisation and not used by it. In addition, the training actions should be designed to motivate volunteers and make them operational by giving them the best possible preparation for carrying out their tasks.

2. OPERATIONAL PROCESS

Volunteers have the right to receive the information, training and support they need to carry out the functions and tasks they are given. A training

Page 82: SENTEDALPS - ALPINE SPACE · Nancy Favre (IDHEAP), Alain Ferrand (UCBL), Tiziana ... Recruitment and assignment of ... This guide to volunteer management is the third and final

SENTEDALPS82 83SENTEDALPS

plan should be set up to ensure all the volunteers can effectively carry out their missions. Integration sessions and training modules will involve several different stakeholders. During the volunteers programme design phase, particular attention should be paid to volunteer training, as the volunteer human resources must have the skills needed to carry out the tasks and roles they are assigned. These types of action should begin as soon as possible, i.e. as soon as the volunteer has been recruited. The components of this process are shown in Figure 3.7.

Figure 3.7: The integration and training process

2.1 Analysis and design of integration and training plans

Volunteer integration and training form the heart of a volunteers programme. The first priority is to take into account the project’s strategy and volunteer management process, which involves choosing the stakeholders who will be involved and defining the resources to be mobilised (human, financial, material). The following step is to design and implement the integration and training system. This action should cover three objectives:

- Choice of a project leader (who will be in charge of implementing this phase)- Training teachers and trainers (integration of secondary stakeholders)- Production of teaching materials (support process)

• Integration plan

As for all the operational phases, «Plan of Work» techniques should be used to draw up a training programme. This programme should show logistical requirements, taking into account the project’s strategy and previous experience. The integration process will «condition» the volunteer, which is why organisers must do everything possible to make «a good impression». For example, the integration sessions for volunteers for the 32nd America’s Cup Valencia 2007 began with a theatre presentation on the theme of «first impressions».

• Training plan

The training plan must be drawn up in line with the project’s objectives, specification and budget. Based on the discrepancies between the skills of

Page 83: SENTEDALPS - ALPINE SPACE · Nancy Favre (IDHEAP), Alain Ferrand (UCBL), Tiziana ... Recruitment and assignment of ... This guide to volunteer management is the third and final

SENTEDALPS82 83SENTEDALPS

the people recruited and the skills needed for the roles they will be asked to fill, this stage, together with the structural elements of the project, are drawn up in consultation with the organising committee by proposing and refining a series of draft projects. This iterative process allows the plan to be modified to comply with the objectives and social reality of the organisation. Just like the action plans for the other operational phases, the training plan must be designed extremely carefully. The best method is to define a preliminary list of actions that can be used to draw up the final plan that will be implemented. This final plan may include the following elements:

• General and operational objectives• List of stakeholders involved in the project• General organisation of the action or programme• Training axes (i.e. general, specific and practical on-site)• Timetable• Necessary means available for implementing the plan • Qualitative and quantitative results expected• System for evaluating each stage, with criteria and methods• Final evaluation method

Inset n°2: 15th Mediterranean Games Almeria 200534

In line with this principle, the organising committee of the Mediterranean Games Almeria 2005 (COJMA) developed an innovative training programme for its volunteers that met the following objectives:- Create a feeling of active participation and involvement in the Games

organisation project - Provide access to advanced, innovative, flexible and high-quality training

services - Facilitate the sharing, updating and creation of skills throughout the 2005

volunteer network - Facilitate communication amongst COJMA volunteers- Build the loyalty of the Almeria 2005 volunteers by giving access to an

exclusive information plan.

“During 2004, the Almeria 2005 Mediterranean Games Organising Committee continued its Training Programme of fundamentally providing technical preparation to all companies that could be linked to the organisation of the event.”

With this in mind, four years ago COJMA opened different lines of collaboration with institutions and organisations with which they could coordinate actions and join forces. During 2001, 2002 and 2003, training activities were carried out by the Andalusian Sports Institute, the University of Almeria, the Almeria Provincial Council, the Provincial Delegation of Education and Science, clubs and sporting federations, as well as a wide range of associations.

34 http://www.almeria2005.org/cgi-bin/default_Fra.asp

Page 84: SENTEDALPS - ALPINE SPACE · Nancy Favre (IDHEAP), Alain Ferrand (UCBL), Tiziana ... Recruitment and assignment of ... This guide to volunteer management is the third and final

SENTEDALPS84 85SENTEDALPS

2.2 Setting up the volunteer integration service

From the beginning of the recruitment procedure, plans should be drawn up for organising welcome sessions for volunteers. Organised under the impulsion of members of the volunteers programme department, these sessions require input from many different stakeholders and the participation of key members of the organising committee.

Before volunteers are given the specialist training they need to carry out their tasks effectively and professionally, they must be united behind the project. For example, a few months before the 1992 Albertville and Savoie Olympic Games, the «team members» (a term that considerably strengthened the feeling of belonging to the project) were invited to a one-day gathering that included a show celebrating their commitment to the event and which was widely covered in the media. Each volunteer was given a cap as a souvenir of that day. All the volunteers who attended the 32nd America’s Cup «Integration day» received an orange polo shirt bearing the logo «L’équipe, c’est toi ! Participe et fais-toi plaisir !» («You are the team! Take part and enjoy!»). Just like a national football team preparing for a major international competition, these moments spent together allow volunteers to discover their new environment and to build a good relationship with the professionals involved, thereby avoiding a potential source of conflict. They also help team managers develop a sense of community amongst their volunteer team members before the event begins. Giving everybody the same uniform can contribute to this integration.

• Ensure emblematic members of the organising committee assume their responsibilities

During the integration phase, the key members of the organisation must «set the tone». As well as unit managers and members of the volunteers programme, other key figures should be invited to the integration sessions, including a sportsperson or former sportsperson, who may also play the role of ambassador for the event, and the president of the organising committee and/or the general manager. For example, Rafael Trulillo, a member of the +39 Challenge crew and an Olympic medal winner, took part in the volunteer integration day for the 32nd America’s Cup Valencia 2007, in order to evoke the world of the teams taking part in the event. In addition, the volunteers were welcomed and thanked for their participation by Michel Hodara, executive director of the organising body. The day ended with a welcoming cocktail. The following section explains how volunteers can be given a sense of responsibility.

• Ensure unit managers assume their responsibilities

Far from being a waste of time, volunteer integration is an investment that will

Page 85: SENTEDALPS - ALPINE SPACE · Nancy Favre (IDHEAP), Alain Ferrand (UCBL), Tiziana ... Recruitment and assignment of ... This guide to volunteer management is the third and final

SENTEDALPS84 85SENTEDALPS

make the organisation more effective and efficient on D-day. Unit managers and, from time to time, the volunteer human resources department, should organise team-building actions (e.g. organise a meal for the volunteers). By being accessible and attentive right from the integration and training phase, they set a good example to their volunteers. As permanent representatives of the organising body, they must transmit team values from the moment the volunteers are welcomed into the organisation.

2.3 Setting up the volunteers training service

The training programme is aimed at providing the volunteers with the skills and knowledge they will need to carry out their allotted tasks. Depending on the event, this may include general training, familiarisation with facilities and specialist training to give volunteers the technical skills they will need to successfully fulfil their functions. Thus, volunteer training is a particularly important element in any volunteers programme.

Although it is recommended to integrate volunteers into the organisation as early as possible, it is best, as Bouchet Virette (2006) points out, to begin specialist and practical training as late as possible (e.g. 3 months before the start of the event). As in the recruitment phase, role-plays should be used to train the people who will teach the volunteers. The training manager is responsible for drawing up innovative and specific methods, proposing suitable solutions to training problems, setting out objectives, carrying out experiments, implementing decisions, and planning and coordinating the project.

In order to guarantee a uniform standard of training, liaison with department managers should be carried out by a single person (generally a member of the volunteers programme department) who will ensure teaching materials (guides, PowerPoint presentations, Internet site, etc) are quantitatively and qualitatively equivalent.

Volunteer training for all events, whatever their specific characteristics, can be divided into three stages.

• General training

General training should be designed to provide a global vision of the project and its culture. Its aim is to provide volunteers with a general introduction to the project and its geographical setting, rather than to give any specialist training. For example, participants at the 1992 Olympic Games volunteer training sessions were told about the Olympic movement, the sporting disciplines

Page 86: SENTEDALPS - ALPINE SPACE · Nancy Favre (IDHEAP), Alain Ferrand (UCBL), Tiziana ... Recruitment and assignment of ... This guide to volunteer management is the third and final

SENTEDALPS86 87SENTEDALPS

involved and the geographical setting of the event, that is to say, the Rhône Alpes region, Savoie and the Olympic resorts. General training may be carried out by e-learning, videos or a volunteer newsletter (e.g. «Equipe 92» for the 1992 Olympics). It is common practice to provide volunteers with a guide containing general information about the event and specific details about the tasks they have been assigned (e.g. «Noi 2006» Volunteers Guide for the 2006 Olympics).

• Specialist training

Specialist training provides volunteers with the specific skills they will need to carry out their tasks during the event. Of course, different training must be provided for each volunteer function. As is the case for general training, specialist training is usually managed by the volunteers department, which is responsible for informing volunteers of the dates and times of training sessions, finding and preparing training areas, and designing, producing and distributing teaching materials. During these training sessions, volunteers may be given a training file containing information on themes such as the volunteer’s role, the tasks each volunteer will have to carry out and the life of the volunteer during the event.

• On-site practical training

On-site training allows unit managers to “test” their team and, if necessary, introduce changes. This stage is extremely important, as it provides hands-on training that will allow volunteers to develop and try out the skills they will need to successfully carry out their functions. Organisers often use “test events” for this type of training. For example, the organisers of the Innsbruck/Seefeld 2005 Winter Universiades trained some of their volunteers during a WTA35 tennis match between Austria and the United States. However, test events that use the same venues as the event being prepared provide the best training, as they put volunteers into real situations and allow them to develop their skills within the dynamic of a full-scale event. In addition, team leaders should follow extra training courses and take part in role-plays to ensure they are perfectly prepared. As was the case for the 2005 Monthey European Youth Olympic Festival, volunteers are usually given a practical guide to the event and an official programme.

35 The Women’s Tennis Association (WTA) is an international sports association that organises women’s tennis competitions throughout the world.

Page 87: SENTEDALPS - ALPINE SPACE · Nancy Favre (IDHEAP), Alain Ferrand (UCBL), Tiziana ... Recruitment and assignment of ... This guide to volunteer management is the third and final

SENTEDALPS86 87SENTEDALPS

Inset n°3: Specialist training for volunteers at the Athletissima meetingEvery year, the event’s technical volunteers (on average, 180 per edition) receive specialist training in the form of two one-day courses, which are obligatory, even for volunteers who come back year after year. This training is the responsibility of the technical director. The training courses instruct volunteers on how to behave on the evening of the event (dress, behaviour in case of major problems during the event), as well as the technical aspects of their role. Volunteers are also «trained» at the regional and national meetings in which they take part. The aim is to keep the same volunteers as long as possible. Volunteer skills requirements are set by the international athletics federation and are automatically defined for each post. Job descriptions have been drawn up for key posts, i.e. jumping, throwing, and running events. The cost of training is zero. Thanks to their excellent training, volunteers are able to carry out their tasks without experiencing any particular difficulties.

2.4 Evaluation Both the participants and the training plan must be evaluated. Evaluation must be both educational and certificational. Educational evaluation is carried out during the training period in order to measure a volunteer’s progress with respect to a given objective. Certificational evaluation is designed to guarantee that a volunteer has acquired the necessary skills and knowledge. This is particularly important for the validation of university or professional training modules (e.g. Innsbruck/Seefeld Winter Universiades 2005).

3. TOOLS AND SUPPORT PROCESSES

• Teaching materials with the same «corporate design»• Volunteer integration day• Guide for teachers of volunteers• Guide for volunteers• E-learning platform• Video documents• Newsletter for volunteers • Advanced training for key volunteers • «General volunteer guide» covering the functioning of the organisation, safety,

accreditation, the organisation chart, essential telephone numbers, etc• «Specialist volunteer guide» covering information relating to the volunteer’s

role and functions, etc (supplied directly by team managers)

Page 88: SENTEDALPS - ALPINE SPACE · Nancy Favre (IDHEAP), Alain Ferrand (UCBL), Tiziana ... Recruitment and assignment of ... This guide to volunteer management is the third and final

SENTEDALPS88 89SENTEDALPS

4. HUMAN RESOURCES

Training is carried out under the impulsion of members of the volunteers programme department, although it requires the participation of many stakeholders, including some key members of the organising body. The five types of stakeholder most commonly involved in training programmes are:

• Members of the «volunteers programme»• Key members of the organising body• Event ambassadors • Unit managers• Trainers of the volunteers

5. KEY SUCCESS FACTORS

• Use other events to train volunteers• Rapidly appointment team leaders.• Start on-site training as late as possible• Senior managers must «set the tone» from the very start of the integration

phase• Commence integration actions (welcome) as soon as volunteers are taken on• Create a sense of responsibility and involvement for emblematic members

of the programme• Never leave a volunteer without news for more than a month. Use

greetings cards, newsletters, gadgets, etc to maintain contact • Choose selectors for their personnel management experience • Training: general, specialist and on-site • Organise an integration day• Training must be accessible to all and teaching materials should be

«volunteer friendly» • Quickly supply volunteers with their uniforms (sense of belonging)• Encourage volunteer hospitality• Working group (unit manager and volunteers programme manager)• Think big

Page 89: SENTEDALPS - ALPINE SPACE · Nancy Favre (IDHEAP), Alain Ferrand (UCBL), Tiziana ... Recruitment and assignment of ... This guide to volunteer management is the third and final

SENTEDALPS88 89SENTEDALPS

PHASE 5: OPERATIONAL MANAGEMENT

The volunteer human resources team gives the volunteers’ work schedules and contact details to team leaders in advance. This is another step in ensuring the operational success of the volunteers’ actions during the event. Being in direct and daily contact with the volunteers under their control, team leaders (or team managers) have a fundamental role to play in the smooth running of operations.

Once volunteers have been recruited, integrated and trained, they must be provided with the conditions necessary for carrying out their tasks within the event’s organisation. Team leaders must possess certain managerial skills (e.g. capable of implementing the steering tools needed to meet objectives, capable of writing reports following debriefings, etc) and they must also have excellent motivational skills. If teams are to meet their objectives, team leaders must instil a sense of responsibility among their team members and unite them around a common goal.

1. OBJECTIVES

The aims of this phase are to ensure the right people are in the right place at the right time and to give the volunteers the resources they need to function effectively in order to ensure the objectives fixed during the previous phases are met.

2. PROCESS

The process for this phase can be divided into three concomitant stages. These stages are presented in Figure 3.8.

Figure 3.8: The stages of the operational management process

Page 90: SENTEDALPS - ALPINE SPACE · Nancy Favre (IDHEAP), Alain Ferrand (UCBL), Tiziana ... Recruitment and assignment of ... This guide to volunteer management is the third and final

SENTEDALPS90 91SENTEDALPS

2.1 Volunteer management by team leaders

During the event, team leaders must become as deeply involved as possible (as they were during the integration and training phases) in order to develop team spirit and group cohesion amongst the volunteers in their teams.

As well as dealing with the day-to-day management of their team members, team leaders should occasionally socialise with their volunteers outside work time (e.g. take them out for a drink or for dinner). Schnitzer (2004) points out that the success of the operational phase of the 2005 Universiades was facilitated by such initiatives.

Firstly, team leaders must try to understand the personal motivations of their team members, despite the difficulties imposed by the event organisation context (little time available, short duration, etc). They must be accessible and attentive to the members of their group, especially the volunteers. For example, managers must ensure that the people involved in different tasks are not overloaded with work or, conversely, under-employed. One of the biggest mistakes made when organising large-scale events is to give volunteers too little or too much to do. Both cases reduce motivation.

In addition, managers should try to stave off tiredness and lassitude during the event by giving team members days off. It is important that volunteers maintain their initial enthusiasm. We look at this aspect in more detail in the section on support processes.

Volunteers must be given individual and collective objectives, together with a sense of responsibility. This will provide extra motivation during the event by increasing the volunteers’ feeling of involvement and by putting them in a position where they themselves are responsible for meeting the objectives fixed at the outset. Some organisers feel that a judiciously worded contract (i.e. containing a list of each party’s rights and duties, evaluation procedures, etc) between the two parties (volunteer and organising committee) is the most effective tool for ensuring the commitment of all the parties involved, including volunteers. Another approach, favoured by Charmetant (2006), is based on the observation that «the organisers must never forget that a volunteer can, by definition, walk away from the project at any time!» We also subscribe to this latter approach, which means managers must be recruited for their human relations skills as well as their technical skills (Bouchet Virette 2006).

