1. Framework for
Understanding Motivation
Jessica Margolin
Director of Community
the groupery

2. People tend to be passionate about
Knowledge
or
Relationships

3. Passionate about?
Knowledge
Relationship

4. Labeling the quadrants:
The person in the top right quadrant is HIGHLY passionate
about both relationships and knowledge.
The person in the top left quadrant is HIGHLY passionate
about knowledge, but has relatively LITTLE passion about
relationships.
The person in the lower right quadrant is HIGHLY passionate
about relationships, but has relatively LITTLE passion
about knowledge.
The person in the lower left quadrant has LITTLE passion for
either relationships or knowledge.

5. Involvement Types
Knowledge
Educator
Relationship

6. Involvement Types
Knowledge
Evangelist Educator
Relationship

7. Involvement Types
Knowledge
Evangelist Educator
People Person
Relationship

8. Involvement Types
Knowledge
Evangelist Educator
Disengaged People Person
Relationship

9. Involvement Types
Knowledge
Evangelist Educator
Disengaged People Person
Transactional
Relationship

10. Change “Disengaged” to Transactional.
“I need to put in 5 hours a week for my child to go
to this school? Ok, I don’t enjoy it, but it’s a
requirement for attaining the goal I seek.”

11. Involvement Types
Knowledge
Evangelist Educator
Transactional People Person
Relationship

12. Involvement Risks

13. Involvement Risks
Knowledge
Evangelist Educator
Transactional People Person
Relationship
Gray = unmotivated

14. Involvement Risks
Knowledge
Evangelist Educator
Transactional People Person
Relationship
Too Confusing

15. Involvement Risks
Knowledge
Evangelist Educator
Hostile
Environment
Transactional People Person
Relationship
Too Confusing

16. Areas to Harvest
Knowledge
Hostile
Environment
Transactional
Relationship
Too Confusing

17. Areas to Harvest
Knowledge
(2)
Hostile
Environment
(3)
Transactional
Relationship
(1)
Too Confusing

18. Involvement System
(1) Too Confusing
(2) Too Alienating
(3) Disinterested

19. Involvement System
(1) Too Confusing? Friends
How to find friends?
* shared experience
* post-processing
Examples:
Many people working in teams, and socializing afterwards
tree planting, cleanups
Shared activities that enable interaction
group walks, sports events, dinner dances

20. Involvement System
(2) Too Alienating? Coaches/Translators
How to find coaches or translators?
* skills and interests survey
* ask for this volunteer job directly
* “team-of-two” approach: ask everyone to partner

21. Involvement System
(3) Disinterest? Improve the Transaction!
How to find ways to improve the transaction?
* Make it more efficient
* Make it more useful to them
ask them who they want to meet and what they want to learn
Focus on efficient use of “required time.”

22. Recap
Knowledge
(2)
Hostile
Environment
(3)
Transactional
Relationship
(1)
Too Confusing

23. Strategy
Volunteer Communities’ Success Strategy:
facilitate friendships
• real life
• reinforced by social network software
transmit knowledge
• knowledge is useful
• knowledge is easily findable / searchable
design “required time” to be efficient
• knowledge- and relationship-building done separately