Maximising the benefits of volunteering
We see lots of corporations and employees stepping up their volunteering efforts. We took an insider look at the volunteering experience of one employee, using one of our own team members as a ‘guinea pig’. We often don’t get the chance to sit down and reflect on the long term benefits of volunteering. How can we ensure maximum benefit to the charity, corporation, employee and beneficiary involved? Once we understand this, how can we grow employee participation with volunteering?
Nasim Hamdani is Head of HR and Finance at GivingForce, and also spent 10 weeks volunteering as a mentor with the charity Mosaic. Mosaic inspires young people from deprived communities to realise their talents and potential. With the help of volunteer mentors acting as role models, they aim to bridge the aspirations-attainment gap.
Please explain a little about what you did as a volunteer?
“I acted as a mentor in a primary school with 9 year old girls who had been identified as having low confidence and often little support at home. I followed a ten week pre-prepared plan devised by Mosaic Network. We did a one and a half hour session, once a week that tackled subjects such as the importance of education, good role models and being a good citizen.”
What did you enjoy most about your experience? Was the experience what you expected?
“I loved interacting with the girls and watching them grow more confident. It felt really good passing on skills that I took for granted. By the end of the programme, there were noticeable changes in their behaviour, and many had begun to believe in themselves!”
When returning to visit the girls you mentored, what changes did you notice in them?
“When I went back to see the girls a year later, they were so excited to tell me all the things they had achieved after the programme ended. Some of the girls that barely spoke at the beginning of the programme, were now putting up their hands and proactively wanting to take part in activities.”
Do you know if the impact of your volunteering will be measured, and how?
“The charity sent me several feedback questionnaires, and I understand that they were doing the same with teachers and parents.”
How did you feel upon returning to work?
“I usually left the school feeling pretty elated. I’ve always loved the idea of giving back and it felt good doing it. When I got back to my desk at work I felt really motivated, feeling I had made a contribution to wider society. I wanted to tell all my colleagues about it too!”
Would you like to volunteer again on a long term basis?
“Yes definitely. It was great for me to visit the girls multiple times and see them grow alongside the support we were providing them.”
Is there a key takeaway from Nasim’s volunteering experience which would help corporations looking to engage their employees with volunteering?
Volunteering over the long-term, as shown in this example, seems to offer maximum positive impact for the charity, beneficiary and employee. Volunteering can be seen as a one-off experience for many employees, which makes it harder to grasp the impact of the activity. In this case, the impact of Nasim’s volunteering on the mentee grew over the duration of the programme, and was shown through collecting feedback at multiple points along the way. The sustained contact developed relationships between the employee and community, and as a result between the corporation and the community. Employees realise that they have a commitment to generating a positive impact on society, and are motivated by opportunities provided by their employer to prove their impact.
If corporations are aiming for maximum participation and impact, it seems offering employees the chance to start a ‘volunteering journey’ could generate excitement. A journey represents a longer term company wide commitment to contributing to local communities. Maybe the imminent three day volunteering policy will allow a move to longer term volunteering opportunities to happen more naturally.
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