The project’s general manager will generally call a meeting to brief «his/her» managers, who, in turn, will brief their teams. This «pep talk», which is comparable to that of a trainer before a match, is only beneficial if the team members know what is expected of them and how and when they have to

Page 91: SENTEDALPS - ALPINE SPACE · Nancy Favre (IDHEAP), Alain Ferrand (UCBL), Tiziana ... Recruitment and assignment of ... This guide to volunteer management is the third and final

SENTEDALPS90 91SENTEDALPS

carry out their tasks. For example, team leaders can use two-way radios to communicate with and help the members of their team during the event. As soon as a competition is finished, a debriefing should be carried out in order to identify positive points and the aspects to improve or change. Each manager must be capable of carrying out such debriefings in order to prepare for the next competition. For example, during the 2005 Cross Country World Championships at Saint-Galmier/Saint-Etienne, every unit (e.g. transport) held a debriefing at the end of each day36.

These debriefings are essential as they allow adjustments to be made in order to perfect the event. At the end of the event, a report should be drawn up for each domain to ensure the global continuity and improvement of the operational management of the programme and of the organisation of the event (more details will be given in the following section, «Evaluation, monitoring and conservation»). As well as dealing with technical and logistical problems, managers must encourage their volunteers and listen to their remarks. Finally, team leaders must ensure volunteers are given and understand their work schedules (e.g. working times, locations, tasks, etc).

In order to successfully complete their missions, team leaders need to possess a range of qualities. They play an important role, especially in ensuring everyone works together as a team and in uniting the strengths of their volunteers. Team leaders may be (or have been) volunteers, a factor that strengthens and legitimises their position. They should be recruited sufficiently early in the campaign (upstream) by targeting organisations with a tradition of providing volunteers.

Not everyone is capable of managing a team of volunteers, as the ephemeral nature of the event means that group managers (team leader, manager, etc) only have a very short time before the competition begins in which to get to know every member of their team. This is why the previous phases (integration, training, etc) are so important. Test events, together with discussions and consultations with the team members before the competition will pay dividends during the event.

Volunteer managers must, like any good manager, ensure an optimal operating environment for their team members and be able to recognise, at the right time and equitably, the effort put in and the successes obtained by both volunteers and salaried personnel. They must never forget that they are there to assist the volunteers, not to give orders.

36 The competitions took place over two days.

Page 92: SENTEDALPS - ALPINE SPACE · Nancy Favre (IDHEAP), Alain Ferrand (UCBL), Tiziana ... Recruitment and assignment of ... This guide to volunteer management is the third and final

SENTEDALPS92 93SENTEDALPS

Mutual adjustment and the modification of procedures during the competition period are the key coordination mechanisms, both within and between the teams. This corresponds to Mintzberg’s (1989) adhocratic organisational system, in which there is upward, downward and transversal communication between members of the system. We recommend a participatory management style, as this seems to be the style most suited to working as a team.

Managers must be capable of detecting dissatisfaction among team members and identifying its causes (e.g. assignment not suited to the volunteer’s profile, unequal rewards for two volunteers, etc), as well as able to manage crises and conflicts. To do this, it is necessary to organise discussion sessions and to be continuously attentive to the members of the group

The fact that «the organisation of a sports event is a temporary system, a material and immaterial organisation whose demise is pre-ordained» (Charmetant 2006) requires managers to use a common language and instil common values and objectives with all the members of the team.

Finally, managers should ensure their volunteers are capable of working in several areas of the competition site, without neglecting the tasks for which they were recruited. For example, volunteers for the 2006 Turin Winter Olympic Games working at the San Sicario Fraiteve site (Biathlon) were introduced to several facets of the role of assistants to the public (e.g. spectator stands, Olympic family, etc).

2.2 Assistance provided by members of the volunteer human resources department to managers

As we stated in the introduction to this chapter, the success of the programme requires close cooperation between the volunteers programme and the organisers, who are themselves in direct contact with the volunteers. Thus, the members of the volunteers department must be available to help team managers. For example, for the FIFA Confederations Cup France 2003, following the first on-site meeting at Saint-Etienne, the ticketing manager identified a deficiency in terms of volunteers, so the volunteer department was asked to release new resources for the next meeting. Members of the volunteers programme can be asked to solve problems in a wide variety of fields, such as catering, accommodation and uniforms, as well as to provide replacements for volunteers who withdraw and to respond to legal problems, etc. As they provide managers with vital day-to-day support, they must be available at all times.

2.3 Information for volunteers

Volunteers must be given the information they need. Once again, it is the role

Page 93: SENTEDALPS - ALPINE SPACE · Nancy Favre (IDHEAP), Alain Ferrand (UCBL), Tiziana ... Recruitment and assignment of ... This guide to volunteer management is the third and final

SENTEDALPS92 93SENTEDALPS

of the volunteers department to help the volunteers throughout the event. This means providing an almost continuous stream of information on a variety of themes: catering, uniforms, accommodation, etc, in order to optimise the volunteers’ working conditions. As was stated in chapter two, accurate and regular communication is a key element in successful volunteer management.

3. TOOLS AND SUPPORT PROCESSES

Although human relations skills are of fundamental importance in this phase, steering tools are also needed to ensure the organisers remain on course, objectives are met and progress reports are produced (following debriefings). One of the particularities of events project management is to «combine elements decided in advance with others that are added during the steering process», a rule that also applies to volunteer management. Project steering should be based on tools capable of modelling the 80% of «structural» certainty together with the 20% of «circumstantial» uncertainty (Charmetant et al. 2005). This involves:

- Coordination meetings (briefings)- Intermediary progress meetings with managers (debriefings)- Communication logistics- Volunteers centre- Daily competition sheets- Documents for volunteers (e.g. timetable of actions, operational guide,

manual, management chart)- Steering documents

4. HUMAN RESOURCES

As well as the volunteers, the operational management phase involves several different stakeholders, the number of which will vary according to the format of the event. In general, there are three:

- Members of the volunteers programme- Departmental managers- Team leaders/team managers

5. KEY SUCCESS FACTORS

• Listen to volunteers’ comments• Avoid over-confidence on the part of the volunteers37

37 If volunteers develop an inflated sense of their importance, they may start to make unacceptable demands.

Page 94: SENTEDALPS - ALPINE SPACE · Nancy Favre (IDHEAP), Alain Ferrand (UCBL), Tiziana ... Recruitment and assignment of ... This guide to volunteer management is the third and final

SENTEDALPS94 95SENTEDALPS

• Give volunteers a sense of responsibility• Present the whole management team38

• Briefings and debriefings• Precise definitions of the tasks and objectives of each post • Daily monitoring of the morale and motivations of each volunteer• Do not expect too much from the volunteers• Precisely plan, implement and manage all the services supplied by

volunteers• Pay particular attention to each meeting with a volunteer, maintaining a

consistent level of quality in managing those contacts • Apply Customer Relationship Management techniques• Train salaried personnel to manage volunteers (motivation, expectations,

etc)• Adopt a management style based on involvement and human relations • Spread out volunteer rewards• Allow for rest periods• Be capable of delegating and have trust in the people recruited • Management of the volunteers centre• Manage each volunteer’s work load (not too much, nor too little)

PHASE 6: EVALUATION, FOLLOW UP AND CONSERVATION

The «evaluation, follow up and conservation» phase is an integral part of the volunteers programme. However, as it takes place when the cameras are no longer focused on the competition and the journalists and spectators have gone home, it is often overlooked. It has two objectives. The first is to evaluate and produce an overall review of the volunteers programme (processes, tools, players, etc). The second is to capitalise on the skills and networks that have been built up in order to reinvest them in other initiatives, most specifically to promote the sustainable development of the host region. This can involve setting up volunteers associations (especially common following events such as the World Cup or the Olympic Games), or reusing volunteer resources to organise smaller, recurrent events, such as Athletissima or the Grand Raid Cristalp.

1. OBJECTIVES

The objective of this post-event phase is to evaluate the programme in terms of its operational efficiency, perceived quality and primary stakeholder satisfaction. In addition, it can also be used to valorise the skills acquired and to capitalise

38 Most of the stakeholders should already know each other following the integration and training phases. These relationships can be strengthened at the launch of the competition phase by defining each person’s role and mission.

Page 95: SENTEDALPS - ALPINE SPACE · Nancy Favre (IDHEAP), Alain Ferrand (UCBL), Tiziana ... Recruitment and assignment of ... This guide to volunteer management is the third and final

SENTEDALPS94 95SENTEDALPS

on the experience gained, thereby contributing to the sustainable development of the host region. Furthermore, it is important for an event to leave a legacy and the network of associations involving volunteers can play an important role in this respect.

2. OPERATIONAL PROCESSES

This phase can be divided into two consecutive stages, as shown in Figure 3.9. The first stage involves evaluating the programme; the second stage is aimed at conserving the benefits of the programme to serve the sustainable development of the host region.

Figure 3.9: The evaluation and conservation stages of the operational process

2.1 Evaluation of the programme

The first stage is to carry out a review of the volunteers programme. Each team manager is asked to identify the strengths and weaknesses of the processes in which they were involved. For example, the volunteer management report for the 2006 49ers Olympic Class Sailing World Championships at Aix les Bains (110 volunteers recruited) will be sent to the next organisers of this international regatta and to the organisers of any other event who may be interested in Aix les Bains’ experience. Whatever the format of the event and however many volunteers are involved, this final stage must not be neglected.

In addition to the points noted by the organisers during the operational phases, a global evaluation of the event should be made by interviewing all the parties involved in the programme: volunteers, unit managers, volunteer managers, selectors, trainers, etc. A survey of the general public will also produce interesting data.

Volunteers can be asked to complete a questionnaire, as was done for ISOC 2005 and the 2003 Athletics World Championships, where 90% of respondents were delighted with the event. However, such figures must be treated with caution as the perception of non-respondents is likely to have been very different and would have helped identify relevant factors. Nevertheless, the

Page 96: SENTEDALPS - ALPINE SPACE · Nancy Favre (IDHEAP), Alain Ferrand (UCBL), Tiziana ... Recruitment and assignment of ... This guide to volunteer management is the third and final

SENTEDALPS96 97SENTEDALPS

respondents’ views (remarks and recommendations) should be stored and analysed for future use.

Finally, as Chappelet (2001) points out, just because volunteers provide their services free of charge does not mean their work should not be monitored and/or evaluated. The behaviour and skills of the volunteers at the Grand Raid Cristalp are evaluated by sector managers (and their direct superiors). This allows decisions to be made on whether or not to recruit a person the following year.

2.2 Conserving the network

Basing the organisation of sports events on a relational strategy creates strong bonds between the stakeholders. During the event, these stakeholders enjoy some unforgettable moments, share common values and experience intense emotions. However, when the event is over, this excitement is often followed by a sudden sensation of emptiness and a desire to relive those wonderful times. This feeling of cohesion should be cultivated so it can contribute to the sustainable development of the host region. This is even more important in the case of one-off events that end with the dissolution of the volunteer department, resulting in the loss of an important social link for members of the organising team who do not belong to a permanent organisation (e.g. cultural association, sports club, etc). The four types of action presented in Figure 3.10 can be used to capitalise on the dynamic created during the event.

Figure 3.10: Actions required to conserve a group of volunteers

Page 97: SENTEDALPS - ALPINE SPACE · Nancy Favre (IDHEAP), Alain Ferrand (UCBL), Tiziana ... Recruitment and assignment of ... This guide to volunteer management is the third and final

SENTEDALPS96 97SENTEDALPS

• Listen to the volunteers’ observations

Evaluating the programme provides an opportunity to listen to the volunteers’ remarks. As we have already stated, evaluations work in both directions, with the organisers evaluating the volunteers and the volunteers evaluating the organisers. The volunteers’ opinion of the organisation can be gathered by asking for volunteers’ comments, notably by e-mail, and by organising debriefing sessions.

• Thank and praise people for their involvement

All the volunteers should be sent a personal thank-you letter and invited to a post-event thank-you party. Particular attention should be paid to the selectors, trainers and representatives of organisations that contributed resources.

• Motivate and unite organisations and volunteers

The volunteer database (contact details, etc) mentioned in the recruitment phase should be carefully stored. For example, the volunteer database for the FIFA World Cup France 1998 was exceedingly valuable for recruiting volunteers for the 2003 FIFA Confederations Cup, allowing the recruitment of people who already had experience at the World Cup.

However, a database is only a source of information; value is provided by the people and their relationships. This can be done by creating, or helping to create a body (possibly an association) that will allow former volunteers to work together and launch new projects.

For example, after the 2005 Innsbruck/Seefeld Universiades, the volunteers’ farewell party was used to launch the «Community of Volunteers» project for organising future events in the Tyrol.

• Find projects to keep the stakeholders network active

As we have highlighted on several occasions, volunteers programmes should be devised as collective projects that unite the event’s stakeholders. By undertaking new projects, it is possible to ensure the continued existence of these networks. This strategy is illustrated in Figure 3.11, which shows different types of project (e.g. social insertion through sport, organisation of an event, development of a tourism project) that can involve the group of volunteers and that can be developed through the cooperation of certain stakeholders. This can affect a number of dimensions of the sustainable development of the region concerned.

Page 98: SENTEDALPS - ALPINE SPACE · Nancy Favre (IDHEAP), Alain Ferrand (UCBL), Tiziana ... Recruitment and assignment of ... This guide to volunteer management is the third and final

SENTEDALPS98 99SENTEDALPS

Figure 3.11: Use of post-event collaborative projects to promote sustainable development

The 1992 Albertville and Savoie Winter Olympic Games is a reference in terms of conserving and capitalising on the skills of a network of volunteers. As was pointed out in the guide to event organisation, the 1992 Olympics gave Savoie «a pool of skills acquired by a group of volunteers that can be called upon and mobilised for events outside the sporting sphere». These people have developed a real feeling of belonging by taking part in, most significantly, the 1997 Rowing World Championships at Aiguebelette, the Handball World Cup and, soon, the 2009 Alpine Skiing World Championships at Val d’Isère. Thus, Savoie has used the experience and skills acquired during the 1992 Olympics to successfully organise other events and to develop its tourism39.This has also been done by areas such as the Tyrol, which is aiming to capitalise on the enthusiasm created by the 2005 Universiades to involve volunteers in future sporting and/or cultural projects. With this in mind, the organisers have built up a database of volunteers.

3. TOOLS AND SUPPORT PROCESSES

• Volunteer management reports• Satisfaction questionnaires• Conservation and up-dating of the database

4. HUMAN RESOURCES

This final phase is designed to create a synergy between all the stakeholders in the programme:

39 Volunteers from the Albertville Olympics have also taken part in actions outside the sporting field.

Page 99: SENTEDALPS - ALPINE SPACE · Nancy Favre (IDHEAP), Alain Ferrand (UCBL), Tiziana ... Recruitment and assignment of ... This guide to volunteer management is the third and final

SENTEDALPS98 99SENTEDALPS

- Volunteers- Team managers- Members of the volunteer human resources department- Selectors- Trainers- Recruiters- Departmental managers (senior level)

Forming a special post-event team (planned in advance) will facilitate the closure and winding up of the event.

5. KEY SUCCESS FACTORS

• Exclusive and personalised thank you for selectors and representatives of targeted organisations

• Interest in the perception the volunteers and all the other stakeholders have of the «programme»

• Conservation of databases • Evaluation of all the people involved in the system• Find new projects in which to involve the event’s volunteers and

stakeholders

7. SUPPORT PROCESSES

As we highlighted above, the implementation of each operational phase is reliant on a number of support processes. These processes are listed for each phase under the heading «tools and support process. Two types of support process must be designed and put into place when organising a sports event: management of the logistics and documentation for the volunteers programme and administration of the people involved.

Organisers must remain extremely vigilant to ensure they comply with the highly complex regulations and constantly changing legislation governing sports events. What is true for the event as a whole is also true for the volunteers programme. For example, once volunteers have been recruited, their contracts, letters of employment, expenses and meal tickets, etc must be managed. This section will look at some of the organiser’s obligations with respect to data protection legislation and examine the question of insurance. The number and type of obligations organisers must meet depends on the nature of the event. This section provides a reminder of some of these obligations but it is not intended to provide a comprehensive list. Our discussion is based on French legislation.

Page 100: SENTEDALPS - ALPINE SPACE · Nancy Favre (IDHEAP), Alain Ferrand (UCBL), Tiziana ... Recruitment and assignment of ... This guide to volunteer management is the third and final

SENTEDALPS100 101SENTEDALPS

1. LOGISTICS MANAGEMENT

Material resources are essential to the success of the volunteers programme: from the creation of an Internet site for collecting application forms to the organisation of training sessions and the holding of special volunteers’ parties. This aspect is particularly important during the competition period, when the goal is to achieve perfection. For example, the offshore volunteers for the 32nd America’s Cup Valencia 2007 must be supplied with boats in perfect working order for carrying out their mission on the water.

As for all the event’s stakeholders (spectators, athletes, etc), managers must ensure the safety of their teams and organise the supply of resources. These precautions are in addition to the measures taken by the organising committee.

It is extremely important to set up a volunteers centre, since, during the operational phase, this centre will be the living heart of the volunteers’ world. As a pleasant place to relax and meet other volunteers, it is a strategic element in the volunteers programme. For example, it should be regularly stocked with high-energy drinks and snacks.

