It's 2010, what are your plans for your chapters and other components? What - just updating last year's? Well, in the words of Oliver Blanchard "Soft goals create soft strategies. Soft strategies turn into weak tactics. Weak tactics turn into bogus metrics."

That tells you why your chapter program is getting your association nowhere. So do you still want to just update last year's goals?

Three bloggers offer quick insight on HR that is equally useful when talking about volunteers.  My partner, Peter Houstle, often says that if we applied the basic principles of HR to our volunteer workforce we’d be ahead of the game. That starts, he says, with a seldom seen position within organizations (be it a staff or key volunteer role) that oversees volunteer management.

Here are two pieces that shine a light on good people management practices and one that offers a look at leadership that all draw from HR to help us manage volunteers more effectively. Enjoy!

I’m not surprised and not sure why anyone else is.

VolunteerMatch.com shared that headline and web stats based on the second full day of Entertainment Industry Foundation’s iParticipate TV campaign. It seems that the media, despite an all star cast, is struggling to convert media attention into social action.

A little background …

I asked Leslie White, Croydon Consulting, to share her thoughts on an issue that continues to provide an undercurrent: risk.

Since attending ASAE’s Annual Meeting in Toronto I have been pondering the question of how risk management fits into the newer, quicker world of today. Too often the practice of risk management is viewed as an obstacle to innovation. A risk manager (you know the person who raises the “risk” question) is viewed as the “No” person. “We’ll get sued” is the most common refrain. I am trying to figure out how to change that paradigm so risk management becomes an important change agent.

When you spend two days immersed in an event, its hard to take time for deep breath much less note-taking. As ASAE’s 2009 Annual Meeting in Toronto this is certainly the case. But before I rest, I need to put down a few random notes.

Today is my first official day off the ASAE Component Relations Section Council. I’ve spent the last six years working on the council beginning with 3 1-year terms as member then 1-year terms as vice-chair, chair and past chair. I am excited to say this is also my official first day on the Executive Management Section Council.

ASAE & The Center is beta-testing a brand new collaborative space - okay in lay-speak a private social media platform. As a member of a section council and volunteer I was invited into the new playground. Once inside I found the Volunteer Town Square! What a cool name for a space to find short-term volunteer jobs and to meet. 

If you want to know more, be sure to check out the launch at ASAE 09 in Toronto (and of course over the airwaves too). But meanwhile, just think of how cool it would be for your volunteers to have a virtual town square to gather in ... hmmm ...

PS I'd be remiss in not acknowledging some of the creative minds behind the whole new playground including Maddie Grant, Lindy Dreyer, Reggie Henry, Priya Viswanathanand Jen Miller and team at SusQTech.

Tammy Erickson's posting Stuck in the Middle: How Generation X can survive the Boomer-GenY Love Fest appears to be about succession in the business world. But put on your volunteer manager hat and reread it. The dynamic she describes is happening in our volunteer workforce too. Our greatest challenge in the next 5 years is to help these generations work together to achieve the mission of our non-profits.

Go Jamie, Go Jamie ... I thought I add my "rant" to Jamie Notter's rant about succession planning and what it isn't.

I personally embrace his definition ...

Anytime I see Liz Claiborne’s name, I stop to read. Could be because I’m one of the raving fans who have put Liz Claiborne into the top 10 US fashion brands list and within the top five most important brands on our retailers' floors.

This time when I stopped to read about Liz, the focus wasn’t fashion but community. Brandweek editor Todd Wasserman shared a conversation with Dave McTague, Liz Claiborne's evp, partnered brands, centered around the company’s use of social media to relaunch its brand.