The Service Enterprise program began in 2010 when Reimagining Service partners CommonGood Careers, Deloitte, Taproot Foundation, The RGK Center for Philanthropy at the University of Texas and TCC Group collaborated around research and best practices for volunteer engagement. Based on this research, CaliforniaVolunteers leveraged a grant they received from the Corporation for National and Community Service to start a pilot project aimed at strengthening the capacity of volunteer organizations.

In 2012, Points of Light joined the partnership, collaborating with the RGK Center and TCC Group to integrate a diagnostic component that informs the process for organizations taking part in the program. Points of Light then developed the curriculum, marketing materials and content necessary to scale the program to organizations within our affiliate Network and other partners in the sector.

Since then, the program has scaled across the country through a network of Service Enterprise Hubs operating in more than 20 states, having certified over 650 organizations as Service Enterprises.

In 2022, Points of Light partnered with AL!VE, the Association of Leaders in Volunteer Engagement, to operate and lead the Service Enterprise program. We thank all involved for their leadership, early investment, research and assessment tools that built the foundation from which AL!VE will grow the program.

Based on rigorous research, Points of Light’s Service Enterprise program utilizes a proven process that starts with a diagnostic which informs the training and coaching organizations experience before they are certified. As organizations apply new learnings, they continuously assess their progress and retrain as needed. Typically, the process from start to certification takes six months to a year

The program is currently delivered through a national network of Service Enterprise Hubs, which have partnered with Points of Light and AL!VE to certify more than 650 organizations nationwide since 2012.

The Service Enterprise curriculum is based on an analysis of data from more than 600 organizations that took the TCC Group’s Core Capacity Assessment Tool. Data showed that 11% of these organizations were top performers in volunteer management, and we called this elite group “Service Enterprises.” Other key findings among Service Enterprises:

• Organizational capacities are markedly stronger for nonprofits with a strong volunteer management model.
• Organizations that are well led also engage and manage volunteers well.
• Organizations are significantly more adaptable, sustainable and capable of going to scale.
• Organizations are committed to maintaining strong and well-developed human resources management practices.
• Organizations that engage volunteers are just as effective as their peers that do not leverage volunteers, but accomplish their work at almost half the median budget.

ased on additional, thorough analysis of the data, Deloitte, Points of Light, Algorhythm and the RGK Center for Philanthropy at the University of Texas at Austin identified twelve core characteristics that are now the basis for the determination of a Service Enterprise:

1. Leadership Involvement: Executive and board leadership demonstrate through actions their commitment to community involvement, and the engagement of volunteers as a key strategy to achieve the organization’s mission.

2. Planning: Thoughtful, comprehensive preparations for volunteer and community engagement based on established principles and practices of effective management.

3. Funding & Resource Allocation: The provision of the financial, human, space, and material tools, and means, necessary for the engagement of volunteers, as well as the willingness to seek additional support as needed.

4. Technology: The broad-based utilization of technology to facilitate all aspect of volunteer engagement, including record keeping, communication, and service options.

5. Cultivation: Engaging individuals and groups to serve your organization is an ongoing cultivation process. Recruitment should be targeted to assure a diverse mix of community members with the skills, interest and abilities to further your mission.

6. Onboarding: Providing a smooth pathway to service through careful screening, preparation, and guidance that includes both community members and staff involvement.

7. Supervision & Support: Supervision assures that oversight and support are consistently provided to volunteers and community partners to ensure they are given the opportunity to succeed, and to feel valued and appreciated.

8. Training: Education and skill development, as well as the knowledge of organizational parameters and boundaries, are critical to ensure that both volunteers and staff are equipped to perform their work and to work effectively together.

9. Tracking & Evaluation: Tracking and evaluation assesses the degree to which an organization monitors progress towards institutional goals and the performance of volunteers, staff and community partners in reaching these objectives.

10. Communication: Effective communication takes many forms, and operates through an increasingly wide and  diverse  array of channels including formal and informal means, print and social media to send  information to external and internal groups.

11. Growth & Change: Vibrant, exciting organizations seek ways to improve services, cultivate leaders, continuously seed new ways of thinking, and create new platforms for action and problem solving. Staying on the cutting edge of industry practices motivates staff, whether salaried, or non-salaried.

12. Collaboration: Being a part of your community is vital to the work and services of nonprofit and public sector organizations.  Collaborative undertakings with other organizations, your constituents, and your volunteers, build relationships and sharpen the focus of service organizations.