TeamKinetic is now a mature and fully featured volunteer management solution. As it has matured we have been able to more rigorously enforce a design principle for better impact across all user interfaces that we call Focus.
Focus is a collection of typography, grids, spacing, colour, layout and sizing rules that aim to achieve consistency of design, fluid layout for smaller screens and help to retain user focus on important tasks.
Volunteers, providers and administrators are presented with large amounts of information and we have been working hard to make this volume of information easy to digest in our Volunteer management application so the individual user focus is on the most pertinent information.
The biggest layout difference you will see is the support for a two-pane design with navigation elements in the left pane and the action area in the right pane. This layout also encourages the collection of tasks into one area, either functionally similar tasks or tasks commonly undertaken at the same time.
A two pane layout with a navigation bar on the left and the action panes on the right
Colours are restricted to a limited palette so that actionable areas like buttons, menus and links, are obvious and easy to find.
Font sizes are consistent and changes in font size are restricted to key text and headings.
Animation are used to indicated areas of focus when information is updated or the user enters a new area.
Panels are elevated when active using an animated shadow effect
Message and information areas are distinguished by a thick left border, the colour is contextual and can refer to the category, message type or other information.
Thick left borders indicated messages or important content areas
Where possible we want to avoid page refresh as this slows the users experience and can break their focus on the task at hand. Volunteers, Providers and Admin users all want to be able to undertake tasks with the need for a screen refresh. Extended use of AJAX , a method of performing user interactions immediately without reloading a new page, enables us to keep the user focused on their task without the interruption of a page refresh and the subsequent visual scan of the page to locate the last point of focus.
AJAX methods are employed extensively across the admin area, especially when editing opportunities or volunteer profiles.
Grids and spacing automatically adjust to screen size and allow navigation areas to collapse to icon only links and wide content to collapse into vertical stacks keeping readability high.
Collapsible elements retain readability and usability for small screens
We just wanted to let you know what’s behind some of the design decisions in the brand new TeamKinetic v1 release and our design intent going forward.
Please add any comments you have below, thanks, The Team.
England Athletics is the latest National Governing Body to be using TeamKinetic cloud-based Volunteer Management Software.England Athletics has placed volunteers at the heart of their most recent strategic plan with ‘Strategic Priority One’ being:
“To expand the capacity of the sport by supporting and developing its volunteers and other workforce”.
The recognition that volunteers are at the heart of England Athletics’ strategy has resulted in the demand for an effective volunteer management system.
England Athletics have initially focused on using TeamKinetic to support the 4,500 licensed officials, just one segment of volunteers that support the 149,000 registered athletes at events, competition and clubs.
Nicola English, Officials Development Officer, explains how TeamKinetic arrived on the scene:
“Starting my role in April last year, one of the key priorities was to improve the experience of our current officials and official secretaries. As part of the improvement, we wanted to make it easier for Officials to find competitions in their local area and to reduce the amount of time it takes for officials Secretaries to appoint and manage Officials prior to an event or competition.”
We searched several systems before selecting TeamKinetic for its simplicity and ease of use. Using TeamKinetic will make it simpler for Officials to find and join opportunities as well as reducing the time it takes Officials Secretaries to appoint Officials to competitions and events. We really like how responsive and easy to communicate it is with one of the team, especially if we have any technical queries”
England Athletics is the first National Governing Body to use TeamKinetic to such an extent for the management of Officials at competition and this has posed some interesting challenges for the development team at TeamKinetic. It has provided a fantastic opportunities to test the application in this new context and we look forward to the spring and summer of 2018 where we will get to see these in action for the first time.
Chris Martin, Co-Founder at TeamKinetic comments:
“TeamKinetic began by helping sports organisations to recruit volunteers, but as we have progressed our software now caters for all volunteer-orientated organisation. We are delighted that TeamKinetic continues to attract leading National Governing Bodies and we look forward to working with England Athletics.”
