{"id":3576,"date":"2021-08-19T19:19:34","date_gmt":"2021-08-19T19:19:34","guid":{"rendered":"https:\/\/unremot.com\/blog\/?p=3576"},"modified":"2021-08-19T19:19:34","modified_gmt":"2021-08-19T19:19:34","slug":"best-volunteer-programs","status":"publish","type":"post","link":"https:\/\/unremot.com\/blog\/best-volunteer-programs\/","title":{"rendered":"8 Steps to Create Best Volunteer Programs Your Employees Will Love"},"content":{"rendered":"<p><span style=\"font-weight: 400;\">Today, employees are looking for a more meaningful, engaging, and rewarding workplace. Here&#8217;s how you can create the best volunteering programs for your employees.<\/span><\/p>\n\n<p><span style=\"font-weight: 400;\">According to a report from City Philanthropy, 53 percent of under 35s want to volunteer more than they currently do.<\/span><\/p>\n<p><span style=\"font-weight: 400;\">Not only is volunteering a good thing to do, but businesses that provide paid time-off for volunteering can retain and attract the best talent, as well as instilling a sense of meaning and purpose in employees and increase productivity.<\/span><\/p>\n<p><span style=\"font-weight: 400;\">However, in order to achieve this, you need to create an employee volunteer program with a lot of care. You would also need to set up an <\/span><a href=\"https:\/\/alayagood.com\/blog\/best-corporate-volunteering-policy-examples\/\" target=\"_blank\" rel=\"noopener\"><span style=\"font-weight: 400;\">employee volunteer policy<\/span><\/a><span style=\"font-weight: 400;\">\u00a0because it should always go hand in hand with your volunteer program.<\/span><\/p>\n<h2><strong>Why are employee volunteer programs a good idea?<\/strong><\/h2>\n<p><span style=\"font-weight: 400;\">Before we take a look at the different steps you should follow when creating an effective employee volunteer program, let\u2019s take a look at some of the key benefits you will gain by implementing one:<\/span><\/p>\n<ul>\n<li style=\"font-weight: 400;\" aria-level=\"1\"><span style=\"font-weight: 400;\">Increase employer brand awareness<\/span><\/li>\n<li style=\"font-weight: 400;\" aria-level=\"1\"><span style=\"font-weight: 400;\">Give your employees pride in their place of work<\/span><\/li>\n<li style=\"font-weight: 400;\" aria-level=\"1\"><span style=\"font-weight: 400;\">Boost <a href=\"https:\/\/unremot.com\/blog\/employee-retention\/\">employee retention rates<\/a><\/span><\/li>\n<li style=\"font-weight: 400;\" aria-level=\"1\"><span style=\"font-weight: 400;\">Create a more connected and stronger workforce<\/span><\/li>\n<li style=\"font-weight: 400;\" aria-level=\"1\"><span style=\"font-weight: 400;\">Increase employee empowerment\u00a0<\/span><\/li>\n<li style=\"font-weight: 400;\" aria-level=\"1\"><span style=\"font-weight: 400;\">Enable employees to develop and learn new skills<\/span><\/li>\n<li style=\"font-weight: 400;\" aria-level=\"1\"><span style=\"font-weight: 400;\">Uncover future leaders for your business<\/span><\/li>\n<li style=\"font-weight: 400;\" aria-level=\"1\"><span style=\"font-weight: 400;\">Enjoy a healthier and happier workforce\u00a0<\/span><\/li>\n<\/ul>\n<h2><strong>How do you create a successful employee volunteer program?<\/strong><\/h2>\n<p><span style=\"font-weight: 400;\">Now that you know all of the <\/span><a href=\"https:\/\/www.forbes.com\/sites\/wesgay\/2016\/11\/03\/4-reasons-why-a-corporate-volunteer-program-is-a-smart-investment\/\" target=\"_blank\" rel=\"noopener\"><span style=\"font-weight: 400;\">benefits associated with employee volunteer programs<\/span><\/a><span style=\"font-weight: 400;\">, it is not difficult to see why they come so highly recommended.<\/span><\/p>\n<p><span style=\"font-weight: 400;\">Nevertheless, to experience all of these advantages, you do need to make sure you put together such a program with a lot of care. So, let\u2019s take a look at the different steps you should follow:<\/span><\/p>\n<h3><strong>1. Assess the current needs in your local community<\/strong><\/h3>\n<p><span style=\"font-weight: 400;\">There is only one place to begin, and this is by investigating what is needed in your own community at the moment. This information can typically be found online with ease.<\/span><\/p>\n<p><span style=\"font-weight: 400;\">At the same time, it makes sense to find out what interests your employees have by carrying out a small survey.