By Casper Harratt, General Manager – UK & Europe at Rosterfy. Sponsored content from Rosterfy.
I’ve heard it called micro-volunteering, flex-volunteering and bitesize volunteering. Whatever you call it, the importance of providing opportunities for people to give their time in ways that fit around the strains of modern life has never been greater.
Traditionally, volunteering has largely meant commitment: regular shifts, formal roles, usually some training, and often long-term involvement. And of course for many organisations, that still works well. But over the last few years - and particularly since the pandemic - something important has changed in how people want to give their time. There’s no doubt that people remain passionate about supporting causes they care about. But increasingly, many increasingly lack predictable free time. Work patterns are shifting, caring responsibilities are rising, and supporters often want - or need - flexibility. Naturally, this creates a challenge with volunteer recruitment, and many people who would like to volunteer simply never start the process.
This is where micro/flex/bitesize volunteering comes in. (I prefer ‘bitesize’ I think - it makes it sound manageable but still valuable. Let’s use that.)
What is bitesize volunteering?
Bitesize volunteering involves small, flexible tasks that supporters can complete in minutes rather than hours, often remotely or on their own schedule. Examples include sharing a campaign, translating a paragraph, reviewing materials, tagging photos, or helping with advocacy appeals. None of this replaces traditional volunteer roles. But collectively, these small contributions unlock support from people who cannot commit regularly. In other words, bitesize volunteering removes the biggest barrier to entry: time.
Why this matters now
You don’t need telling that charities face rising demand for services, while funding remains a challenge. Volunteer numbers are slowly recovering year-on-year since 2020, but ‘slowly’ is the operative word. Meanwhile, people’s expectations of flexibility have grown everywhere else in society. If volunteering still feels rigid or hard to access, many potential supporters simply won’t engage.
The strategic opportunity
For charity leaders, bitesize volunteering should be viewed as a strategic opportunity, as well as a necessary operational shift in how you run your volunteer programmes. Bitesize volunteering can significantly grow your supporter base by enabling parents, carers, busy professionals and those with unpredictable schedules to contribute. It can also create a path towards deeper engagement; someone who helps once may later donate, fundraise or volunteer longer term. And given the expectations of Gen Z, it will also be a critical strategy for engaging younger demographics in your cause without asking more of them than they’re able to give right now.
Consider how it might help your overstretched teams too. Short tasks can distribute workload across many supporters, especially if you allow your flex volunteers to use whatever particular skills they happen to have: auditing, design, content creation - the list is endless. If you’re the kind of cause that tends to require urgent appeals, a larger force of bitesize volunteers could be mobilised quickly and effectively.
But it isn’t effortless
Clearly, bitesize volunteering still requires planning and management to be effective. Tasks must be clearly defined, quick to understand and easy to complete. You will need the right flexible, digital tool in place that allows you to set up the jobs to be done, and allows volunteers to grab those jobs and complete them without too much input from you. You’ll want to track those tasks in the same way you track events or shifts currently. You’ll need everything to be digitally compliant and secure and, of course, you’ll want to be able to measure the impact. When looking at your volunteer management tech, make sure you’re geared-up to power future volunteering trends as well as the patterns of today.
What leaders should do now
Start by identifying small tasks already piling up across teams. Many can become volunteer contributions. Next, treat volunteer experience as seriously as supporter experience. If participation feels complicated, people won’t return. Take a look at the tech you have in place and assess if it’s set-up to support you properly. And finally, empower your Volunteer Managers to test new approaches; they’ll know where the quickest opportunities lie.
Bitesize volunteering won’t replace traditional roles, but it will greatly broaden who gets to participate.