Our services.
From strategic design, to one-on-one coaching in leadership, Dana will take your community engagement and volunteer programs to new levels of effectiveness and success.
Webinars and Virtual Trainings.
Online live training in volunteer management and community engagement best practices, with exciting and interactive sessions, suitable for all learning styles and career levels. Choose from Dana’s most popular “out of the box” webinars tailored for your organization, or request a completely custom-designed session for specific topics, skill sets, or problem-solving.
Consulting and Strategy.
Dana is available for retainer or project-based consulting on strategy, marketing, technology (VMS, app dev, etc.), multimedia content creation, and troubleshooting for all aspects of volunteerism, community engagement, and civic service.
Program Design.
Community engagement and volunteer program design from the ground up, or assessment and revitalizing of current programs, including written policy handbooks, staff and volunteer training on the new systems, processes, and change-management.
Workshops and webinars.
The 3 C’s of Happy Volunteers: Comfort, Convenience, Connection.
Keep and attract the best talent to your volunteer pool by understanding "The 3 C's.” This fun and interactive session offers practical, scalable solutions for any sized organization to improve volunteer engagement, recruitment, and retention. This workshop includes a slide presentation of the basic concepts, evaluation exercise for your programs, as well as discussion, troubleshooting, and Q&A. Suitable for all volunteer administration experience levels. At the end of this session, participants will be able to apply the core concepts of "The 3 C's" with practical examples to build organizational capacity, increase volunteer satisfaction, and build volunteers' connection to their mission.
High Tech, High Touch: Finding the Balance in Volunteer Engagement.
Learn how to balance the latest technology with a personal touch to work smarter, not harder, in engaging volunteers and managing data. No matter your budget, or comfort level with technology, by the end of this workshop you will have the strategic tools to dig deeper into new diverse communities to reach the right volunteers with the right skills. The session will review a variety of apps and programs - including some not typically used for volunteer administration - from a neutral, field-tested perspective.* This is a fun, dynamic and interactive experience from the heart of Silicon Valley. (*The presenter does not represent any of the app providers or products discussed, and no endorsement is implied.)
Game On! Playing for Keeps with Volunteer Engagement.
“Gamification” is the term given to the use of game design elements outside of games themselves. This innovative training applies game theory to volunteer roles, recruitment, and retention. You will learn how to incorporate aspects of playful competition and cooperation for deeper engagement and team-building throughout your agency, as well as where to find specialized, highly-skilled volunteers to support a gamification strategy. This very fun and interactive webinar is adapted from Dana’s chapter in the Spinktank eBook Top 20 Ideas for 2020 in Volunteer Engagement.
Hold 'Em or Fold 'Em : How to Inspire, Fire, or Move Challenging Volunteers.
Every interaction with a volunteer is an invitation to stay, or an invitation to go...and sometimes, it is time for them to go! This funny and engaging session explores the serious and dreaded topic of what to do when a volunteer has worn out their welcome, with communication techniques and examples to ensure a challenging situation ends with the best results for all. At the end of this session participants will have practical communication skills to apply to the most emotionally charged and challenging situations. Participants will develop emotionally neutral responses via role-play, examples, and practice exercises to create a win-win for the agency and the volunteer.
Conductor or Cat-Herder? Tactical Communication for Leaders of Volunteers.
Words matter! How many of us are called the Cat-Herders of the agency? What if we are the orchestra Conductors, leading highly skilled people to create something wonderful and harmonious? How we talk about ourselves, volunteers, and programs influences how others see us as individuals and team members. Our words also impact how we feel about our role or situation, and whether we get agreement or resistance from others. This workshop teaches tactical communication techniques, with step-by-step conversation outlines and role-playing exercises to empower yourself, and train your staff and volunteers.
Sticky Situations: Marketing and Media Magic for Volunteer Engagement.
"Sticky” is a marketing term to describe a message that is understandable, memorable, and effective in changing thought or behavior, and keeps people highly engaged. Learn the same media and marketing techniques used by the top global corporations to deepen engagement in your community and recruit volunteer talent, even with little or no budget. By the end of this session, participants will have the knowledge and resources to make their engagement and recruitment messaging more sticky.
The L-Words of Volunteer Management: Listen, Learn, Lead.
Leadership development is a hot topic across sectors, and #LeadersOfVolunteers are on the front lines every day. The kind of leader you are may not be what you want to be, or the best kind for your program! In this session participants will gain insight into their own style of leadership and communication, and strengths and challenges as managers. Group discussions and exercises delve into other management techniques, types of personalities, active listening, and the style of communication that works best for each person and situation.
Speak for Yourself! Skills for Fearless and Fun Presentations.
The most common fear is public speaking, yet as leaders of volunteers it is often a big part of our role to address and influence groups. This session teaches stagecraft, body language, relaxation, and vocal techniques for introverts and extroverts alike to find their own, unique voice in public speaking, presenting, and persuasion for audiences large and small. Drawing upon 20+ years of theater improv, Dana imparts a rich knowledge and experience of public speaking and performance craft in this innovative and humorous session.
Carve Your Own Path.
"Carve Your Own Path" incorporates an inspiring personal story with practical examples and exercises around how to advocate for and grow your volunteer administration position and department even in the most rigid of structures or dysfunctional environments. This workshop explores three main topics: Identifying Your Unique Gifts and Talents, Persuasion, and Countering Toxicity.