<\/span><\/p>\n<p><span style=\"font-weight: 400;\">Once you have assessed your employee interests and the needs of your community, you can start narrowing your focus. A lot of companies that have thriving volunteer programs will typically focus on one or two areas only.<\/span><\/p>\n<p><span style=\"font-weight: 400;\">At this stage, you should also think about what your program is going to be called. This is important because it makes volunteer outreach and branding a lot easier.<\/span><\/p>\n<p><span style=\"font-weight: 400;\">You also need to consider if volunteer time is going to be unpaid or paid, as well as determining how much input you are going to allow your staff to have.<\/span><\/p>\n<p style=\"text-align: center;\"><strong>Also read: <a href=\"https:\/\/unremot.com\/blog\/problem-solving-activities\/\">Problem solving activities | Everything you must know<\/a><\/strong><\/p>\n<h3><strong>2. Coordinate your volunteer program and business objectives<\/strong><\/h3>\n<p><span style=\"font-weight: 400;\">When determining the focus of your employee volunteer plan, you need to carefully think about how this is going to coincide with your existing business plan.<\/span><\/p>\n<p><span style=\"font-weight: 400;\">It is important that your successes and efforts are meaningful and can be communicated with the community and your customers with ease.<\/span><\/p>\n<p><span style=\"font-weight: 400;\">If you select a volunteer focus that complements the daily running of your business, this will enable your employees to utilise their specialist skills within the community while also being established as experts in their field at the same time.<\/span><\/p>\n<h3><strong>3. Get support from the top executives at your business<\/strong><\/h3>\n<p><span style=\"font-weight: 400;\">Next, you are going to need to secure support from your CEO or president. This is critical. This person should be actively encouraging and promoting the volunteer program to all workers within the company, as well as supporting the reward and recognition of business-sponsored volunteerism.\u00a0<\/span><\/p>\n<p><span style=\"font-weight: 400;\">It is just as critical for your management team to buy into your employee volunteer program as it is for your president or CEO. Not only are managers going to have the ability to be more generous in terms of determining time off periods for workers, but they are also going to be more inclined to volunteer their own experience and expertise to the organisation of your choosing.<\/span><\/p>\n<p style=\"text-align: center;\"><strong>Also Read:<\/strong> <a href=\"https:\/\/unremot.com\/blog\/office-management-101\/\">Office management | A complete guide<\/a><\/p>\n<h3><strong>4. Look for different partnership possibilities<\/strong><\/h3>\n<p><span style=\"font-weight: 400;\">In addition to the different parts that we have discussed so far, we also think that it is important to spend some time looking for different partnership possibilities.<\/span><\/p>\n<p><span style=\"font-weight: 400;\">You can strengthen and expand your employee volunteer program with ease when you partner with other businesses and organizations. This is why you should look into the possibility of teaming up with various suppliers and\/or customers.<\/span><\/p>\n<p><span style=\"font-weight: 400;\">Non-profit organizations and schools will almost always be happy to benefit from extra volunteers.\u00a0<\/span><\/p>\n<p><span style=\"font-weight: 400;\">Furthermore, you may want to look into the possibility of using national volunteer mobilization events, including National Volunteer Week, National Family Volunteer Day, and Make a Difference Day.<\/span><\/p>\n<h3><span style=\"font-weight: 400;\"><strong>5. Match corporate volunteerism and corporate giving together effectively<\/strong>\u00a0<\/span><\/h3>\n<p><span style=\"font-weight: 400;\">You should consider concentrating on corporate donations in the same area so that you are able to improve the <\/span><span style=\"font-weight: 400;\">volunteer efforts<\/span><span style=\"font-weight: 400;\"> at your business.<\/span><\/p>\n<p><span style=\"font-weight: 400;\">Should your employee volunteer program focus on a partnership with a non-profit, for example, you can make the most of fundraisers at your business so you can donate proceeds to the organization in question.