Volunteers play a significant role in the success of BPZOO
New Bedford, Massachusetts: Buttonwood Park Zoo is pleased to announce that it has achieved national accreditation in strategic volunteer engagement by AL!VE. Achieving Service Enterprise accreditation is a prestigious accomplishment â BPZOO joins the top 11 percent of nonprofits nationwide in volunteer management and organizational performance. Accreditation signifies the capability and management expertise to strategically engage community members and volunteers to improve the performance of the organization and meet community needs. This is the second time that BPZOO has achieved this accreditation.
BPZOO completed an extensive assessment, over 20 hours of training and coaching, and an extensive internal planning and change process to better integrate volunteers into the organizationâs human capital strategy. By achieving this level of excellence and accreditation, BPZOO continues to show excellence to leverage community members’ and volunteers’ time and talent to better deliver our mission.
“Achieving Service Enterprise certification has transformed the way we operate,â said Sarah Henry, Executive Director of the Buttonwood Park Zoological Society. âBy integrating volunteerism at the core of our mission, we’ve unlocked new potential, empowered our staff, and built deeper connections with our community. This milestone reflects our commitment to serving with purpose and amplifying our impact through the talents of volunteers. We’re excited about the future and the opportunities this brings to make a greater difference together.”
BPZOO has a thriving seven day a week volunteer program that focuses heavily on animal care, grounds maintenance, and event execution. Volunteers contributed almost 16,000 hours of work to the Zoo in the last year.
“Service Enterprise has allowed us to open our eyes to the consistency and effectiveness of volunteers,â said Kerri Donlan, Training and Engagement Manager for the Buttonwood Park Zoological Society. âWe were able to implement changes to better serve our program and eliminate tasks that were not helpful. We look forward to continuing to grow.”
Research conducted by the TCC Group, a national program and evaluation firm, found that organizations operating as Service Enterprises outperform peer organizations on all aspects of organizational effectiveness, and are more adaptable, sustainable, and capable of scaling their work. The Service Enterprise program is a national change management program that helps organizations gain a greater return on volunteer investment to better achieve their mission. For more information regarding volunteer opportunities with Buttonwood Park Zoo, please visit www.bpzoo.org/volunteer/overview/.