Volunteer Management System

I participated in the entire process of ideating, defining and designing the Volunteer Engagement System (VES) as a Product User Experience Designer, offering comprehensive and efficient volunteer management for nonprofit organizations.

Objectives:
The VES aims to provide a holistic solution for volunteer recruitment, relationship building, retention, and administration, ultimately improving volunteer participation and simplifying administrative tasks. Additionally, the system may serve as a potential Customer Relationship Management (CRM) solution for nonprofits without one, offering the capability to export or import data between VES and external CRMs.

PROCESS
Discover: Competitive Analysis, User Interviews, User Journey Map, Data Research
Define: Problem Focus, Product Requirements
Develop: Wireframe, User Flow, User Testing
Deliver: Product Design, Prototype, Ship Designs

​Summary of the Volunteer Engagement System:
The Volunteer Engagement System is designed to address the following key aspects that are defined after comprehensive research, analytics, user interviews and testing.  
  1. Volunteer Recruitment: It facilitates the progression of potential volunteers from prospects to qualified volunteers by guiding them through a seamless pipeline.
  2. Relationship Building: VES empowers volunteer managers to understand volunteers' interests and availability, enabling personalized volunteer opportunities. It also aids in converting volunteers into donors and advocates.
  3. Retention: The system supports volunteer managers in retaining connections with volunteers through effective communication, acknowledgment, and rewards systems.
  4. Improving Volunteer Participation: By aligning opportunities with volunteers' interests and skills, VES enhances the engagement of volunteers with nonprofit organizations.
  5. Simplifying Administration: VES reduces the time spent on manual administrative tasks, such as managing spreadsheets, allowing volunteer managers to focus on recruitment and retention efforts.​
Competitive Analysis: To design an intuitive and efficient management platform, I reviewed the ten biggest competitors based on several factors:
  • Product Features
  • Communications
  • Pricing
  • Integration Solutions
  • Platform Support Services

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User Interviews: I interviewed a total of 15 nonprofits, including small, medium, and large organizations. I summarized their pain points and created journey maps to overlay the experience.
Barriers:
  1. Lack of streamlined processes for volunteer recruitment and retention.
  2. Cumbersome administrative tasks, including manual data management.
  3. Limited integration with external CRMs and event management systems.
  4. Design differentiation challenges to maintain VM's style guide.
  5. Entry points of platform visibility on existing site.
​Solution:
  1. Streamlining volunteer recruitment and progression from prospects to qualified volunteers.
  2. Simplifying administrative tasks through automation and data management features.
  3. Facilitating integration with external CRMs and event management systems.
  4. Addressing design differentiation while maintaining VM's brand identity.
Success Metrics:
  1. Increased volunteer engagement and participation rates.
  2. Reduced administrative workload for volunteer managers.
  3. Seamless integration with external CRMs and event systems.
  4. Positive user feedback on the intuitive VES interfaces.
  5. Distinctive design differentiation from VM's core platform.


Results:
After three months of launching the first three main features of the platform, the VES was adopted by 30% of active nonprofits. It significantly improved the volunteer management process, providing admins with a seamless and streamlined experience for managing their volunteer database.

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My Role:
  • Sole Designer
  • Collaborated on every aspect of the process
  • Conducted design reviews with executives and tech leaders
  • Provided regular progress updates to all stakeholders​​
P O R T F O L I O