For more information on TeamKinetic’s volunteer management software or to book an online demonstration, please get in touch james@teamkinetic.co.uk or call 0161 914 5757
I wanted to talk a little about how we adhere to the accessibility standards laid out by the W3 web consortium. These are termed Web Content Accessibility Guidelines or WCAG.
The WCAG documents explain how to make web content more accessible to people with disabilities. Web “content” generally refers to the information in a web page or web application, including:
natural information such as text, images, and sounds
code or markup that defines structure, presentation, etc.
These guidelines help people using assistive technologies, such as screen readers and text-only browsers, to navigate ever more complex websites.
An example of how the correct mark up can help is in navigation elements. We’ve all seen the standard top or side navigation bars in websites, that often have multiple sub-menus and let a user navigate quickly to any area of the website.
For instance, the Amazon navigation bar has over 100 such links hidden away in the navigation bar.
What is not apparent to users that are not using assistive technologies is that this navigation bar appears first in the content flow of the website. As a visual user you can quickly skip over that part and get on with buying a new TV by just averting your eyes. A screen reader however must read over that entire navigation section and read out every link, EVERY time a page is loaded, can you imagine the inconvenience and annoyance that would cause!
To overcome this web designers can use a specific HTML 5 element, plus a few other attributes from the ARIA set, to define a navigation section. This lets assistive technologies know that everything following that declaration is navigation, and the user can skip over them easily if they want to.
So as you might imagine the first thing we do here at TeamKinetic is to make sure all the navigation elements are enclosed in the correct element tags so assistive technologies can render them correctly.
At a minimum, we seek to make sure every public page has no errors when scanned with the WAVE accessibility checker and on each audit we attempt to address any alerts that appear.
This is the list of major conventions we use to help us adhere to the WCAG standards;
All navigation elements are enclosed in an HTML 5 nav element that is given the role=”navigation” so that newer and older assistive technologies will recognise the enclosed section as navigation
All images have a meaningful alt tag so the user gets an idea of what the image means
All anchor or link tags have meaningful text, this is sometimes hidden from the non-assistive browser in the case of icon buttons for instance.
All input form elements have a label tag which describes what data should be inserted into the form element.
The tab order of form elements is logical and follows the on-screen order so that people can tab through a form easily.
ARIA roles and landmarks are used where appropriate.
In our next audit, we are attempting to improve the experience for our dynamic content. This is content which may appear or disappear without a new page being loaded. This means that users of assistive technology may become stuck on an alert or page overlay without knowing that it is there.
There are always ways to improve and if you have any comments or suggestions we would welcome them below.
YHA England and Wales has over 120 YHA Hostels, another 25 franchise sites and 35 affiliate sites across the UK, and is the largest hostel provider in the UK. In its 85 Years of operations, YHA has been operating as a charity that aims to enable young people and schools, families and friends, travellers and individuals to explore, learn and relax the length and breadth of England and Wales. A vital part of this has been the involvement of volunteers who support the running of YHA.
Katie, Abigail, Jamie, Ros, Crewenna and Robert YHA Volunteering & Impact Team
Crewenna Dymond has been Head of Volunteering at YHA for the last twelve years. She has overseen the transition from the use of Excel sheets, paper files and a CRM system to using TeamKinetic for volunteer management. One year on, Crewenna shares her experience using TeamKinetic and the impact it has had on YHA’s volunteering.
How did you previously manage volunteers?
Previously, volunteers would have to call either the Volunteering Team or a local YHA directly to find when and where opportunities were available.
Once a volunteer had expressed interest in joining an opportunity, they would need to complete a PDF registration form, obtain references and potentially a DBS, depending on their role. Each of these items had to be processed manually and added to a physical paper volunteers folder. The process which was very timely, resulted in duplication and was very inefficient.
We also had a CRM system which was great for recording activity that had already happened, but there was nowhere to put in future activities, we always had to do this with an Excel spreadsheet.
The lack of a singular system also led to much confusion between volunteers and hostels, because there was nowhere to record what agreements had been made.
