Building Your CareNote Care TeamLogin Users vs Volunteers
A practical guide to structuring your care ministry team in CareNote so each person has the right level of access and the simplest possible experience.
Understanding the Two Types of Team Members
CareNote supports two distinct types of team members, each designed for different levels of engagement with your care ministry.
Login Users
These are team members who need regular access to CareNote's full features.
Administrators
Manage users, settings, and oversee all care activities with access to the administrative dashboard.
Managers
Coordinate care requests, assign tasks, and manage volunteer activities with access to the administrative dashboard.
Members/Users
View and manage their assigned care activities through a personalized member dashboard.
Best for: Staff members, care coordinators, care group leaders, or anyone who needs to regularly create, assign, or oversee care requests.
Email-Only Volunteers
These are helpers who serve periodically without needing to log into CareNote.
- Receive assignments via email with secure links
- Accept or decline requests with one click
- Submit care reports through simple forms
- Never need to remember passwords or navigate the system
Best for: Members who serve occasionally—once or twice a month—doing tasks like writing cards, preparing meals, providing transportation, making phone calls, or visiting members.
Use the questions below to quickly determine whether each team member should be set up as a login user or an email-only volunteer.
Decision Guide
Ask yourself these questions about each team member:
Make them a Login User if they:
- Need to create or assign care requests regularly (Administrator/Manager)
- Coordinate multiple volunteers or care activities (Administrator/Manager)
- Require access to the full care recipient database (Administrator/Manager)
- Manage care groups or specific ministry areas (Manager)
- Need to generate reports or view analytics (Administrator/Manager)
- Serve in a staff or leadership capacity (Administrator/Manager)
- Need to track their own care assignments and group activities (Member/User)
Make them a Volunteer if they:
- Primarily respond to assignments given by others
- Serve periodically (monthly, quarterly, or as needed)
- Perform specific care tasks when requested
- Don't need to see the full scope of care activities
- Prefer simple email-based interaction
- Are part of your "ready reserve" of helpers
Visual Decision Diagram
Step 1
Does this person lead or coordinate?
If they oversee people, groups, or care processes, start by assuming they should be a login user.
If they coordinate
Make them a Login User
- Administrator if they oversee the whole ministry
- Manager if they coordinate a team or ministry area
- Member/User if they primarily track their own assignments
If they simply help when asked
Make them a Volunteer
- Get assignments by email
- Accept/decline with one click
- Submit simple completion reports
Flexible by design: Volunteers and login users can be changed at any time. A volunteer can be promoted to a login user as their role grows, and a login user can be simplified to a volunteer if they only need occasional, email-based participation.
Understanding the Different Dashboards
Administrative Dashboard (Administrators & Managers)
- Quick Actions – Add updates, milestones, and capture care requests with one click
- Activity Feed – Chronological view of all pastoral care interactions across the ministry
- Overview Cards – Track tasks due today, birthdays, milestones, and care requests
- Full Navigation – Access to Care Action Center, People, Care, Updates, Tasks, Milestones, Notes, Groups, Forms, Reports, Settings, and Team management
- Complete Visibility – See all care activities, assignments, and team member engagement
Member Dashboard (Members/Users)
- Personal Overview – Track care requests, group assignments, recent updates, and tasks assigned to you
- Active Care Requests – View and manage current care assignments requiring attention
- My Groups – Quick access to groups you're active in
- Upcoming Tasks – See tasks due soon
- Recent Updates – Stay informed about activities in your groups
- Focused Experience – Simplified navigation centered on your specific responsibilities
This role-based approach ensures everyone sees exactly what they need without unnecessary complexity.
