❖ Heads up! This article is intended for Agency Managers.
By the end of this article, you will be able to:
Identify the six available Need duration types
Choose the right duration type for different volunteer opportunities
Understand limitations when changing duration types
Need Duration Types
When creating Needs to share with your volunteer community, you can select a duration type that determines when the Need occurs and how volunteers can respond.
Choosing the right duration type depends on:
When the opportunity occurs
Whether it repeats
How many volunteers you need
There are six duration types available when creating a Need.
Duration Types and When to Use Them
Please note that changing the duration of a Need or Opportunity may cause data errors. For example, volunteers may not be able to log hours for those Needs or Opportunities. Instead, we recommend cloning or creating a new Need or Opportunity with that duration type.
The six duration types include:
Duration Type | Description |
Is Ongoing | Select this duration type for Needs that are always needed and don't have a clearly defined end date. For example, you are always looking for volunteers to perform certain roles and tasks or for donation-based Needs.
Examples include:
Needs with this duration type remain available until you manually deactivate them. The Self Check-In tool isn't available to volunteers for Needs with this duration type.
NOTE: You won't be able to edit an Is Ongoing Need to have shifts once you save the Need. Do not use this as a placeholder for Needs with shifts. |
Runs Until | Select this duration type if you have a Need that is ongoing but has a defined end date. This is great for Needs like food drives, seasonal opportunities, or holiday-related events.
Example include:
Runs Until Needs show in the volunteer view until they expire or reach capacity.
NOTE: You won't be able to edit a Runs Until Need to have shifts once you save the Need. Do not use this as a placeholder for Needs with shifts. |
Happens On | Select this duration type for Needs that are scheduled for a specific date, like one-time events without scheduled shifts.
Examples include:
A Happens On Need shows in the volunteer view until it expires or reaches capacity.
NOTE: You won't be able to edit a Happens On Need to have shifts once you save the Need. Do not use this as a placeholder for Needs with shifts.
Notifications for Happens On Needs or Opportunities will display the time for it as follows: 12 am - 11:59 pm. |
Multi-Date | Select this duration type if you have Needs that happen over a set of consecutive dates. This is great for opportunities like mission trips that require a group to travel to a location, construction projects that require volunteers for a set period, weekend-long events, etc.
Examples include:
NOTE: You won't be able to edit a Multi-Date Need to have shifts once you save the Need. Do not use this as a placeholder for Needs with shifts. |
Custom Shifts | Select this duration type if you want to set up Needs with scheduled shifts that occur on the same day at different times or on different days at different times.
Examples include:
NOTE: You won't be able to adjust the Need's duration once you choose Custom Shifts. |
Recurring Shifts | Select this duration type when you have Needs with shifts occurring at the same time and that repeat daily, weekly, or monthly.
Examples include:
NOTE: You won't be able to adjust the Need's duration once you choose Recurring Shifts. |