Why did you decide to look for a volunteer management software?
Despite all the difficulties of our system, it was an internal audit that sparked the need for a singular system to be put in place. There was concern that our data was spread across multiple areas leading to a higher risk to YHA than if it was to be held in one area/system, with an appropriate backup.
During the planning process, we looked to develop our current CRM system, but with the cost incurred, the continuous updates required and still no online tool for volunteers to use, we realised it would be more cost-effective to find a built-for-purpose system.
We looked at other competitors for volunteer management software before selecting TeamKinetic. We needed a system that looked and felt like the YHA website and the decision was made to use TeamKinetic because it could do this, it had the appropriate functionality and as a UK-based company, its data policies were aligned with GDPR.
Using TeamKinetic creates a singular place for the Volunteering team, Hostels and Volunteers to find and access information on the opportunities we have available.
How was the implementation process of TeamKinetic?
Before we imported our volunteer data to the system, we wanted to cleanse it (preparing for GDPR). We started with over 12,000 volunteers on our paper files. We decided to remove any volunteers who had been inactive for the last three years and the remaining 7,500 volunteers were invited to join the new system.
When the system went live in May 2017, we had 7,500 volunteers. Within 10 months using TeamKinetic we now have 10,500 registered users.
What benefits has TeamKinetic provided?
For volunteers it is the self-service side of the software, they are able to go onto the system and see everything they have booked onto, and log their hours, leave feedback and see their own progress.
For the opportunity providers, in our case the Hostels, the TeamKinetic framework has ensured opportunities are much more specific than before, including times, location and the responsibilities of volunteers. The Hostels are much more considerate of the benefits for volunteers and what is offered to them in return for their time because this is explained on all the opportunities pages of the website. This has led to a better experience for our volunteers, encouraging them to volunteer with YHA.
For our hostels, the biggest benefit of having TeamKinetic is the opportunity to create communities within their volunteers. Through the software, volunteers can be grouped into cohorts and communicated with via email or text. This direct communication enables opportunity providers to directly engage with their volunteers like never before. TeamKinetic has opened the door for opportunities to be advertised locally and attract those close to the hostel to get involved. We are finding the time it takes us to develop new opportunities is much shorter, making for a much more efficient process.
In terms of the benefit to us in the Volunteering team, it helps greatly to have everything in one place and having instant access to any of the information needed is very helpful.
How have you found the training, support and use of TeamKinetic?
Steve, the implementation consultant at TeamKinetic, took us through our training and showed us how to use many of the features. We could then refer to the training videos or training manuals both available online if we needed any further support. Of course, if there is anything additional that I need I can always access the team by calling their offices or emailing them or submitting a customer support ticket.
How did your volunteers find using TeamKinetic?
New volunteers have got on and used the website because they did not have any previous expectations. For these volunteers making full use of the Events pages has helped us to help them find the opportunities of most interest to them easily. Volunteers with less experience of using web-based technology have generally been positive about using it and with some tips and training, they have adjusted to the new ways of working fairly successfully.
We have found that the age of our volunteers is dropping. Around six or seven years ago, the average age for our volunteers would have been around 55. Now, over half of registered users are under the age of 26. We believe this is because the user-friendly system is something younger people are comfortable using, making it really accessible to them.
Do you have any other comments?
A couple of years ago we would have felt the cost of a volunteer management software system would be too much, it would be too much of a challenge and too much work to change systems. Having gone through the whole process, it’s actually not! For such a multi-site organisation to be able to transfer across to new systems in under four months, I’m sure smaller organisations will be able to do it much faster.
Thank you for your time Crewenna.
If you have any further questions or would like to learn more about TeamKinetic’s Volunteer Management Software please do not hesitate to get in touch with one of our team.
You can find TeamKinetic on social media and listen to our podcast:
For the last four years, University of Portsmouth Sports Development Team has been benefiting from TeamKinetic’s volunteer management software. This case study explores the benefits of TeamKinetic as discussed with Zoe Monk, Sports Development Officer at the University of Portsmouth.
