Tuesday, February 2, 2010
Entitlement mentality & re-compete
Ever since the former EISSA latched onto the RSVP program, it has been able to keep RSVP through thick and thin. In fact, it has become an "entitlement mentality." There's really no way the current EICAP thinks it can lose RSVP. As long as some semblance of a grant application is turned in each year and as long as the financial numbers are submitted on time, the money flows. This is the way it has been for decades and some people think that's the way it's going to be forever. Once the "entitlement mentality" takes hold in the bureaucratic mindset, it becomes an ingrained expectation and behavior and a self-fulfilling prophesy.
Well, don't count on it any more. Welcome to the Brave New World of The Re-Compete!
When the Serve America Act was passed in April 2009, it included a clause that all RSVP's nationwide will face competition for their grants beginning in 2013! Yep, that's right, any qualified Tom, Dick and Harry non-profit is going to be able to (in essence) bid for the right to sponsor an RSVP and subsequently receive the annual federal funds.
We strongly suspect that EICAP will lose RSVP in this process. The accumulated baggage of years of dubious management practices carry considerable weight. The cost of administering the RSVP (as deducted from the federal funds) has become enormous and unsustainable. Meanwhile, a smaller 501-c-3 that is focused solely on volunteerism and one that is leaner and meaner could easily provide a lot more bang for the buck when it comes to utilizing RSVP meager annual federal grant--there's simply no doubt about that.
The often arcane policies and procedures that EICAP lays down on the RSVP are not conducive to efficiency, productivity and often do not have any real connection to how people behave in the real world. EICAP's one size fits all policies and procedures are out of step and tune with the needs of today's RSVP mission, goals and objectives.
This is not only the case with the Eastern Idaho RSVP but with hundreds of other RSVP's nationwide. This is not only an EICAP problem, it's a problem with entrenched long-in-the-tooth bureaucracies all across America. They have simply fallen asleep as the switch as a result of enjoying decades of the "entitlement mentality."
That's why the language for "re-compete" made it into the new 2009 law. The CNCS bureaucracy will go to great lengths to assure that the process is fair and equitable. However, that same "fair & equitable" policy will level the playing field for those who may wish to compete for the right to sponsor any given RSVP. It's a brand new ball game and you will have a ringside seat for the first few rounds of this re-complete process. CNCS is already sending out various guidance, surveys and so forth regarding this process. Even though it doesn't become reality until 2013, that might as well be tomorrow in the perspective of a slow-moving giant bureaucracy.
A recent irony of federal law will give your competitors a much greater advantage than you. Why is that? Quite simply, it is now illegal for you to write your own RSVP grant application! Yep, you must do that on time that is not paid for by federal funds. That means your employer somehow has to make an accounting procedure that does not bill your time to the fed funds for whenever you are writing your annual grant AND/OR the re-compete paperwork!!!!
Meanwhile, your competitors will not be under that constraint in the compeition process since they will presumably not be (yet) operating on federal funds. They will also have the advantage of being able to devote 100% of their attention to the process while you will have to dance to the tunes of many duties during this time.
In light of the way that this RSVP has been administered over the years, we would have to bet that strong and serious competition will arise for the right to sponsor this RSVP. We would also--at this time--be inclined to bet that the competition will prevail and that EICAP will no longer sponsor RSVP after 2013. In light of our 2.5 years here, we have to say that would be a good thing!
Keep an eye over your shoulder--the competition is behind you and they just might be gaining.
Well, don't count on it any more. Welcome to the Brave New World of The Re-Compete!
When the Serve America Act was passed in April 2009, it included a clause that all RSVP's nationwide will face competition for their grants beginning in 2013! Yep, that's right, any qualified Tom, Dick and Harry non-profit is going to be able to (in essence) bid for the right to sponsor an RSVP and subsequently receive the annual federal funds.
