Webinar Schedule | Charity Republic

Welcome to our Webinar Schedule information page. Below is a schedule of the days and times of our free weekly webinars.

Every Tuesday @ 10:30am – 11:00am EST

Every Thursday @ 2:00pm – 2:30pm EST

This is a live webinar where we walk you through the software from start to finish and answer any questions you may have.

To register for your spot in one of our free webinars, please email us at info@charityrepublic.com

To learn more about our Volunteer Management Software, please visit us at CharityRepublic.com

Getting Started Guide

A. Set-up your Organization

organnnn

Visit the main Organization tab (i.e. select your organization’s name along the left-hand side) Happy Good Charity Centre to set up your organization’s profile in Charity Republic.

• General:
– Select Type of organization (e.g. Charity, Non-profit)
– Select Volunteer Centre your organization is affiliated with
– Enter Charity or Non-profit registration number
– Include a general description of your organization. Note: This information will appear in volunteer opportunity posts.

• Upload your organization’s Logo
• Achievements: Add custom drop down achievements such as training programs (e.g. Orientation, AODA Training)
• Options: Select fields that can be edited or accessed by volunteers and/or supervisors. Assign access levels to Supervisors by Department of Site.
• Add Departments / Programs, Sites and Positions within your organization (along top)

B. Add Volunteers

Visit the Volunteers tab to view, add and invite volunteers to use Charity Republic. NOTE: See Tip at bottom for a quick way to upload your volunteers into Charity Republic.

add vol

• To add volunteers, select the Plus symbol symbol and select Create Volunteer
(Note: Add a Supervisor or Administrator here as well)
• If you want your volunteers to access Charity Republic, simply click the Save
and Invite Save and Invite button, Charity Republicbutton and they will receive an email invitation to register. Otherwise, simply Save Save buttonthe volunteer’s profile.
• Create detailed volunteer profiles for each of your volunteers, including Contact information, Position, Employer, Language and Skill information. Plus, Attachments, Notes, Hour tracking and Achievements (e.g. police check, awards, training).

C. Post Volunteer Opportunities

Visit the Opportunities tab to post volunteer opportunities for your volunteers or to recruit new volunteers.

• Select the Plus symbolbutton to create a new opportunity
• Add a Description, Goals & Benefits, Qualifications and Training, Scheduling Requirements, and Required Skills
• Keep an opportunity as an internal post or use social sharing links (e.g. Facebook) or a web link to share volunteer opportunities
sharing

D. Schedule Shifts

Visit the Scheduling tab to schedule volunteers or have volunteers sign up for shifts.

• Schedule volunteers and view the schedule by Day, Week and Month
• To add a new shift, select the Plus symbolsymbol
• Enter the name of the shift (e.g. Front Desk Volunteers) and related details
• Volunteers will receive an email message with shift information and they can
Accept or Decline the shift
• View Scheduled Volunteers Scheduled Volunteers and whether they accepted or declined the shift
• Check Available Positions Availble Positions to see how many volunteers are needed and how many volunteers are scheduled for the shift

E. Run Reports

• Visit the Reports tab (left-side) Reports tab and select one of our canned reports (we’re always up for report suggestions too!)
• When you’re done selecting the filters for a report, select the Generate Report button Generate Report button
• View the HTML version or a report (i.e. view the report on our website) or choose to export the report to Excel

F. Communicate message

• Select the Mail icon (top toolbar) to communicate and send messages to your volunteers. If your volunteers have an email attatched their profile, they will recieve a copy of the message in their email account.

messaging example

 

G. Notifications notifications

• Select the Bell icon (top toolbar) to view all notifications (e.g. birthdays, anniversaries, shift requests)

Tip: Upload your volunteers

Instead of adding volunteers manually one-by-one, we can upload a volunteer list for you (click here for the template > select File > Download as > Microsoft Excel).

Inviting Volunteers, Supervisors, and Administrators

Q: How do I add a new Volunteer, Supervisor or Administrator to use Charity Republic?

A: An organization can add volunteers by clicking on the Volunteers tab Volunteers Tab then selecting the “+” icon and selecting Create Volunteer or Create Administrator or Create Supervisor. Simply add the following information to create a new profile:

  • Name: First Name and Last Name of the volunteer.
  • Status: The status of the volunteer (e.g. Active, Pending Approval).
  • Started: The date the volunteer started to volunteer with your organization.

General Tab

Q: How do I invite a Volunteer or Supervisor to use Charity Republic?

An organization can invite volunteers, supervisors, or administrators to use Charity Republic by selecting the Save and Invite button Save and Invite button, Charity Republicon the volunteer’s profile (top right) 

The following screen will appear. Enter the email address here (the email address will autopopulate if an email address has already been added to the volunteer’s General profile).