2. INFORMATION AND DOCUMENTATION MANAGEMENT

As we have seen, volunteer management requires the careful upstream management of data. This can be achieved by setting up a specific computer database, together with rapid and inexpensive communication tools (e-mail, contact groups, etc), an Internet site and online application forms. The database must be designed and operational at the beginning of the recruitment and assignment phase. Such support processes can provide true decision-making tools (e.g. organisation charts, job descriptions and management charts).

Personal data about volunteers is usually collected during the recruitment phase of the volunteers programme via an Internet site, which must be registered with the National Data Protection Commission (CNIL)40.

• People have the right to know if they are on file and in which files they are included. This right of access to personal data concerns the gathering of information as well as its use. Thus, the organiser’s Internet site must inform users that they have «the right to access, modify, rectify and remove any information about themselves» (art. 34, Act of 6th January 1978) and inform them how to do this.

40 www.cnil.fr

Page 101: SENTEDALPS - ALPINE SPACE · Nancy Favre (IDHEAP), Alain Ferrand (UCBL), Tiziana ... Recruitment and assignment of ... This guide to volunteer management is the third and final

SENTEDALPS100 101SENTEDALPS

• The organiser can also mention on the website that information will only be used in the preparation and running of the event, organising the ticketing for the event and for gathering information and suggestions.

3. ADMINISTRATIVE AND LEGAL MANAGEMENT

What sort of legal form should be adopted for administrating a volunteers programme? The organisers of the 32nd edition of the America’s Cup created a foundation, based in Spain, to administrate the volunteers programme: «Fundación 32.Org». The aim of this foundation is to develop a volunteers programme that will allow anyone, without discrimination on the grounds of nationality, to apply to become a volunteer for the event.

• Safety obligations

In France, according to the Act of 16th July 1984 modified in 1992, the organiser of a sports event must prevent or assume responsibility for any accidental bodily injury and meet the «obligation of safety». In addition, article 23 of the Act of 21st January 1995 states that the responsibility for safety at sports, recreational and cultural events run for gain or profit is shared between the organisers, who are responsible for safety on the premises in which the event is held, and the national police and the gendarmerie, who are responsible for safety on the public highway (www.legisfrance.gouv.fr).

• Volunteer insurance obligations

Organisers of sports events must take out insurance to cover their own liability, that of their employees and that of the participants in all the activities included in the event (Act of 16th July 1984 modified in 1992, article 37). Thus, the «Fundación32.Org» organisation has taken out specific insurance covering all their volunteers against potential damages (e.g. third party damages) arising from the activities they carry out for the organisation of the event.

• Payment of expenses

Although volunteers are not paid for their work, they can be compensated for the expenses they incur in carrying out the duties assigned to them by the organisers. Only real and justifiable expenses can be reimbursed, otherwise any sums paid may be considered remuneration, with all the social and fiscal consequences this entails (www.legisfrance.gouv.fr).

• Letter of employment or contract

Page 102: SENTEDALPS - ALPINE SPACE · Nancy Favre (IDHEAP), Alain Ferrand (UCBL), Tiziana ... Recruitment and assignment of ... This guide to volunteer management is the third and final

SENTEDALPS102 103SENTEDALPS

Many event organisers do not provide volunteers with any written form of commitment. In a number of countries, volunteers have been given their own legal status and in such cases it may be advisable to sign a letter of employment or a contract.

4. HUMAN RESOURCES

• Project organisers• Human resources managers• Managers of the volunteers programme • Legal department

5. KEY SUCCESS FACTORS

• Keep up to date with changes in legislation• Set up a volunteers database• Respect the volunteers• Benchmarking• Legal support

Page 103: SENTEDALPS - ALPINE SPACE · Nancy Favre (IDHEAP), Alain Ferrand (UCBL), Tiziana ... Recruitment and assignment of ... This guide to volunteer management is the third and final

SENTEDALPS102 103SENTEDALPS

CASE STUDIES

CHAPTER 4

Page 104: SENTEDALPS - ALPINE SPACE · Nancy Favre (IDHEAP), Alain Ferrand (UCBL), Tiziana ... Recruitment and assignment of ... This guide to volunteer management is the third and final

SENTEDALPS104 105SENTEDALPS

Page 105: SENTEDALPS - ALPINE SPACE · Nancy Favre (IDHEAP), Alain Ferrand (UCBL), Tiziana ... Recruitment and assignment of ... This guide to volunteer management is the third and final

SENTEDALPS104 105SENTEDALPS

WINTER UNIVERSIADES2005

INNSBRUCK/SEEFELD – AUSTRIA

Person interviewed: Martin Schnitzer, Assistant General Secretary

Other functions in the sports event field:

- 2000/2001: 2001 Women’s Handball World Championships - President of the «Merano» local committee - 2005/2006: 2006 Turin Winter Olympic Games – Assistant manager for the San Sicario Fraiteve site

1. In a few words

«One of the biggest successes of the Universiades was the planning, recruitment and management of the volunteers. Of the 804 volunteers recruited, we only «lost» three. Only three people, for whatever reason, did not complete their voluntary mission. All the others took part enthusiastically and skilfully. In total, the volunteers contributed around 14,000 days of work». Dr. Michael Bielowski, President

«The contribution of the University of Innsbruck allowed the students to show what they could give to the organisation of a sports event. Not only did the entire faculty, together with many of our University’s institutes, participate during the event, they also contributed to the build up through a total of 50 university projects. Voluntary work enriches society, so student volunteers contribute to the city, to sport and to their colleagues who take part in the event». Prof. Manfried Gantner, Rector of the University of Innsbruck

2. Concept of the event

The 2005 Innsbruck/Seefeld Winter Universiades was a sports event for students, organised by students in a university town. Innsbruck, which has a population of 120,000, including 20,000 students, is a sporty city. The event was organised by young people, with recent graduates as the permanent staff and university students as volunteers.

Furthermore, Innsbruck wanted to present itself as a modern city. The facilities built for the 1964 and 1976 Olympic Games were renovated for holding new sports events.

Page 106: SENTEDALPS - ALPINE SPACE · Nancy Favre (IDHEAP), Alain Ferrand (UCBL), Tiziana ... Recruitment and assignment of ... This guide to volunteer management is the third and final

SENTEDALPS106 107SENTEDALPS

The 2005 Innsbruck/Seefeld Universiades targeted the new generation of young tourists, which is why the events programme was revitalised to include «Big Air» snowboarding, «Ski Cross», and women’s ski jumping. Finally, television coverage of the event explored its human dimension as well as its sporting aspects.

3. Key factors in the success of the volunteer management at the strategic and operational levels

• Volunteer coordination and coordinators• Permanent contact with the volunteers• Volunteers given their uniforms very rapidly• Team leaders appointed very rapidly• Actions to promote involvement in and to publicise the event• Possibility of obtaining university backing through the volunteers programme • The most important factor was finding a strong partner for the recruitment and management of volunteers (in this case the University of Innsbruck).

4. Impact of the event

• Almost 14,000 days of voluntary work • Foundation of a post-event volunteers association • 90% of the volunteers were students

5. The event’s calling card

Table 4.1: Characteristics of the 2005 Winter Universiades

Page 107: SENTEDALPS - ALPINE SPACE · Nancy Favre (IDHEAP), Alain Ferrand (UCBL), Tiziana ... Recruitment and assignment of ... This guide to volunteer management is the third and final

SENTEDALPS106 107SENTEDALPS

6. Event statistics

Table 4.2: Statistics for the 2005 Winter Universiades

7. Human resources for the event

The project really started two years after the event was attributed. In 2002, a small team, steered by the General Secretary, started working full-time on the organisation of the event. Staff numbers gradually increased from 10 people in 2003 to 15 in 2004, and then to 22 a few months before the Universiades opened. The first volunteers were recruited in the autumn of 2004. During the event itself, the organising committee mobilised a total of 800 volunteers. Volunteers were taken on for a minimum of two weeks.

Table 4.3: Types of human resources at the 2005 Winter Universiades

8. Strategic volunteer management process

• Governance and general strategy of the volunteers programme

The general idea was for the University and its students to be the dominant stakeholders in the volunteers programme. The strategy was drawn up between

Page 108: SENTEDALPS - ALPINE SPACE · Nancy Favre (IDHEAP), Alain Ferrand (UCBL), Tiziana ... Recruitment and assignment of ... This guide to volunteer management is the third and final

SENTEDALPS108 109SENTEDALPS

the University, which could not contribute financially to the project, and the other stakeholders on the organising committee.

The stakeholders with decision-making powers on the organising committee were: Innsbruck City Council, Seefeld City Council, the Ministry of Education, Culture and Science, the Province of Tyrol, the University of Innsbruck and the FISU. The tourist bodies of the host cities, sponsors, the media and certain national sports federations were given an advisory role. The schematic structure of the pre-event organisation was as follows:

Board => General Secretariat => four departments (i.e. Operations, Sport, Marketing, Finance & Human Resources).

Eleven departments were involved in the actual running of the event, including one exclusively dedicated to volunteers, known as «COM Unity». Each volunteer was under the responsibility of a reference person, who was given the title of team leader. Each team leader forwarded volunteer management problems to the relevant venue volunteers manager and unit manager (e.g. snowboarding). The venue volunteers manager, in turn, forwarded the information to a central member of staff, who was responsible for coordinating all the venues and their volunteers. Communication was mostly face-to-face, by mobile phone, text message and e-mail.

• Objectives and global strategy of the programme

The main objective of the volunteers programme was to recruit enough volunteers to complete the tasks defined in the specification drawn up during the «functions planning» phase. The organisers insisted on giving potential volunteers accurate information and on never making promises they could not keep, so volunteers would know exactly what to expect. The most important point was to define the rewards that were available (university credits, uniform, free transport and meals, etc) in order to motivate the volunteers. 800 people were recruited from the 1,800 online applications received. According to the organisers, the chosen volunteers gave «150% to the sports event project, which is why it was such a success». Finally, the programme’s objective was to build something worthwhile for the future by creating a community of volunteers for future sports events.

• Organisation of volunteers

The volunteers programme management section was part of the finance and human resources department. At first it was run by two people. Detailed agreements were drawn up between the volunteers and the organising committee, defining the rights and duties of each party (e.g. working days,

Page 109: SENTEDALPS - ALPINE SPACE · Nancy Favre (IDHEAP), Alain Ferrand (UCBL), Tiziana ... Recruitment and assignment of ... This guide to volunteer management is the third and final

SENTEDALPS108 109SENTEDALPS

the rewards volunteers would receive, etc). During the Universiades, the volunteers were organised into groups of ten or twenty people under the direct responsibility of a team leader. Team leaders were in direct contact with «their» function manager, for the work to be carried out, and with the venue volunteers manager, who provided assistance with aspects of volunteer management.

• Training of volunteers

After filling in an application form on the event’s Internet site, applicants were invited to take part in a general training session that explained the tasks to be carried out for the Universiades (driver, media assistant, etc). Volunteers were then assigned to a working group (sport, protocol, etc).

In the mean time, volunteers received a «service contract» describing all aspects of their voluntary work (rights and duties). The volunteers in each working group were given the specialist training (by function) they would need in order to carry out their tasks during the event. Finally, for almost every type of post, on-site training was given, bringing together the team leader, the team of volunteers and the function manager.

• Rewards for volunteers

All the volunteers who took part in the Universiades were given a uniform. In addition, during the event, their accreditation gave them access to free transport on Innsbruck’s urban network, two free meals per day, free entry to all the competitions, free or reduced-price entry for evening events, university credits, a certificate of participation and other perks (e.g. free food and drinks in establishments that had signed an agreement with the organising committee).

• Levels of responsibility and volunteer/professional relations

The organising committee was composed entirely of professionals and volunteers only began to be integrated into the project four months before the event. It would have been better to involve more volunteers earlier in the programme. During the competition phase of the Universiades, many volunteers had positions of responsibility, just like the salaried staff. Generally, relations between the professionals and the volunteers were very good. The volunteers were divided into a total of 38 groups, split between the following twelve functions:

- Access checks: checking access to the grandstands- Attaché: to accompany a delegation or a member of the FISU- Catering: service in the VIP and other zones- Driver: transport for members of the organising committee

Page 110: SENTEDALPS - ALPINE SPACE · Nancy Favre (IDHEAP), Alain Ferrand (UCBL), Tiziana ... Recruitment and assignment of ... This guide to volunteer management is the third and final

SENTEDALPS110 111SENTEDALPS

- Assistant: in the main operations centre or a venue operations centre - Reception: reception service for VIPs (sponsors, politicians or others), ceremonies- General services: multi-tasking working group- Information: general information at the different venues. Information point for all «clients»- IT Support: management of the computer network- Press & television: assistance in the pressroom, administration of the Internet site, cabling, and runners for television coverage- Medical: on-site medical assistance, anti-doping tests- Labourer: setting up grandstands and other structures, etc

Each team of volunteer assistants reported to a salaried member of staff, who was also responsible for coordinating the team’s work.

9. Profile of the volunteers

As has already been stated, most (90%) of the volunteers were students. Their average age was 25. In total, 804 volunteers were chosen from the more than 1,800 applicants. Volunteers were drawn from 21 different nationalities, including Chinese, Japanese, American, Finish and Russian, although 60% were Austrian and most of the remaining 40% were Italian or German. The foreign volunteers were generally asked to accompany delegations of their compatriots and to ensure their cultural demands were met. The working period was from 2nd to 27th January 2005. Half the volunteers worked for 17 days. In total, they contributed almost 14,000 working days. A doctoral research project on the Universiades calculated the economic value of the voluntary work to be 1,361,700 euros (based on paying the volunteers at a rate of 10 euros/hour).

• Motivations of the volunteers

Before starting to recruit volunteers, research by a student at the University of Innsbruck identified the motivations that would lead volunteers to commit their time to the organisation of the Universiades. These motivations were:

- Social (e.g. lend a helping hand, meet new people, make friends, etc) - Professional (e.g. acquire experience, develop a network of contacts,

obtain university credits, etc)- Organisational (e.g. desire to be part of a team)- Altruistic (e.g. the pleasure of helping, contribute to the success of the

event, etc)- Challenge (e.g. meet a new and unknown challenge, etc)- Material (e.g. obtain: free gear, transport and/or meals, etc).

Page 111: SENTEDALPS - ALPINE SPACE · Nancy Favre (IDHEAP), Alain Ferrand (UCBL), Tiziana ... Recruitment and assignment of ... This guide to volunteer management is the third and final

SENTEDALPS110 111SENTEDALPS

Three types of volunteer were identified:

- Those who were there even when they did not have to be (hard core) – around 25%:- Those who did their job (no more, no less) – around 74%:- Those who did not turn up regularly – around 1%.

• Experience of the applicants selected for the event

For many people it was their first experience of voluntary work. However, the organising committee also recruited a number of «expert» volunteers, who had gained experience with other events, such as the Skiing World Cup.

10. Stakeholders involved in the volunteers programme

The University of Innsbruck was the only significant stakeholder in the volunteers programme. With the help of the rector, e-mails were sent to all the students. The teaching staff were also kept informed about the preparations for the Universiades.

11. Key human resources management principles applied to volunteers

• Awareness raising among stakeholders and definition of the strategy

The first priority was to explain to all the interested parties the importance of volunteers, to decide how many would be needed and to determine a recruitment strategy. The strategy chosen was to mostly work through the University of Innsbruck.

• Cooperation with the University and recruitment

As part of a formal agreement with the University of Innsbruck, a specific accord was made for the recruitment of the volunteers. Promotion of the recruitment campaign started eighteen months before the event, via university journals, information evenings and Internet, etc. The Universiades’ official Internet site launched the recruitment process a year before the event.

• Training and management

Volunteer training began six months before the event. At this time, the volunteers programme was being managed by two members of the organising committee. During the event, volunteer management was the responsibility of the department managers and the team leaders (also volunteers).

Page 112: SENTEDALPS - ALPINE SPACE · Nancy Favre (IDHEAP), Alain Ferrand (UCBL), Tiziana ... Recruitment and assignment of ... This guide to volunteer management is the third and final

SENTEDALPS112 113SENTEDALPS

• Closure

At the end of the event, the volunteers were thanked for their efforts at a final party, which was also used to launch the «Community of Volunteers» project for future events in the Tyrol.

12. Quality system for the «volunteers programme»

The quality of the volunteer management is shown by the stages followed by the organising committee: inform, recruit and manage the volunteers. Starting from the principle that promises should never be made if they cannot be kept, the flow of information was tightly controlled. Volunteers were given their uniforms a few weeks before the event, in order to give a final boost to motivation.

13. The different phases of the volunteers programme

• Needs analysis

The number of volunteers needed was calculated for each of the main functions of the organising committee. In addition, a university study revealed the interests and motivations of potential volunteers. The stakeholders of the event were kept up to date with the decisions that were made.