We strongly suspect that EICAP will lose RSVP in this process. The accumulated baggage of years of dubious management practices carry considerable weight. The cost of administering the RSVP (as deducted from the federal funds) has become enormous and unsustainable. Meanwhile, a smaller 501-c-3 that is focused solely on volunteerism and one that is leaner and meaner could easily provide a lot more bang for the buck when it comes to utilizing RSVP meager annual federal grant--there's simply no doubt about that.
The often arcane policies and procedures that EICAP lays down on the RSVP are not conducive to efficiency, productivity and often do not have any real connection to how people behave in the real world. EICAP's one size fits all policies and procedures are out of step and tune with the needs of today's RSVP mission, goals and objectives.
This is not only the case with the Eastern Idaho RSVP but with hundreds of other RSVP's nationwide. This is not only an EICAP problem, it's a problem with entrenched long-in-the-tooth bureaucracies all across America. They have simply fallen asleep as the switch as a result of enjoying decades of the "entitlement mentality."
That's why the language for "re-compete" made it into the new 2009 law. The CNCS bureaucracy will go to great lengths to assure that the process is fair and equitable. However, that same "fair & equitable" policy will level the playing field for those who may wish to compete for the right to sponsor any given RSVP. It's a brand new ball game and you will have a ringside seat for the first few rounds of this re-complete process. CNCS is already sending out various guidance, surveys and so forth regarding this process. Even though it doesn't become reality until 2013, that might as well be tomorrow in the perspective of a slow-moving giant bureaucracy.
A recent irony of federal law will give your competitors a much greater advantage than you. Why is that? Quite simply, it is now illegal for you to write your own RSVP grant application! Yep, you must do that on time that is not paid for by federal funds. That means your employer somehow has to make an accounting procedure that does not bill your time to the fed funds for whenever you are writing your annual grant AND/OR the re-compete paperwork!!!!
Meanwhile, your competitors will not be under that constraint in the compeition process since they will presumably not be (yet) operating on federal funds. They will also have the advantage of being able to devote 100% of their attention to the process while you will have to dance to the tunes of many duties during this time.
In light of the way that this RSVP has been administered over the years, we would have to bet that strong and serious competition will arise for the right to sponsor this RSVP. We would also--at this time--be inclined to bet that the competition will prevail and that EICAP will no longer sponsor RSVP after 2013. In light of our 2.5 years here, we have to say that would be a good thing!
Keep an eye over your shoulder--the competition is behind you and they just might be gaining.
Volunteer as a paid employee
WARNING: You cannot (by law) assign an RSVP Volunteer to a Station that will use them as a surrogate for a paid employee.
Let's take an example of how this works. The Red Cross tried to get RSVP to find a volunteer to WORK 40 hours per week as the office manager. Nope, no can do! This is a clear and egregious example of attempting to get a free employee.
So, what's the difference between someone who volunteers to do some office management and someone who is a surrogate for a paid employee?
Easy. A volunteer has a flexible schedule and comes and goes according to their own desires. They are not bound by an 8-5 time frame five days a week. They are free to say NO THANK YOU!
Our motto is "Volunteering is Fun." A Volunteer can easily have fun doing a little office management here and there. They just don't want to be bound and/or obligated to have a volunteer position be the same as a paid job--except without the pay part.
As the recession drags on, beware of the wolf in sheep's clothing who tries to trick you into thinking that a volunteer would be volunteering when they would actually be part of a scam to save somebody some wage money.
Let's take the example of running a gift shop. Both a paid employee and/or a volunteer can run a cash register and operate a gift shop. What's the difference? Well, the paid employee generally has a rigid schedule and very specific expectations. The volunteer, meanwhile, generally serves on a very flexible schedule for short periods of time and usually not every single day of the week. Some volunteers really enjoy the socialization of running a gift shop--it's a very fun thing to do as a volunteer. It becomes a real drag when it becomes a job.
Sometimes there's a fine line in these situations. One of the easiest "workarounds" for it is to simply be upfront with the Station manager and point blank ask them, "Are you trying to get a volunteer to do something that a paid employee should be doing?" Most of them will be honest and tell you an honest answer. The other option is to ask the volunteer if they feel like they are being "taken advantage of." If they say "yes," end that assignment ASAP.