Hi Zoe, please can you tell us about your role and responsibilities?
I am a Sports Development Officer, as part of my role I oversee all volunteering opportunities in sports and our community engagement programme. This includes the recruitment and management of volunteers from the university, starting before the academic year through to May when students focus on their exams. I also oversee the training and professional development of our volunteers.
On a day to day basis, I correspond with organisations in our community partnerships, sharing any opportunities they might have on an ad hoc basis. I also manage the sports delivery programme, which includes regular volunteers from Portsmouth University cheerleading and dance clubs delivering coaching in local schools.
I lead the volunteer training that we run for our groups of volunteers and I am seconded to academic lecturing on the side as well, in coaching and event management.
Why did you start using TeamKinetic?
We started using TeamKinetic’s software after realising our existing system, which had been designed in-house, was not really fit for purpose. It didn’t really track some of the essential pieces of information we wanted to report on. It was at that point we decided to find a designed for purpose system and came across TeamKinetic.
How do you use TeamKinetic?
The first way we use TeamKinetic is to support our students in their professional development, gaining valuable experience. For example, we had a PGCSE student needing some practical experience delivering PE to children in school, we then went onto our opportunities available and found one that matched their needs.
The other way we use TeamKinetic is in a community coaching agency. We are approached by the organisations with a need for a coach with a specific skills. We then advertise the role to our students, say if a school needed a basketball coach or referee for a tournament, then we would use TeamKinetic to advertise the opportunity and recruit a volunteer.
Could you give me some more examples of the types of opportunities you advertise?
Yes, of course. The volunteer opportunities are either structured or are ad hoc.
The structure opportunities mainly include our dance and cheer coaching opportunities. This is where we have thirty cheerleaders and fifty dancers delivering coaching in schools each week, so we keep track of that.
We then have a community football club, which is run by twenty or so student volunteers. On top of these, we have student activators that support the running of on sport. That alone is just the structured stuff we offer.
Is there a process for advertising your opportunities?
For new opportunities, either me or one of the approved providers will make sure that it has been formatted in the appropriate way before going live. This ensures there is the right amount of detail, requirements and the opportunity’s expectations are sufficiently outlined.
This authorisation makes sure we maintain a level standardisation across all our opportunities, resulting in our students knowing what to expect when they volunteers.
What role would you say TeamKinetic has played in supporting the success of these opportunities?
TeamKinetic has proved very beneficial in supporting the running of these opportunities. It has helped create an efficient, straightforward and standardised process for opportunities to recruit and recognise volunteers.
From the students’ point of view, they have an intuitive experience of signing up, searching opportunities, joining them, attending, followed by logging their hours and leaving feedback.
How has TeamKinetic helped you to recruit volunteers?
I think TeamKinetic works so well is because of how user-friendly it is. It is efficient and easy for students to sign up, find opportunities and leave feedback on those they have attended. They can keep track of what opportunities they have attended, their hours and their progress, which I think is very helpful.
What makes TeamKinetic stand out?
For us as a Sports Development Team, it is helpful that TeamKinetic is from a sports background. If you look at the products available on the market, there is nothing that really caters in the same way for the needs of sports organisations.
Would you like to add anything else?
I think my only remaining comment, would be that we use it as an agency kind of tool, but I am aware that other universities, such as Northumbria, use the software with a much more stringent approach. I think this is something we are hoping to do more of.
If you would like to find out how TeamKinetic Volunteer Management Software would benefit your University, please get in touch with one of our team.
TeamKinetic’s youngest member, James, participated in the YMCA ‘Sleep Easy’ challenge, raising a total of £250 for the charity. The experience contributed towards TeamKinetic’s wider ambition to support more causes in need of support through the contribution of our time, effort and expertise.