• Management strategy

The board of the organising committee approved the strategy, the budget and the volunteer management methods used during the recruitment, mobilisation and organisation phases.

• Communication

Communication was carried out via Internet, e-mail, information days, parties and university journals. All these tools were used in accordance with the Universiades’ general communication strategy and the marketing department.

• Recruitment

Potential volunteers could register their interest in any of the posts available by submitting an application through the organising committee’s Internet site. Volunteers were recruited from these applicants and assigned to one of the various working groups.

• Training

Page 113: SENTEDALPS - ALPINE SPACE · Nancy Favre (IDHEAP), Alain Ferrand (UCBL), Tiziana ... Recruitment and assignment of ... This guide to volunteer management is the third and final

SENTEDALPS112 113SENTEDALPS

Training was carried out in three phases: first general training, then specialist training, and then on-site training, which took place a few days before the event began.

• Maintaining contact and preparation (mobilisation)

Once volunteers had been recruited, it was essential to stay in contact with them. In order to do this, volunteer evenings and other initiatives were organised and newsletters were sent out.

• Event

During the event itself, the venue manager’s job was to build good relations with all the members of the team. This included socialising with team members outside the Universiades (e.g. going out for a drink with the volunteers, etc), in order to create a team spirit. Every day, the team leaders told their volunteers what was expected of them (e.g. working times, place, tasks, etc). • Closing the project

A special volunteers party was held at the venue (Olympiaworld Innsbruck). This provided a further opportunity to thank the volunteers for their work and for their dedication to making the event a success.

• Legacy, launching other projects

The organisers did not want the community of volunteers to «die»; therefore, they set up a database that could be used to invite volunteers to take part in future sporting and/or cultural projects.

14. Pitfalls to avoid in the management of the volunteers programme

• The most serious error is to make promises that cannot be kept. If this happens, the volunteer concerned will feel let down.

Page 114: SENTEDALPS - ALPINE SPACE · Nancy Favre (IDHEAP), Alain Ferrand (UCBL), Tiziana ... Recruitment and assignment of ... This guide to volunteer management is the third and final

SENTEDALPS114 115SENTEDALPS

Page 115: SENTEDALPS - ALPINE SPACE · Nancy Favre (IDHEAP), Alain Ferrand (UCBL), Tiziana ... Recruitment and assignment of ... This guide to volunteer management is the third and final

SENTEDALPS114 115SENTEDALPS

32ND AMERICA’S CUP2007

VALENCIA – SPAIN

People interviewed: Béatrice Lechat, Volunteers Programme Manager

Previous functions in the sports event field:

- 1996/1998: CFO – Football World Cup France 98 - Human resources manager for the Nantes venue.

- 2002/2003: GIP Paris 2003 Saint-Denis – Athletics World Championships - Volunteers programme manager.

and Joào Benito Garcia, Offshore Volunteers Manager

1. In a few words

«Being a volunteer gives you an inside view of how a major sports event is run, an opportunity to meet a great many people and a chance to share in the excitement of the event». Béatrice Lechat, Volunteers programme manager

«An event of this size simply cannot function without the active contribution of a large number of volunteers. They are true ambassadors for their city and for their region». Michel Hodara, Executive Director

2. Concept of the event

The America’s Cup is decided by a series of regattas held every four years, with the winner becoming the owner of the rights to the event and the organiser of the next edition. Often described as the world’s oldest sporting trophy, the America’s Cup brings together the best yachtsmen, architects, sail makers, engineers and boat builders on the planet. The first Act of the 32nd edition of the America’s Cup was held in the waters off Marseille (France) in 2004 and the event culminated in Valencia (Spain) in 2007, with the Louis Vuitton Cup, and then the America’s Cup Match.

Page 116: SENTEDALPS - ALPINE SPACE · Nancy Favre (IDHEAP), Alain Ferrand (UCBL), Tiziana ... Recruitment and assignment of ... This guide to volunteer management is the third and final

SENTEDALPS116 117SENTEDALPS

3. Key factors in the success of the volunteer management at the strategic and operational levels

• Pre-planned and perfectly structured project management for each of the successive and/or concomitant phases of the project: sourcing, recruitment, integration/training, volunteer entertainment and communication

• Faultless administration of data (specific database) and efficient tools for communicating with volunteers (automatic e-mails, contact groups, website, online application forms linked to the database, etc)

• Targeted sourcing and pre-recruitment communication actions• Trained and reliable selectors• Precise and regular communication with the volunteers• Appropriation of volunteer team members by their managers, starting

with the preparation of the training and integration phases and continuing through the «Volunteers Convention» (team building)

• Explanation of team values to the volunteers and respect of these values by the team leaders (exemplarity)

• Development of team building and integration actions, in addition to technical training, to give volunteers a general overview of the event and to allow them to start carrying out collective actions before the first day spent on the specific tasks they were assigned

• Structured communication with the volunteers during the event (briefings and debriefings with direct managers, availability of the «volunteer human resources» team, etc):• A motivation and reward programme during the event (exclusive actions).

4. Impact of the event

• 2000 volunteers called upon over 4 years• Redevelopment of the port and the city (e.g. roads, city centre, etc)• Attraction of international firms to the city

5. The event’s calling card

Table 4.4: Characteristics of the 32nd America’s Cup 2007

Page 117: SENTEDALPS - ALPINE SPACE · Nancy Favre (IDHEAP), Alain Ferrand (UCBL), Tiziana ... Recruitment and assignment of ... This guide to volunteer management is the third and final

SENTEDALPS116 117SENTEDALPS

6. Event statistics for the final stages, Valencia 2007

Table 4.5: Event statistics for the final stages, Valencia 2007

7. Human resources required for the event Three years before the event (2004) the organisers had one salaried member of staff for 3.5 volunteers. In 2005 and 2006 this ratio fell to one salaried member of staff for 2.5 volunteers (depending on the Act); however, it should increase again to one salaried member of staff for 4 volunteers (or trainees) in 2007, when the Louis Vuitton Cup, and then the America’s Cup Match are held (550 to 600 volunteers plus 200 trainees planned).

8. Strategic volunteer management process

• Governance and general strategy of the volunteers programme

AC Management, the event authority, had nine departments and employed 280 staff. Volunteer management was the responsibility of the human resources and legal department. Five people worked specifically on the volunteers programme. The organisers were able to count on the participation and skills of between 200 and 320 volunteers for the Acts held at Valencia, Marseille (France), Malmö-Skåne (Sweden) and Trapani (Italy). The flexibility and motivation of the volunteers allowed 450 people to cover 600 posts for the three Acts held in 2006. Volunteers were involved in nearly all areas of the 32nd America’s Cup, from the organisation of regattas to welcoming the public, organising accreditation and assisting at the media centre. In general, preference was given to local applicants (host cities and their surrounding areas).

• Objectives and global strategy of the programme

The volunteer project was designed to provide extra personnel to work

Page 118: SENTEDALPS - ALPINE SPACE · Nancy Favre (IDHEAP), Alain Ferrand (UCBL), Tiziana ... Recruitment and assignment of ... This guide to volunteer management is the third and final

SENTEDALPS118 119SENTEDALPS

alongside salaried staff for positions that only required an intermittent presence (i.e. twelve days to three weeks, not counting the training period). The event required volunteers with basic skills for onshore tasks (receiving visitors, ability to speak English, basic computer skills, etc), alongside others with specific skills for offshore missions (regatta rules, navigation certificates, etc). Opening up the event to local people (appropriation of the event) was also an important part of the strategy. For most people, it was the only opportunity they would have to play a part in one of the world’s biggest sporting occasions.In addition, the volunteers programme allowed the chosen applicants to meet new people, develop new skills and to be part of the life of the America’s Cup. It must be stressed that preference was given to local applicants (host cities and their surrounding areas).

• A foundation to administer the programmeThe organisers of the 32nd America’s Cup created a foundation, «Fundación 32.Org», based in Spain, to administer the volunteers programme, thereby meeting legal requirements. The foundation’s aim was to develop a programme that would allow anyone, without discrimination on the grounds of nationality, to apply to become an event volunteer. Three representatives of AC Management, including the manager of the volunteers programme, occupied the main seats on the board of this foundation.

• Rewards for volunteers

Each volunteer received general information about the organisation of the 32nd America’s Cup, technical training, and the resources they needed to carry out their mission under the best possible conditions. This included a «volunteer’s manual», distributed as of 2006, which provided information and training support (part of the manual was adapted to the needs of each mission).

«Fundación 32.Org» also invited every volunteer, as a member of the organisation, to a grand convention (Convention Day). This information and team-building extravaganza brought volunteers and team leaders together before the beginning of the technical training sessions. A special «Volunteer Party» was organised during the competition, together with a programme of «happy hours» at the volunteer centre and an invitation to the Final Party. In addition, the organisers provided all the volunteers with special insurance covering them against any claims (e.g. third party damages) resulting from work carried out for the event. Volunteers were also given an official 32nd America’s Cup uniform and an accreditation badge for the areas in which they would be working. Autograph sessions with members of the crews and the official 32nd America’s Cup volunteer certificate (awarded at the end of the event) provided another form of reward (symbolic). During their working periods, the volunteers

Page 119: SENTEDALPS - ALPINE SPACE · Nancy Favre (IDHEAP), Alain Ferrand (UCBL), Tiziana ... Recruitment and assignment of ... This guide to volunteer management is the third and final

SENTEDALPS118 119SENTEDALPS

received free meals (either lunch or dinner) and free access to Valencia’s public transport system.

• Level of responsibility in the organisation

More than fifty different missions were assigned to volunteers, assisting the organisers in the main fields of the organisation. For example, during the 2006 Acts, 140 offshore volunteers worked alongside the «Regatta Operations» team, mainly on the «security boats». Given their level of autonomy and their role in the smooth running of the competition, offshore volunteers can be considered to have had a higher level of responsibility than onshore volunteers. The 2006 Acts also employed a total of 170 volunteers for onshore missions, providing vital support in the fields of communication, computing and telecoms, logistics, accreditation, human resources, the «America’s Cup Park», America’s Cup TV, visitor services, transport, catering, «guest» services, administrative support and media services, etc. Only fields such as finance, relations with the crews, hospitality, sponsoring, security, access control and chauffeuring did not involve volunteer human resources.

• Profile of the volunteers

The typical volunteer was between 22 and 25 years old, able to speak foreign languages (English, Spanish, French), out-going, flexible and multi-skilled. Offshore volunteers (specialist volunteers) also had to have knowledge and experience of the nautical environment and/or regattas, together with, if possible, a navigation certificate. Computer skills, experience in dealing with the public, knowledge of the city of Valencia or interest in sailing were also advantages for certain missions. 50% of the volunteers helped with the competitions from one year to the next, making up 25% of the volunteers for the following year.

• Stakeholders involved in the volunteers programme

The employment agency Adecco, an official partner (support in the organisation of the Convention Day) provided assistance with the volunteers programme. In addition, the media played a role in promoting the programme. For example, a local television channel followed five volunteers during the 2006 Acts for a 13-part programme on the people involved in the 32nd America’s Cup that was broadcast starting in October 2006. Finally, «sourcing» (recruitment) was carried out with certain universities and schools and with local associations and organisations involved in sailing.

Page 120: SENTEDALPS - ALPINE SPACE · Nancy Favre (IDHEAP), Alain Ferrand (UCBL), Tiziana ... Recruitment and assignment of ... This guide to volunteer management is the third and final

SENTEDALPS120 121SENTEDALPS

9. Key human resources management principles applied to volunteers

• Convince unit managers (e.g. accreditation department) that volunteer training is not a waste of time but an investment that will ensure the organisation is more effective and more efficient on D-day. Unit managers were expected to organise their own «team building» actions (e.g. organise a meal for volunteers) to supplement the periodical actions set up by the volunteer human resources department. It was important for unit managers to be present and to initiate such actions. Although the volunteer human resources department was also involved in team-building actions, it encouraged team leaders to organise internal actions to reward their teams. The human resources department set aside a budget for this and ensured actions were carried out equably.

• Exemplarity as a key factor in success. The volunteer human resources team set an example through its high standard of volunteer administration, the quality of contacts and the reliability of its organisation (interview scheduling, quality of welcome, availability of contact people, up-to-date information on the volunteer web pages, etc)

• Briefings and debriefings. The qualifying rounds of the America’s Cup are organised as a series of self-contained events, known as Acts. These Acts allowed the organisers to continuously improve the organisational system by modifying and adapting human resources management actions, most notably through the use of briefings and debriefings.

• Provision of a volunteer centre. The volunteer centre provided the ideal environment in which to relax and socialise. This is where the team members of 32.org got together for meals, happy hours and impromptu parties, etc. With its superb view of the America’s Cup port, it was the perfect place to unwind.

10. Design and implementation of a quality system for the volunteer management programme

At the end of Acts 4 & 5 at Valencia, and in order to prepare the subsequent Acts, surveys were carried out to gauge volunteer satisfaction across the whole range of missions in which they were involved. Surveys were also carried out at the end of the integration days held in 2006, in order to determine whether improvements could be made for 2007. In addition, the multitude of regattas held enabled the organisers to select the best volunteers for the final stage of the competition. This was particularly important for the offshore volunteers, whose specialist skills had to be first rate.

Page 121: SENTEDALPS - ALPINE SPACE · Nancy Favre (IDHEAP), Alain Ferrand (UCBL), Tiziana ... Recruitment and assignment of ... This guide to volunteer management is the third and final

SENTEDALPS120 121SENTEDALPS

11. The operational phases of the volunteers programme

Management of the volunteers programme can be divided into four main phases.

• Phase one

After drawing up the budget for volunteer management (based on experience), the numbers of volunteer human resources required were calculated by people who were employed specifically for this task (i.e. consultants at the beginning of the project, and then member of the organisers’ staff). All the unit managers were interviewed about their volunteer requirements and the results were validated by their directors. As well as assessing the number of people and skills required, the needs analysis also covered the period of involvement, training dates, number of posts and resources required. The volunteer recruitment campaign included targeted communication actions with Valencia City Council, universities, sailing clubs and the local sailing federation, etc.

Recruitment involves evaluating the number and type of people to call for interview, allowing for a withdrawal rate of between 25 and 30%. In addition, a reserve team should be set up and a negative response rate of 5% should be expected. A volunteer database capable of directly compiling information from online application forms must be up and running at the start of the sourcing phase. The objective is to use the database as a decision-making tool (writing of reports, situation appraisals).

• Phase 2

Phase two was mostly concerned with putting the volunteer recruitment structure into operation (e.g. setting up interview premises and logistics, training selectors, etc). On average, 50 recruitment interviews were held every week.Four parties were involved in the recruitment process: the volunteers programme manager, the volunteer selector, the unit manager and the applicant.The volunteer human resources team was responsible for choosing and training the selectors who would meet the applicants. Selectors were debriefed on a daily basis. The selectors made recommendations, which were accepted or rejected by the volunteer human resources team. This team was responsible for the pre-assignment of the volunteers, who were then presented to the team leaders. Volunteers were only informed of their provisional assignment after the team leaders had given their assent. The volunteer also had to accept the post on offer before the assignment could be made definitive, at which point he/she was asked to sign a contract.

Page 122: SENTEDALPS - ALPINE SPACE · Nancy Favre (IDHEAP), Alain Ferrand (UCBL), Tiziana ... Recruitment and assignment of ... This guide to volunteer management is the third and final

SENTEDALPS122 123SENTEDALPS

• Phase 3

After beginning the recruitment phase, the organisers drew up the integration, team-building (e.g. Convention day), training and reward (volunteer party, newsletter, distribution of uniforms, etc) actions that would be needed. At the same time they defined the logistics required to successfully complete these actions. In addition, this phase was used to finalise the training plan (training materials, teaching tools, etc) and to launch the volunteer centre.

Applicants who successfully negotiated the interview phase were pre-assigned to a specific mission based on the recommendations of the selector, the number of applicants required for that mission, the best match between the requirements of the mission and the applicant’s profile and availability. Regular debriefings with the selectors allowed significant timesavings to be made at this stage. The pre-assignments were passed to the team leaders for approval, and then the volunteers were sent a pre-assignment letter, by e-mail, giving details of the proposed mission (dates, working times, training, name of the team leader, etc). This e-mail included a reply form to enable the volunteers to give their answer and comments, which were then entered into the database. Volunteers who accepted the missions they were offered were «assigned» and sent an official contract. The volunteer human resources team sent the volunteers’ work schedules and contact details to team leaders two to three weeks before the start of their mission (including information on attending the Volunteer Convention and training sessions).

• Phase 4

During the event, members of the volunteers programme were available to assist unit managers and volunteer managers. Their job was to provide volunteers with operational information, to manage and run the volunteer centre and to organise rewards. They were also there to give advice to team leaders.

• Phase 5

The fifth phase consisted of thanking the volunteers (e.g. sending best wishes, exclusive invitation for a base visit and cocktail party, gift CD of photos) and evaluating their opinion of the event in general and of the volunteers programme in particular. For example, the volunteers who took part in Valencia 2005 were asked to complete a satisfaction survey as soon as the event was over.

