ENGAGING BUSINESSES AND THE CORPORATE VOLUNTEER

1. ENGAGING BUSINESSES AND THE CORPORATE VOLUNTEER - Sudeshna Das-Menezes Director of Volunteer Services, FeedMore June 13, 2013

2. What we will talk about • Why corporate partners play a key role in your organization • Expectations and Challenges • How to set up a corporate volunteer program • Logistics • Cultivation

3. Why corporate partners By encouraging employees to participate in community activities through company sponsored volunteer programs, a business contributes to building better communities. Corporate volunteering allows people to contribute skills and knowledge to a not-for-profit organization and actively participate in the community. It makes people feel good. Corporate volunteering can be a low-cost, short-term, low-risk, high-impact way of making the knowledge, skills and experiences of the business sector accessible to the not-for-profit sector while building understanding, employee skill and community goodwill.

4. Why corporate partners – contd. Corporate volunteering provides an opportunity for potential partners to experiment with a relationship by getting to know each other before embarking on something more complex. Corporate volunteering programs can be structured and formal or ad-hoc and informal Excerpted from Take Your Partner for the Corporate Tango by Kate Reynolds 2001, Volunteering SA, Inc. pp. 25-26.

5. Why corporate partners– contd. • People power • Availability during the week and weekends • Company retiree programs • Skill sets • Energy • Exposure • Funding • Skill based volunteering • Project based partnerships

6. Expectations • Team building opportunities • Sense of achievement • Fun • Accommodating • Organized & prepared • Structured • Be prepared to add additional activities • Provide details of activity – job description, dress code, parking and any additional information that might be needed • Engage the staff!

7. DUCKS IN A ROW– How to start a corporate volunteer program • Research and identify corporate partners aligned with your mission – enlist volunteer help with the research, comb websites for information. • Get with staff and create a menu of opportunities. • Show off your facility and talk up your programs. • Chat with your volunteers - individuals and groups and ask them to spread the word and get feedback. • Make it EASY for corporate volunteers!

8. Documents • Confirmations should include – • Date & time, age requirement, group requirements: • Group contact (Name, cellphone, work number, email) • Volunteer Job Description • Dress code • Other notes (might include parking details, photo releases, signing in procedures if you have an automated process etc.) • Directions to facility • Contact details for the onsite coordinator (Name, cellphone, work number, email)

9. Cultivation – before and during and event • Keep in touch with the lead • Meet and greet; orientation • Involve staff from the organization to talk about the activity and impact other than the volunteer coordinator • Provide direction and support during activity • Appreciation

10. Cultivation – post event • Follow up with a thank you email or notecard • Have the lead fill out a survey about the experience • Learn from the experience • Provide them with options for the next time • Add the group to your email list so you can notify them of upcoming opportunities

11. Reads • http://www.handsonnetwork.org/files/innovations_in_ employee_volunteering.pdf • http://www.energizeinc.com/art/subj/trends.Html • http://blog.artsusa.org/2011/08/08/five-trends-to-watch-in-corporate-social-responsibility/ • http://www.prweekus.com/five-corporate-communications-trends-to-watch-next-year/article/273824/

12. Q&A

13. THANK YOU!

14. Contact information SUDESHNA DAS-MENEZES DIRECTOR OF VOLUNTEER SERVICES FEEDMORE 804.521.3277 EMAIL: SDMENEZES@FEEDMORE.ORG