Read about his experience, the challenge of Homelessness and the work of YMCA:
On Friday, 2nd March, I swapped my usual routine of enjoying an evening indoors with my friends or family, for a night of sleeping it ‘rough’. Participating in the YMCA Sleep Easy Challenge, I spent twelve hours setting up my temporary shelter and sleeping out in it.
James’ Shelter Before the Rain
Arriving at Cambridge Rugby Club, I was unsure of what to expect from the night, other than to be cold and at least some rain. I joined a convoy of other stragglers finding our way to the club from the distant car park.
Arriving at the clubhouse we found the all sheltered areas had already been taken and the remaining areas we exposed to the elements. I put my rucksack and sleeping bag down at the end of a row, securing my spot on the edge of shelters. I set around to find the cardboard boxes available and created my temporary shelter, using a life bag to waterproof the roof.
Once completed, I joined the other twenty-five volunteer embracing the YMCA Challenge. Provided with some tummy warming vegetable curry, by Food Cycle Cambridge, we spoke about why homelessness was a cause for concern and how the YMCA is helping to support those vulnerable.
The ‘Rough’ Facts:
Accurate figures of homelessness are hard to capture due to different local authorities having different definitions of ‘homelessness’ and lack accurate methods of keeping track
4,751 homeless people bedded down outside overnight in 2017, up 15% from the previous year
Across the UK it is estimated 3,500 people sleep rough in the UK each night, with one-fifth of these are young people aged between 16 to 24.
The statistics show that 92 local authorities had rough sleeping rates that were worse than the national picture.
Thirty-two authorities, including Barking and Dagenham and Barnsley, claimed to have had zero rough sleepers.
(The Guardian, 2018)
The YMCA:
YMCA is the oldest and largest youth charity in the world
Provides support and advice, accommodation, family support, campaigning, health and wellbeing, training and education.
YMCA has over 58 million members in 119 countries worldwide
supports projects for vulnerable young people in over 20 countries worldwide
Over 800 dedicated volunteers in 2017
(YMCA.org.uk, 2018)
As the evening continued entertainment was provided by Joshua Francis. A talented artist who has an experienced firsthand the support from the YMCA, he bought to life his colourful experiences through a heart touching and brutally honest performance of his own songs.
Following his performance, he spoke to several of us before setting off on his way. As the night quietened down, we turned our attention to the rain that had been pouring down, testing the durability of our shelters. Although slightly damp, the shelter had survived the first bought of rain.
I climbed into my sleeping bag, crawled into my shelters and tried settling into a comfortable position to fall asleep. Eventually, I fell asleep for a couple of hours, only to be woken again by the second set of rain pouring down heavy onto my shelter. It was this bout of rain that reduced my shelter to a collection of piled up cardboard boxes, plastic wrapping and a wet sleeping. It was safe to say, if I ever did this again, I would have to consider how to better equip my shelter for the rain.
Shelter Following the Rain
As I laid in the cold, I comforted myself by counting down the hours I had left. I was fortunate enough to be able to return home, to a comfortable bed in my home once this had finished. For those who are homeless, this luxury is not an option and instead, they are faced with a much more undesirable reality.
Finally, dawn broke and I climbed out from my wet cardboard mush to seek refuge, found in a hot cup of tea to bring warmth to my body. By 6:00 am everyone was awake, packing away their shelters, with a coffee in one hand and a cinnamon roll, again provided by Food Cycle. Everyone was eager to find warmth and retreat to their homes following a rather restless night. Once the site had been cleared of rubbish, the dry cardboard recycled and volunteers thanked everyone, I set off to return home.
It was the journey home that provided the opportunity to reflect on how fortunate I am to have somewhere I can call home, a network to support me and opportunities that offer a safe and secure future.
This experience has given me the smallest taste of the physical conditions they experience. I could go inside to a toilet, for food, warmth and the clubhouse if I needed. I was not subject to experience freezing temperatures, the torrential rains or snow. Nor did I experience the mental and emotional challenges that such vulnerability inflicts. To understand that, I believe you truly have to be in that position yourself.