12. Pitfalls to avoid in the management of the volunteers programme

• Not giving similar rewards to volunteers who carried out similar missions• Not staggering the rewards for volunteers

Page 123: SENTEDALPS - ALPINE SPACE · Nancy Favre (IDHEAP), Alain Ferrand (UCBL), Tiziana ... Recruitment and assignment of ... This guide to volunteer management is the third and final

SENTEDALPS122 123SENTEDALPS

• Announcing all the material and immaterial rewards at the moment of recruitment (avoid inciting vocations)• Not timetabling actions• Not respecting timings• Not having a volunteer database• Mass publicity to promote the recruitment campaign• Under-estimating the budget needed• Under-evaluating the resources needed for the volunteers programme• Lacking creativity

Page 124: SENTEDALPS - ALPINE SPACE · Nancy Favre (IDHEAP), Alain Ferrand (UCBL), Tiziana ... Recruitment and assignment of ... This guide to volunteer management is the third and final

SENTEDALPS124 125SENTEDALPS

Page 125: SENTEDALPS - ALPINE SPACE · Nancy Favre (IDHEAP), Alain Ferrand (UCBL), Tiziana ... Recruitment and assignment of ... This guide to volunteer management is the third and final

SENTEDALPS124 125SENTEDALPS

IAAF CROSS COUNTRY WORLD CHAMPIONSHIPS

2005SAINT-ETIENNE/SAINT-GALMIER – FRANCE

Person interviewed: Pierre Toussaint, Joint President

1. In a few words

«The success of an event such as the Cross Country World Championships depends on the recruitment of enthusiastic and motivated volunteers. It is also essential to make sure the volunteers know they are needed». Pierre Toussaint, Joint President

«For someone to take annual leave in order to participate in the event as a volunteer is fabulous proof of motivation». Pierre Toussaint, Joint President

2. Concept of the event

The rights for this international event, which consists of six races (three for men, three for women) involving the world’s best athletes, are held by the International Association of Athletics Federations (IAAF). The organising committee for the 2005 Cross Country World Championships wanted to pay homage to the numerous athletes from the Rhône-Alpes Region who, over the decades, have been selected for the French team and particularly to those who have won individual or team medals.

3. Key factors in the success of the volunteer management at the strategic and operational levels

• Let volunteers know they are essential to the success of the event • Recruit volunteers who are passionate about the discipline• Targeted recruitment• Get the volunteer behind the idea that this edition must be better than the previous one

4. Impact of the event

• 550 volunteers called upon over 2 days

Page 126: SENTEDALPS - ALPINE SPACE · Nancy Favre (IDHEAP), Alain Ferrand (UCBL), Tiziana ... Recruitment and assignment of ... This guide to volunteer management is the third and final

SENTEDALPS126 127SENTEDALPS

• 4,239 bed-nights• 1,006,503 euros spent, 76% of which was invested in the local economy

5. The event’s calling card

Table 4.6: Characteristics of the IAAF Cross Country World Championships 2005

6. Event statistics at the time it was held (in 2005)

Table 4.7: Event statistics for the IAAF Cross Country World Championships 2005

7. Human resources of the event

These World Championships were mostly organised by volunteers, with only one member of the organising staff being paid a salary. In addition, the Loire «départemental» council, the French Athletics Federation (FFA) and the IAAF seconded five, six and three people respectively.

7. Strategic processes of volunteer management

• Governance and general strategy of the volunteers programme

Page 127: SENTEDALPS - ALPINE SPACE · Nancy Favre (IDHEAP), Alain Ferrand (UCBL), Tiziana ... Recruitment and assignment of ... This guide to volunteer management is the third and final

SENTEDALPS126 127SENTEDALPS

The Cross Country World Championships are held every year at the end of March, with each edition being hosted by a different country (the last time the event was held in France, in 1990, the host town was Aix les Bains). A local organising committee was set up under the statutes of the Loire Athletics Committee. This committee consisted of a four-person executive committee, a nine-member steering committee and a ten-member technical committee, which was composed of people seconded to the project. There was no volunteer management programme.

• «Organisation» of the volunteers

The organisation chart did not include any form of human resources department; individual managers took responsibility for training and motivating their own team of volunteers. Nevertheless, one member of the local organising committee was responsible for overseeing management issues, particularly volunteer recruitment. Two types of volunteer were recruited: - General volunteers (the majority), who were recruited locally to fulfil a wide range of functions: drivers, team assistants, safety, catering, laying out the courses, ticketing, snack bars, call room, changing-room attendant, parking, etc.- Technical volunteers, recruited from athletics clubs, who were given extra on-site training the day before the competition (mostly for the finish-line judges).

• Level of responsibility in the organisation Most of the event’s functional units were managed by volunteers, as, with the exception of a small number of salaried staff (i.e. contracted staff, seconded staff, employees), more than 96% of the people under the direct authority of the organising committee were volunteers. Function managers were responsible for managing their teams in the field. Different tasks and levels of responsibility were given to the volunteers, depending on the department they were in. For example, after drawing up the logistics coordination plan, the organising committee appointed a volunteer to run it. This volunteer was then responsible for organising 30 drivers.

• Rewards for volunteers

The volunteers did not receive any financial compensation but they were given a complete outfit (i.e. uniform and shoes) that they had to wear on competition days. They also received free meals. Volunteers had to wear an accreditation badge bearing the person’s name and the area to which they were assigned. Every volunteer received some training. All the volunteers were invited to attend the closing dinner, alongside the delegations.

Page 128: SENTEDALPS - ALPINE SPACE · Nancy Favre (IDHEAP), Alain Ferrand (UCBL), Tiziana ... Recruitment and assignment of ... This guide to volunteer management is the third and final

SENTEDALPS128 129SENTEDALPS

8. Profile of the volunteers

550 volunteers took part in the event. They were all between 16 and 65 years old and 60% of them were men. Most were recruited from the «département’s» athletics clubs and associations. 50% of the volunteers were in-work, 23% were students and the rest were retired. Some of the team assistants came from Lyon International Junior High School. The organising committee wanted every delegation to be accompanied by a volunteer who spoke that country’s language, in order to facilitate communication and to ensure any problems or needs were dealt with quickly.

9. Key human resources management principles applied to volunteers

The organising committee did not have any pre-planned volunteer management system or strategy. Two weeks before the event started, a meeting was held to explain how the event would be organised and what was expected of each person. The objective was to make the volunteers realize they were essential cogs in the organisational machine and therefore in the success of the event. Outside the managerial model, we can identify certain key aspects in the management of the volunteers for this event:

- It was important for group managers to motivate the volunteers - Volunteers’ actions were based on confidence, motivation and common sense - The solidarity within each group of volunteers was the key to success.

10. The operational phases of the volunteers programme

• Needs analysis

The steering committee held several meetings with each technical group in order to determine the numbers and types of volunteers they would need to meet their objectives. A member of the committee was responsible for centralising this evaluation, which was completed six months before the event began. It showed that 500 volunteers would be required. Another 50 posts were added to this total to compensate for possible defections.

• Recruitment

Recruitment was carried out through the region’s clubs, the «départemental» Olympic and Sports Committee and a school. In addition, a recruitment campaign was run in partnership with the local media. Priority was given to people who had already done voluntary work in the sporting field.

Page 129: SENTEDALPS - ALPINE SPACE · Nancy Favre (IDHEAP), Alain Ferrand (UCBL), Tiziana ... Recruitment and assignment of ... This guide to volunteer management is the third and final

SENTEDALPS128 129SENTEDALPS

• Integration

Two weeks before the competitions began, the volunteers were brought together to instil a feeling of belonging to the organising committee and to provide them with practical information about the posts to which they had been assigned. This task was given to the unit managers, who were also required to explain the principles of the event.

• Individual training of volunteers

The race course technical volunteers already had experience in managing races. The day before the event, they met with technical staff from the IAFF and the FFA, who gave them the specialist instructions they would need for this type of event. The volunteers responsible for safety for the venue and for other facilities were trained by staff from the Préfecture, the Gendarmerie and from the technical services department of Saint-Galmier Council. Unit managers (see table below) were responsible for their own teams of general volunteers

Assignment sectors for volunteers at the 2005 IAAF Cross Country World Championships

• Evaluation

As this is not a recurrent event, no evaluation was carried out. Nevertheless, in January 2006, ten months after the event, the steering committee invited the volunteers to a lunch to thank them and to provide them with a debriefing on the World Championships. Despite difficult weather conditions, almost of the volunteers attended and many of them thanked the organisers for the experiences they had shared. In addition, one category of volunteers, the drivers, organised a get together after the event. The list of volunteers who took part in the event has been kept on file in case it should be needed for future events.

11. Pitfalls to avoid in the management of the volunteers programme

• Not programming rest periods• Not thanking the volunteers• Over-excitement of the volunteers• Not adapting the recruitment campaign to the event’s needs• Taking volunteers for granted

Page 130: SENTEDALPS - ALPINE SPACE · Nancy Favre (IDHEAP), Alain Ferrand (UCBL), Tiziana ... Recruitment and assignment of ... This guide to volunteer management is the third and final

SENTEDALPS130 131SENTEDALPS

Page 131: SENTEDALPS - ALPINE SPACE · Nancy Favre (IDHEAP), Alain Ferrand (UCBL), Tiziana ... Recruitment and assignment of ... This guide to volunteer management is the third and final

SENTEDALPS130 131SENTEDALPS

20TH WINTER OLYMPIC GAMES 2006

TURIN - ITALY

Person interviewed: Giorgio Fantini, volunteers programme planning and operations manager

1. In a few words

«Men and women of all ages, from Italy and from abroad, responded to our appeal with enthusiasm and a strong desire to be present and take part. I would like to thank all the associations and organisations that participated in the recruitment campaign, without whom we would not have attracted so many applicants. Volunteers are an essential resource for the Games but their contribution extends far beyond the Olympics, both in scope and in time». Pierpaolo Maza, Vice-President of the TOROC.

2. Concept of the event

The Winter Olympic Games is an international winter sports competition held every four years. From 1924, when the first Winter Games were held in Chamonix, France, until 1992, the Winter Olympics were organised the same year as the summer Games (every leap year). They are still held every four years, but since 1994 they have taken place two years before (or after) the summer Games. The Winter Olympic Games consists of two categories of event: snow sports and ice sports. The snow sports cover alpine skiing, cross-country skiing, nordic-combined, ski jumping, biathlon, freestyle skiing and snowboarding. The ice sports include ice hockey, figure skating, speed skating, luge, bobsleigh, curling, short track and skeleton. In total, 1026 medals are awarded in fifteen disciplines covering 84 sports.

3. Impact of the event

• 42,000 volunteers applied for the programme• 29,000 volunteers interviewed• 27,000 volunteers trained, including 18,000 indoors (59 general training sessions and more than 500 sessions per department)• 16,200 volunteers used, including 13,000 from the Piedmont

Page 132: SENTEDALPS - ALPINE SPACE · Nancy Favre (IDHEAP), Alain Ferrand (UCBL), Tiziana ... Recruitment and assignment of ... This guide to volunteer management is the third and final

SENTEDALPS132 133SENTEDALPS

4. The event’s calling card

Table 4.8: Characteristics of the 20th Winter Olympic Games 2006

5. Event statistics

Table 4.9: Event statistics for the 20th Winter Olympic Games 2006

6. The volunteers programme for the 2006 Turin Winter Olympic Games: «Noi 2006»

• Objectives and global strategy of the promotional campaign

- Encourage applications from volunteers who already have accommodation at one of the Olympic venues, especially in the mountain resorts

- Promote applications from inhabitants of the Olympic valleys- Encourage hospitality amongst the volunteers (so local volunteers house

others from further a-field)- Ensure maximum commitment from the volunteers to the Games by

guaranteeing each volunteer at least ten day’s work.

• Promotional guidelines

In order to meet the objectives of the volunteers programme, guidelines were drawn up for three areas of the promotional campaign.

Page 133: SENTEDALPS - ALPINE SPACE · Nancy Favre (IDHEAP), Alain Ferrand (UCBL), Tiziana ... Recruitment and assignment of ... This guide to volunteer management is the third and final

SENTEDALPS132 133SENTEDALPS

- Branding- Create a specific brand, «Noi 2006», in order to create a feeling of belonging

to the team - Use the present tense for the recruitment campaign to give the idea that

the team already exists- Use simple and direct language- Use the colour red throughout the promotional campaign to symbolise the

volunteers’ passion for the event

- Messages - Motivate the volunteers, ensure they take responsibility for their actions but

avoid creating fears- Find a «happy medium» between a volunteer being an «ordinary person»

(so as not to frighten potential applicants) and, at the same time, a «special person» (in order to stimulate the creation of a team spirit)

- Convey the message that the Olympic Games is an exceptional event: for most volunteers this was a unique opportunity to participate in a global event with definite sporting and social values

- Frequency - Communicate regularly throughout the programme (Internet site,

newsletters, mailing, text messages, etc)- Organise special events to mark determining moments in the campaign,

for example:1 Launch of the programme: January 2004 2 Recruitment of the first ten volunteers: big party on 15th

February 2005 (a year before the event)3 Test events for the competition venues (sports events): January

- March 2005 4 Official presentation of uniforms: September 2005

• Communication actions

- Pre-event - Internet site: with access to a reserved area for downloading training

materials and broadcasting information - Newsletters- General training manual- Specialist training manual: using the same design, list of themes and

general information for all functions - Training rooms decorated with the «Noi 2006» programme design- Venue guide: pocket guide with practical advice to follow during the

Games- Text message and e-mail countdown, invitations to special events

Page 134: SENTEDALPS - ALPINE SPACE · Nancy Favre (IDHEAP), Alain Ferrand (UCBL), Tiziana ... Recruitment and assignment of ... This guide to volunteer management is the third and final

SENTEDALPS134 135SENTEDALPS

- Job offers: official confirmation of the volunteer’s recruitment and assignment (role, tasks, venue, etc)

- Invitation to collect official uniforms- Exclusive New Year’s greetings cards- Virtual venue tour: interactive training on the Olympic venues

- During the event- Volunteers bulletin: daily newsletter written by the volunteers for the

volunteers and coordinated by the volunteers manager for each venue- Televideo (teletext): pages dedicated to operational information- Radio programme: dedicated to volunteer’s stories

• Organisation of the volunteers department

The volunteers department was part of the organising committee (TOROC) and under the direct responsibility of the general management. It was completely separate from the human resources department, which was responsible for managing the salaried staff on the organising committee. During the pre-event phase, the volunteers department’s most important task was to promote and manage the «Noi 2006» programme. In order to meet this double objective, the process of managing volunteer projects was divided into a number of sections (figure 4.1).

Figure 4.1: Processes of the «Noi 2006» programme (adapted from Fantini, TOROC, 2006)

Table 4.10 shows the organisational structure of the volunteers department for the promotion of the «Noi 2006» programme.

Page 135: SENTEDALPS - ALPINE SPACE · Nancy Favre (IDHEAP), Alain Ferrand (UCBL), Tiziana ... Recruitment and assignment of ... This guide to volunteer management is the third and final

SENTEDALPS134 135SENTEDALPS

Table 4.10: Promotion of the «Noi 2006» programme (adapted from Fantini, TOROC, 2006)

In order to manage the volunteers programme and the volunteers, the volunteers department was divided into five sectors, as shown in table 4.11.

Table 4.11: Structure of the planning and operations service of the «Noi 2006» programme for the Turin Winter Olympic Games (adapted from Fantini, TOROC, 2006)

During the event phase, the volunteers department’s task was to directly assist the volunteers on-site and to deal with any potentially critical situations caused by volunteer withdrawals («no show»). This required setting up a centralised group of «reservists» within TOROC’s Main Operational Centre.

The Volunteers Manager was responsible for managing the volunteers within the site’s organisation structure and was the first person to confront problems caused by any volunteer absences.

Page 136: SENTEDALPS - ALPINE SPACE · Nancy Favre (IDHEAP), Alain Ferrand (UCBL), Tiziana ... Recruitment and assignment of ... This guide to volunteer management is the third and final

SENTEDALPS136 137SENTEDALPS

• Volunteer training

Volunteer training was divided into three parts: general training, operational training related to the volunteer’s function (specialist training) and on-site training. The organising committee also set up a training programme for the team leaders, each of whom was responsible for the day-to-day management of a group of between ten and twenty volunteers.

- General training

The objective of the general training (or orientation) was to motivate the volunteers and to provide training on Olympic values. The four-hour training sessions took place in groups of between 250 and 300 people. During these sessions volunteers were given a «training guide» and a certificate of attendance. This training was obligatory for all the volunteers from in or around the Olympic venues. Volunteers from further a-field (different regions of Italy or abroad) were sent the training guide by post.

The volunteers department managed all aspects of the general training sessions, including inviting volunteers to the sessions, finding and preparing training rooms and designing, producing and distributing training materials.

