“Volunteers are Part of Our Community”:Managing Staff-Volunteer Conflicts in Co-Produced Care Services

While many public organizations aspire to co-produce services with civil society, the relations between service professionals and co-producing actors, such as volunteers, may suffer from conflicts (von Schnurbein et al. 2023). In this study, I investigate how managers can reduce conflicts between staff and volunteers in public service organizations. Based on interviews in the sector of residential aged care in Denmark, I find that two management strategies are found among frontline managers in nursing homes with a low level of volunteer-staff conflict: Firstly, the managers prioritize “bridge-building” leadership acts by installing channels for clear communication and coordination between staff and volunteers, and by collecting and utilizing interpersonal knowledge on individual volunteers. Secondly, managers can facilitate social bonding between volunteers and staff by setting up structures for the integration of volunteers in the working community of the organization. The study highlights the importance of relations-oriented management in the context of co-production.