Real-World Examples
Make Them Login Users
Administrators
- Pastor Doug – Oversees all pastoral care, needs full system access and reporting
Managers
- Sarah, Care Coordinator – Assigns requests and manages volunteers, needs administrative dashboard
- Head Deacon – Coordinates deacon care ministry, assigns tasks to deacons
Members/Users
- Care Group Leaders – Manage care within their groups, track their assignments through member dashboard
- Deacons – Respond to assigned care needs, coordinate with their care group
- Small Group Leaders – Monitor care needs within their small group
Make Them Volunteers
- Kevin – Delivers meals when assigned
- Martha – Writes encouragement cards to hospitalized members
- Bill – Provides transportation when available
- The Sunday School Class – Responds to specific care needs
- Seasonal Helpers – Available during certain times of the year
The Volunteer Advantage
CareNote is the only pastoral care platform designed with volunteers at the heart of the system. Here's why this matters:
No Training Required
Volunteers interact entirely through familiar email. They click links, fill out simple forms, and submit reports—no app to download, no system to learn, no dashboard to navigate.
Cost-Effective Team Building
Each paid user ($9/month) includes three free volunteer accounts. Additional volunteers are available in $5/month bundles (just $1 per volunteer). Build a team of 50+ helpers without breaking your budget.
Flexible Engagement
Keep inactive volunteers in your system so they're ready when needed. Someone who serves quarterly is still valuable—CareNote makes it easy to engage them when the time is right.
Complete Administrative Control
While volunteers work through email, administrators and managers maintain full visibility through the administrative dashboard: track who accepted or declined requests, view completion reports in real-time, monitor response times and engagement, generate comprehensive care reports, and see all volunteer activity in the centralized activity feed.
Building Your Team: A Practical Approach
- Identify Your Leadership Team (Administrators & Managers). Start with 2–5 people who will actively manage care coordination.
- Identify Your Care Delivery Team (Members/Users). Determine who needs to track their own assignments through the member dashboard.
- Identify Your Volunteer Pool. List everyone who helps with care delivery on an occasional basis (card writers, meal preparers, transportation providers, phone callers, visitors, prayer team members).
- Set Up Your Core Team First. Add leadership and care delivery teams as login users (Administrators, Managers, Members/Users).
- Add Your Volunteers. Invite volunteers by entering their email addresses so they begin receiving assignments via email.
- Start Simple, Scale Gradually. Begin with a small pilot group, test the workflow with a few volunteers, then expand.
Common Questions
- What's the difference between a Manager and a Member/User?
- Managers access the administrative dashboard and can create/assign care requests and coordinate volunteers. Members/Users see the member dashboard focused on their own assignments and group activities.
- Can a Member/User also coordinate care in their group?
- Yes. Members can manage care within their assigned groups. If they need broader coordination capabilities across the entire ministry, consider upgrading them to Manager.
- Can a volunteer become a login user later?
- Yes. You can upgrade any volunteer to a login user as their role evolves.
- What if someone wants to do both—coordinate and deliver care?
- Make them a login user (Manager or Member depending on scope). They can still receive email assignments while having full system access.
- How many volunteers should we have?
- There's no limit. Build a robust team that reflects your community's willingness to serve. CareNote scales with you.
- What if volunteers don't respond to emails?
- Administrators and Managers can see who hasn't responded in the activity feed and can reassign tasks or send reminders. You maintain full control.
Pro Tips
- Match the Dashboard to the Role. Administrators and Managers need the big-picture view. Members/Users benefit from a focused member dashboard that highlights their specific assignments.
- Keep Your "Ready Reserve". Don't remove inactive volunteers. Having them in the system means they're ready when available.
- Use Groups for Common Tasks. Create volunteer groups (Meal Team, Transportation Team, etc.) to quickly assign requests to multiple people at once.
- Communicate Expectations Clearly. When inviting volunteers, explain what they'll receive via email and how often you'll typically reach out.
- Start with Your Eager Helpers. Invite your most enthusiastic volunteers first. Their positive experience will encourage others to join.
Getting Started
Ready to build your care team? Use CareNote's built-in volunteer system to combine clear leadership, structured care delivery, and a deep bench of ready helpers.
- Make a list of potential team members.
- Categorize them as Administrators, Managers, Members/Users, or Volunteers using the questions above.
- Set up your leadership team first (Administrators and Managers).
- Add your care delivery team (Members/Users).
- Invite volunteers gradually and test the workflow with a few care requests.
Every CareNote account includes the volunteer system—it's built in and ready to use. Whether you're a solo pastor with a handful of helpers or a large church with dozens of care ministry volunteers, CareNote makes coordination simple, secure, and cost-effective.