Email Invitation to Volunter, Charity Republic

When the Send button is selected, they will receive an email invitation to create a Charity Republic account.

Q: What does a Volunteer and Supervisor invitation look like?

When a volunteer has been invited to use Charity Republic, they will receive an email message as follows.

Volunteer email invitation text, Charity Republic

Both the subject line and the message will include the name of your organization (e.g. Happy Good Charity Centre).

The volunteer simply selects the Accept link to create a volunteer account with their own username and password.

TIPS:

A volunteer’s username appears in the General tab (first tab on left) of their volunteer profile.

Also, we can upload your volunteers for you. Simply fill out the excel template we provide and share it with us for uploading (it takes 5 minutes on our end)!

Q: How do I know if a Volunteer has accepted the invitation?

A:  Select a volunteer. At the bottom of the General tab (first tab on left), it will indicate whether the volunteer has accepted the invitation.

Volunteer has not accepted invitation, General Tab

Q: Can we just add a Volunteer without inviting them to use Charity Republic?
– What if a Volunteer does not have an email address?
– If we don’t invite the Volunteer, are we responsible for adding all of the Volunteer’s information?

A: It’s your choice as a coordinator whether to invite a volunteer to use Charity Republic or not. Perhaps some of your volunteers are not tech savvy, or you prefer to have full control over a volunteer’s profile.

There are several options for updating a volunteer’s profile if you prefer not to invite them to use Charity Republic:

  • We can bulk upload volunteers and relevant profile information for you. In case you need help uploading your existing volunteers into Charity Republic, we can share the Excel template with you.
  • Volunteers can update their profile information when they arrive for orientation (e.g. on a work computer)
  • A Volunteer Manager can request a volunteer to share the necessary profile information and it can be manually added to a volunteer’s profile

You also have the ability to invite a segment of your volunteers (e.g. youth, volunteers that are comfortable with technology). Either way, the Administrator and Supervisor will have access to all Volunteer Profile information for editing if required.

Q: What if my Volunteer does not have an email but I still want them to manage their own profile?

A: The Administrator or Supervisor can send the volunteer invitation to themselves and create an account for volunteers in this situation.

– Select the Save and Invite button Save and Invite button, Charity Republicin the volunteer’s profile (top right)
– Enter your email address and select Send
– You will receive an email invitation
– Accept the invitation and register as a volunteer

NOTE: Ensure that the Administrator or Supervisor is logged out of their account before “Accepting” the email invitation.  Otherwise, the volunteer will be linked to the Administrator or Supervisor account.

Q: What happens if my volunteer registers as an organization (Administrator) instead of as a volunteer?

A: When a volunteer registers as an organization, simply send your volunteer an invitation (see instructions above). The volunteer can then click on the link in the email invitation and instead of registering for another account, they can log in using the same username and password they originally created.

Q: What happens if my Volunteer or Supervisor did not receive the invitation?

A: It’s not common for email invitations to be marked as junk, but sometimes they can get caught through spam filters and go to Junk folders. Please have your volunteer double check their Junk folder. If there is a Search function in the volunteer’s email client, they can also search on “noreply@charityrepublic.com” to locate the email. Finally, a volunteer can add “noreply@charityrepublic.com” to a Safe Senders List so that it does not get blocked in the future.

General Questions

Q: How does an organization register for an account?

A: Visit www.charityrepublic.com, select register or try it free to Register your organization. Enter the following details:

  • Organization: The formal name of your organization.
  • Name: First and Last Name of the main account administrator (e.g. person registering, Volunteer Manager’s name)
  • Email: The email address of the person registering.
  • Username: The username that will be used to access the account via the Login page.
  • Password: The password for the account.
  • Referral: How did you hear about us? Select referral source that applies.
TIP:

Remember that you only need one organization account. You can invite volunteers and supervisors to join your organization from this main account.

 Q: By registering, am I committing to using the software?

A: There is no commitment to using Charity Republic. We offer 2 month free trials and organizations can choose to continue and pay month-to-month or on an annual basis after their trial is complete. Otherwise, organizations can discontinue use of the software after their trial. Note: We do not require credit card information in order for organizations to register for a free trial.

Q: What privacy and security measures does Charity Republic have in place

A: Charity Republic does not sell user data or advertise to users. We have an SSL certificate and our data is stored on a secure server. Note, we work with over 35 school boards and universities and we’ve been through multiple security reviews to ensure we meet privacy and security requirements.

Here are our User and Privacy agreements.

Q: Who qualifies as a grassroots organization?