<\/span><\/p>\n<p style=\"text-align: center;\"><strong>Also Read:<\/strong> <a href=\"https:\/\/unremot.com\/blog\/how-to-engage-employees\/\">How to engage employees | Everything you must know<\/a><\/p>\n<h3><strong>6. Quantify and evaluate your volunteer program\u00a0<\/strong><\/h3>\n<p><span style=\"font-weight: 400;\">As with all of the different elements of running a business, it is imperative that you quantify how successful your employee volunteer program is.<\/span><\/p>\n<p><span style=\"font-weight: 400;\">These are the critical numbers that you are going to want to make sure you highlight in both your board reports and community relations pieces.<\/span><\/p>\n<p><span style=\"font-weight: 400;\">Some of the vital areas that we advise you to keep statistics on are as follows:<\/span><\/p>\n<ul>\n<li style=\"font-weight: 400;\" aria-level=\"1\"><span style=\"font-weight: 400;\">Pound value of volunteers time<\/span><\/li>\n<li style=\"font-weight: 400;\" aria-level=\"1\"><span style=\"font-weight: 400;\">Amount of money you have raised<\/span><\/li>\n<li style=\"font-weight: 400;\" aria-level=\"1\"><span style=\"font-weight: 400;\">The number of individuals who have served<\/span><\/li>\n<li style=\"font-weight: 400;\" aria-level=\"1\"><span style=\"font-weight: 400;\">The number of organizations that have served<\/span><\/li>\n<li style=\"font-weight: 400;\" aria-level=\"1\"><span style=\"font-weight: 400;\">Amount of time donated per every activity\u00a0<\/span><\/li>\n<li style=\"font-weight: 400;\" aria-level=\"1\"><span style=\"font-weight: 400;\">The number of employees who volunteer<\/span><\/li>\n<\/ul>\n<p><span style=\"font-weight: 400;\">Another critical piece of evaluation is feedback. It is advisable to survey the employee volunteer program participants to discover the degree to which they have enjoyed the opportunities to volunteer, how satisfying they have been, and whether or not they feel like they are making a valuable contribution to the community.<\/span><\/p>\n<p><span style=\"font-weight: 400;\">If your business is able to, you might also want to quantify the improvements in areas like brand recognition or revenue due to the increased marketplace visibility.<\/span><\/p>\n<p style=\"text-align: center;\"><strong>Also Read:<\/strong> <a href=\"https:\/\/unremot.com\/blog\/how-to-motivate-employees\/\">How to motivate employees | A complete guide<\/a><\/p>\n<h3><strong>7. Provide rewards and recognition<\/strong><\/h3>\n<p><span style=\"font-weight: 400;\">The penultimate step is to provide recognition and rewards for those who have participated in these programs. Yes, a lot of people believe that acts of altruism are rewards in themselves, and we are sure that your employees will agree. Yet, at the same time, a little bit of recognition and a small gesture can go a very long way.<\/span><\/p>\n<p><span style=\"font-weight: 400;\">Some of the small gestures you may want to consider in this regard include gift cards, coupons, plaques, and certificates. These sorts of things can help to ensure your program is invigorated while keeping those employee motivation levels high.<\/span><\/p>\n<p><span style=\"font-weight: 400;\">A lot of the most successful employee volunteer programs will host a ceremony every year so that volunteer efforts are recognized formally. You may want to also consider inviting the media to events like this so you can boost public awareness.<\/span><\/p>\n<p style=\"text-align: center;\"><strong>Also Read:<\/strong> <a href=\"https:\/\/unremot.com\/blog\/culture-index-survey\/\">Culture index survey | A comprehensive guide<\/a><\/p>\n<h3><strong>8. Publicize all of the efforts relating to your volunteer programs<\/strong><\/h3>\n<p><span style=\"font-weight: 400;\">The final piece of the puzzle is to make sure that you get the word out about all of the accomplishments that have been achieved as a consequence of your employee volunteer program.<\/span><\/p>\n<p><span style=\"font-weight: 400;\">You should use a number of different methods of communication in order to get the word out about your volunteer program successes. This includes both external and internal communication mediums.