Procedure

Answering Calls

PURPOSE

Guide on how to answer calls

STEPS TO BE TAKEN

Answer the phone with: “VCN Helpdesk, George speaking, how can I help you?

Pick up the phone when you can. If you can’t resolve the call right away, take down as much details as necessary to identify the problem. Inform the customer that you will look for the answer and will try to call them back as soon as possible. Most questions from callers can be answered using this knowledge base site, Volunteer Manual or the help pages of the VCN website.

  1. Be aware and willing.
  2. If you are on the phone, acknowledge the person waiting and tell the person you will call them back shortly.
  3. Do not answer the phone when you are in the middle of helping someone in the office.
  4. Be aware of sudden or developing systems problems: if several people call in with a similar problem within a short period of time, it may be a sign that we have a problem with the server. Gather exact details about the problem (such as time it occured) and make a staff person aware of the details.

For a guide on what information to list down, click here

The phone also has a FreePBX voice mail system, which will take a message if not answered.

Volunteer Guide

VCN Helpdesk Contact Information

Address: 280 – 111 West Hastings St. Vancouver, BC, V6B 1H4
Canada
Help Line: 778-724-0826
Fax: 1-855-299-0647
Email: [email protected] for questions related to VCN services.
[email protected] for complaints regarding user infractions, or any other VCN hosted material that is offensive, or inappropriate.
Hours of operation: Monday to Friday
10:00 am to 4:00 pm

Donations Procedure

Change for a Donation

PURPOSE

Procedure on how to manage change for a donation

STEPS TO BE TAKEN
  • We recommend that members give exact change
  • They can get change from a store

If you need change for a donation, please request for change from the Volunteer Coordinator or Staff.

General Procedure VCN Tools

How to Log Voicemail Messages

PURPOSE

Procedure for logging voicemail messages

STEPS TO BE TAKEN
  1. Open an internet browser and go to http://192.168.1.23/
  2. Click on ‘Voicemail & Recordings (ARI)’
  3. Enter the login ID and password of the voicemail mailbox
  4. Play each message and write down the details as you listen to them.
  5. Delete the message after you’ve listened and written them down.
Important Reminder:
  • Ask the on duty System Administrator or another volunteer for the login ID and password if you don’t know it yet.
  • Please do make sure to actually delete a message once you dealt with the call or written it down. It helps streamline the work for other volunteers.

Donations Procedure

Managing Donations from Groups

PURPOSE

Procedure for handling donations from organizations

Please note that VCN will send official tax receipts to users who donate $25 or more each year.

STEPS TO BE TAKEN
  1. Open the money2db database program on the donations computer.
  2. Click Payments.
  3. Click Organizations.
    NOTE:
    If someone is writing a personal cheque for an organization, the receipt must be made out to the person who wrote the cheque not the organization.
  4. Scroll down and search for the organization.
  5. If the organization doesn’t exist in the donations database:
    1. Click Add New Organization.
    2. Enter the Organization’s contact information, then click Save.

     
    If they do:

    1. Highlight the group.
    2. Click Choose Highlighted Organization.
  6.  

  7. Always click on Donations and always select ForDonation”.
  8. Enter the cash or cheque amount. If it is a cash donation, check off “Cash” box.
  9. Enter the group’s login id if they have one.
    NOTE:
    • Do a User Search in Putty to find the correct login id.
    • For Family Donation, enter up to 4 VCN logins for each family members VCN account
  10. Print a copy of the receipt. If the user is in the office, also print a receipt for them.
    1. Click on View or Print Receipts.
    2. Click on the arrow buttons at the bottom to move to the last donation record. (ie Record 9 of 9 (Filtered)).
    3. Check the Date Paid field is today, then click Print Receipt.
    4. Save the document as a .pdf file using the CutePDF program.
      You must save the file inside the folder named Receipt and according to date.
      For example:
      If today’s date was January 10 2013, create a new folder named January 10 2013. Save the file according to the person’s username separated by an underscore and then type the word “Receipt“. An example would be vorvis_Receipt.
    5. Print the .pdf file you created.
  11. Hand the user the receipt.
  12. For VCN’s copy, write with a pen “Signed and Recorded by your name”under the 2nd line.
  13. Before you close the screen: If the donation is a check, stamp it on the back where it is labelled “Endorsement – Signature or Stamp” with the “FOR DEPOSIT ONLY…” stamp. Now write down the “Receipt #” on the back of the cheque too.
  14. Fold the paper into a three-fold.
  15. Paper-clip the cash or cheque to the paper. If the donation involves coins, place the receipt and donation inside an envelope.
  16. Slide it into the designated top drawer.

Donations Procedure

Managing Donations from a Family

PURPOSE

Procedure for handling donations from a family

Please note that VCN will send official tax receipts to users who donate $25 or more each year.

STEPS TO BE TAKEN

The Family Donation of $40 allows one to group the donations for up to 4 VCN account into one. One person can make a $40 donation for 4 VCN accounts of family members.

  1. Open the money2db database program on the donations computer.
  2. Click Payments.
  3. Click Individuals.
  4. Enter the last name of the person. Press Enter.
    NOTE:
    • The receipt must be made out to the person who wrote the cheque regardless of the Login ID.
  5. If the person doesn’t exist in the donations database:
    1. Click Add New Person.
    2. Enter the person’s contact information, then click Save.

     
    If they do:

    1. Highlight the person.
    2. Click Choose Highlighted Person.
  6. NOTE:
    Some people just donate money to VCN, enter in “anonymous” for last name.
  7. Always click on Donations and always select ForDonation”.
  8. Enter the cash or cheque amount. If it is a cash donation, check off “Cash” box.
  9. Enter the user’s login id if they have one.
    NOTE:
    • Do a User Search in Putty to find the correct login id.
    • For Family Donation, enter up to 4 VCN logins for each family members VCN account
  10. Print a copy of the receipt. If the user is in the office, also print a receipt for them.
    1. Click on View or Print Receipts.
    2. Click on the arrow buttons at the bottom to move to the last donation record. (ie Record 9 of 9 (Filtered)).
    3. Check the Date Paid field is today, then click Print Receipt.
    4. Save the document as a .pdf file using the CutePDF program.
      You must save the file inside the folder named Receipt and according to date.
      For example:
      If today’s date was January 10 2013, create a new folder named January 10 2013. Save the file according to the person’s username separated by an underscore and then type the word “Receipt“. An example would be vorvis_Receipt.
    5. Print the .pdf file you created.
  11. Hand the user the receipt.
  12. For VCN’s copy, write with a pen “Signed and Recorded by your name”under the 2nd line.
  13. Before you close the screen: If the donation is a check, stamp it on the back where it is labelled “Endorsement – Signature or Stamp” with the “FOR DEPOSIT ONLY…” stamp. Now write down the “Receipt #” on the back of the cheque too.
  14. Fold the paper into a three-fold.
  15. Paper-clip the cash or cheque to the paper. If the donation involves coins, place the receipt and donation inside an envelope.
  16. Slide it into the designated top drawer.

Procedure VCN Tools

How to retrieve messages from the voicemail system?

PURPOSE

Procedure to retrieve messages from the voicemail system

STEPS TO BE TAKEN
  1. Open an internet browser and go to http://192.168.1.23/
  2. Click on ‘Voicemail & Recordings (ARI)’
  3. Enter the login ID and password of the voicemail mailbox
  4. Play each message and write down the details as you listen to them.
  5. Delete the message after you’ve listened and written them down.