A: Grassroots organizations receive our software for free for one year (after which the organization may qualify again). There are several types of grassroots organizations and the qualifications include:

  • Organizations that are completely volunteer driven
  • Organizations that have limited financial resources (less than $100K annually)
  • Organizations that are just starting out, like a “startup” charity

Note: We determine eligibility on a case-by-case basis.

Q: What is PREB-Ontario and how is it integrated with Charity Republic

A: Charities and non-profits can recognize volunteers for the skills they demonstrated while volunteering by creating PREB-Ontario certificates. These certificates outline tasks and activities in detail, based upon the National Occupation Classification, and also detail key aspects of a volunteer’s experience, such as hours of volunteering completed, activities performed, special achievements, training obtained and special comments by supervisors. PREB-Ontario is administered by the Ontario Volunteer Centre Network part of the Volunteer Legacy initiative from the Pan/Parapan Am Games and has been made possible through funding support from the Government of Ontario.

Linking two accounts

Q: How can I connect (or link) two accounts together?

A: To connect two or more accounts, please follow the steps below:

1. Ensure you are logged into your main account.
2. Accept the email invitation or Send (“Save and Invite”) and Accept the invitation from the user profile you wish to connect your main account to (refer to relevant FAQ).

Once accepted, the new account will automatically connect to your main account.

TIP: To switch between accounts, either click directly on the left toolbar, or use the drop-down in the top left corner of your dashboard.

Messaging

Charity Republic comes with a messaging system to help you stay in touch with other members of your organization.

Q. How do I access my messages?

A. You can access your messages by clicking on the message icon in the top right corner. Your messages are listed on the left and can be read by clicking them.

Q. How do I send messages?

A. From your message page, click on thePlus symbol icon in the top right corner to create a new message. Select which volunteers you want to send the message to by clicking “Choose volunteers” next to Recipients and checking off the desired volunteer(s). You can add a subject, type out your message, and add attachments as desired. Click Send when you are done. A copy of your message will appear in your inbox.

Each person you sent a message to will receive the message in their Charity Republic account and through their email. When selecting recipients, it will tell you the email address of each recipient.

Q. How do I reply to messages?

A. You can either reply to messages by sending a message back to the original sender through Charity Republic or by replying to the message through your email. Volunteers who do not have a Charity Republic account will only be able to reply to the message they receive in their email.

Q. How do I include my logo in messages?

A. If your organization has a logo, you can include it in your messages by following the steps below:

add logo

  1. Click on your organization’s name from the general menu
  2. Select Logo if you are not automatically brought to the Logo page
  3. Click the “Browse…” button to select the image file of your logo from your computer
  4. Click Save and the logo will now appear in your messages

Note: The logo only appears in messages received through email

 

 

Why isn’t a volunteer receiving email invitations?

If a volunteer is not receiving email invitations, there are several possible reasons why:

  • The contact’s email was entered incorrectly   

If the contact’s email has been inputted incorrectly (e.g. spelling errors), then the invitation will not go through. Please ensure that volunteers have provided the correct email address and that there are no errors in spelling.

NOTE: You can confirm a volunteer’s email (and username) via a volunteer profile. To view volunteer profiles, click Volunteers on the left side and search for the volunteer in question.

  • Invitation emails have not been received by a contact or organization 

Emails from “noreply@charityrepublic.com” may be directed to spam filters depending on the email firewall in use by a volunteer. Please ask the volunteer to check their Spam and/or Junk folders and to add “noreply@charityrepublic.com” to a Safe List.

Deleting Volunteers

Q: How do I delete volunteers in Charity Republic?

A. Supervisors and administrators can choose to delete volunteers in Charity Republic if there is no need to keep their information on-hand. To do so, follow the steps below:

  1. Select the Volunteers tab from the menu on the left
  2. Locate the volunteer you wish to delete either by scrolling through your volunteer list or using the search bar
  3. Select the volunteer you wish to delete to access their profile
  4. Click the Delete button near the top right corner of the profile to delete the account

Q: What if I delete a volunteer profile by accident?

A. If you accidentally delete a volunteer, contact us at info [at] charityrepublic.com as soon as you can and we will do our best to restore the account for you.

How do volunteers sign up for shifts they are not scheduled for?

Supervisor and administrators can create shifts that have certain positions that need to be filled without scheduling specific volunteers, allowing any volunteer to sign up for these positions. For information on creating shifts, scheduling volunteers, and specifying which positions need to be filled, see our FAQ post here.

