Benefits Of Corporate Volunteering Programmes

Corporate volunteering programmes are a great opportunity for employees to support a charitable cause and give back to their community. It also gives them a chance to bond and strengthen their teamwork skills in the workplace.

These are just a few benefits of volunteering. In this post, the UK’s leading company formation agents, 1st Formations, digs deeper into the advantages of corporate volunteering programmes. They also explain what it is and how businesses can implement it in their organisations.

What Is A Corporate Volunteering Programme?

Corporate volunteering programmes (also known as volunteering leave or corporate charity partnerships) are when employees take paid time off work to contribute to charitable projects.

These can be one-off contributions that staff participate in as and when they can, or they can be long-term causes that the whole company commits to support on an ongoing basis.

The purpose of corporate volunteering programmes is to engage staff with the local community through philanthropic activities. This can involve actions like helping at a local homeless shelter, contributing to a chosen charity’s marketing efforts, or mentoring disadvantaged young people.

Businesses that offer volunteering programmes normally have a corporate responsibility. This means that the company has a wider ethical objective to ensure that it operates sustainably and responsibly.

Benefits Of Corporate Volunteering Programmes

Next, let’s look at some of the biggest benefits of corporate volunteering programmes for employers and employees.

Reduce Staff Turnover

Companies that offer volunteering programmes can keep their staff turnover rate down. In today’s competitive job market, workers are looking for much more than attractive salaries; they want an employer that stands out from the crowd and shares their personal values.

A Deloitte survey on volunteerism revealed that 70% of employees agreed that companies who sponsor volunteer activities have a more pleasant work atmosphere.

Moreover, another 89% of respondents believe that companies that provide corporate volunteering programmes offer a better overall working environment than those that do not.

These are all significant contributing factors to employee retention. Volunteering days are a powerful way of fostering a happy workforce, and happy employees are loyal and dedicated.

Engage Employees

Corporate volunteering programmes also influence employee engagement. Charity events are typically team-based, allowing workers to come together, focus on a mutual objective, and use their collective skills to support a good cause.

Not only does volunteering facilitate stronger, more connected teams, but it also creates a positive company culture that employees can feel proud to be a part of.

Additionally, volunteering activates a sense of purpose and achievement. It gives people an opportunity to contribute to projects that are meaningful to them and make a difference in their local communities whilst learning new skills that they can apply to their professional lives.

In turn, volunteering enforces professional satisfaction and builds a consistent connection between the employer and the business, making long-term engagement more likely.

Spot Desirable Skills

As well as giving employees a chance to learn new skills, volunteering can also help employers spot desirable attributes in their existing team that they might not have noticed before.

A volunteering day is a great chance for managers to see how workers respond to different environments, tasks, and challenges.

This can uncover key skills like working effectively under time pressure, team management, research, and presentation and public speaking.

These attributes could be instrumental in their development within the company and open new avenues for promotion and recognition.

Attract Top Talent

There’s no doubt that there’s demand for corporate volunteering from employees. This important workplace benefit could be the answer to attracting top talent.

Research published by the charity Pilotlight shows that half of UK workers would like to volunteer using their professional skills. However, almost 70% of respondents said they struggle to find the time to get involved.

Additionally, not only did a third say they’d like guidance on how to do it, but 77% said they believe that employers should actively support staff taking time to volunteer.

Tackling these barriers could help small businesses access a larger talent pool and find skilled, valuable employees by responding to the demand.

Offering volunteering days is not a standard workplace benefit, So, companies that offer this opportunity can truly stand out from their competitors.

Improve Employee Wellbeing

Employers can support a happy and healthy team by offering regular volunteering opportunities. Looking after your staff’s welfare is paramount and one of the most common disruptors of that is stress.

Stress leads to burnout, which can cause long-term absences from work. In fact, towards the end of 2023, the UK experienced a 10-year high in workplace absences, with stress being the major culprit.

However, employers can alleviate those effects and improve the wellbeing of their staff through corporate volunteering programmes.

Several studies like the survey carried out by the charity NCVO showed that over three-quarters of volunteers reported improved mental and physical health. More specifically, volunteers are reported to feel more positive and relaxed, and less stressed.

Not only does good overall health mean that employees are more engaged in their work, but it also helps reduce absenteeism (habitual absence). As a result, businesses can cut costs by keeping illnesses down and reducing healthcare expenses.

Improve Brand Reputation

Small businesses can strengthen their reputation and make an impact on their industries through volunteering.

It’s not just about ticking a box that a competitor doesn’t; it’s about the valuable benefits that your company offers to their staff, the aspirational goals that your company strives for, and its corporate commitment to charitable actions that help enhance its brand image.

To achieve this, effective communication is just as important as the physical act of volunteering. Businesses need to advocate their charitable efforts and make it a core part of their company culture.

For instance, your volunteering commitments, experience, and accomplishments should be expressed on your company website and communicated with key audiences like potential investors and clients/customers.

To put the effects of this into perfective, another study by Deloitte shows that almost half (46%) of UK consumers are more likely to spend money at a business that supports local charities.

This consumer mentality transpires all over the world. For instance, the majority (85%) of American shoppers have a more positive image of a product or company when it supports a cause they care about, according to a study by Cone Communications.

Customers and business partners alike look for ethical brands that they can personally connect with and support. Businesses that are committed to volunteering can set themselves apart from others and build a reputable brand image.

How To Implement A Corporate Volunteering Programme

If your business has the capacity to implement a volunteering programme, here are a few steps to help you get started:

1. Choose A Charity Partner

There are countless charities out there and it’s difficult to choose one to support. Think about which causes matter most to you – perhaps you connect with one from personal experience.

You should also ask colleagues, team leaders, and business partners for their input to make sure that you choose a charity partner that is meaningful to the whole company and aligns with its interests.

2. Appoint Someone To Manage The Programme

A volunteering programme is an ongoing commitment that someone will need to manage. You’ll need to appoint a representative (or a committee) to be an ambassador, communicate with the charity partner, and organise volunteering events for the company. So, consider if you have the right resources to do this.

3. Get People Involved

You’ll also need to get your employees excited about taking part in the volunteering programme. To do this, start by establishing a clear set of goals that the business wants to achieve from its philanthropic work.

Then, spread the word through emails, announcements, and posters and notices around the workplace. Make sure that employees know who to contact if they have any questions about how the programmes might impact on their workload, how to get involved, and what is expected of them.

Thanks For Reading

There are plenty of benefits of corporate volunteering programmes. Aside from making a difference to local communities and charities, small businesses can retain and engage employees, uncover desirable skills in their teams and attract top talent by offering volunteering opportunities. They can also help improve employee wellbeing and strengthen brand reputation.

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