Virtuous Volunteer supports multiple ways to manage Group reservations depending on the types of volunteers and your organization's needs. Whether you're coordinating a corporate team with unknown participants, managing a recurring Group with familiar faces, or accommodating Group members who want to bring guests, the right setup ensures smooth registration and accurate hour tracking. This guide outlines a few approaches you might use to manage checking in your Groups.
Table of Contents
Scenario 1: Group With Unknown Volunteers
Scenario 2: Pre-Registered Group with Known Volunteers
Scenario 3: Group Members Bringing Guests
Scenario 1: Group With Unknown Volunteers
If your Opportunity includes a Group of volunteers where many of them do not already have Volunteer Profiles, you need the ability to manage walk-in registrations easily. This scenario allows for a Group to be assigned to an Opportunity with reserved spots while still allowing non-members to claim Group reservations. This is helpful if you don't have volunteer contact information ahead of time, but you want volunteers to become permanent Group members in the future. For example, Acme Corporation wants to bring 50 employees to volunteer, but the coordinator doesn't have all their contact information ahead of time.
Recommended Setup
There are a few steps to set up the Group and Opportunity in order to allow a Group reservation while including walk-in volunteers. To get started:
- If the Group does not already exist, create the Group and add volunteers. Click here to learn more about creating a new Group.
- Configure Group Setting to enable Allow Non-Group Members to Claim Group Reservation Spots at Check In.
- Navigate to your Opportunity, and ensure the Advanced Option for Group Check-In Policy is set to Flexible. This honors the Group’s setting to allow non-members to claim reservations spots. Click here to learn more about Advanced Options.
- Then, select Reserve under Volunteers.
- From the Select Group dropdown, find and select the Group.
- On the service date and time, enter the number of Bulk Reservations and click +ADD to hold for the Group, e.g. 50 spots for the Opportunity for Acme Volunteers. Then, select to Save Reservation. Click here to learn more about reserving volunteer spots in bulk.
6. Finally, on the Check-In page under Settings, make sure the checkbox for Allow walk-up registration for Opportunities is enabled. Click here for more information on Check-In Kiosks.
Following these steps allow your known volunteers to easily check-in and your walk-in volunteers to easily sign up and contribute hours towards the Group.
What Does Check-In Look Like at the Volunteer Event?
Whenever volunteers arrive at the event, existing Group members will find their name and Group to complete check-in at the Kiosk. Walk-in volunteers will need to click Register Now to create a new Volunteer Profile. Then, they’ll select the Group from the dropdown and complete self check-in.
Why Is This Setup Best for Group Reservations with Walk-ins?
Allowing non-members to claim Group reservations is the best method for managing walk-ins because:
- There is less work required from the volunteer coordinator, as they are not collecting emails and information from new members in advance
- Volunteers create their own accounts with correct information, so each person has their own Profile
- All volunteers’ hours are attributed to the Group Dashboard
- All volunteers, including the walk-ins, are in Virtuous Volunteer for future Opportunities.
Scenario 2: Pre-Registered Group with Known Volunteers
If your Opportunity includes a Group of volunteers where you know who is coming and the volunteers have Profiles already, you’ll want the most efficient method to manage check-in. For example, Acme brings volunteers monthly and brings the same 50 people each time. This scenario is best for a Group that volunteers on a recurring basis, if you need to assign specific people to specific shifts, or if you need to track training or compliance requirements.
Recommended Setup
- If the Group does not already exist, create the Group and add volunteers. Click here to learn more about creating a new Group.
- Navigate to your Opportunity, and ensure the Advanced Option for Group Check-In Policy is set to Restricted. This restricts non-members from claiming reservations spots regardless of the Group’s membership settings. Click here to learn more about Advanced Options.
- Then, select Reserve under Volunteers.
- From the Select Group dropdown, find and select the Group.
- On the service date and time, enter the number of Bulk Reservations and click +ADD to hold for the Group, e.g. 50 spots for the Opportunity for Acme Volunteers. Then, select to Save Reservation. Click here to learn more about reserving volunteer spots in bulk.
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Then, from the Manage tab on your Opportunity, click the Reservation icon on the specified serving time.
- Find the Group Reservation. Select Claim Reservation under the Status.
- Use the dropdown menu to search for an existing volunteer within the Group, and select the Claim button. This will assign the volunteer and will trigger an automatic email notification informing them of the assignment.
What Does Check-in Look Like at the Volunteer Event?
Each volunteer will search for their name and see their Group at the Check-in Kiosk to complete check-in.
Why Is This Setup Best for Group Reservations With Only Known Volunteers?
