As our society grows increasingly socially conscious, many companies are realizing the benefits of offering workplace volunteering programs. These programs allow employees to use their skills and time to help out nonprofit organizations while still getting paid by their employers.
In this blog post, we'll dive into the history of workplace volunteering programs, the benefits they bring to both employees and employers, and the different ways companies can set up their volunteering programs. We’ll also provide ideas for group volunteering events and nonprofit organizations to work with.
The idea of providing paid time off for employees to volunteer can be traced back to the 1970s when Ben & Jerry's, the Vermont-based ice cream company, began offering employees up to 5 days of paid time off to volunteer in their communities. This concept of “volunteer time off,” or VTO, has since spread to other companies in various industries. Today, it's estimated that over 40% of companies in the United States offer some form of a VTO program.
Workplace volunteering programs offer numerous benefits to employees, employers, and their communities at large. For employees, volunteering provides a sense of purpose, increased job satisfaction, and opportunities for personal and professional growth. Volunteering can also provide opportunities to learn new skills that can be applied in the workplace. According to a survey by Deloitte, 89% of respondents said that volunteering helped them develop critical thinking and problem-solving skills.
For employers, workplace volunteering programs can improve employee retention, recruitment, and overall job satisfaction. In addition, volunteering programs can improve a company's reputation and brand image, increase employee engagement, and build stronger relationships between the company and the community.
Many companies now offer VTO programs as part of their employee benefits package and are incorporated into their CSR initiatives. Companies can set up their VTO program in various ways, depending on their size and resources.
Some companies organize volunteer days or events, where groups of employees volunteer together for a specific cause. This is a great way to build camaraderie among employees while also giving back to the community.
Others offer dedicated days off to volunteer for any charity of the employee's choice. This gives employees more flexibility in choosing the nonprofit organizations they want to support. According to CECP’s 2022 Giving in Numbers report, the median number of VTO hours offered by companies is 16 hours per year. Some companies offer more, and some offer less.
Once you've identified a nonprofit organization or program that you'd like to work with, here are some steps to help you plan a successful volunteer day for your company:
Set goals: Determine what you hope to achieve through your volunteer day. Are you looking to build team morale, make a positive impact on the community, or develop new skills?
Choose an activity: Based on your goals and the opportunities available, choose a volunteer activity that everyone can participate in. If possible, give employees a choice of activities to ensure that everyone feels engaged and motivated.
Make a plan: Determine the logistics of your volunteer day, including how many people will participate, when and where the activity will take place, and what materials or equipment will be needed. Communicate this information clearly to all employees.
Provide training: If necessary, provide training or orientation for the volunteer activity to ensure that everyone feels prepared and confident.
Follow up: After the volunteer day, follow up with employees to gather feedback and assess the impact of the activity. Use this information to inform future volunteering efforts.
Asking these questions can help you plan a great internal volunteer day that benefits both your employees and the community. It's a great way to make a positive impact and bring your team together for a good cause.
Group volunteering events are a fun and effective way to engage employees in volunteering. Here are 10 ideas for in-person group volunteering events:
When it comes to volunteering, most people immediately jump to in-person options. But when you have a geographically dispersed or completely remote team or company, one of the biggest challenges of organizing remote volunteering is finding opportunities that can be done from anywhere. Here are a few ideas to get you started:
Distributed Proofreaders is dedicated to creating free ebooks for the public domain by proofreading digitized texts. Volunteers can sign up to help proofread books from anywhere in the world.
Be My Eyes is an app that connects blind or visually impaired people with sighted volunteers for assistance with tasks such as reading labels, matching colors, and navigating unfamiliar places.
DOROT is a nonprofit that works to alleviate social isolation among older adults. They offer a variety of remote volunteering opportunities, including phone companionship, letter writing, and virtual visits.
Catchafire is a platform that connects nonprofits with skilled volunteers who can help with specific projects such as website design, social media strategy, and grant writing.
Crisis Text Line is an organization that provides free, 24/7 support for people in crisis via text message. Volunteers can sign up to be trained as crisis counselors and help provide support to those in need.
Zooniverse is a platform that allows volunteers to help with scientific research by categorizing images, transcribing handwritten notes, and more.
Amnesty Decoders is a platform that allows volunteers to help with human rights research by analyzing documents and identifying patterns.
Project Gutenberg is a digital library that offers over 60,000 free ebooks that can be downloaded or read online. Volunteers can help proofread or format books to improve their quality.
Be the Match is a nonprofit that facilitates bone marrow transplants for patients with blood cancers. Volunteers can sign up to help recruit potential donors or support patients and their families.
Translators Without Borders is a nonprofit organization that provides translation services for humanitarian organizations. Volunteers can help translate documents from anywhere in the world.
More general ideas you could take to your local United Way or other federated nonprofit to build a program together:
When trying to find the right volunteer opportunity for your company, it's important to ask the right questions to ensure that the nonprofit and volunteer work aligns with your company's goals and values. Here are 10 questions to consider when reaching out to nonprofits:
Measuring the impact of your volunteer program is an important step in demonstrating its value and effectiveness, as well as external reporting (annual CSR and Sustainability reports). Some ways to measure impact include:
Our all-in-one corporate giving, matching, and volunteering solution helps CRS programs of all sizes elevate their impact by connecting employees to causes they care about. Chat with one of our experts to learn more about our volunteer management and other workplace-giving offerings today!