Participating in the challenge reinforced my sentiment to supporting those affected by homelessness. I want to continue working to raise awareness of the issue, encouraging others to do so too and to raise funds that will directly benefit those affected.
The YMCA Trinity Sleep Easy volunteers collectively raised £12379.52 at the time of writing.
With donations still welcomed: https://mydonate.bt.com/fundraisers/jamesandteamkinetic
If you would like to read more about the work of TeamKinetic take a read through our blog or if you would like to learn more about volunteer management software please get in contact with one of the team.
TeamKinetic’s has always understood the importance of a positive volunteer experience. It is this understanding that has driven all of the development to be volunteer-centric, to ensure that both our clients and volunteers are happy.
We recently had the opportunity to discuss the experience of Dimitris Lampropoulos, a Football Coach who volunteers using Manchester Volunteer Inspire Programme (MCRVIP). MCRVIP is a programme which aims to recruit, train and deploy volunteers to support sport and physical activity within Manchester and uses the TeamKinetic system to do this. In the following case study, we share his experience using the system.
First experience with TeamKinetic software
“Having previously volunteered, the process of registration and joining opportunities could be tedious. Every time I wanted to participate in an opportunity, I had to make a call to the organisation, see if they had any opportunities available and then find out how to participate in. This process could often be timely and was restricted in the number of opportunities I could find and access information on.
Using TeamKinetic’s system through MCRVIP, I found it to be very straightforward to use. It was a very convenient and useful way to find opportunities, with a much easier process to select and apply to volunteering opportunities. The registration process is very straightforward and it only took a couple of minutes to create a profile. Once this has been completed you are able to find opportunities, which can be viewed on the homepage or searched for using the search bar.
The process to apply to each role is simple. Duties, qualifications, location and contact details are included in the opportunity description, as well as the sessions and dates. You can also share opportunities you have joined on social media, making it easier to involve my friends.
Once you have completed an opportunity you can leave feedback, through a simple thumbs up or down and add a comment. You can also see the number of hours you have logged and sessions you have attended in your profile. If you complete a specific number of hours, you will gain badges to acknowledge your participation and thus you will have the opportunity to turn your logged hours into vouchers. Depending on the opportunity provider, this could be traded for a free t-shirt to a discount on coaching courses”
Experience and benefits of volunteering
“I am delighted with my volunteering role of MCRVIP. Through this position, I have the chance to be involved in Manchester football and also to be registered on Manchester Football Association. My volunteering has now grown beyond the pitch, as the founder of the charity I work for offered the opportunity to get involved in the administrative and development of the charity. This will help to continue my professional development and provide me with the knowledge and experience in the business of football and will help to strengthen my CV.
Overall, being a volunteer can be a very beneficial experience, not only does it provide a sense of fulfilment it can improve employment opportunities. As a volunteer, you build your network, create new connections and can discover new opportunities. It also shows that you are eager to build your experience and do something to help others.
TeamKinetic provided the most straightforward system for joining opportunities I have come across. I really like how intuitive the system is and the motivation the hour trade vouchers provide. I could see this system working for sports organisation, charities or any organisation that requires volunteers.
They really provide a simple to use the system and I will be sure to find other opportunities using MCRVIP”.
For further information on TeamKinetic’s volunteer management software please email chris@teamkinetic.co.uk or call 0161 914 5757.
TeamKinetic recently visited our friends in Scotland, Volunteer Glasgow. With over 45 years’ experience of supporting charities and 3rd sector organisations to recruit and support volunteers, Volunteer Glasgow has managed to be one of the most successful third sector organisations in Scotland.
Over the years the many volunteer-dependent organisations Volunteer Glasgow supports have faced various challenges in the recruitment, retention and management of volunteers. Upon acknowledging the need for a new digital volunteering platform better able to meet the city’s volunteering needs, the search for a more efficient solution began.
