With 30 years of experience developing and delivering volunteer engagement training, and a strong understanding of the needs of communities and the evolving landscape of volunteering, the Volunteer Bureau of Montreal (VBM) is unveiling a renewed training program for Fall 2026.
This new offering aims to better address the realities of volunteer engagement today and support individuals and organizations in adopting clear, inclusive and impactful practices.
Drawing on the challenges experienced by organizations, this renewed offering addresses key issues related to:
- Volunteer recruitment and mobilization;
- Aligning organizational needs with volunteer availability;
- Creating safe and inclusive volunteer experiences;
- Strengthening volunteer welcoming, support, supervision and recognition practices.
The program includes The Essentials pathway and one training session from The Extras series, designed to equip organizations as they evolve their volunteer engagement practices.
An offering designed for today’s volunteer engagement realities
Volunteer engagement is evolving. Volunteers’ motivations, availability and pathways are becoming increasingly diverse. Organizations must therefore adapt how they recruit, welcome, support and recognize volunteers, while maintaining clear, inclusive and safe engagement experiences.
In this context, the VBM offers practical, participatory training sessions grounded in real-world experience. These sessions aim to support organizations in implementing clear, human-centered, inclusive and adapted practices, while helping volunteers better understand their roles, responsibilities, boundaries and the conditions needed for a positive experience.
Beyond knowledge sharing, the training sessions provide concrete guidance, practical tools, peer exchanges and reflection activities that can be directly applied in community settings. They also help better align the desire of volunteers, businesses and citizens to contribute with the actual needs of community organizations, ensuring that each contribution is meaningful, realistic and respectful of the sector’s capacity.
The Essentials: Structuring the volunteer experience cycle
The Essentials pathway is designed for volunteer managers, executive directors, program leads, and individuals responsible for welcoming, supporting or supervising volunteers.
It supports organizations at every stage of the volunteer experience cycle through four complementary training sessions:
- Recruiting volunteers: attracting and engaging committed people
- Selecting volunteers: fostering fair practices and successful matches
- Managing volunteers: providing structured and tailored support
- Recognizing and retaining volunteers: highlighting impact and supporting transitions
Together, these training sessions help organizations clarify their needs, improve volunteer management practices and foster positive, respectful volunteer experiences aligned with their mission.
The Extras: Exploring specialized topics
The Extras series includes complementary training sessions that allow participants to explore specific volunteer engagement topics and address particular realities faced by organizations.
This fall, the CABM is offering the training session Welcoming Corporate and Skills-Based Volunteering: Creating Meaningful, Realistic, and Well-Defined Assignments.
The series will gradually expand with new topics to support organizations as volunteer engagement practices and needs continue to evolve.
Take action with the VBM: Register today!
Whether you want to strengthen your practices, explore a specific issue or discover new ways to support volunteer engagement, the VBM offers training designed to meet the current needs of organizations.
Our Fall training sessions are offered in French and delivered in person.
English-language sessions will be available starting in Winter 2027. Dates will be announced soon — stay tuned for updates.
Consult the complete program for all details and register today to reserve your spot.