- Operational training (specialist training)

Operational training was designed to prepare the volunteers for the specific roles they would be asked to carry out during the event. Of course, the training was different for each of the functions attributed to volunteers. For example, some tasks required attendance at several training sessions, whereas for others a single session was sufficient. Each session lasted approximately three hours. During these training periods, each volunteer was given a «specialist training guide» containing advice on his/her particular function. As for the general training, the specialist training was almost entirely managed by the volunteers department: inviting the volunteers to the sessions, finding and preparing training rooms and designing, producing and distributing training materials.

- Team leader training

The objective of the team leader training was to prepare the team leaders who were (also volunteers) for managing a team (i.e. team building and team management). Training was carried out in groups of between 20 and 30 people, with each session lasting approximately four hours. A «training guide» was given to participants. Potential team leaders were chosen according to the information collected during the recruitment phase. These potential team leaders were then invited to attend a team leader training session. Volunteers were free

Page 137: SENTEDALPS - ALPINE SPACE · Nancy Favre (IDHEAP), Alain Ferrand (UCBL), Tiziana ... Recruitment and assignment of ... This guide to volunteer management is the third and final

SENTEDALPS136 137SENTEDALPS

to accept or decline a team leader post. Again, the team leader training was entirely managed by the volunteers department, which was responsible for all the processes involved (i.e. inviting the volunteers to the sessions, finding and preparing training rooms and designing, producing and distributing training materials).

- On-site training

The goal of the on-site training sessions was to introduce the volunteers to the venues in which they would be working during the event. Unlike the other three types of training offered by TOROC’s volunteers department, these training sessions were run by the team managers for the venue concerned (venue team). Each on-site training session lasted four hours.

• Main activities carried out by volunteers

Volunteers carried out 207 different tasks split between fourteen functional units. Some of these functional units and the constituent tasks carried out by volunteers are shown in the table 4.12.

Table 4.12: Division of human resources at the 20th Winter Olympic Games, Turin 2006

Volunteers were involved in tasks that took place inside (52%) and outside (48%) the competition venues, in order to meet the needs of the different “client” groups (i.e. 20% athletes and technical delegations, 14% spectators, 13% official delegations and Olympic family, 4% press and 51% mixed or other client groups). 56% of the volunteers were based in Turin and 44% were based in the mountain resorts.

Page 138: SENTEDALPS - ALPINE SPACE · Nancy Favre (IDHEAP), Alain Ferrand (UCBL), Tiziana ... Recruitment and assignment of ... This guide to volunteer management is the third and final

SENTEDALPS138 139SENTEDALPS

• Rewards for volunteers

Volunteers were not given any financial rewards. However, they did receive a number of benefits before, during and after the Games (table 4.13).

Table 4.13: «Rewards» for volunteers at the 20th Winter Olympic Games, Turin 2006

• Profile of the volunteers

61% of the 16,200 volunteers recruited for the 2006 Turin Olympic Games were men. In terms of education, 27% had a secondary school qualification, 55% a Bachelor’s degree, 16% a one-year Master’s degree and 2% a two-year Master’s degree. The volunteers came from a wide range of socio-professional groups: 33% were students, 28% were retired, 33% were in paid employment, 3% were housewives and 3% were unemployed. Table 4.14 shows the profiles of the volunteers by age group.

Table 4.14: Profile of the volunteers at the 20th Winter Olympic Games, Turin 2006 by age group

• Principal stakeholders in the «volunteers programme »

The «Noi 2006» Turin Winter Olympic Games volunteer programme involved four main stakeholders. Table 4.15 shows the contribution of each of these players.

Page 139: SENTEDALPS - ALPINE SPACE · Nancy Favre (IDHEAP), Alain Ferrand (UCBL), Tiziana ... Recruitment and assignment of ... This guide to volunteer management is the third and final

SENTEDALPS138 139SENTEDALPS

Table 4.15: The contributions of the stakeholders in the «Noi 2006» volunteers programme

• The different phases of the «volunteers programme »

The volunteers programme lasted approximately two years, starting from the recruitment phase. The programme, entitled «Noi 2006», was entirely run by the volunteers department during the recruitment, selection and general training phases. During the assignment, specialist training and scheduling phases, this department took on a steering role, with the direct management of the volunteers being delegated to the different departments. The complete programme management process (i.e. beginning and end of each task) is outlined in table 4.16.

Table 4.16: The stages of the «Noi 2006» Turin Winter Olympic Games volunteers programme (Source: Fantini, TOROC, 2006)

Page 140: SENTEDALPS - ALPINE SPACE · Nancy Favre (IDHEAP), Alain Ferrand (UCBL), Tiziana ... Recruitment and assignment of ... This guide to volunteer management is the third and final

SENTEDALPS140 141SENTEDALPS

Recruitment: The local authorities were involved in the design and implementation of the publicity campaign. The involvement of volunteer associations at this stage was essential. 17% of the applicants were from partners of the “Noi 2006” programme, such as alpine sports associations, “Ragazzi del 2006”, alpine towns, etc.

Selection: Local volunteers were selected following face-to-face interviews. Applicants from abroad and from outside the Turin region were interviewed by telephone. The objective of this phase was to check motivation and to evaluate skills. Volunteers were assigned to the function that best matched their profile. This phase was entirely managed by the volunteers department.

Assignment: Assignments were both functional and geographic. The availability of accommodation at each venue was also taken into account. Each department was responsible for assigning its own volunteers, with the volunteers department playing a steering role.

Scheduling: Each department was responsible for drawing up work timetables for its volunteers, with the volunteers department playing a steering role. As well as managing the scheduling and rostering phase, each department was also responsible for their own communication policy and for managing any changes that became necessary.

Distribution of uniforms: Accreditations and uniforms were handed out at the Main Accreditation Centre and at the Uniform Distribution Centre. These two aspects of the programme were also run by the volunteers department.

• Key factors in the success of the volunteer management at the strategic and operational levels

- Planning phase

• Intelligent use of previous experience• Adaptation of estimates to the particularities of the event in order to plan the overall requirement for volunteers• Definition of an operations model (tasks, responsibilities, procedures, etc), and then definition of the manpower needs using a shared model of each department’s processes and responsibilities during the Games (avoid overlaps, redundancy or incomplete processes).• Flexible definitions of posts to allow rotation between posts and thereby cover any eventuality. • Very few work posts required specialist skills: sport, technology, linguistic services, support for National Olympic Committees and for the press.

Page 141: SENTEDALPS - ALPINE SPACE · Nancy Favre (IDHEAP), Alain Ferrand (UCBL), Tiziana ... Recruitment and assignment of ... This guide to volunteer management is the third and final

SENTEDALPS140 141SENTEDALPS

- Management phase

• Define standards for volunteer management (i.e. governance, obligations and duties, communication systems, etc) and apply them systematically throughout the applicants’ life cycle (i.e. from the recruitment phase to the thank-you phase).• Plan, implement and manage all the services provided to the volunteers (i.e. comfortable uniforms, good food, etc) with precision.• Pay particular attention to every meeting with a volunteer to guarantee consistency in the quality of the contact. Treat the volunteer as a true customer (apply Customer Relationship Management techniques)• Define volunteer management processes in advance (i.e. tasks, responsibilities, date limit, selection criteria, etc) and communicate them clearly and coherently (internally and externally)• Train salaried personnel to manage volunteers (motivation, expectations, etc)• Do not discriminate between salaried personnel and volunteers.

Page 142: SENTEDALPS - ALPINE SPACE · Nancy Favre (IDHEAP), Alain Ferrand (UCBL), Tiziana ... Recruitment and assignment of ... This guide to volunteer management is the third and final

SENTEDALPS142 143SENTEDALPS

Page 143: SENTEDALPS - ALPINE SPACE · Nancy Favre (IDHEAP), Alain Ferrand (UCBL), Tiziana ... Recruitment and assignment of ... This guide to volunteer management is the third and final

SENTEDALPS142 143SENTEDALPS

ATHLETISSIMA2005

LAUSANNE – SWITZERLAND

Person interviewed: Jacky Delapierre, Executive Director

1. In a few words

«As each person’s task is vital to the smooth running of the event, it is important for volunteers to be aware of the value of their contribution», Jacky Delapierre, Executive Director«When training volunteers, we try to foresee the unforeseeable», Jacky Delapierre, Executive Director«Without volunteers, events such as ours would, quite simply, no longer exist», Jacky Delapierre, Executive Director

2. Concept of the event

Athletissima is an annual international athletics meeting that is held in Lausanne, Switzerland, on the second Tuesday in July. First organised in 1977 for the inauguration of the Pierre de Coubertin Stadium, it has become a very important annual event and is now part of the Athletics Grand Prix circuit. The event has been run under the auspices of the same person since its very beginning. It has always been held in Lausanne but in 1987 it moved to the larger Pontaise Stadium. It is also part of Swiss Top Sport, a group of fourteen major sports events in Switzerland.

3. Key factors in the success of the volunteer management at the strategic and operational levels

• Making volunteers feel valued (appreciation for their work)• The relationship of trust built up with the volunteers: human values • Giving responsibility to volunteers• Follow up: newsletters, Christmas present• Common dress code to build solidarity between volunteers

41 Figures produced by an impact study carried out after the 2001 edition.

Page 144: SENTEDALPS - ALPINE SPACE · Nancy Favre (IDHEAP), Alain Ferrand (UCBL), Tiziana ... Recruitment and assignment of ... This guide to volunteer management is the third and final

SENTEDALPS144 145SENTEDALPS

4. Impact of the event41

• 16,500 people (spectators, athletes, supervisory staff, media and volunteers) are present the evening of the event• 2,900 bed nights are generated• Each person spends an average of 41CHF at the event venue

5. The event’s calling card

Table 4.17: Characteristics of Athletissima 2005

6. Event statistics at the time it was held (in 2006)

Table 4.18: Event statistics for Athletissima 2005

7. Human resources of the event

Nearly all the people involved in organising this recurrent event are volunteers. Only two people have permanent, full-time contracts (secretariat) and a small number of people are contracted in (a technical manager, four doctors, twelve physiotherapists and 90 security staff). Most of the volunteers are recruited only for the evening of the competition (750), with no more than 50 volunteers being required ten days before the event. Three representatives of Lausanne City

Page 145: SENTEDALPS - ALPINE SPACE · Nancy Favre (IDHEAP), Alain Ferrand (UCBL), Tiziana ... Recruitment and assignment of ... This guide to volunteer management is the third and final

SENTEDALPS144 145SENTEDALPS

Council sit on the organising committee; they are considered seconded staff. Although the event only employs a very small number of salaried staff, it has gradually become more «professional», as there were no salaried personnel at all when it was first held (1977).

8. Strategic volunteer management process

• Governance and general strategy of the volunteers programme

Athletissima is an annual event run by an organising committee consisting of a management committee, which holds decision-making powers (four people), an executive committee (fourteen people) and a technical committee (ten people). There is no true volunteer management programme. Aside from two salaried staff, three seconded staff and the contracted technical managers, all the other people are volunteers.

• «Organisation» of the volunteers

The organisation chart does not include a human resources department and volunteer management is the responsibility of the individual technical managers, who look after their own teams. Many of the volunteers come back year after year. The renewal of key posts is almost automatic, as the person leaving usually proposes a replacement. The human resources requirement is set by the regulations of the International Association of Athletics Federations (IAAF). Although there is no volunteers programme, permanent contact with the volunteers is maintained through a newsletter, which is used to provide information and to ensure volunteers feel part of the organising committee. The event’s organising body is run as a non-profit association, which enables it to avoid most of the legal difficulties other types of structure may face with regard to recruiting volunteers.

• Rewards for volunteers

Every year, the volunteers receive a complete outfit (uniform and shoes), which they must wear on the day of the event. All the volunteers receive the same outfit, which is changed every year. The outfit does not bear the date of the event so it can be worn later without giving the impression of being outdated. Volunteers are also given an accreditation badge. A «real meal prepared by a caterer» is organised for the volunteers at the end of the event. In addition, each volunteer is sent a gift at Christmas. Decisions on the rewards to give the volunteers are taken by the organising committee. Modifications have been made since the beginning of the event (1977) as society has evolved.

• Level of responsibility in the organisation

Page 146: SENTEDALPS - ALPINE SPACE · Nancy Favre (IDHEAP), Alain Ferrand (UCBL), Tiziana ... Recruitment and assignment of ... This guide to volunteer management is the third and final

SENTEDALPS146 147SENTEDALPS

All the departments involved in the event depend on volunteers. Two categories of volunteer have been defined: technical volunteers and support volunteers. Technical volunteers are required to supervise the competitions; therefore, they must have the necessary technical skills. They are recruited through athletics clubs and priority is given to people who have already worked at regional meetings. Support volunteers carry out less specialised tasks (carrying athletes’ kit baskets, carrying results to the media, etc). They have no direct responsibility and are supervised by their superior all evening. The behaviour of these volunteers on the evening of the meeting is extremely important: they must melt into the event. Some of them may also be asked to carry out tasks they did not initially expect to do.

9. Profile of the volunteers

The typical profile of the volunteers is as follows: in paid employment, aged between 21 and 45, member of an athletics club in the Lausanne area and involved in regional athletics meetings. The main motivation is to be part of the event. Volunteers must know the sport, be willing to learn and be «presentable».

10. Key human resources management principles applied to volunteers

There is no precise volunteer management strategy. However, since the beginning of the event (1977), the function of volunteers in sport in general has evolved. In response to this evolution, many aspects of Athletissima have been modified and developed, for example, the rewards given to volunteers, volunteer training or maintaining contact with volunteers. The most important factor is to give volunteers a sense of responsibility, so they have the right attitude the day of the event. Key principles include:

- Human resources management must be based on trust- Human resources management must be based on the objectives to be

reached- Anyone can make a mistake: solidarity is essential to ensure everything

functions correctly.

11. The operational phases of the volunteers programme

Volunteer management at Athletissima comprises four main phases.

Page 147: SENTEDALPS - ALPINE SPACE · Nancy Favre (IDHEAP), Alain Ferrand (UCBL), Tiziana ... Recruitment and assignment of ... This guide to volunteer management is the third and final

SENTEDALPS146 147SENTEDALPS

• Needs analysis

Volunteer numbers and skills (for technical volunteers) are clearly defined in the IAAF’s regulations. Despite these regulations, it is extremely important to analyse precise needs, for technical volunteers as well as for support volunteers, to avoid problems due to the duplication of posts. This stage also ensures each person’s skills are put to the best use, making sure the right person is in the right job.

• RecruitmentMany volunteers are very loyal to this annual event. Vacancies are filled «automatically», as people who leave generally propose a replacement. Technical managers are responsible for recruiting «their own» volunteers and they are given a free hand to do so within the limits imposed by the IAAF’s regulations. However, it is still possible to apply to become a volunteer. An interview is obligatory for key positions. Recruitment is carried out through the area’s athletics clubs and priority is given to people who already officiate at regional meetings. There is no lack of applicants; the main difficulty is in finding people with the required skills. It is very important for volunteers to have a sense of responsibility; therefore, applicants must be chosen extremely carefully. It is essential not to loose the core and be left with people who only do this event.

• Individual training of volunteers

Every year, specialist training is given to the technical volunteers (on average, 180 per edition) in the form of two one-day courses. These courses are obligatory, even for volunteers who return several years running. This training is the responsibility of the technical director. In addition to the technical aspect, volunteers receive instructions on how to behave the evening of the event (how to dress, how to behave should a major problem occur). Volunteers are also «trained» at the other meetings they take part in. The aim is to keep the same volunteers as long as possible. Volunteer skills requirements are set by the IAAF and are automatically defined for each position. Instruction sheets have been drawn up for key areas: jumping events, throwing events, running events. The cost of training is zero. Volunteers have not been found to have any particular difficulties in carrying out their tasks, thanks to their good training.

• Follow up

There is no formal evaluation of volunteer performance; nevertheless the organising committee knows who works well (and who does not) in which position. Contact with volunteers is maintained throughout the year by newsletter and by mail. The volunteers’ addresses are stored in a database,

Page 148: SENTEDALPS - ALPINE SPACE · Nancy Favre (IDHEAP), Alain Ferrand (UCBL), Tiziana ... Recruitment and assignment of ... This guide to volunteer management is the third and final

SENTEDALPS148 149SENTEDALPS

which enables the organising committee to keep in touch and to provide information outside the competition period. A thank-you letter is sent just after the event, and a gift is sent at Christmas. Volunteers can also be asked to participate in other events; however, no specific volunteer organisation has been created. The organising committee claims to listen to ideas from volunteers but it does not solicit them.

