The Value of VolunteersDo your coworkers understand and celebrate the value of volunteers within your organization? If the recurring questions we receive here at VolunteerPro are any indication, the answer may be “not yet.” We often see comments in the Volunteer Insiders (our free Facebook group) and in our VolunteerPro Premium Membership community that are tinged with a little bit of frustration.  Leaders of volunteers want to know how they can bring their co-workers along, the ones who don't understand the value of volunteers, treat them as second-tier help, or are downright resistant to having them in their departments.  Lack of support and buy-in from paid staff is actually one of the top five challenges cited by leaders of volunteers each year in our Volunteer Management Progress Report. It is a pervasive concern for many, and it’s not something we can wave a magic wand at and solve overnight.   Build Your Influence Changing the viewpoint of your coworkers and executive leadership to help them see the value of volunteers definitely won’t happen overnight, but it CAN happen with intentional relationship building and influence.   In this episode, Tobi shares five steps for building that relational influence so that, as a leader of volunteers, you can effectively advocate for your team, collaborate to place volunteer talent within your organization, and get the respect and support your volunteers deserve.    Five Steps to Build Influence Tobi does a deep dive into the following five ways to build influence and help your co-workers see the value of volunteers:  Clarify Your GoalsGet Leadership on Board Build Trust & Buy-In Through Active Listening   Champion Those Who are Getting Traction through Volunteer Involvement Know Your Numbers  Along the way, Tobi shares creative ideas on how to start those tough conversations with sample questions, how to successfully approach executive meetings, ways to partner with HR in training paid staff to work with volunteers, how to celebrate your volunteer/staff partnerships, and how to build your reputation as the go-to expert on volunteerism.     Don't Give UpWhen thinking about your own organization, you may be tempted to settle for the status quo, sweep issues under the rug, and give up on creating the positive changes your volunteer team needs. But remember that there ARE many organizations in which paid staff understand the value of volunteers and support them enthusiastically.  With intentional action steps to build your workplace influence, you can get there, too