APM receives Investing in Volunteers accreditation

The Association for Project Management (APM) has been praised for its commitment to the many who give their time and effort to their professional body.

In renewing the association’s Investing in Volunteers accreditation, assessors commented on the increasing level of support and recognition given to members whose contribution is so vital to the work and development of the association and the profession.

On receiving the renewal of accreditation, Sara Drake, APM chief executive commented: “Our volunteer community is, and always has been, the backbone of our Association and represents an ever-growing range of skills and sectors, highlighting the diversification of our profession.

APM volunteers work extremely hard across a range of activities to support our association in the branches and specific interest groups and also in research, running events or steering groups. We will continue to support them in their ventures and recognise their contribution to our success.

I would like to thank both the volunteers’ team and all our volunteers for their efforts. Recognition at this level from Investing in Volunteers wouldn’t be possible without their ongoing commitment.”

Volunteering is a proud tradition at APM, which owes its very existence to a dedicated group of individuals who founded and ran the volunteers groups for many years.

Today there is a 350-strong volunteer community across the UK and Hong Kong and this number is growing. This includes those who serve on the Board of Trustees, on branch and specific interest group (SIG) committees, who are involved in activities such as awards and membership and others who represent APM on internal and external advisory groups.

APM’s Community Charter sets out that ‘volunteering should be inspirational, fun, motivating and a learning experience’ and those interviewed for the assessment agree it is a two-way process. They can also learn and develop and give something back into their profession. Volunteers also have a voice at twice-yearly forums.

While the Investing in Volunteers assessors and those interviewed found there were still some areas for development, APM fulfilled the rigorous criteria to meet the UK quality standard for organisations which involve volunteers in their work.

For many of the volunteers, recognition of their contribution is reward enough. A newly elected branch committee member told the assessors: "APM says thank you every so often and I don't really want any more recognition.”