«When you volunteer for something, it's out of enthusiasm for being part of something.»
Magalie Perren is Chief of Staff of the Matterhorn Cervino Speed Opening and therefore also responsible for 500 volunteers. In this interview, she talks about the challenges of her job and gives an exciting insight into the processes behind the scenes.
What are the critical tasks on your checklist for the coming days?
«One critical task is communicating with all the team leaders. Coordinating with each one of them is essential. I aim not to always look over their shoulder but to give them space while being a bit of a recovering perfectionist, wanting everyone to be happy. Another critical task for me is ensuring that communication with the volunteers is effective and that they are informed, know what to do and have fun. A challenging moment is realizing that I can't be everywhere at once. I have to trust that everyone is doing their best, and we'll find our momentum during the event.»
Coordinating 500 volunteers for a ski race of this scale is no easy task. Can you elaborate on your strategy to ensure smooth coordination, from communication channels to role assignments?
«In terms of strategy, this is my first time, and I'm figuring it out as I go. I've devised a plan to create different groups since I can't be everywhere at once. We have work groups and work sectors where experienced team leaders take the lead. I try to meet their expectations and provide the right people and then step back. Creating these groups and maintaining regular contact is vital for receiving feedback. Feedback is crucial, if there is a fire burning, that I can react effectively. Defining who is responsible is essential to know who to get in touch with for timely responses. There are aspects I'm still adapting to, and I know there's room for improvement for next year.»
Maintaining volunteer engagement during a ski race presents unique challenges. How do you tackle these obstacles and keep the team motivated, considering factors like unpredictable weather and the physical demands of the event?
«Sure, organising can be a bit of a challenge, and I try to keep a calm mind. Of course, it gets tricky when both of my phones are ringing simultaneously. I always tell the volunteers that if something comes up and they're not getting a direct response from the team leader, they should feel free to come see me. In our volunteers' office, we've created a space where they can come back to, also with drinks and snacks available. It's a place where volunteers can unwind after their shifts, and it stays open until late in the evening. I try to keep the group engaged so that they can connect with each other. I also want to leave it up to them. For instance, for the daily Gran Becca Apero, I communicated its occurrence each day but intentionally left out the specific time. I trust the volunteers to communicate and motivate each other.»
How do you maintain a positive atmosphere and handle challenges when working with volunteers? Could you share some insights on fostering team unity, especially during tough moments?
«For sure, we all might have moments of stress when we feel a bit overwhelmed, I understand the importance of maintaining a calm mind and taking things one step at a time. While we can't solve all the problems immediately, we can react and communicate as effectively as possible. Understanding the volunteers is crucial, and my main goal is to connect with the volunteers, trying to imagine what it's like to be in their shoes. That was my primary focus throughout the summer – thinking, "If I were a volunteer, what would I need? What's important to me?" This perspective helped me organise my planning process. It's not like everything is great and only always sunshine, right? Also, we in the team, we help each other out, but it might also be that not everyone is in a good mood all the time. So we have to accept each other as well in stressful times. But in the end our main goal it’s this ski race or these ski races. We all work towards this and be trustful, be responsive and be understanding. I think that's what helps. When you volunteer for something it's because you're excited to be part of something. Honestly, this makes me want to be a volunteer as well, to just gain experience and see where what other races or other events, how they do it, how they organise it, how they structure it and as I said, I never really volunteered. A couple of small things but never in the background.»