It should also go without saying that you can't assign volunteers to a for-profit business. You can only work with non-profits. There are a couple of exceptions you need to be aware of. Hospitals are a good one. Hospitals are trying to make a profit. So how can people volunteer in a hospital? Generally, they volunteer through a non-profit adjunct of the hospital like an auxiliary or some such similar organization. Just be aware of who is volunteering where and how and don't cross that line of facilitating the use of a volunteer as a paid employee.
Let's take an example of how this works. The Red Cross tried to get RSVP to find a volunteer to WORK 40 hours per week as the office manager. Nope, no can do! This is a clear and egregious example of attempting to get a free employee.
So, what's the difference between someone who volunteers to do some office management and someone who is a surrogate for a paid employee?
Easy. A volunteer has a flexible schedule and comes and goes according to their own desires. They are not bound by an 8-5 time frame five days a week. They are free to say NO THANK YOU!
Our motto is "Volunteering is Fun." A Volunteer can easily have fun doing a little office management here and there. They just don't want to be bound and/or obligated to have a volunteer position be the same as a paid job--except without the pay part.
As the recession drags on, beware of the wolf in sheep's clothing who tries to trick you into thinking that a volunteer would be volunteering when they would actually be part of a scam to save somebody some wage money.
Let's take the example of running a gift shop. Both a paid employee and/or a volunteer can run a cash register and operate a gift shop. What's the difference? Well, the paid employee generally has a rigid schedule and very specific expectations. The volunteer, meanwhile, generally serves on a very flexible schedule for short periods of time and usually not every single day of the week. Some volunteers really enjoy the socialization of running a gift shop--it's a very fun thing to do as a volunteer. It becomes a real drag when it becomes a job.
Sometimes there's a fine line in these situations. One of the easiest "workarounds" for it is to simply be upfront with the Station manager and point blank ask them, "Are you trying to get a volunteer to do something that a paid employee should be doing?" Most of them will be honest and tell you an honest answer. The other option is to ask the volunteer if they feel like they are being "taken advantage of." If they say "yes," end that assignment ASAP.
It should also go without saying that you can't assign volunteers to a for-profit business. You can only work with non-profits. There are a couple of exceptions you need to be aware of. Hospitals are a good one. Hospitals are trying to make a profit. So how can people volunteer in a hospital? Generally, they volunteer through a non-profit adjunct of the hospital like an auxiliary or some such similar organization. Just be aware of who is volunteering where and how and don't cross that line of facilitating the use of a volunteer as a paid employee.
Volunteer Reporter
The Volunteer Reporter software is the heart of teh Swiss watch that makes this place tick.
Volunteer Match & Other Recruiting Opportunities
There really are few, if any, genuine recruiting opportunities. The Volunteer Match website is one of them. It has proven to be a very valuable asset during our tennure here at RSVP. We highly recommend that you become fluent in Volunteer Match and use it at every opportunity.
Our best success with Volunteer Match has been under the category of the "Virtual Volunteer" (VV) opportunities. It will take quite awhile to explain the VV's. Likewise, it will take quite a discourse to explain the whys and wherefores of other recruiting opportunities or the lack thereof.
Meanwhile, let's focus on Volunteer Match. Click here to go to their website:
http://volunteermatch.org/
This is one of the most amazing websites you will ever encounter. It is actually a giant interactive database. You can do incredible things with Volunteer Match. I could easily write pages and pages about this website. Suffice to say that it would take a full-fledged manual to help you learn the finer points of Volunteer Match. Your immediate challenge will simply to be able to get volunteer opportunities listings up and running on this website.
I have changed the email access and password to facilitate your ease of access to this tremendous resource. Program Assistant Debby Dyslin has this information. If she has left EICAP's employ since I have written this post, she will have passed along the logon and password to the EICAP Information Systems Manager.
Here are some tips that I have learned from extensive successful usage of Volunteer Match:
1) Don't be afraid of a long, wordy Volunteer Task Description (VTD). We have a separate blog post on the VTD and we suggest you study VTD's in great detail.
