3 mins read
Volunteering in the corporate sector has been on the rise. According to the Society for Human Resource Management, 47% of U.S. companies offered community volunteer programs in 2018, up from 40% in 2014. Across industries, corporate skilled volunteering (CSV) programs are the most extensively chosen form of CSR activity.
A strong business case can be made for these programs which have been shown to strengthen employee loyalty and retention, in addition to the development of measurable skills and leadership among personnel. CSV programs are particularly popular among the millennial employees, whom companies incessantly and eagerly seek to recruit.
The success of CSV programs depends on several indicators including, but not limited to, prioritising meaningful engagements, effective leadership, functional systems and processes, and sustainable impact. While several factors affect these indicators, sustainability and efficacy of volunteering activities are highly dependent on active participation and involvement from the employees. The question arises – When designing and driving CSV programs, are we factoring in the importance of employee participation as well as the level of engagement?
Listed below are the key insights and actions that can change the way companies look at and drive employee participation in order to ensure the success of their CSV initiatives.
Insight: Personal goals and motivation play a major role in influencing employee participation in volunteering activities and the subsequent level of engagement. An employee’s motives are either self-oriented (to fulfil personal needs such as increased self-esteem, new skills and career advancement) or society-oriented (to improve people’s well-being). In terms of time spent and recurrent engagement, the engagements wherein employees volunteer to improve people’s well being have a more substantial impact.
Action: Companies can take initiatives to support employees in understanding volunteering in the context of the development sector, along with the on-ground realities of the nonprofits and the communities they serve, to inspire altruistic impulses and compel a need for creating social impact. Building this relationship has two benefits: it allows employees to experience firsthand the impact they can create as well as build/design solutions that mirror the requirements of the development sector. Additionally, conducting a preliminary assessment of employees’ value inclinations prior to selecting volunteering programs, or providing employees with the option of working in alternative sectors can increase their level of engagement.
Insight: Program design can drive improved performance and societal impact for CSV activities. Employees are drawn to programs that are novel and well-managed. Not only do such programs provide learning opportunities, but they also help employees make better use of their time, who are able to reduce inefficiencies and find more innovative use of the available resources for their communities. Furthermore, organisations have an opportunity to align themselves with CSV programs by reviewing their messaging. The narrative they adopt has powerful implications as it reassures the employees that their participation is necessary for fulfilling the organisation’s goals, and they are able to visualise the impact they can create.
Action: There are several effective ways to address changes in program design. A clear-cut solution is the role of intermediary organisations and learning & development teams. Intermediaries bring with them classic project management expertise, along with the experience and knowledge of designing successful CSV projects. Businesses can work in collaboration with intermediaries to select the volunteering model that suits their organisation’s goals and objectives – be it low-touch micro-volunteering engagements, tech-enabled project consulting, or even community driven models. Intermediaries can also support corporations in building and managing partnerships between their employees, nonprofits and other key stakeholders. Ultimately, these organisations can help companies reduce risks, create a more consistent and balanced program and capture strong program outcomes – the return to businesses, increase in the skills and engagement level of employees, and the breadth and depth of social impact.
~ Social Lens is a socially aligned consulting company. To know more about CSV programs at Social Lens and our virtual volunteering platform VolunteeRISE, write to us at contact@slens.co. ~