Volunteers can sign up for shifts they were not scheduled for by following these steps:

  1. Once the shift has been scheduled, volunteers will be able to access it from the calendar view in their Scheduling tab by clicking on the shift
  2. After clicking the shift, volunteers will then see details about it (eg. start and end time/date), which position(s) the shift requires, and which volunteers (if any) have been scheduledchoosepositions
    • Note: multiple positions and more than one volunteer per position can be requested
  3. Click Sign Up next to the desired role
  4. Volunteers will then have to wait for approval from a supervisor or administrator as indicated by the red textapproval2The shift will also have a red colour in the calendar view while awaiting approvalwait
    • Note: While waiting for approval, the shift will be indicated as taken (as noted by the decrease in positions available for Stand Up) and other volunteers will be unable to sign up for that position unless there are other slots available
    • Note: Each volunteer can only sign up for one position per shift and the Sign Up buttons for all positions will disappear once they have signed up
  5. Once the shift has been approved by a supervisor or administrator, it will appear green in the calendar view accepted2 and the volunteer will see that they have been scheduled upon clicking the shift as indicated by the green text below scheduled

Q: How do supervisors and administrators accept a volunteer sign up?

A. Once a volunteer has signed up for a shift, an administrator or supervisor can Accept or Decline their shift by completing the following steps:

  1. Select the shift in question from the calendar view in the Scheduling tab
  2. Click the Scheduled tab (1) and there will be options to Accept or Decline the volunteer’s shift (2)accept2
  3. Once the shift is accepted or declined, the Status will change to reflect thisaccepted

 

Scheduling Recurring Shifts

Q: How do I schedule a recurring shift?

  1. Create a new shift by clicking the green plus sign (1) (click here for steps on how to do so) or select a pre-existing shift (2)
  2. If you are creating a new shift, fill out the shift information (e.g. start and end date). For both new and pre-existing shifts, ensure that the start and end date is the same or else the recurring shift will not function properly.same
  3. Click the Recurring tab (outlined in red)
    • Note: If you selected a pre-existing shift and it is not the original shift, there will be a prompt you can click to take you to the original which you can then edit
  4. Once in the Recurring tab, you check the “this shift repeats” box (1, see image below).
  5. Select the frequency with which you want the shift to repeat from the dropdown menu (2). You can have shifts repeat across days, weeks, or months.
  6. In days and weeks, you can select what days of the week a shift repeats (3).
  7. You can select an End Date for your duplicating shifts or have them continue to appear on your schedule indefinitely (4)
  8. Check the box below the Ending date if you would like the position requirements to apply to all recurring shifts (e.g. if you need 5 volunteers for a particular position and that requirements applies to current and future recurring shifts)  Include position requirements, Charity Republic
  9. Select the Save button button
  10. A pop-up will ask if you want changes to apply to this shift or all future shifts. Select “This and future shifts” to apply changes made to this shift to subsequent shifts nowandforever
  11. You will then be taken back to the calendar view where you will see your recurring shifts scheduled

Q: How do I edit recurring shifts?

A: To edit recurring shifts you complete the following steps:

  1. Select the desired shift. If it is not the original you will be prompted to edit the original
    • Note: Click Edit Original if you want to make changes that affect all recurring shifts, otherwise edit the duplicate shift if you only want to make changes to that shift
  2. Make the necessary changes to the shift (e.g. what days of the week it repeats, start and end times)
  3. Click Save
  4. A pop-up will ask if you want the changes to apply to this shift or this shift and future shiftsnowandforever
    • Select “This shift” if you want the changes to apply only to the shift you are editing
    • Select “This and future shifts” if you want the changes to apply to this shift and subsequent recurring shifts (again note that you have to be editing the original for changes to apply to all recurring shifts)
    • Note: This pop-up only appears with recurring shifts. Recurring shifts are indicated by a checkmark in the “This shift repeats” box in the upper left corner of the Recurring tab repeat
  5. Click OK

Q: How do I delete recurring shifts?

A: You can delete either all recurring shifts or just one shift

To delete all recurring shifts you:

  1. Select the desired shift and click the Recurring tab to see if it prompts you to edit the original shift
  2. Click Edit Original
  3. Once you are looking at the original shift, click Delete (top right) and select “This and future shifts” in the pop-updelete
  4. Click Ok

To delete one shift you:

  1. Select the desired shift
  2. Click Delete (top right)
  3. Select “This Shift” in the pop-up that appears delete
  4. Click OK
    • Note: if you delete the original shift the next shift will become the original

How do I change someone to a volunteer, supervisor, or administrator?

Administrators can change volunteers, supervisors, and administrators to different positions (eg. change a supervisor to an administrator). To do so, you:

  1. Search for the person whose position you want to change
  2. Select their account
  3. Select the drop down menu in the top right (next to the lock icon) and change their position as needed

menu

The dropdown menu (pictured above) will state the person’s current position.