Two Strategies, One Question: How does Volunteer Engagement fit?

Does your organisation have a strategy? A long-term plan to operate and achieve all its objectives. It does, right? Or does it?!

This week I heard of two different types of strategies, and it has made me reflect on the need to ask questions and never make assumptions.

Reichard Rumelt – A good strategy is “the overwhelming concentration of force to overcoming the most insurmountable obstacles.” Rumelt believes organisations should aim to identify and solve the biggest problems rather than simply state ambitions.

Adrienne Maree Brown - An emergent strategy describes a process of “getting in right relationship with change, asking how we can refine our strategies to align with the constantly changing conditions of our complex society.” It seeks to strengthen imagination and the capacity to think beyond binaries and linear, short-term outcomes.

Both these types of strategies require different planning tools, different timelines, different impact metrics, different cadences, and importantly, a different focus.

And volunteer engagement may fit quite differently in each of these types of strategies.

So, what type of strategy does your organisation employ?

What are the benefits of this type of strategy?

How does volunteer engagement fit within it?

And how can you align your goals and objectives with it?