Volunteer Self Sign-Up

TimelyChurch allows volunteers to sign themselves up for open serving positions through the member portal. This reduces the administrative burden on church staff and empowers volunteers to choose when and where they serve.

Enabling Self Sign-Up

Self sign-up is configured on a per-position basis when you add a serving need to an event.

Step-by-Step

1. Navigate to the event and open the Serving tab.
2. When adding or editing a serving need, configure these settings:

How Volunteers Sign Up

Through the Member Portal

1. Volunteers log in to the member portal.
2. They navigate to the Volunteer Opportunities page.
3. They see a list of upcoming events with open serving positions.
4. For each position, they can see:
   • The position name
   • How many spots are left (e.g., "2 spots left")
   • The sign-up status (Open, Closed, or Filled)
   • The sign-up deadline, if one is set
5. They click Sign Up next to an available position.

Sign-Up Eligibility Checks

Before allowing a sign-up, the system verifies that the volunteer meets all requirements:

1. Sign-up must be open -- The position must have "Open for Sign-Up" enabled, and any deadline must not have passed.
2. Not already signed up -- The volunteer cannot sign up for the same position twice.
3. Spots available -- At least one slot must remain unfilled.
4. Team membership -- If the position belongs to a specific serving team, the volunteer must be an active member of that team.
5. Availability -- The volunteer must not be marked as unavailable (blackout date) on the event date.
6. Event in the future -- The event must not have already started.

If any check fails, the volunteer will see a clear message explaining why they cannot sign up (e.g., "You are already signed up for this position," "All spots are filled," "You must be a member of this team to sign up").

Sign-Up Status Display

The system shows different status messages depending on the state of the position:

The number of remaining spots is shown as well (e.g., "3 spots left," "1 spot left," or "No spots available").

Approval Workflow

When Require Approval is enabled:

1. The volunteer signs up and their assignment is created with Pending status.
2. An admin receives notification of the pending sign-up.
3. The admin reviews and either:
   • Confirms the assignment (changes status to Confirmed)
   • Declines the assignment (changes status to Declined)

When Require Approval is disabled:

1. The volunteer signs up and their assignment is immediately set to Confirmed status.
2. The volunteer's serving statistics are automatically updated.

Withdrawing a Sign-Up

Volunteers can withdraw their sign-up as long as the event has not yet started:

1. From the member portal's My Serving page, find the assignment.
2. Click Withdraw or Cancel.
3. The assignment is removed and the slot becomes available again.

If the event has already started or is in the past, the volunteer cannot withdraw their sign-up.

Best Practices for Self Sign-Up

Tip: Enable self sign-up for positions that are easy to fill and do not require special skills, such as greeters, ushers, or coffee service. For specialized positions like sound tech or worship leader, keep sign-up disabled and assign volunteers manually.

Tip: Set a sign-up deadline at least 48 hours before the event. This gives you time to review assignments and fill any remaining gaps through manual assignment or auto-scheduling.

Tip: Use the "Require Approval" setting for positions where you want to vet who signs up. This is useful for children's ministry or other sensitive areas where you need a second pair of eyes on every volunteer before they go on the schedule.

Admin View of Self Sign-Ups

On the event's Serving tab, admins can see all assignments regardless of how they were made. Self sign-ups are identifiable because the "Assigned By" field will be blank (null), while admin-assigned volunteers will show the admin's name.

Admins retain full control and can:

• Change the status of any sign-up (Pending, Confirmed, Declined)
• Remove any sign-up
• Close sign-up by toggling off "Open for Sign-Up" or setting a past deadline
• Adjust the number of needed volunteers at any time