This method is best for managing Opportunities with only known volunteers, as it is the most efficient to reserve spots and to check-in volunteers. Because there is no registration needed, the reserved spots are claimed automatically, and all hours are attributed to the Group.
Scenario 3: Group Members Bringing Guests
If your Opportunity includes a Group of known volunteers who may want to bring family, friends, or colleagues as one-off volunteers, you need the ability to manage guests easily. For example, John Smith from the State Farm Volunteer Group wants to bring his wife for this month’s Opportunity. This option allows for a Group to be assigned to an Opportunity with the option to add guests and guest information to claim Group reservations. This is helpful if volunteers are bringing one-time companions, you need flexibility for volunteers to bring different guests each time, or guests have email addresses for kiosk access.
Recommended Setup
- If the Group does not already exist, create the Group and add volunteers. Click here to learn more about creating a new Group.
- Navigate to your Opportunity, and ensure the Advanced Option for Group Check-In Policy is set to Flexible. This honors the Group’s setting to allow non-members to claim reservations spots. Click here to learn more about Advanced Options. Then, find the dropdown under Guests and choose Yes.
- Click to Update Opportunity. Then, find and select Reserve in the Opportunity.
- From the Select Group dropdown, find and select the Group.
- On the service date and time, enter the number of Bulk Reservations and click +ADD to hold for the Group, e.g. 50 spots for the Opportunity for Acme Volunteers. Then, select to Save Reservation. Click here to learn more about reserving volunteer spots in bulk.
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Then, from the Manage tab on your Opportunity, click the Reservation icon on the specified serving time.
- Find the Group Reservation. Select Claim Reservation under the Status.
- Use the dropdown menu to search for an existing volunteer within the Group, and add 1 under Guests. Select the Claim button. This will assign the volunteer and will trigger an automatic email notification informing them of the assignment.
Note: When the volunteer selects their Group with reservations for the specific serving time, the guest will fill a reservation slot from that Group's allocation.
What Does Check-in Look Like at the Volunteer Event?
The registered Group member checks in at the kiosk and selects their Group. Guests WITH email addresses will appear at the Check-in Kiosk and can select the Group as check-in. Guests WITHOUT email addresses (i.e. Anonymous Guests) will not appear at the Check-in Kiosk. Instead, their check-in time, checkout time, breaks, and calculated hours are automatically inherited from their lead volunteer whenever the lead volunteer checks in or out.
Note: While anonymous guests cannot check themselves in at the kiosk, their hours are automatically calculated based on their lead volunteer's check-in and checkout times. However, requiring email addresses for guests is still recommended, as named guests can check in independently and their reservation slots are managed in real time.
Why Is This Setup Best Group With Volunteers Bringing Guests?
This method is best for managing Opportunities with known volunteers who bring guests because all hours are attributed to the Group, the guest is NOT added to the Group member list, and Group members can bring different guests to future events. Anonymous guest hours are automatically calculated from the lead volunteer's timestamps, reducing the need for manual admin intervention after the event.
Frequently Asked Questions
Q: What if someone doesn't show up?
A: Unclaimed reservation spots remain available. Other volunteers can claim them during the event. After the event, you'll see exactly how many spots were used.
Q: Can a volunteer change their Group selection at check-in?
A: Yes. Even if a volunteer pre-registered with one Group, they can select a different Group (or no Group) when checking in at the kiosk. The check-in selection is the final assignment.
Q: Do guest hours count toward the Group?
A: Yes. Guest hours are attributed to the Group for that specific opportunity, even though guests aren't added as permanent Group members.
Q: How are hours tracked for anonymous guests (guests without email addresses)?
A: Anonymous guests automatically inherit their lead volunteer's check-in time, checkout time, break entries, and calculated hours. Whenever the lead volunteer checks in, checks out, or logs a break, those same timestamps are applied to all of their anonymous guests. This means no manual admin intervention is needed after the event to record anonymous guest hours. Note that this only applies to anonymous guests without email addresses. Named guests (those with email addresses) will appear at the Check-in Kiosk and manage their own check-in and checkout independently.
Q: What if I join without selecting a Group, then add guests?
A: Guests only consume Group reservation slots if you select a Group with reservations when joining. If you join as an individual (no Group selected), your guests won't consume any Group reservation slots. Later, at the kiosk, both you and your guests can independently choose to check in with a Group if desired.
Q: What happens if a Group is at capacity?
A: The Group will show as (FULL) in the kiosk dropdown. Volunteers can still check in but must select No Group - Check in as Individual instead.