Exploring the importance of Volunteerism in Irish Credit Unions.

The topic of volunteerism is one which attracts much discussion and interest. Recruiting and retaining competent volunteers is a key concern for all types of organisations, especially credit unions. This study documents the role played by volunteers in credit unions, examining the motivations of the volunteer and considering the types of support required to maintain their involvement. Furthermore, the area of future governance development is considered and the means by which organisations can achieve such improvements. The objectives of the study are to identify the procedures credit unions carry out to acquire new volunteers on to the board of directors, to identify whether volunteers understand their job to the best of their ability and to identify what training and orientation could be implemented for the benefit of the volunteer in carrying out their responsibilities more efficiently. The methodologies utilised in this study to gather data involved the use of qualitative semi structured interviews and mini case studies. The interviewees helped combine a mix of legislation, governance and practical experience. The findings outcomes are aligned with much of what is already present in the literature. The study concluded that acquiring new volunteers is becoming more challenging and new approaches are required. In the continuous mission for good governance and volunteerism improvements, together with board structure development, change is needed in the credit unions’ approach of recruiting volunteers. Likewise, the levels of supervision and regulation have increased as a result of many different events and governance based cases. In particular, governance procedures and structures within financial institutions need to be reviewed and improved accordingly, especially with regard to volunteer responsibilities on the board.