How SXSW Scaled Volunteer Operations with Rosterfy.
SXSW is a flagship festival in Austin, Texas, encompassing Film & TV, Music, and Innovation. Rosterfy has helped SXSW rapidly grow their volunteer base while streamlining the scheduling and recruitment for thousands of volunteers.
SXSW engages and retains passionate Volunteers with a slick Rosterfy experience.
SXSW now actively measures volunteer retention, including those vital roles of volunteer managers.
The event draws over 500,000 attendees annually and involves organizing thousands of sessions, screenings, and performances.
A show stopping event made possible by volunteers
The SXSW Volunteer Program is a vibrant and growing community. In exchange for committing to a minimum number of volunteer hours, individuals receive a volunteer badge to the festival, which grants access to the film, music, and interactive events.
- Core Goal: To mobilize thousands of dedicated individuals to fill a variety of logistical, technical, and operational roles required to manage one of the world's largest and most complex media, technology, and arts events.
- The Volunteers: Their community commits to a minimum number of hours (typically 24 to 36+ hours, depending on the desired badge) and, in return, receive a badge, meal credits, and a t-shirt.
- Event Management: They have been able to scale the operation through automation and a better volunteer experience - offered by Rosterfy.
The program supports the entire logistical and hospitality framework of the SXSW Conference & Festivals, enabling a massive global event to run smoothly with a diverse and enthusiastic workforce.
Photo Credit: Via SXSW by Dylan Johnson
A variety of volunteer roles each allowing access to a range of events and areas in SXSW
Check into shifts
Due to high volunteer volume, rapid and efficient shift check-in and out is critical, a process greatly simplified by mobile-friendly VMS check-in tools.
Varying Time Commitments
Different roles demand unique minimum hour commitments; accurate reporting on completed time is essential, easily handled by VMS time-tracking features.
Multiple Locations and Dates
Events span numerous days and various locations, requiring smart scheduling and coordination, efficiently managed by VMS mapping and planning tools.
Bespoke Training
Roles necessitate specific online or in-person training; VMS profiles record completion, ensuring every volunteer meets necessary skill requirements efficiently.
"Rosterfy have a robust API that we can pull information out of and into our registrant badge printing application. That time saving was a big help for us. Using Rosterfy is more of a uniformed experience, it's not working out of multiple applications to try and achieve the same goal."
SXSW
The benefits of a purpose built and modern
volunteer management platform for major events
Choosing a world class provider of volunteer management software means you can rely on a partner to help you deliver a
top tier experience for your volunteers and your event attendees.
How Rosterfy has helped SXSW improve volunteer recruitment
SXSW have been able to grow their volunteer base post-pandemic thanks to a more streamlined approach to recruitment - empower by purpose built volunteer software from Rosterfy.
-
Streamlined Agreements: Rosterfy's integration with Adobe Sign automated the process for sending and signing mandatory agreements, replacing the previous manual system of emailing, signing, and returning documents, which was a "huge improvement".
-
Volunteer-Led Scheduling: The biggest benefit to the volunteers has been the ability to pick their own schedules. This replaced a laborious manual scheduling process performed by Volunteer Managers.
-
Targeted Recruitment: The staff can easily view the status of crews/shifts, allowing them to redirect volunteers and promote specific areas where more people are needed, which has "helped immensely"
As the SXSW continues to grow they have a scalable solution built to meet their needs.
"Rosterfy has helped us rebuild our volunteer base post Covid. We've been able to steadily increase it every year using Rosterfy. So I think that's helped immensely."
Trevor Weede, Volunteer Operations Manager
.png "G2 - Book a Demo (1)")
Book a discovery call
Speak to one of our team today and see the impact Rosterfy could have on your volunteer program.
In a short discovery call we'll learn about your current volunteer processes, explore your goals, and share best practices to streamline operations and enhance the volunteer experience.
Provide a world class volunteer experience
