This week is National Volunteer Week (18-24 May 2020)!

The team would like to thank all of those who have dedicated their time to volunteer!! We also wanted to make a special mention to our dedicated database of well over 17,600+ volunteers – you are all so incredible!

With major events either postponed or cancelled due to the novel coronavirus, so many volunteers are eagerly awaiting to hear when major events will return to Australia. We’ve been in touch with many of our volunteers over the last few months, whilst we all self isolate, and have been thrilled to hear the excitement that many have in helping the major events industry find its feet again.

We’re encouraged by the easing of social distancing and hope it’s not too long until we’re back out at our favourite events helping them come to life – here what a few of our volunteers had to say about looking forward to when major events return and what they find most rewarding about volunteering…

Declan M.

Declan is a go-getter by nature and is passionate about volunteering – we reached out to him to hear what he’s excited about the most when it comes to returning to volunteering –

“Even now with restrictions easing my excitement grows for the major events to return. First off, seeing the various volunteering teams across the major events will be fantastic, it’s always great to reminisce about previous events, and discuss those upcoming.

“The atmosphere that’s created when the team is together is amazing, it makes us all feel so empowered by eachother. Secondly, I’m really looking forward to seeing the smiling faces of the public when the events open up for 2021, I anticipate it will be an opening like none other.”

Bev E.

The team heard from Bev during the coronavirus pandemic and has been thrilled to hear her excitement and eagerness to volunteer once major events return. When we asked Bev why she was excited to volunteer, Bev told us – “I Can’t wait to be able to start volunteering again , I love being able to give back to the community, meeting people, helping people out and seeing their smiling faces.“

Bev has volunteered with the I Need Helpers’ team for a number of years now – one of our longest volunteers when we first moved to Sydney! Bev has encouraged many to volunteer and following the pandemic it’s no exception – “I would encourage anyone that was thinking of volunteering to contact I Need Helpers. As I have volunteering with them for the last 5 years and thoroughly enjoy every event I have volunteered at.”

See you on the next event Bev!

Ken C.

We’ve been so excited to see Ken volunteering within the major events industry, which has included events such as Australia Day and Sydney Royal Easter Show! His leadership and friendly nature makes him a popular team member and he is often affectionately referred to as ‘Uncle Ken’ by his fellow volunteers.

The team had the opportunity to speak to Ken who shared his eagerness to return to volunteering once major events return – he told us that he “looks forward to having people coming up and saying thank you, as that puts a smile on my face!“.

We look forward to seeing you soon Ken – and to have your incredible team leading skills that have allowed each volunteer to feel properly supported and empowered in their roles.

Ashleigh T.
Ashleigh is one of our Team Leaders with INH and what a little events star she is! She’s bubbly (just look at that smile!), well organised and knows how to run a tight ship.
We asked her what she’s most excited about when major events return, here’s what she had to say…

“Events are so much more than entertainment. It brings people together, gives them a mutual ground and from a volunteers point of view, it gave me friendships and experiences I would have never gotten or experienced anywhere else. Working in the events industry shows you true passion, hard work and dedication. I think now more than ever the return of events will showcase just how passionate and hardworking this industry is.”
She finds “meeting incredible people from all walks of life” as one of the most rewarding factors of volunteering.
– We can’t wait to see you doing what you do best at our next major event Ash!

Shaun R.
Say hi to Shaun – Our all round superstar and major event volunteer extraordinaire! Chances are you would have bumped into her at either the Sydney Royal Easter Show, Vivid Sydney, V8 Supercars or numerous other events she is involved in…
Shaun is eager to “get back out there, it will be like a beautiful breath of fresh air, to meet all the people you have not seen in a while; to laugh, smile and talk with them will be incredible!”
Shaun is an amazing Team Leader, and you can often find her offering a friendly smile, providing directions and information to not only visitors but new volunteers as well. “Helping them is so worthwhile and rewarding, knowing that all volunteers have given their time and effort to make the event something they and visitors can remember”
-We’re looking forward to creating more memories with you Shaun!

