Headquartered in Florida, there is a nonprofit organization focused on making a substantial difference in the lives of others. This organization is Metropolitan Ministries and their goal is to become America’s most effective caregiver to poor and homeless people. Metropolitan Ministries provides services to those in need including food, shelter, childcare services, and education. The organization is most certainly making a substantial impact. They are feeding 100–150 people per day, sleeping 124 individuals a night between their two campuses, and have developed a program based on self-sufficiency to create long-term success for those in their care. The program has seen great success. In 2016, 99% of families Metropolitan Ministries assisted were in stable housing.
“If there is a reliable model to end poverty and homelessness in America, Metropolitan Ministries has built it.” Bob Durst, Homeless Advocate
A desire for a better volunteer management process
Metropolitan Ministries relies on faithful volunteers who help turn their mission into reality every day. In 2016 alone, they utilized more than 23,500 volunteers. Their goal is for 30% of the organization’s workforce to be volunteers or full-time equivalents. The problem that Metropolitan Ministries encountered was that their volunteer management processes were outdated and unorganized. They used Excel spreadsheets and Google Docs to capture volunteer information, requiring a substantial time commitment and a high risk of error. They knew that to achieve their goals of being a volunteer-run organization, they would need a better process for organizing and capturing volunteer data….in came VolunteerHub.
“The goal is for 30% of Metropolitan Ministries’ workforce to be volunteers or full-time equivalents,” said Christina Mitchell, Director of Volunteers & Events for Metropolitan Ministries
A Streamlined Volunteer Management Process
Metropolitan Ministries chose VolunteerHub after searching for a volunteer management solution to tap into the software’s plethora of features and its ability to help their organization reach targeted goals. Metropolitan Ministries can organize volunteer data, develop opportunity landing pages for individual and group needs, and create engagement with volunteer prospects. Their goal of sustaining a 30% volunteer-run workforce is becoming easily achievable thanks to their commitment to excellence, complemented by the features of VolunteerHub. Metropolitan Ministries has also seen many benefits in the way that they can now analyze the volunteer data they are capturing. Their strategic goal for 2017 is to use VolunteerHub to identify what percentage of staff costs can be offset by Volunteers and create new volunteer opportunities to fill those roles.
Finding the Right Volunteers for the Job
One of the most substantial benefits that Metropolitan Ministries has identified since forming its relationship with VolunteerHub is its ability to fill volunteer needs based on skills. The Ministries use VolunteerHub to group volunteer prospects based on their abilities and attributes. The strategy of placing the right volunteer in a targeted role is helping to reduce volunteer turnover and volunteer “no-shows.”
“We have seen a substantial decrease in “no shows” after implementing VolunteerHub,” said Christina
Metropolitan Ministries rely heavily on their volunteer program to meet the needs of their organization as well as the individuals and families the nonprofit serves. VolunteerHub makes the process a little easier for them by creating an easy-to-implement solution for organizing volunteer data, creating targeted landing pages, and grouping volunteers. Metropolitan Ministries has also found the software solution useful for implementing targeted email campaigns as well.
"The ability to create groups has helped our organization put the right volunteer in the right role," said Christina
A Bright Future with a Drive for Service
Metropolitan Ministries is taking big steps to achieve its goals as a nonprofit organization. They are helping to provide the very essentials that people need every day to survive. Their programs are enriching lives, feeding bellies, giving shelter, and providing education for tens of thousands of people every year. VolunteerHub was just the tool that they needed to organize their volunteer database, promote their opportunities, and create a sustainable volunteer program that could grow with them. For Metropolitan Ministries and all the people in need that they serve, the future looks bright.
Metropolitan Ministries is on track to becoming America’s most effective caregiver to poor and homeless people. At VolunteerHub we are so excited to be a part of the journey.
