Title:                                 National Volunteer Co-ordinator

Reporting to:               Head of Wishgranting & Volunteering

General:                          Full-Time Permanent

Testimonial from previous National Volunteer Co-ordinator –

“Working at Make-A-Wish Ireland is really varied, and no two days look the same. The team are fantastic at what they do and there are so many exciting and innovative opportunities to get involved in projects and ideas across the entire Make-A-Wish Ireland organisation which leads to a very fulfilling role as National Volunteer Co-ordinator. The community of volunteers across Ireland are eager to get involved and support in any way they can and there are plans for growth of both the community and the involvement of volunteers that make the future of this role an extremely exciting one, especially for someone looking for a new challenge.”

Overview

Make-A-Wish Ireland has one simple aim – to grant the wishes of children with critical medical conditions, to bring hope, strength and happiness.

In order to carry out our work, we rely heavily on a large base of community volunteers across the country to fundraise for the charity and to support on the wish journey and wish experience of children from capturing through to fulfilment of their wish.

We are now in an exciting period of growth within the organisation where we are seeking to recruit a dynamic and innovative National Volunteer Co-ordinator to develop and implement a new model for our volunteer community throughout Ireland.

Candidate Profile

The National Volunteer Co-ordinator will be a highly motivated and innovative individual, who has successfully co-ordinated and/or supported volunteering projects in previous positions. You will have experience in recruiting, motivating and empowering volunteers as well as supporting requests for volunteers from numerous departments within the organisation. You can demonstrate confidence, professionalism, organisational and communication skills to deal effectively with people at all levels of an organisation across both staff and volunteer teams. This is a great opportunity for an energetic and dynamic individual to join one of Ireland’s leading charitable organisations and become a central member of a highly successful team.  This role involves relationship building with all stakeholders within our community and externally.

Main Duties & Responsibilities

• Recruit, screen, interview and train new volunteers
• Work closely with community groups, volunteer agencies to identify and recruit diverse volunteer prospects
• Promoting volunteering (internally and externally) through recruitment and publicity strategies and online and event-based campaigns.
• Process all volunteer applications and ensures process meets all compliance and performance standards.
• Actively engage with the Make-A-Wish affiliate community to share best practice
• Manage all aspects of volunteer administration for new and existing volunteers, including: volunteer handbook and volunteer policy updates, report generation, updating records/notes on Salesforce, management of Garda vetting applications and updating the volunteer section of the website as required
• Work with Wish granting and Fundraising Departments to drive ‘Volunteer strategy’ to implement a new volunteer model and best practice
• Working alongside Head of Wish granting to develop the STARBOARD (wish children board – launched in September 2024)
• Maintain working knowledge of national policies, guidelines, and resources as they relate to and support our volunteer community and work of the charity
• Actively maintain and retain the volunteer base by monitoring, supporting and motivating volunteers
• Establish a clear communication plan and tools to engage with volunteers
• Implement & deliver a learning & development & recognition plan
• Support volunteer committees for problem solving, process improvements, new operational model development along with relevant department.
• To undertake such other duties as might be reasonably assigned from time to time in consultation with the line manager

Fundraising Events:

• Work closely with fundraising department to ensure there is sufficient volunteer cover for all events, schools visits and cheque presentations.
• Recruit, motivate & schedule volunteers for large fundraising events such as Wish Week, Golfing Tournaments, and other events

Wishgranting

• Work closely with the Wishgranting department to schedule volunteers for community support. Wish journey takes into account referrals through to wish family alumni.

Skills

Essential:

• Proven ability to design and implement a strategic plan for a national organisation
• A clear understanding and passion for the mission, values and behaviours of Make-A-Wish Ireland
• The ability to communicate with, supervise and empower volunteers to be effective in their roles—experience managing volunteers preferred
• Experience in database management (Salesforce or equivalent)
• Highly motivated self-starter with the initiative and drive to think creatively and build strong relationships
• Experience in leading projects and/ or working groups with multiple departments
• Strong organisational skills and attention to detail, with the ability to manage multiple projects and demands simultaneously
• Excellent administrative, financial and analytical skills, including planning and budgeting
• The ability to work as part of a team
• Time flexibility and travel required
• Evening and weekend work required
• Full clean drivers licence

Desirable:

• Additional experience in fundraising, social media management and/or marketing would be highly desirable