Les S.
This is Les, he’s an avid volunteer for a number of major events and always has a joke or two up his sleeve. He’s approachable, kind and is always willing to take on new challenges and to lend a helping hand.
The “most exciting part of volunteering is being able to participate and enjoy the journey. Supporting not only the organisers, but a great team of vollies too.”
Les recently volunteered for Australia Day 2020 as a Team Leader and he did an amazing job! “Being a volunteer is rewarding because I am able to give back what I’ve learnt; building rapport through the 3 E’s – Energy, Excitement and Enthusiasm” All of which Les has in abundance.
-We’re already missing your humor Les and can’t wait to see you shine when major events return!

Martin P.
Martin, like many of our volunteers, is so passionate about making a “real difference in our community by helping others – Together Everyone Achieves More”.
You can find Martin at the Maritime Museum (once it reopens) where he dedicates a lot of his time greeting and providing information to visitors. He’s also extremely supportive of major events, and passionate about volunteering “Being part of an Inspirational Team of Volunteers that provides a wonderful experience for visitors to major events” is what he is most excited about once the industry is back up and running.
-We can’t wait to see you putting a smile on the faces of all those you meet Martin!

Express your interest for 2021:

Australia Day 2021 – Volunteer Program EOI (Sydney):
http://inh.so/ausd21

Sydney Royal Easter Show 2021 – Volunteer program EOI:
http://inh.so/sres21-eoi

“I had very little volunteering experience when I applied for Vivid Sydney through I Need Helpers, so I was ecstatic when my application got accepted, I thought to myself that this was going to be a great opportunity.

At my first shift I walked over to The Rocks, excited and a little bit nervous, who was I going to meet, what would the I Need Helpers team be like, what would my team leader be like and my fellow volunteers.”

INH Opportunities is now on iPhone…

INH Mobile Applications

The team is excited to have launched our very own Android Application last month & now having released our iPhone Application today.
By introducing a mobile application, we’re providing an even easier way for episodic staff / volunteers to apply for events, interact with assigned interviews and shift times, contact coordinations through our in-built messaging system and most of all – stay connected!
Notably, this will provide ease for our casual staff & volunteers in connecting, but it will streamline and provide the ability for individuals to be simply ‘scanned’ into /of of their shifts with a unique code – even quicker then a one-click button, which will be helpful when managing 250+ shifts all on the same day we have in March!

We’re excited to be releasing further functionality to the site in the coming months that will change the way events recruit and manage their volunteers.

When managing drivers and ground logistics staff it is always a challenge to know exactly where they are or how long they will take to arrive.

Things are always changing in events… So what if we need to change something after it was sent via SMS? We’ve used tech to solve that problem.

Last week we made the most progress in mimicking the thought process behind recruitment / rostering.

We’ve been told that we’ve taken the security of INH Opportunities seriously and we agree with what they have to say!

The I Need Helpers’ Team has been pretty nerdy lately!

We’ve been reviewing the application behaviour of volunteers over the last 8 months, which has been pretty interesting – in a nerdy way! From the results, we’ve tested a new field in the application process, which we’ve had in place for the last three events. This field has seen a significant decrease in cancelation rates (something all volunteer programs will be presented with at some stage!).

We’re introducing a virtual currency to INH Opportunities… feedback from students has been great so far!

“[virtual currency helps].. shape user behavior, and increase use retention and engagement.”

http://mediatemple.net/blog/tips/how-to-introduce-virtual-currency-into-your-community-the-right-way/

We’ve introduced an exciting way to reward our students for their industry involvements and, combined with industry hours, give students priority for future positions (paid and voluntary)! ‘INH Points’ are accumulated through paid and volunteer involvements (1 shift = 5 INH Points) and can be exchanged for resources, tickets to INH run networking events and much much more!! It’s not only experience you will be receiving with us – it’s a community to help build your knowledge and to assist you in gaining future employment.
INH Points can also be purchased for $1 each; however, we are restricting purchases until we’ve distributed 10,000 INH Points to give those who are actively participating priority and to build the worth of the virtual currency.

The I Need Helpers’ team has our won in-built messaging system for INH Opportunities. Following tech trends for Y-Gen and the shift between email and instant messaging… we’re super excited to have just uploaded this change to our system.