12. Pitfalls to avoid in the management of the volunteers programme

• Excessive confidence on the part of the volunteers• Duplication of positions

Page 149: SENTEDALPS - ALPINE SPACE · Nancy Favre (IDHEAP), Alain Ferrand (UCBL), Tiziana ... Recruitment and assignment of ... This guide to volunteer management is the third and final

SENTEDALPS148 149SENTEDALPS

GRAND RAID CRISTALP2005

VALAIS - SWITZERLAND

Person interviewed: David Genolet, Vice-President – Valais Excellence Project Leader

1. In a few words

«Volunteers help with this race first to serve their local area, and then for the event», David Genolet

2. Concept of the event

The Grand Raid Cristalp is the biggest mountain-bike race in Switzerland. It is held in the canton of the Valais on the last-but-one Sunday in August. Competitors can choose between two courses: the first covers 131km from Verbier to Grimentz, the second covers 76km from Hérémence to Grimentz. Launched in 1990, when mountain biking in the Alps was just taking off, the Grand Raid Cristalp has developed considerably and become a great success. In recent years, a total of 4,000 competitors have taken part in the two races, with the number of entries being limited by the organisers for safety reasons. The race passes through nine resorts, the managers of which have become involved in the organisation of the event. This has provided a unique occasion to create a spirit of regional cooperation. What is more, it is one of the biggest annual events in most of the areas it crosses. The event has introduced an integrated management system based on ISO 9001 and 14001 standards.

3. Key factors in the success of the volunteer management at the strategic and operational levels

• Ensure volunteers feel proud to be associated with the event by showing them their contribution is valued• Promote volunteer involvement so they feel they are stakeholders• Respect for people

4. Impact of the event

• More than 1,000 volunteers are employed on the day of the event• 20 to 25,000 spectators line the course

Page 150: SENTEDALPS - ALPINE SPACE · Nancy Favre (IDHEAP), Alain Ferrand (UCBL), Tiziana ... Recruitment and assignment of ... This guide to volunteer management is the third and final

SENTEDALPS150 151SENTEDALPS

• 6,000 bed nights are generated by the race• The event promotes the Valais as an excellent area for mountain biking• The economic fallout from the event is estimated to be 4 million CHF

5. The event’s calling card

Table 4.19: Characteristics of the Grand Raid Cristalp 2005

6. Event statistics (for the 2005 edition)

Table 4.20: Event statistics for the Grand Raid Cristalp 2005

7. Human resources of the event

Nearly all the people involved in organising and running the event are volunteers; however, there is only one permanent, but part-time (60%) employee (secretariat) and fifteen people have annual contracts (six local area and sector managers). It is an annual event for which the majority of the volunteers are only required for the day of the competition. 10% of the volunteers are needed three days before the event and 30% are needed one day before. Although the organising committee only employs a very small number of salaried staff, it is possible to say that the event has gradually become more «professional», as when it was first held (1990) there were no salaried personnel.

Page 151: SENTEDALPS - ALPINE SPACE · Nancy Favre (IDHEAP), Alain Ferrand (UCBL), Tiziana ... Recruitment and assignment of ... This guide to volunteer management is the third and final

SENTEDALPS150 151SENTEDALPS

8. Strategic volunteer management process

• Governance and general strategy of the volunteers programme

The Grand Raid Cristalp is an annual event run by an organising committee consisting of a central committee made up of the nine regional managers, and a six-person technical committee. Race management is divided into nine sectors covering the nine resorts that are crossed. There is no true volunteers management programme. With the exception of one salaried staff member and the contracted local area and sector managers, all the other personnel are volunteers.

• «Organisation» of the volunteers

The organisation chart does not include a human resources department. Volunteer management is left to the individual sector managers, who are responsible for recruiting and training their own volunteers. Nor is there a volunteers programme. A large number of volunteers come back year after year (75% loyalty rate). New sector managers are recruited by the regions themselves, whereas new local area managers are chosen by the central committee. There is a high degree of loyalty amongst the people filling key positions. Human resources requirements are defined by the regions. Volunteers are represented on the organising committee by the sector managers, who meet several times a year. The organising committee has been set up as a non-profit association, which enables it to avoid most of the legal difficulties other types of structure may face with regard to recruiting volunteers. Nevertheless, the event is insured. Volunteers must also take out personal insurance cover.

• Rewards for volunteers

Every year, the volunteers are given a t-shirt, which they have to wear the day of the event, and a souvenir gift (the same as for the competitors). All the volunteers receive the same t-shirt and gift, which changes every year. Meals and refreshments are also provided on the day of the race. The rewards for volunteers are chosen by the race committee and depend on the budget available. Changes have been made since the event began (1990): initially, each volunteer was given a financial reward of 10 CHF, but this was stopped for budgetary reasons. The number of volunteers has also been reduced, in order to reduce costs (each volunteer costs 15 CHF). Every year, a party for the volunteers is held just after the event. In general, «the volunteers are happy to work for this event, as it is important for their region».

Page 152: SENTEDALPS - ALPINE SPACE · Nancy Favre (IDHEAP), Alain Ferrand (UCBL), Tiziana ... Recruitment and assignment of ... This guide to volunteer management is the third and final

SENTEDALPS152 153SENTEDALPS

• Level of responsibility in the organisation

All the departments of the event are dependent on volunteers because, aside from the sector and local area mangers, everyone is a volunteer. The volunteers are not divided into different categories. Each sector (region) manages its own volunteers; therefore volunteers are not classified by «technical role» but by geographical area. Volunteers have no direct responsibilities: sector and local area managers decide, volunteers assist and apply. However, volunteers do carry out different tasks depending on their post (refreshments, safety, etc).

• Profile of the volunteers

There is no strategy to achieve a mix of human resources. Most volunteers live in the region (75%); the remainder are regular visitors from other regions. There is no typical volunteer profile: all age groups and professions are represented and there are almost as many women as men. Posts are assigned according to age and skills. The volunteers’ main motivation is to serve their region – they are volunteers for their region before they are volunteers for the Grand Raid Cristalp race.

9. Key human resources management principles applied to the volunteers

There is no volunteer management strategy. When the event began (1990), a decision was taken to «leave» human resources management to each sector, that is to say, the nine resorts the race crosses. Nevertheless, the volunteers are represented on the central committee by the sector managers. This decentralisation has disadvantages, especially from a volunteer training point of view, as training is not uniform. The question of whether to adopt a more professional mode of organisation, which would involve greater centralisation, is often raised. However, it is feared that this would lead to a loss of freedom for the sectors and a reduction in the volunteers’ attachment for their region. Key principles include:

- Human resources management must be based on respect for individuals- It is important for a recurrent event to have a consistent policy and not to change strategy every year.

10. Design and implementation of a quality system for the volunteer management programme

The event has introduced an «overall» quality system through the Valais

Page 153: SENTEDALPS - ALPINE SPACE · Nancy Favre (IDHEAP), Alain Ferrand (UCBL), Tiziana ... Recruitment and assignment of ... This guide to volunteer management is the third and final

SENTEDALPS152 153SENTEDALPS

Excellence project, which is a management system that allows tourism enterprises to adopt a sustainable management approach. Based on the idea that to be successful a tourist region must provide professional and high-quality services (sports events are considered tools for promoting tourism), the project provides simple tools to help organisations set up an integrated management system: environment - quality - safety - finance - human resources. The Grand Raid Cristalp was a pilot sports event for this project. The on-going process of quality certification has resulted in a satisfaction survey for all the people involved and a social analysis of the event. The «team management tool» included in the project also affects the management of human resources, as it can be used to define the skills each person must have.

11. Operational phases of the volunteers programme

Four main phases can be identified for this event. The person interviewed stressed that these phases «may be good in theory, but they are often difficult to put into practice and are not necessarily carried out». Furthermore, the configuration of the race and its decentralised organisation gives a large amount of freedom to the different sectors, which are responsible for organising these different phases.

• Needs analysis

There are no regulations covering the organisation of the event; therefore, the nine sector managers define their needs according to «field» experience and the specification. In the past, volunteer requirements were generally overestimated. This has been corrected, primarily in order to reduce costs.

• Recruitment

Whether or not they occupy key posts, the event’s volunteers are very loyal. The sector managers are responsible for recruitment in their region, which is carried out by word of mouth without specifically going through sports clubs or other organisations. Replacement sector managers are recruited by the regions, whereas the local area managers are appointed by the central committee. The race’s Internet site includes an application form for volunteers. Positions are assigned according to the applicant’s age and skills. Recruitment has not posed any particular problems and there is no shortage of applicants; the event has to turn down large numbers of people.

• Individual training of volunteers

There is no official training plan. Each volunteer receives practical on-site training before the event. Training is specific to each post. There are different levels of

Page 154: SENTEDALPS - ALPINE SPACE · Nancy Favre (IDHEAP), Alain Ferrand (UCBL), Tiziana ... Recruitment and assignment of ... This guide to volunteer management is the third and final

SENTEDALPS154 155SENTEDALPS

training, with the training given depending on the volunteer’s experience. Training is done by the sector managers. Training costs are zero. For key positions, instruction sheets have been drawn up in the form of a specification (70% of positions). First aid information sheets are also provided for some positions. There is no formal evaluation of the training; evaluations are based on experience. However, the volunteers’ behaviour and skills are evaluated by their sector manager (and their immediate superior). This allows decisions to be made on whether or not to use someone again the following year.

• Evaluation

Volunteers are not formally evaluated; however each sector manager knows who worked well (and who did not) in which post. A database containing personal information about the volunteers is being set up. It will allow more regular and more «centralised» contact to be kept with them. Recently, local areas have begun to call upon volunteers for other events. No volunteer organisation has been created.

12. Pitfalls to avoid in the management of the volunteers programme

• Not respecting individuals• Forgetting that volunteers have limits: compensation should be allowed

for key positions

Page 155: SENTEDALPS - ALPINE SPACE · Nancy Favre (IDHEAP), Alain Ferrand (UCBL), Tiziana ... Recruitment and assignment of ... This guide to volunteer management is the third and final

SENTEDALPS154 155SENTEDALPS

49ER OLYMPIC CLASS SAILING WORLD CHAMPIONSHIPS

2006AIX LES BAINS – FRANCE

Person interviewed: Gilles Dyen, President of the organising committee

1. In a few words

The organising committee’s natural and simple approach to volunteer management can be summed up in these few words: «I think it’s great that we can always find energetic and enthusiastic volunteers. They love it. That’s why I adore this sort of enriching experience». Gilles Dyen

2. Concept of the event

As an Olympic class sailing event (category C) held in natural nautical arenas, the 49er is the most spectacular of all the Olympic dinghy classes. This event had been held all over the world before coming to Aix les Bains (Hawaii in 2002, Cadiz in 2003, Athens in 2004 and Moscow in 2005). It is a five-day competition consisting of a number of qualifying regattas and culminating in a series of finals races. The 8th World Championships, which were also a «qualifying» event for the 2008 Beijing Olympic Games, brought together more than 35 nationalities. The event was divided into an offshore sector (called sea) and a land sector. It was organised by Aix les Bains Sailing Club in partnership with Aix les Bains City Council and the Savoie Tourist Board.

3. Key factors in the success of the volunteer management at the strategic and operational levels

• Expertise gained from holding several national events • Separating the human resources needs analysis into land and sea tasks • An effective partnership with the local authorities• Effective delegation in volunteer management.• A simplified, horizontal-type organisational structure• The natural attractiveness of an international event, which facilitates the

Page 156: SENTEDALPS - ALPINE SPACE · Nancy Favre (IDHEAP), Alain Ferrand (UCBL), Tiziana ... Recruitment and assignment of ... This guide to volunteer management is the third and final

SENTEDALPS156 157SENTEDALPS

recruitment of volunteers• The recruitment of enthusiastic volunteers

4. Impact of the event42

• 3,000 to 10,000 spectators were expected each day, depending on the stage of the competition (heats and finals)• 3,500 to 4,000 bed nights were generated

5. The event’s calling card

Table 4.21: Characteristics of the 49er Olympic Class Sailing World Championships 2006

6. Event statistics (four months before it took place)

Table 4.22: Event statistics for the 49er Olympic Class Sailing World Championships 2006

7. Human resources of the event

Not having any salaried staff, the organising committee depended on the support of staff seconded from Aix les Bains City Council and Tourist Office. This seconded personnel worked on the event’s communication and promotion programme. Three volunteers from Aix les Bains Sailing Club were involved

42 Provisional data collected four months before the event took place.

Page 157: SENTEDALPS - ALPINE SPACE · Nancy Favre (IDHEAP), Alain Ferrand (UCBL), Tiziana ... Recruitment and assignment of ... This guide to volunteer management is the third and final

SENTEDALPS156 157SENTEDALPS

from the event bidding stage and the organising committee team was built up as the months passed, most notably during the two months before the event took place. In the end, around one hundred volunteers were called upon to help organise these World Championships. Ten percent of them were involved two months before the event; the others (around ninety people) were called upon for a period starting one week before the event and finishing a few days after it.

8. Governance and general strategy of the volunteers programme

Since 1994, when Aix les Bains hosted the French Junior Championships, the city council and the local sailing club has hosted many different national and international events in the hope of one day organising the crowning event of the dinghy sailing calendar: the 49er World Championships. Although no overall strategy was drawn up, volunteer management was based on and inspired by this previous experience. The volunteers, most of whom were recruited from Aix les Bains Sailing Club, were placed under the management of the 49er World Championships organising committee. According to the president of the organising committee, the volunteers «are first and foremost keen sailors».

The key human resources management principles applied to volunteers were as follows:

• Great importance was given to the volunteers, who were recruited to assist the permanent and semi-permanent organisers

• Accurately determine the number and type of volunteers needed • Provide each volunteer with a job description• Give volunteers a sense of value and remain in contact with them after the event.

9. The operational phases of the volunteers programme

Although there was no true volunteers programme, it is possible to identify the separate phases needed to ensure the effective management of the volunteer resources.

• Training of volunteers

The organising committee based its volunteer management on the experience gained from holding national regattas over a ten-year period. There was no

Page 158: SENTEDALPS - ALPINE SPACE · Nancy Favre (IDHEAP), Alain Ferrand (UCBL), Tiziana ... Recruitment and assignment of ... This guide to volunteer management is the third and final

SENTEDALPS158 159SENTEDALPS

true volunteer training; however volunteers were given precise instructions and advice on what was expected of them. This initial empirical evaluation was based on the needs analysis. This was indispensable, most notably in the efficient management of the off-water logistics. Based on their technical expertise in the offshore domain, the personnel were assigned to one of two distinct sectors.

Responsibility for the sea sector, i.e. the offshore domain, was given to members of local sailing clubs. Responsibility for the land sector was delegated to the Savoie Tourist Board.

The recruitment programme for the sea sector was based on promoting the event amongst members of the three sailing clubs in the Aix les Bains and Chambéry area, and then amongst members of the Rhône Alpes league. Thanks to the event’s reputation, it was relatively easy to attract sufficient numbers of volunteers with the necessary skills and the human resources requirement for this sector was quickly filled.

• Delegation of the recruitment programme

The recruitment programme for the land sector was entirely managed by the Savoie Tourist Board, which was able to use its extensive experience in organising major sports events and its ability to mobilise a large number of competent people for short-term actions.

There was no specific volunteer management programme (recruitment and training); however, it could be said that such a programme was set up indirectly by the Savoie Tourist Board. Effective internal communication and task assignment methods were drawn up to manage all the organiser’s human resources (e.g. job descriptions, preparatory meetings in small teams, general meeting before the event, reconnaissance on the water to improve understanding of how the races would run, etc).

• The organisational structure of the organising committee

A horizontal-type organisational structure was set up, with separate «pilots» for the «sea» and «land» sectors. In order to guarantee smooth relations between volunteers and professionals, a «rule of competence» was imposed to ensure each member of staff had the skills their post required. Therefore, hierarchical links ran in both directions. The organisational structure was regularly up-dated to take into account changes in the number of staff as the project advanced.

• Rewards for volunteers

Compensation for volunteers was mostly based on the notion of participation, that is to say, the satisfaction of contributing to the success of a major event

Page 159: SENTEDALPS - ALPINE SPACE · Nancy Favre (IDHEAP), Alain Ferrand (UCBL), Tiziana ... Recruitment and assignment of ... This guide to volunteer management is the third and final

SENTEDALPS158 159SENTEDALPS

with a similar format to an Olympic competition. The organisers felt that the response to this from keen sailors and people interested in major events was highly satisfactory. The volunteers also received traditional rewards, such as a uniform and a post-event volunteers party.

• Transmission of expertise

A report on the management of the volunteers will be written for use by the next organisers of this international regatta, or by the organisers of any other similar event who may be interested in learning from Aix les Bains’ experience.

Page 160: SENTEDALPS - ALPINE SPACE · Nancy Favre (IDHEAP), Alain Ferrand (UCBL), Tiziana ... Recruitment and assignment of ... This guide to volunteer management is the third and final

SENTEDALPS160 161SENTEDALPS

Page 161: SENTEDALPS - ALPINE SPACE · Nancy Favre (IDHEAP), Alain Ferrand (UCBL), Tiziana ... Recruitment and assignment of ... This guide to volunteer management is the third and final

SENTEDALPS160 161SENTEDALPS

CONCLUSION

Whatever the format and characteristics of a sports event, its organisation and success depend on the management, steering and flexibility of its volunteers programme. However, this is only the most visible part of volunteer management. Volunteer management is a system and a series of processes that create, communicate and produce value for the organising structure and its stakeholders. The chapters of this guide present a method and tools that can be used to draw up and implement the strategic and operational processes required for this type of action. For the purposes of clarity, these processes have been presented as a linear progression in which stages neatly follow one after another. However, this is merely a model of a much more complex reality in which it is difficult to precisely control the large number of variables that come into play in any sports event project.