<\/span><\/p>\n<p><span style=\"font-weight: 400;\">There are lots of effective and impactful ways that you can get both the community and your workers talking. This includes traditional advertising methods, as well as online marketing strategies, such as email, an effective website, and social media. Bulletin boards and newsletters can also be very successful in this regard.<\/span><\/p>\n<p><span style=\"font-weight: 400;\">There are a lot of different benefits associated with this. Firstly, such marketing material and content can help you to get new volunteers involved for any of the campaigns you have running in the future. After all, they will be able to see the benefits that the campaigns had, as well as the high praise that your workers have heaped on in regards to your volunteering efforts.<\/span><\/p>\n<p><span style=\"font-weight: 400;\">Furthermore, we cannot deny that publicizing your efforts relating to volunteering will act as an outstanding public relations tool for your business.<\/span><\/p>\n<p><span style=\"font-weight: 400;\">All businesses today need to look for different ways to market effectively and stand out from the competition. Having an effective and successful volunteer program in place is one of the best ways of doing so, as it gives employees extra purpose, which boosts retention and your brand image.<\/span><\/p>\n<p style=\"text-align: center;\"><strong>Also Read:<\/strong> <a href=\"https:\/\/unremot.com\/blog\/team-building\/\">Team Building | Everything you must know<\/a><\/p>\n<h2><strong>Final words on creating a great volunteer program<\/strong><\/h2>\n<p><span style=\"font-weight: 400;\">If you follow the advice and suggestions that we have provided above, you should be able to construct a volunteer program that helps you to hold onto your best business talent, as well as attracting leading candidates in the future.<\/span><\/p>\n","protected":false},"excerpt":{"rendered":"<p>Today, employees are looking for a more meaningful, engaging, and rewarding workplace. Here&#8217;s how you can create the best volunteering programs for your employees. According to a report from City Philanthropy, 53 percent of under 35s want to volunteer more than they currently do. Not only is volunteering a good thing to do, but businesses [&hellip;]<\/p>\n","protected":false},"author":1,"featured_media":3522,"comment_status":"open","ping_status":"open","sticky":false,"template":"","format":"standard","meta":{"rank_math_lock_modified_date":false,"_genesis_hide_title":false,"_genesis_hide_breadcrumbs":false,"_genesis_hide_singular_image":false,"_genesis_hide_footer_widgets":false,"_genesis_custom_body_class":"","_genesis_custom_post_class":"","_genesis_layout":"","footnotes":""},"categories":[63,64],"tags":[],"class_list":{"0":"post-3576","1":"post","2":"type-post","3":"status-publish","4":"format-standard","5":"has-post-thumbnail","7":"category-hr","8":"category-employee","9":"entry"},"_links":{"self":[{"href":"https:\/\/unremot.com\/blog\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/posts\/3576","targetHints":{"allow":["GET"]}}],"collection":[{"href":"https:\/\/unremot.com\/blog\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/posts"}],"about":[{"href":"https:\/\/unremot.com\/blog\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/types\/post"}],"author":[{"embeddable":true,"href":"https:\/\/unremot.com\/blog\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/users\/1"}],"replies":[{"embeddable":true,"href":"https:\/\/unremot.com\/blog\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/comments?post=3576"}],"version-history":[{"count":1,"href":"https:\/\/unremot.com\/blog\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/posts\/3576\/revisions"}],"predecessor-version":[{"id":3577,"href":"https:\/\/unremot.com\/blog\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/posts\/3576\/revisions\/3577"}],"wp:featuredmedia":[{"embeddable":true,"href":"https:\/\/unremot.com\/blog\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/media\/3522"}],"wp:attachment":[{"href":"https:\/\/unremot.com\/blog\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/media?parent=3576"}],"wp:term":[{"taxonomy":"category","embeddable":true,"href":"https:\/\/unremot.com\/blog\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/categories?post=3576"},{"taxonomy":"post_tag","embeddable":true,"href":"https:\/\/unremot.com\/blog\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/tags?post=3576"}],"curies":[{"name":"wp","href":"https:\/\/api.w.org\/{rel}","templated":true}]}}