2) Write in an informal and conversational tone. Write as if you are talking directly to a real person and write as if you are describing what they would do if they stepped forward to volunteer for this position.
3) Keep the "skills" portion of the listing very informal. Don't get all hung up on something that reads like a job description for a nuclear engineer. People hate that type of writing. Write as if you are telling one of your friends about the position. Be informal and, most of all, build flexibility into your Volunteer Match listings. Don't box them in. Let them feel free to inquire about the listing without any fear of rejection, commitment or, heaven forbid--guilt.
Bear in mind that you can edit your listings any time you wish. So, don't hold off on listing stuff--throw some listings out there and see what happens. The easiest way to tell people about your listings is to refer them to the http://eicap.org/rsvp website. The Volunteer Match listings are scripted to appear via a link on this page. Whatever you list will be available via that link.
You can also make them appear in a blog or on a webpage. Complete instructions are given on the Volunteer Match website.
Here's a tip I learned the hard way--if you want a listing to disappear, simply change its ending date. DO NOT use the delete function as your listing will then be gone forever and you can't get it back. It's really gone. However, if you simply change the date to a day that's already passed, your listing will disappear from the "active" scripting and yet it will still be available should you decide to reuse it later.
I wish I had the time to help you get up to speed on Volunteer Match. However, it's going to be your challenge to sit down and learn it step-by-step the hard way. Good luck!
(We hope to get back to this post to add more insights on other recruiting opportunities.)
Our best success with Volunteer Match has been under the category of the "Virtual Volunteer" (VV) opportunities. It will take quite awhile to explain the VV's. Likewise, it will take quite a discourse to explain the whys and wherefores of other recruiting opportunities or the lack thereof.
Meanwhile, let's focus on Volunteer Match. Click here to go to their website:
http://volunteermatch.org/
This is one of the most amazing websites you will ever encounter. It is actually a giant interactive database. You can do incredible things with Volunteer Match. I could easily write pages and pages about this website. Suffice to say that it would take a full-fledged manual to help you learn the finer points of Volunteer Match. Your immediate challenge will simply to be able to get volunteer opportunities listings up and running on this website.
I have changed the email access and password to facilitate your ease of access to this tremendous resource. Program Assistant Debby Dyslin has this information. If she has left EICAP's employ since I have written this post, she will have passed along the logon and password to the EICAP Information Systems Manager.
Here are some tips that I have learned from extensive successful usage of Volunteer Match:
1) Don't be afraid of a long, wordy Volunteer Task Description (VTD). We have a separate blog post on the VTD and we suggest you study VTD's in great detail.
2) Write in an informal and conversational tone. Write as if you are talking directly to a real person and write as if you are describing what they would do if they stepped forward to volunteer for this position.
3) Keep the "skills" portion of the listing very informal. Don't get all hung up on something that reads like a job description for a nuclear engineer. People hate that type of writing. Write as if you are telling one of your friends about the position. Be informal and, most of all, build flexibility into your Volunteer Match listings. Don't box them in. Let them feel free to inquire about the listing without any fear of rejection, commitment or, heaven forbid--guilt.
Bear in mind that you can edit your listings any time you wish. So, don't hold off on listing stuff--throw some listings out there and see what happens. The easiest way to tell people about your listings is to refer them to the http://eicap.org/rsvp website. The Volunteer Match listings are scripted to appear via a link on this page. Whatever you list will be available via that link.
You can also make them appear in a blog or on a webpage. Complete instructions are given on the Volunteer Match website.
Here's a tip I learned the hard way--if you want a listing to disappear, simply change its ending date. DO NOT use the delete function as your listing will then be gone forever and you can't get it back. It's really gone. However, if you simply change the date to a day that's already passed, your listing will disappear from the "active" scripting and yet it will still be available should you decide to reuse it later.
I wish I had the time to help you get up to speed on Volunteer Match. However, it's going to be your challenge to sit down and learn it step-by-step the hard way. Good luck!
(We hope to get back to this post to add more insights on other recruiting opportunities.)