For the last year, Volunteer Glasgow have been using TeamKinetic’s volunteer management software. Nick Brown, Volunteering Services Manager at Volunteer Glasgow shared his experience leading to and using TeamKinetic. He explains the importance of having an online presence for opportunities, the fundamental problems concerning the previous methods of opportunity advertising and how TeamKinetic has provided the solutions to overcome these issues.
The importance of advertising volunteer opportunities online:
“Many of the organisations we work, look to advertise roles with a relatively short turn around so speed is of the essence when it comes to getting opportunities online.
With previous methods of advertising opportunities online, it usually took between three to five days to appear online but it’s crucial that you get your opportunity out there quicker than that, with the right message to the appropriate people.
This is because organisations are unsure of the resources available to them far in advance or they may be overwhelmed with work and maybe a bit rushed. This means the process for advertising opportunities, at times, needs to be quick and easy.”
The problems with the previous systems:
Previously, Volunteer Glasgow used the Scottish Council for Voluntary Organisation’s (SCVO) MILO2, but this had several challenges, with a major issue around the processing time to advertise opportunities.
Commenting on the system: “One of our biggest issues was the long time period for an opportunity to be advertised online. For example, organisations had to fill out a form, then we input the form onto a system which then took around three days to be published online. This issue was further made challenging as opportunities were sometimes uploaded with the wrong details or none at all. This had a real impact on the ability of our partner organisations to recruit volunteers and obviously also carried a reputational risk for ourselves.
Exploring our options, we had a trial with another volunteer management software provider, but experienced issues in the reliability and functionality. The importance of effectively recruiting volunteers is crucial to the running of charities and 3rd sector organisations”.
The biggest struggle for Volunteer Glasgow was getting the systems to work and appear properly. As Nick explained “having a presence online with opportunities advertised is essential if you want to ensure high levels of recruitment of volunteers in an organisation.
Previously if you had an issue it could take quite a long time to resolve. TeamKinetic changed that. If we need support or help they were always responsive to our calls and queries.”
How TeamKinetic helped Volunteer Glasgow:
TeamKinetic was introduced to Volunteer Glasgow by Glasgow Life, who had already been using the software to manage volunteers for the needs of sport and leisure purposes. Having been impressed by the functionality and simplicity of the system, with the benefit of being able to interconnect platforms, TeamKinetic was deemed suitable for Volunteer Glasgow’s needs.
Introducing TeamKinetic to organisations we deal with:
“We told the 250 organisation we deal with that they should get started on using the TeamKinetic’s software and see how they get on. If they felt they were struggling or needed help they should get in touch. Out of them all, only eight got in touch to ask for some support and guidance using the more advanced functionality. Consequently, they have all given feedback on how simple to the software is to use”.
Controlling advertised opportunities:
“TeamKinetic’s software provided the ability to manage and control opportunities posted in real time. It enables us to have a level of authorisation and control which we had not had before.
Something we have to remember is that although we are advertising opportunities for other organisations, it is our website, with our branding and reputation on the line. TeamKinetic’s software notifies us immediately once an organisation has submitted an opportunity, allowing us to approve it; check to make sure it is appropriate and has sufficient detail. Once we have done this, we can approve the opportunity and straight away it goes live on our website.”
What Volunteers thought of TeamKinetic’s system:
“From the volunteers’ perspective there was a positive feedback; it is much easier for them to create their own profile which is something that has never done before. Volunteers can log hours, leave feedback on opportunities and are able to earn themselves HourTrade vouchers.”
Commenting on the ease of use of TeamKinetic’s software:
“If you have ever, for example, set up an online shopping account or uploaded your CV onto a recruitment website, then you will find TeamKinetic just as simple to use.
Using TeamKinetic’s volunteer management software has enabled us to reduce the amount of time we spend inputting and writing copy content.
This has directly resulted in staff having more time available to spend on the things that matter, such as directly approaching and offering our services to other charities in Glasgow.”
