COMBINING FORCES(X)
March 27-29, 2023
35th Annual Conference | In-Person & Virtual Event
Volunteer Opportunities
Volunteer Opportunities
Volunteer at the 35th Annual Conference
We would love to have you volunteer your time to assist us with our hospitality and logistics needs at the 2023 Forum on Workplace Inclusion! You don’t necessarily have to have expertise in the diversity, equity & inclusion field to volunteer, and we appreciate anyone who shares our passion for providing the best possible experience to our attendees!
See the FAQs section below to learn about the different volunteer roles that are available during the three days of the conference on March 27 – 29, 2023.
Elevate Thinking, Ideas, and Practices
The Forum on Workplace Inclusion is a conference experience designed to elevate thinking, ideas and practices that can create positive shifts in diversity, equity and inclusion in every type of workplace. The Forum on Workplace Inclusion’s 34th annual conference is a three-day learning experience that brings people together from across the globe to engage in fresh thinking and new ideas.
Combining Forces(X): Fueling Our Collective Capacity for Change
Our work today requires knowledgeable and responsive management of the constantly changing forces working with and against us. Internal forces such as people, purpose, practice, and process are met with external forces such as planet health, political conflict, progressive technology, and a perilous economy. Our ability to position our people to perform in the context of these forces can either propel or prohibit positive momentum.
The promise of an equitable future relies on unyielding individual integrity and forceful collective efforts in our work to prioritize accessibility, diversity, inclusion, and social justice. By creating spaciousness that boosts morale and incentivizes performance, leveraging integral relationships, combining resources for increased energies, and building bandwidth around shared purpose we multiply our efforts and the probability of positive change.
Creating a Volunteer Schedule
There are several volunteer shifts available on each of the three days of The Forum. Please consider your schedule when you select which shifts you are most interested in, since you may be assigned to any or all of your top choices.
Volunteer Benefits
Shifts are separated in to morning (approx. 6:30 am – 1:00 pm), afternoon (approx. 12:00 pm – 5:30 pm), or all day (approx. 6:30 am – 5:30 pm).
Volunteers are welcome to attend general sessions during their shifts, or attend any other conference concurrent sessions outside of their shifts on the days they volunteer.
Volunteers will also receive a full complimentary conference registration (see FAQ for breakdown).
What volunteer roles are available?
Hospitality Volunteer:
Hospitality volunteers are the face of the Forum. You may be the first person an attendee will see at the Forum. You are Forum ambassadors and share a common goal with Forum staff – to ensure attendees have an exceptional learning experience. With a national, and increasingly international presence of attendees at the Forum, we ask that you extend and share Minnesota hospitality.
Duties include greeting and wayfinding, assisting attendees with disabilities, and providing guidance to those who appear lost, inquisitive, or generally have questions about the event. Hospitality volunteers may also be asked to attend to the Diversity, Equity & Inclusion Coaching Center. This role may require standing and/or walking for significant periods of time.
Registration:
Our registration team will check in approximately 1,000 attendees over the course of three days, ensuring that all attendees receive a warm welcome to The Forum, receive all conference collateral, and a brief orientation to the conference space. This is a busy role during peak times! It is also a good role for those who prefer to volunteer, mostly sitting down.
Session Coordinator Volunteer:
The main duty of a session coordinator is to assist the session host and presenters to ensure a smooth session. Volunteers are assigned to one room for the duration of their shift for continuity and easy transition between sessions. Coordinators should have basic knowledge of how to operate PCs and Macs, how to call up documents from flash drives and how to start PowerPoint presentations. Coordinators track session time, manage room supplies, and should use innovative thinking when approaching logistical problem situations. This is a good role for those who prefer to volunteer, mostly sitting down.
Session Host Volunteer:
The session host is responsible for working with presenters and the session coordinator to ensure session management and success. Volunteer hosts act as official representatives of The Forum and the presenters, panelists, and attendees. Hosts introduce presenters, help to keep discussions on track and manage conflict resolution if needed. Hosts complete evaluations after each session for the highest caliber content and presentation form. While we encourage anyone to apply, host roles are typically given to seasoned Forum volunteers. This is a good role for those who prefer to volunteer, mostly sitting down.
How old do I need to be to volunteer?
Because The Forum on Workplace Inclusion is hosted by the Augsburg University, university policy requires all volunteers to be 18 years of age or older.
What training / orientation opportunities are available for Forum volunteers?
In the days leading up to The Forum, all volunteers are asked to participate in an orientation webinar. This webinar will be held on Thursday, March 23 at 10 AM approximately 75 minutes in length. Webinar registration details will be emailed to all approved volunteers a few days prior to March 23. The webinar will be recorded, and materials included in the webinar provided for volunteers to review.
What conference benefits are available to volunteers?
The Forum is pleased to offer all conference volunteers three benefits:
- Complimentary Conference Registration**
- Volunteer T-shirt
- Parking on the day(s) you volunteer
**Complimentary Conference Registration is provided in the following ways:
- Volunteer days are considered complementary; for example, if you volunteer on Tuesday morning, we invite you to attend the in-person conference for the rest of the day at no cost to you.
- If you volunteer for only one shift* you will receive a complimentary virtual+ registration for the balance of the conference.
- If you volunteer for two or more shifts* the entire conference is complementary to you.
*A volunteer shift is considered either a morning or afternoon.
All volunteers are invited to attend general sessions and meals at no cost.
Please note that The Forum encourages individuals to work two or more shifts.
How should I dress for the conference?
We ask that all conference attendees follow a business casual dress style. We suggest comfortable khaki or dress pants/skirt, with comfortable shoes. Many volunteers arrive already wearing their volunteer t-shirt, or choose to put it over a collared shirt or blouse. If this is your first time volunteering, you will receive a complimentary Forum t-shirt, in maroon, with The Forum’s institutional logo on the left side at volunteer check-in. For 2023, we are using the same volunteer t-shirt from the 2020 conference. If you already have a Forum t-shirt from 2020, you will not need a new t-shirt for the 2023 conference.
I applied to become a volunteer. When will I know what days, shifts, and role I will be placed into?
In 2020, we received about 200 applications for volunteers. We are so grateful for so much interest in supporting the Forum’s conference! This year we will be looking to accept around 100+ volunteers to assist across all three days of the event.
It is likely that you may not hear back from us regarding your application for a few weeks, outside of the automated confirmation email that your application has been received.
We try to assign and place volunteers on a rolling basis, so that no one must wait for weeks and receive notice of their acceptance and placement too close to the event in March. We want to be very accommodating to our applicants’ time and schedules. This is a big task, to juggle ranked preferences for days, times and roles. We do apologize for the wait, and we certainly hope The Forum is worth the wait!