Area VI Media Overview
Although there is a wide variety of media in Area VI, very little of it is of any use to RSVP whatsoever. The electronic media is virtually worthless and we won't bother to discuss them here. You might have some success at using radio and TV but we have had none. Zip, zilch, zero, nada. So, it's not worth our time to attempt to describe the electronic media to you.
We have had a mixed bag of success with print media, primarily newspapers. We have had no success with Idaho Falls magazine or the little advertising circulars.
Here is a rundown of the print media:
Idaho Falls Post-Register
The Post Company continues to operate the Post Register, Challis Messenger, Jefferson Star, Shelley Pioneer and Intermountain Farm & Ranch. ( http://www.postregister.com/about/ )
http://www.postregister.com/
Rexburg Standard-Journal
http://www.uvsj.com/
Island Park News
http://www.islandparknews.com/
Arco Advertiser
http://www.arcoadvertiser.com/
Challis Messenger
http://www.challismessenger.com/
Salmon Recorder-Herald
http://lmshumate.com/article.php
Blackfoot Morning News
http://www.am-news.com/
Teton Valley News (Driggs)
http://www.tetonvalleynews.net/
Jefferson Star (Rigby) (no website or easily available email)
134 West Main Street
Rigby, ID 83442-1313
(208) 745-8701
Shelley Pioneer (Shelley) (no website or easily available email)
Box P, 1534 E. Center St.,
Shelley, Id. 83274
PH, 357-3435; FAX, 745-8703
We have had a mixed bag of success with print media, primarily newspapers. We have had no success with Idaho Falls magazine or the little advertising circulars.
Here is a rundown of the print media:
Idaho Falls Post-Register
The Post Company continues to operate the Post Register, Challis Messenger, Jefferson Star, Shelley Pioneer and Intermountain Farm & Ranch. ( http://www.postregister.com/about/ )
http://www.postregister.com/
Rexburg Standard-Journal
http://www.uvsj.com/
Island Park News
http://www.islandparknews.com/
Arco Advertiser
http://www.arcoadvertiser.com/
Challis Messenger
http://www.challismessenger.com/
Salmon Recorder-Herald
http://lmshumate.com/article.php
Blackfoot Morning News
http://www.am-news.com/
Teton Valley News (Driggs)
http://www.tetonvalleynews.net/
Jefferson Star (Rigby) (no website or easily available email)
134 West Main Street
Rigby, ID 83442-1313
(208) 745-8701
Shelley Pioneer (Shelley) (no website or easily available email)
Box P, 1534 E. Center St.,
Shelley, Id. 83274
PH, 357-3435; FAX, 745-8703
Rural-Urban Distribution
We suspect you will be intrigued by the rural-urban distribution of RSVP Volunteers.
RSVP Volunteer Stations
Stations are places where people volunteer. There's much to know about Stations.
Volunteer Demographics
We will explain how to track the demographics and also to foretell the future demographics, too.
EICAP Office Culture
This is a very subjective assessment of the prevailing "office culture." No two offices are the same. Each bureaucracy eventually develops its own personality and as the years pass, this personality becomes an embedded culture.
EICAP Paperwork
There is a lot of arcane and confusing paperwork involved in the day-to-day functioning of EICAP. This post will decribe an overview of that paperwork.
Haitus
We're back to writing the Operations Manual. We had to be in Arizona almost all of November and December. We returned to work on January 4. On January 28, they announced they had hired Nick Burrows as the new Director of the Area VI Agency on Aging. We learned of this decision on January 28th and immediately decided to resign effective on the last business day of February. Completion of this Operations Manual is our top priority. However, it is now February 2 and we have only 18 days and change left to complete this important task.
As a result, we are going to post very short entries for each of the remaining outline topics. Then if time allows, we will go back and expand some or all of those topics. It's a tall order--no doubt about it.
As a result, we are going to post very short entries for each of the remaining outline topics. Then if time allows, we will go back and expand some or all of those topics. It's a tall order--no doubt about it.
Subscribe to:
Comments (Atom)