Summary of experience using TeamKinetic:
“It is the responsiveness, ease of use and functionality of TeamKinetic that makes it so great. Since as we started using TeamKinetic’s volunteer management software we have seen a positive impact. In the last six months, everything has been made easier for all those involved. TeamKinetic addresses the issue of limited time, by reducing the time it demands to create and advertise opportunities. This has alleviated much of the stress and difficulties previously experienced. Volunteer Glasgow is now able to spend time more effectively and we are able to achieve so much more.”
To learn more about TeamKinetic’s volunteer management software and how it could help your organisation or any other voluntary workforce needs please contact one of our team.
email on james@teamkinetic.co.uk | Call us on 0161 914 5757 | Book a free demo: teamkinetic.co.uk
Just before Christmas TeamKinetic announced we were hoping to do something that would raise awareness of Homelessness. Unfortunately, we were delayed due to an overly busy period and our plans were put on hold until a later opportunity.
Still eager to pursue an event that will raise awareness of homelessness and support the thousands of people affected, James, our youngest member of TeamKinetic will be taking on the YMCA Sleep Easy challenge.
Sleep Easy is a national fundraising event which aims to help prevent youth homelessness. By participating in the YMCA Sleep Easy Event at St. Catherine’s College Sports Ground, he will be experiencing one night of sleeping it rough.
Sharing his thoughts, James said:
“I have studied in Cambridge and Manchester and have become increasingly conscious of homelessness. It is hard to even comprehend the reasoning as to why people end up homeless. But the moment you take the time to speak with the, you realise these people are often a victim of unfortunate circumstances and lack a supportive network many of us fortunately have. Of course Sleep Easy does not replicate what it is really like to be homeless, but it is a good way to raise awareness and funds for a deserving cause.” TeamKinetic works to support third sectors organisations in all our operations, sharing a vision to encourage social good. This is just one part of the commitment we made to support more organisation through our time, energy and resources. Can you help TeamKinetic support this worthy cause?
Find out more about the event and the donations page here:
TeamKinetic is delighted to have been recognised as one of the 100 most innovative companies in Greater Manchester, in a report produced by BQ and the Business Growth Hub, part of The Growth Company.
This new initiative is designed to shine the spotlight on some of Greater Manchester’s most forward-thinking small and medium sized businesses.
Innovation is at the very heart of helping businesses to succeed and grow. It is key to building a sustainable and growing economy, and can be recognised not just in products and services but also across management processes and business operations.
Firms recognised from coming from right across the Greater Manchester region, and represent sectors as diverse as food & drink, manufacturing, healthcare and digital.
Across Greater Manchester alone, Innovate UK has provided funding for over 600 innovation projects since 2004 and the North West is home to a highly innovative business community that are contributing to new discoveries every day.
BQ’s Bryan Hoare said: “We’re delighted to give companies the chance to see some recognition for the hard work they put into innovation in their businesses.
“Innovation is the key to unlocking future growth, job creation and prosperity for the region, and what these businesses are already doing is incredibly impressive in lots of ways.”
Chris Greenhalgh, head of innovation at Business Growth Hub, said: “It’s our aim with Innovation100 to raise the profile of those businesses innovating in different ways, inspiring others to innovate and achieve growth.”
“What the Innovation100 companies underline is that while innovation can often be related to products, it can also apply to developing disruptive business models, applying new processes and delivering new services. Innovation is across many different facets of business, across different sectors and different sizes of companies.”
Chris Martin, Director at TeamKinetic:
“It has made us very proud to be recognised by the Innovation100. TeamKinetic has worked hard to provide leading software solutions for over eight years. We have always tried to incorporate upcoming and leading technologies into our software and provide the best solutions for our clients. To be recognised as one of Manchester leading innovative companies makes that hard work pay off.
We will continue developing our volunteer management software. Making it easier for volunteers to find, join and stay engaged in opportunities. For our clients in the third sector, we want to continue listening to their needs and understanding how we can develop our software to cater to new challenges that may arise. It all boils down to wanting to make TeamKinetic’s volunteer management software the best.”