This situation results in project managers being faced with three types of uncertainty. Firstly, there is a general uncertainty due to the impossibility of relying on an entirely deterministic approach in which the rigorous implementation of these processes will inevitably produce a good result. In reality, projects must be constantly modified to compensate for the differences between the real situation and the predicted situation. Secondly, there is a contingent uncertainty due to the effects of external factors. Finally, there is an uncertainty linked to the interdependence of the stakeholders involved in designing and implementing the project.

The uncertainty surrounding any managerial action can be reduced by experience and expertise. This is why we have incorporated the experience and expertise of the SENTEDALPS network, together with that of a number of experts who are, or who have been involved in the volunteers programmes of major sports events. This approach has allowed us to design a method and tools, and to identify key success factors based on what «really happens» in the field. The tables included in the appendices summarise all the essential factors that should be taken into account in each operational phase.

In addition to these aspects, the importance of communicating with, motivating and rewarding volunteers must also be stressed. These factors are not a simple stage between the «volunteers programme planning phase» and the «evaluation, follow up and conservation phase»; they are part of a support process that is an essential element in successfully completing the whole project. During the six phases of the volunteers programme, the members of the organising body must

43 That is to say, volunteers do not receive any financial remuneration.

Page 162: SENTEDALPS - ALPINE SPACE · Nancy Favre (IDHEAP), Alain Ferrand (UCBL), Tiziana ... Recruitment and assignment of ... This guide to volunteer management is the third and final

SENTEDALPS162 163SENTEDALPS

constantly motivate and compensate their volunteers by regularly providing them with information. By definition, volunteers are not paid43 but that does not mean they should not be rewarded for their efforts (e.g. training, provision of a uniform, sharing intense experiences, etc). One of the basic principles of a volunteers programme is to regularly communicate with volunteers, gradually increasing the intensity of such actions so the volunteers’ enthusiasm increases as the event approaches and excitement grows. It is also strongly recommended to maintain constant and individual contact with each volunteer (mostly via Internet). Experts agree that organising committees should provide their volunteers with news at least once a month, starting at the beginning of the recruitment phase. In addition, volunteers must be made to feel an integral part of the event, for example, by giving them a specific identity.

Recognition for the work of the volunteers is one of the major components of the programme. The objective is not just to pay homage to the volunteers, who play a decisive role in ensuring the success of the organisation, but also to leave a legacy for future generations. To achieve this, it is essential to know each and every volunteer in order to be able to personalise thank-you messages and thereby ensure the recipient really feels appreciated. It is also necessary to ensure that the rewards on offer are not the main reason for a volunteer’s participation in the event. For this reason, rewards must be attributed progressively and identical rewards must be given to everyone who fulfils the same role. Just as equity between volunteers is a motivating factor, imbalances in the amount or nature of rewards can cause discontent, as can making promises that cannot be kept.

We have analysed events covering a period from the 1992 Albertville and Savoie Olympic Games to the America’s Cup in Valence in 2007. They show that the management of volunteers programmes has become more and more rational and structured. Nevertheless, organisers must not loose sight of the fact that volunteer human resources are one of the keys to a successful event. Volunteers must see that their commitment has a sense, so their experience is both unique and unforgettable. Essar Gabriel, the general manager of the GIP that organised the 2003 Paris Athletics World Championships in Saint-Denis45, stressed this duality when he said, «Setting up a volunteers programme is a long-term task. Of course, the visible part is during the event, as they (the volunteers) contribute their enthusiasm and skill to the event. But these unforgettable moments are the result of long, advance preparation» (i.e. planning, evaluation, recruitment and assignment, operational management, integration and training). Volunteers must be nurtured after the event (i.e. evaluation, follow up and conservation), in order to ensure their skills and expertise can be called upon again in the future.

44 http://www.lequipe.fr/Athletisme/paris_2003_itw_gabriel.html

Page 163: SENTEDALPS - ALPINE SPACE · Nancy Favre (IDHEAP), Alain Ferrand (UCBL), Tiziana ... Recruitment and assignment of ... This guide to volunteer management is the third and final

SENTEDALPS162 163SENTEDALPS

REFERENCES

Aaker, D.A. (1991) Managing brand equity: capitalizing on the value of a brand name, New York: The Free Press.Aoki, M. (1984) The cooperative game theory of the firm, Oxford: Clarendon Press.Bayle, E. (2005) Management des organisations sportives : contributions à l’analyse du management d’organisations hybrides, Mémoire pour l’habilitation à diriger des recherches, Université Lyon 1 (non publié). Ferran-Bechmann, D. (1995) Bénévolat et solidarité, Paris, Syros-alternatives.Bouchet Virette, M. Entretien concernant le mode de management des volontaires des Championnats du Monde d’Athlétisme Paris 2003, Paris 19 Avril 2006, (document SENTEDALPS non publié).Bowen, H.R. (1953) The social responsibility of the businessman, New York: Harper & Brothers.Brabet, J. (1993) Repenser la gestion des ressources humaines, Paris : Economica.Caballero, E. (2006) Entretien concernant le mode de management des volontaires du Festival Olympique de la Jeunesse Européenne, Lausanne 23 Mars 2006, (document SENTEDALPS non publié).Chappelet, J.L. (1999) Le management des volontaires d’une grande manifestation sportive à l’exemple des Jeux d’hiver. Communication pour «The International Symposium, Volunteers, global Society and the Olympic Movement», Lausanne.Chappelet, J.L. (2000) Volunteer Management at a Major Sports Event: the Case of the Olympic Winter Games. Article publié in Volunteers, Global Society and the Olympic Movement (M. de Moragas et al, Editors), IOC Editions (Documents of the Museum), Lausanne, 2000, p. 245-255.Charmetant, R. (2006) Les enjeux relatifs au management des grands événements sportifs. Colloque international « Les grands événements sportifs et leurs impacts sur le territoire. Comparaison entre France – Suisse – Autriche », Turin, 30 et 31 Mars 2006 (non publié).Charmetant, R., Bergeri, P., Sordet, P., Geffroy, D., Favre, N, Ferrand, A., Rizzon, J. (2005) Guide to the organisation of sports events for sport officials,politicians and administrators. “So, where do we start?” Sentedalps : Lausanne.Charmetant (2001) Conference Sports event human resources management. Sports Event Management and Organisation Seminar (SEMOS), Lausanne 23 Octobre 2001 (non publié).Chelladurai, P. (1999) Human resource management in sport and recreation, Champaign, IL : Human Kinetics.Chéroute, M.T. (1989) L’essor et l’avenir du bénévolat, facteur d’amélioration de la qualité de vie, Paris : Editions du Conseil économique et social.

Page 164: SENTEDALPS - ALPINE SPACE · Nancy Favre (IDHEAP), Alain Ferrand (UCBL), Tiziana ... Recruitment and assignment of ... This guide to volunteer management is the third and final

SENTEDALPS164 165SENTEDALPS

Clarkson, M.B.E. (1995) A stakeholder framework for analysing and evaluating corporate social performance, Academy of Management Review, 20 (1), 92-97.Cuskelly, G., Auld, J.C. (1999) People management : the key to business success. In L. Trenberth and C Collins (Eds.). Sport Business Management in New Zealand. Palmerston North : Dunmore Press, 164-183.Delapierre, J. (2006) Entretien concernant le mode de management des volontaires du meeting international Athletissima, Lausanne 15 Mars 2006, (document SENTEDALPS non publié).Desbordes, M. (2000) Gestion du sport, Paris: Editions Vigot.Desbordes, M, Falgoux, J. (2003) Organiser un événement sportif, Paris : Editions d’organisationDétrie, P. (2001) Conduire une démarche qualité, Paris : Editions d’organisation.Fantini, G. (2006) Entretien concernant le mode de management des volontaires des Jeux Olympiques d’hiver de Turin 2006, Turin 29 Mars 2006, (document SENTEDALPS non publié).Ferrand, A., Torrigiani, L. (2005) Marketing of Olympic sport organisations. Champaign, IL : Human Kinetics. Ferrand, A., Torrigiani, L., Camps, A. (2006) Sport et sponsoring, Paris : Editions INSEP.Favre, N. (2006) La labellisation ou l’adaptation d’un système qualité par les événements sportifs, in Chappelet et al., (en cours de parution) : Editions L’Harmattan.Freeman, R.E. (1984) Strategic Management: A Stakeholder Approach, Boston: Pitman.Gresser, B., Bessy, O. (1999) Le management d’un événement sportif, In G. Lacroix, M. Waser, Le management du sport : 15 études de cas corrigées, Paris : Editions d’organisation, 25-44.Halba, B., Le Net, M. (1997) Bénévolat et volontariat, Paris : Documentation française.Henry, I., Lee, P. (2004) Governance and Ethics in Sport, in J. Beech and Chadwick, S (eds.) The Business of Sport Management, FT/ Thompson.Lechat, B. Entretien concernant le mode de management des volontaires de la 32ème Coupe de l’América Valencia 2007, Valencia 21 Mars 2006 (Document SENTEDALPS non publié).Maders, H.P, Clet, E. (2002) Comment manager un projet ?, Paris : Editions d’Organisation.Maffesoli, M. (1988) Le temps des tribus, Paris, Méridiens Klincksieck.Marchesnay, M. (2004) Management stratégique, Montpellier : Editions de l’ADREG.Marsden, C., Andriof, J. (1998) Towards and understanding of corporate citizenship and how to influence it?, Citizenship Studies, 2 (2) 329-352.Mintzberg, H (1989) Le Management, voyage au centre des organisations. Paris : éditions d’organisation.

Page 165: SENTEDALPS - ALPINE SPACE · Nancy Favre (IDHEAP), Alain Ferrand (UCBL), Tiziana ... Recruitment and assignment of ... This guide to volunteer management is the third and final

SENTEDALPS164 165SENTEDALPS

Mitchell, R.D., Agle, B.R., Wood, D.J. (1997) Toward a theory of stakeholder identification and salience: defining. the principle of who and what really counts, Academy of Management Review, 22 (4°), 853-886.Mongillon, P., Verdoux, S. (2003). L’entreprise orientée processus : aligner le pilotage opérationnel sur la stratégie des clients, Paris: AFNOR.Polonsky, M.J. (1995) A Stakeholder Theory Approach to Designing Environmental Marketing Strategy, Journal of Business and Industrial Marketing ,10 (3), 29-46.Schnitzer M. (2004) Managing volunteers at the winter universiade Innsbruck/Seefeld 2005, Mémoire Master Exécutif en Management des Organisations Sportives (MEMOS VII), Université Lyon 1. (non publié).Schnitzer, M. (2006) Entretien concernant le mode de management des volontaires des Universiades d’Innsbruck/Seefeld 2005, Innsbruck 4 Avril 2006, (document SENTEDALPS non publié).Sheth, J.N., Parvatiyar, A. (2000) The handbook of relationship marketing, Thousand Oaks: Sage Publications.Sordet, P. Entretien concernant le mode de management des volontaires des Jeux Olympiques d’hiver d’Albertville et de la Savoie 1992, Paris 19 Avril 2006, (document SENTEDALPS non publié).Viargues, J.L. (2004) Le guide du manager d’équipe. Paris : Editions d’Organisation.Weber, M. (1922) Economie et Société, Paris : Plon.

Page 166: SENTEDALPS - ALPINE SPACE · Nancy Favre (IDHEAP), Alain Ferrand (UCBL), Tiziana ... Recruitment and assignment of ... This guide to volunteer management is the third and final

SENTEDALPS166 167SENTEDALPS

Page 167: SENTEDALPS - ALPINE SPACE · Nancy Favre (IDHEAP), Alain Ferrand (UCBL), Tiziana ... Recruitment and assignment of ... This guide to volunteer management is the third and final

SENTEDALPS166 167SENTEDALPS

APPENDICES

The tables in this section provide a checklist of elements to be taken into account throughout the operational phases of a volunteers programme and during each individual stage of the programme.

Page 168: SENTEDALPS - ALPINE SPACE · Nancy Favre (IDHEAP), Alain Ferrand (UCBL), Tiziana ... Recruitment and assignment of ... This guide to volunteer management is the third and final

SENTEDALPS168 169SENTEDALPS

Ele

men

ts t

hat

are

com

mon

to a

ll th

e p

has

es o

f a

volu

nte

ers

pro

gra

mm

e

Page 169: SENTEDALPS - ALPINE SPACE · Nancy Favre (IDHEAP), Alain Ferrand (UCBL), Tiziana ... Recruitment and assignment of ... This guide to volunteer management is the third and final

SENTEDALPS168 169SENTEDALPS

Ph

ase

1:

Pla

nn

ing

th

e vo

lun

teer

s p

rog

ram

me

Ob

ject

ive:

Ass

ess

the

size

of

the

sport

s ev

ent

and

str

uct

ure

an

d p

lan

th

e org

anis

atio

n o

f th

e vo

lun

teer

s p

rog

ram

me

Page 170: SENTEDALPS - ALPINE SPACE · Nancy Favre (IDHEAP), Alain Ferrand (UCBL), Tiziana ... Recruitment and assignment of ... This guide to volunteer management is the third and final

SENTEDALPS170 171SENTEDALPS

Ph

ase

2:

Ass

ess

volu

nte

er r

equ

irem

ents

Ob

ject

ive:

Ass

ess

the

nu

mb

er a

nd

typ

e of

volu

nte

ers

req

uir

ed, b

ased

on

th

e ta

sks

and

posi

tion

s th

at r

eally

exi

st a

nd

th

at a

re

nec

essa

ry f

or

org

anis

ing

th

e ev

ent

Page 171: SENTEDALPS - ALPINE SPACE · Nancy Favre (IDHEAP), Alain Ferrand (UCBL), Tiziana ... Recruitment and assignment of ... This guide to volunteer management is the third and final

SENTEDALPS170 171SENTEDALPS

Ph

ase

3:

Rec

ruit

men

t an

d a

ssig

nm

ent

of

volu

nte

ers

Ob

ject

ive:

Eva

luat

e ea

ch v

olu

nte

er’s

ski

lls t

o e

nsu

re v

olu

nte

ers

are

assi

gn

ed t

o t

he

task

s to

wh

ich

th

ey a

re m

ost

su

ited

. Th

is

will

str

eng

then

com

mit

men

t an

d m

oti

vati

on

Page 172: SENTEDALPS - ALPINE SPACE · Nancy Favre (IDHEAP), Alain Ferrand (UCBL), Tiziana ... Recruitment and assignment of ... This guide to volunteer management is the third and final

SENTEDALPS172 173SENTEDALPS

Ph

ase

4:

Inte

gra

tion

an

d t

rain

ing

of

volu

nte

ers

Ob

ject

ive:

In

teg

rate

volu

nte

ers

into

th

e org

anis

atio

n a

nd

mak

e th

em o

per

atio

nal

by

trai

nin

g t

hem

an

d g

ivin

g t

hem

a s

ense

of

resp

on

sib

ility

Page 173: SENTEDALPS - ALPINE SPACE · Nancy Favre (IDHEAP), Alain Ferrand (UCBL), Tiziana ... Recruitment and assignment of ... This guide to volunteer management is the third and final

SENTEDALPS172 173SENTEDALPS

Ph

ase

5:

Op

erat

ion

al m

anag

emen

t

Ob

ject

ive:

En

sure

th

e ri

gh

t p

eop

le a

re in

th

e ri

gh

t p

lace

at

the

rig

ht

tim

e an

d p

rovi

de

volu

nte

ers

wit

h t

he

mea

ns

to c

arry

ou

t th

eir

task

s

Page 174: SENTEDALPS - ALPINE SPACE · Nancy Favre (IDHEAP), Alain Ferrand (UCBL), Tiziana ... Recruitment and assignment of ... This guide to volunteer management is the third and final

SENTEDALPS174 175SENTEDALPS

Ph

ase

6:

Eva

luat

ion

, fo

llow

up

an

d lo

ng

-ter

m d

evel

op

men

t

Ob

ject

ive:

Eva

luat

e th

e p

eop

le i

nvo

lved

in

org

anis

ing

th

e ev

ent,

ben

efit

fro

m t

he

skill

s ac

qu

ired

, ca

pit

alis

e on

exp

erie

nce

, en

sure

con

tin

uit

y of

rela

tion

ship

s an

d lo

ok

to t

he

futu

re

Page 175: SENTEDALPS - ALPINE SPACE · Nancy Favre (IDHEAP), Alain Ferrand (UCBL), Tiziana ... Recruitment and assignment of ... This guide to volunteer management is the third and final

SENTEDALPS174 175SENTEDALPS