Volunteer Checklist

✅ Set expectations clearly

  • How many hours a week can you dedicate? 
  • When can you be available for meetings?
  • Can you be available for emergency support?
  • What’s your long term support plan? 
  • Do you plan on setting a limit on hours you will be giving pro bono?
  • What is your post non profit rate?
  • Emergency support: best effort

✅ Follow a Design First principle (mock ups, wireframes)

  • Do business analysis before any development

✅ Estimate all hours

✅ Track all hours

✅ Highly recommend a grant limit and set a plan for if project goes over

✅ Recommend you draft and Sign Volunteer agreement (include grant limit)

✅ Recommend Developer Documentation

  • Assume you will not be supporting this app forever
  • Pass on any documentation to the client

✅ Trusted Advisor Methodology:

  • Be Honest
  • Give realistic/safe estimates and time frames 
  • If you don’t know something, say so, instead of burning hours
  • Don’t take shortcuts that will jeopardize the quality of the app
  • Treat the NP like you’d treat a paying customer

✅ Would you be willing to have the app you built be open sourced? (this is not a requirement – it’s yours and the NFP’s preference)

✅ When to contact join::table?

  • If you’d like to grow the team: a junior developer, Project Manager, Quality Assurance person, Business Analysis person etc
  • If you feel the relationship is not working
  • If your NFP is not being responsive
  • If you need to put the project on hold for whatever reason
  • If you feel like you’re under water with the project
  • If you’d like to send update us on your pro bono experience 
  • Lessons learned along the way
  • When you’re done! 🎉