Planning Your Employee Volunteer Activity

							Planning Your Employee Volunteer Activity
Social responsibility seems to be the latest buzz term in the corporate world. More and more
companies are jumping on the bandwagon and getting out into the community in the hopes of
making a positive impact and strengthening their reputations.

A great way to get employees on board is to plan a group volunteer activity. This allows them to
get out of the office and work together on a project. Planning a group volunteer activity may
sound easy enough, but it’s important to take these five factors into consideration before
planning your next corporate group volunteering experience:

Top Five Considerations for Planning an Employee Engagement Event:

1. What type of volunteer activity interests your employees and fits the culture of your
company? A quick employee survey and some forethought will ensure you choose a fitting
activity for your employees.

2. Consider when the activity will take place. While volunteering during the work day may
eliminate opportunities such as cancer runs or MS walks, many local organizations are better
equipped to engage large groups during office hours. You may wish to consult employees to see
what they prefer.

3. Do all your employees need to volunteer at the same time? It is often difficult for non-profit
organizations to fit in 20 or more people to an existing volunteer activity, and creating a
volunteer opportunity from scratch takes time and preparation. Having employees break off
into smaller teams to volunteer in different organizations and reflect together at the end of the
day while enjoying a coffee might be a suitable alternative if your time is limited.

4. Organizations are often highly taxed for time, budget and staff resources. They’re often
grateful if you can present your own idea for a corporate volunteering activity. For example,
maybe you noticed the lobby of the local animal shelter looks a bit shabby – why not volunteer
the paint and the people to fix it up? A thoughtful suggestion might spark another idea or a
suitable group event. Maybe your organization can offer its expertise, i.e., spending a few hours
a day helping an organization create and implement a social media plan? Don’t be afraid to
bring up new ideas.

5. Determine the objectives of your group volunteer activity – is it to increase team
camaraderie, support a specific cause, or gain community exposure? Keep your eye on the prize
because you may need to be flexible with other specifics, i.e., date of event, type of event, etc.

Keep these five points in mind and not only will you have formed a relationship with a non-
profit that will want to work with you again, but you’ll go into the planning with realistic
expectations and reduced aggravation. This will create an end result that meets your goals and
those of the organization.