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Media releases > Management advisors needed
How far could your management skills take you?
(May 2004)
Recent research* reported that a third of Britons are bored at work, with respondents citing lack of new challenges and feeling undervalued as major demotivating factors in the workplace. International development charity VSO is responding to these worrying findings by urging those with management experience to consider how volunteering could address their professional development needs, at the same time as enabling them to bring new skills and enthusiasm back to the UK job market.
With almost a quarter of the charity’s planned departures for this financial year falling within the business sector, VSO is hoping to confound popular opinion about the type of professional that can apply to volunteer. In the five years to 2003 the number of business and management professionals who volunteered with VSO more than doubled from 83 to 173. A further 30% growth in requests from overseas partners this financial year means that 223 volunteers are needed to take up positions over the next 12 months.
Regardless of the sector they currently work in, professionals with experience in areas such as project and financial management, staff and business development, strategic planning or fundraising and marketing will find their skills in high demand.
Although possessing key transferable management skills is a recognised strength, many professionals find it hard to imagine how they can be utilised in a developing country, when they read so much about the lack of access to basic services like education and healthcare. In fact a strong management structure in organisations such as Ministries of Education and NGOs working in HIV and AIDS awareness and prevention is vital in ensuring long-term sustainable development.
Michael Shann, Marketing Manager at VSO comments on the professional development opportunity that VSO offers:
Anyone currently experiencing dissatisfaction with their job in the UK might find the opportunity of using their existing skills in an extremely different cultural and working environment a challenge to relish. In addition many volunteers report developing new skills such as the ability to adapt their expertise, increased tolerance towards obstacles in the workplace and learning how to work with limited resources.
There is also the personal satisfaction of witnessing the impact of your work. Philip Sweeney, a local government senior manager, worked as a management adviser for the Malawi Network for AIDS Service Organisations (MANASO). As a volunteer he undertook skills training and offered his local colleagues advice on establishing financial and staff management systems. He says:
When I first arrived at MANASO my colleague Francina had not been long in the post of National Coordinator. She was new to management and had been placed in a key role within a growing organisation with national and international prominence. She was understandably apprehensive. The change that I have seen in her personal confidence and professional competence is remarkable. I take pleasure in the knowledge that this, once shy and softly spoken individual, now represents her organisation at regional and international events and is capable of managing an increasing staff and growing programme addressing the impact of the AIDS pandemic. In a country of significant gender inequality it is great to see a woman leading one of the key HIV/AIDS organisations and gaining the respect and admiration of her peers.
Most VSO jobs last two years and volunteers receive training both before they depart and when they arrive overseas, return flights, medical insurance, National Insurance contributions, accommodation, financial grants and a living allowance equivalent to a local wage.
*Development Dimensions International, March 2004
Editors' notes- For press information or to speak to a returned volunteer or VSO spokesperson please contact Catherine Raynor on 020 8780 7285 or on catherine.raynor@vso.org.uk.
- For further information on opportunities for managers visit www.vso.org.uk/managers or call 020 8780 7500
- VSO is an international development charity that works through volunteers. Experienced professionals work in partnership with local colleagues to share their skills and knowledge. Since 1958 more than 30,000 volunteers have worked in some of the world’s poorest communities.
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