Sportera - Mud Girl: Ensuring a consistent volunteer experience across multiple events

Introduction

MUDGIRL is a global event, taking place everywhere from the USA to Canada, France, and the UK. It is more than a race, it’s a celebration of joy, camaraderie, and women’s empowerment.

The ‘yellow army’ – a vibrant community of volunteers

MUDGIRL volunteers are fanatical, dedicated and full of energy. They are the helping hand that pushes participants through the next obstacle, that offer the cup of water when they need it or just the yell of encouragement at the moment it was needed the most.

Their volunteer coordinating team are experts in engagement. They haven’t just helped to build a well attended and popular endurance event, they have built a colourful, welcoming and lasting community around their events.

The Challenge

Volunteers play a crucial role in the success of MUDGIRL races. Despite being a small company of 25 people, SPORTERA relies on a pool of 2000+ volunteers, emphasizing the significance of community support. Like participants, volunteers range widely in age and experience, creating a diverse and engaged community.

Handling volunteers for international events, especially when dealing with diverse groups and managing a variety of opportunities, presented a challenge. SPORTERA needed a solution that would streamline volunteer management, from recruitment and retention to event logistics.

Managing volunteers across borders means contending with different time zones, languages, and cultural nuances. The need for effective communication becomes paramount, as coordinating efforts and disseminating crucial information demand a delicate balance.

The Solution

Rosterfy’s volunteer management software emerged as the solution of choice for SPORTERA in overcoming these challenges. The platform allows SPORTERA to handle events in different countries seamlessly, eliminating the need for multiple platforms:

Group and family volunteering

SPORTERA capitalizes on a distinctive capability offered by Rosterfy, in particular, features like Rosterfy’s group and family volunteering have been a game changer when it comes to volunteer recruitment.

Rosterfy’s group and family volunteering functions have significantly contributed to SPORTERA’s ability to manage and coordinate volunteer efforts with exceptional efficiency. The tailored features, such as the distinction between groups and families, have proven invaluable in accommodating the diverse dynamics of volunteers associated with MUDGIRL’s events.

The group volunteering feature allows individual users to self-select into groups of people who wish to volunteer together, such as the sports clubs Quentin spoke of. These groups are headed by group leaders, who can invite other users to join their respective groups through email invitations. This capability greatly reduces the administrative workload for SPORTERA, allowing for swift and hassle-free assembly of volunteer teams for specific opportunities.

Furthermore, the platform empowers SPORTERA’s group leaders by offering the flexibility to directly assign individuals to shifts or send email invitations, providing a nuanced control over volunteer participation. The option to extend invitations to individuals outside formal groups enhances the adaptability of the platform to SPORTERA’s specific needs.

The family volunteering feature within Rosterfy has proven crucial for SPORTERA in scenarios where all family members cannot register individually. This functionality is particularly helpful when accommodating children or couples who prefer to volunteer together without dealing with multiple logins.

“We have a lot of interest from parents saying they’d love to bring their kids along to volunteer. With the family volunteering function, parents can register their children to volunteer without them needing an email to create their own account. This also means that when it comes to volunteering, we can keep families in shifts together to ensure they have a guardian present at all times.”

Quentin Poilblanc, Sport Sponsorship & Partnership Manager, SPORTERA

Rosterfy has significantly lightened the recruitment responsibilities of SPORTERA’s administrators, contributing to a further streamlining of the volunteer management process. Rosterfy’s group and family volunteering functions provide SPORTERA with a comprehensive solution, offering an efficient and organized approach to managing their diverse volunteer base.

The Impact

Recruitment and retention

Using Rosterfy;s automated email workflows, MUDGIRL has been able to reduce the amount of admin required to properly onboard and manage volunteers.

“I use Rosterfy for sending automated emails for events. Logistics emails, parking passes, every little detail required in running an event — I use Rosterfy for all of that. The automated emails are so helpful.” Quentin Poilblanc, Sport Sponsorship & Partnership Manager

This not only alleviates the administrative burden on SPORTERA but also ensures that volunteers receive timely and relevant information, enhancing their overall engagement and satisfaction.

Targeted communication is pivotal to volunteer retention, as it allows SPORTERA to reach out to individuals who have previously demonstrated commitment and enthusiasm. By recognising and appreciating their past contributions, SPORTERA can effectively convey the value of their continued involvement, fostering a sense of community and commitment among volunteers: