COC Coordinator Manual

Please see the Andwa Web Site User Guide for web site How-To information.

General Info
Getting Started
General Club Information
Commandments

Safety
Waivers
Safety Policy
Avalanche Safety
Accident Reports
Emergency Numbers
Equipment

Volunteer Team
Volunteer Forum
Staying Current
Helping Others
Training Program
Banning Someone
Member Notations

Event Management
Choosing Your Event
Setting up Events
Paid Events
Modifying Your Event
Cancelling An Event
Managing Upcoming Events
Running Your Event
Completing Your Event

Helping Others

There are a number of ways you can assist other volunteers, especially new (and hopeful) volunteers:
- Referrals
- Assisted Starring/Co-Coordination
- Volunteer Coordination

Referrals:

Our Volunteer Coordinator Squad relies heavily on referrals when selecting new volunteers to join the club. When they are considering a new volunteer, they will be asking them for a referral from two+ of our active volunteers to vouch for the person before they can begin. We take these referrals very seriously so please only give a good reference to someone if you know them well enough to be very confident they'd be a good coordinator. The VC Squad will be taking your word for it as a trusted volunteer that this is someone we can count on to carry the torch of providing high quality, consistent events to our members, and to be good ambassadors for the club, especially for new folks attending.

If you get a reference request from a volunteer hopeful who you don't know that well or you don't feel comfortable with, don't be shy about telling them that - just say - "I'm sorry but I don't feel I know you well enough to provide a reference at this time. Please attend a few more events first". Or something like that.

Assisted Starring/Co-Coordination:
  1. You may set up an event for any approved "Volunteer In Training" (or any other starred coordinator, for that matter) as long as theyre approved for the type of event, for example, difficulty rating, carpool. You do NOT have to co-coordinate or attend. If someone asks you to set up an event for them, make sure you've confirmed that they're a starred volunteer or an approved "Volunteer In Training" first, and that they're allowed to coordinate at their chosen difficulty rating. Also note that there are some folks who are approved to coordinate in-town events only - these folks should have recently (within six months) attended 3+ carpool events before they coordinate an event with carpool.
  2. You may have anyone you wish as a co-coordinator on an event which you are coordinating and attending. Co-coordinated events may count as credit towards a future volunteer star, only if:
    - The co-coordinator meets the requirements to join our volunteer team
    - The co-coordinator did all/most of the work with regards to managing the event. You will be asked to confirm this if/when they request credit for the event towards their star.
IMPORTANT NOTE
We absolutely DO want you to help others coordinate events for the COC and we want the process to be as easy and painless for everyone. Please make sure that you're familiar with the policies and if you have any questions, please ask us (volunteer@calgaryoutdoorclub.com).
Common Pitfalls:
- If you're going to set up an event for someone when you are NOT attending the event yourself, please make sure that they are either a starred volunteer, or are on our list of "Volunteers in Training" (meaning that they've accepted our policies and procedures, and gone through the reference and no-show check).
- Whenever you're setting up an event, whether it's for someone else, or even for yourself, make sure that the coordinator has prior approval to coordinate that activity at that difficulty level. Events at levels D1-D3 are unrestricted, but anything that is D4 or higher is subject to our safety policy - be sure you know what is required before posting an event at a D4 or higher level.

Volunteer Coordination:

As of April 2008, the Volunteer Coordination role is performed by a team of job-sharing volunteers, including one or two "team leads".

All COC event coordinators are encouraged to take a "tour of duty" on the Volunteer Coordinator team. The time requirement is generally about a half hour per week - you log in to a shared e-mail address two or three times per week and spend ten to fifteen minutes addressing e-mails there. This may include reviewing newly posted events for accuracy, providing information to new/hopeful volunteers, and posting events for volunteers who are in training to get their star (see Volunteer Coordination for complete information).

If you've been on our Event Coordinator team for a year or more, expect to be asked if you're interested in spending some time helping with Volunteer Coordination - you can spend three months or more on the team as you wish, and are welcome to come and go as your schedule allows. Perhaps if you coordinate more in one season you'd like to help out during that season when your dedication juices are flowing, or perhaps you'd like to help out more during your "off season" when you have more time to devote to new volunteers. If you're interested in helping out (feel free to take a "tour of duty" before you reach your one-year of service as an event coordinator), please contact the Volunteer Coordinator(s),Martine and the VC Squad at volunteer@calgaryoutdoorclub.com