Association of Leaders in Volunteer Engagement

Association of Leaders in Volunteer Engagement
Name	Association of Leaders in Volunteer Engagement
Abbreviation	ALVE
Founded	2015
Type	Professional association
Headquarters	Chicago, Illinois
Region served	International

Association of Leaders in Volunteer Engagement is a professional association for practitioners and leaders in volunteer management, volunteer coordination, and community engagement. The organization connects professionals across nonprofit, humanitarian, faith-based, academic, and corporate sectors to share best practices, foster leadership, and develop standards for volunteer engagement. It collaborates with allied organizations, universities, certification bodies, and funders to advance the profession and improve outcomes for volunteers and communities.

History

The association emerged from networks of practitioners who had participated in conferences such as Points of Light Conference, Imagine Canada Summit, National Volunteer Week forums, and gatherings organized by Corporation for National and Community Service, Volunteer Canada, and European Volunteer Centre (CEV). Early convenings included contributors from AmeriCorps, Red Cross, UN Volunteers, Habitat for Humanity, and university programs at Harvard Kennedy School and Georgetown University. Founders included leaders from VolunteerMatch, United Way Worldwide, Salvation Army, Catholic Charities USA, and municipal volunteer offices in New York City, Toronto, London, and Sydney. The association built on precedent set by organizations such as Independent Sector and Council on Foundations and incorporated practices from international standards promulgated by ISO committees and regional networks like Asia Pacific Volunteer Service. Early milestones included adoption of competency frameworks influenced by Project Management Institute and accreditation dialogues with Chartered Institute of Personnel and Development.

Mission and Objectives

The association's mission emphasizes professionalization, ethical practice, and measurable outcomes, aligning with principles advanced by United Nations Volunteers, World Health Organization, Gates Foundation, and humanitarian clusters coordinated by UN OCHA. Objectives include establishing competency frameworks similar to those from Society for Human Resource Management, developing certification pathways like Certified Association Executive, promoting diversity initiatives inspired by Annie E. Casey Foundation and Ford Foundation, and encouraging research partnerships with institutions such as Johns Hopkins University, University of Oxford, and Massachusetts Institute of Technology.

Membership and Governance

Membership comprises volunteer managers, executive directors, academic researchers, corporate social responsibility officers, and municipal officials drawn from organizations including Red Cross, Doctors Without Borders, Save the Children, Teach For America, YMCA, Boys & Girls Clubs of America, and various faith-based charities like World Vision. The governance model echoes board structures used by National Council of Nonprofits and BoardSource, with an elected board, standing committees, and advisory councils populated by representatives from Microsoft Philanthropies, Google.org, Bloomberg Philanthropies, and regional networks such as Volunteer Scotland. Accountability practices reference guidelines from Better Business Bureau Wise Giving Alliance and reporting standards akin to International Financial Reporting Standards adopted by nonprofit finance committees.

Programs and Services

The association offers certification programs, mentoring, online toolkits, competency guides, and resource libraries tailored for managers in settings like hospitals (e.g., Mayo Clinic volunteer programs), universities (e.g., University of California, University of Toronto), and disaster response agencies (e.g., Federal Emergency Management Agency, International Federation of Red Cross and Red Crescent Societies). Services include curated job boards in partnership with Indeed and LinkedIn, research grants co-funded with foundations such as Robert Wood Johnson Foundation and Carnegie Corporation, and practitioner communities modeled after networks like Nonprofit Technology Network (NTEN) and Taproot Foundation pro bono programs.

Conferences and Professional Development

Annual conferences attract speakers and attendees from United Nations, European Commission, African Union, major NGOs like Oxfam and CARE International, universities including Stanford University and Columbia University, and philanthropy networks such as National Philanthropic Trust. Tracks cover leadership, volunteer retention, risk management, inclusivity, and digital engagement, often featuring case studies from IBM Corporate Service Corps, Cisco Networking Academy, Amazon Web Services (AWS) disaster response collaborations, and municipal programs in Los Angeles and Chicago. Workshops and webinars draw on instructional design practices used by Coursera and edX and include partnerships with certification bodies like Project Management Institute and Chartered Institute of Fundraising.

Advocacy and Standards

The association advocates for policy and practice reforms by engaging with legislative and regulatory stakeholders such as U.S. Congress committees, provincial ministries in Ontario, the European Parliament, and multilateral agencies like World Bank. It develops practice standards addressing volunteer safety, data protection, equity, and impact measurement, aligning with frameworks from International Committee of the Red Cross, Data Protection Commission guidelines, and ethical norms from International Council of Voluntary Agencies (ICVA). The association participates in coalitions with Independent Sector, InterAction, GlobalGiving, and quality-assurance entities such as Charity Navigator to promote transparency and accountability.

Impact and Research

Research collaborations have produced studies with partners including RAND Corporation, Urban Institute, Brookings Institution, Pew Research Center, National Academy of Sciences, and multiple university research centers. Topics include volunteer retention, economic valuation of volunteer time (citing methods used by Bureau of Labor Statistics and OECD), disaster volunteer management, and diversity in volunteering drawing on data from US Census Bureau, Statistics Canada, and Eurostat. Impact evaluations reference randomized trials and mixed-methods designs used by Johns Hopkins Bloomberg School of Public Health and policy briefs disseminated through networks like ReliefWeb and GlobalGiving. The association publishes white papers and toolkits informing practice for organizations such as Red Cross, Habitat for Humanity, and municipal volunteer programs in Seattle, Melbourne, and Auckland.

Category:Professional associations Category:Volunteer organizations