Merger Creates World's Largest Volunteer Organisation
30 July 2007 at 4:20 pm
The merger of two major US Not for Profits is set to create world’s largest volunteer organisation.
The Hands On Network and Points of Light Foundation have announced a mutual board approval to merge their two organisations – a decision that will transform transforms the landscape of the US volunteer sector.
According to a joint statement issued by the two organisations the merger will create a network of 370 affiliate organisations covering 83% of the US market.
As well they say it will also create three million new volunteers over the next two years, generating an additional 90 million volunteer hours.
The new organisation will be led by Michelle Nunn, co-founder and CEO of Hands On Network. Ray Chambers, a philanthropist, will serve as the new organisation’s chairman of the board during the integration period. The merger takes effect on July 31 and will officially launch on October 1, 2007.
Michelle Nunn says the time is ripe for us to re-imagine how we can create exponential versus incremental change in volunteerism and civic participation.
Nunn says combining the unique strengths and assets of both organisations gives us the opportunity to realise our vision of a world in which all individuals discover their power to make a difference and are equipped as active, engaged citizens.
She says this merger has the capacity to leverage the power of corporate America. Volunteers and corporations seeking a streamlined, end-to-end volunteer management solution will now have it.
The boards of both organizations say the new organisation expects to:
– triple National Service Member impact resulting in 30 million national service volunteer hours;
– create a model to increase corporate volunteering by 10%;
– recruit, train and place 500,000 new volunteer leaders over three years; and
– triple volunteer placement efficiency through seamless and scaled technology tools.
The merged organisation will spend the next 100 days assembling its board of directors, creating a robust national staff team and initiating dialogue with the volunteer sector to shape goals that demonstrate the potential impact of the new entity.
The Hands On Network leads an international movement of people who roll up their sleeves, get hands on, and solve community problems everyday… repairing homes, ensuring green spaces and partnering with students and faculty to transform schools.
The Points of Light Foundation & Volunteer Centre National Network engages and mobilises millions of volunteers who are helping to solve serious social problems in thousands of communities.
