By Cree Henderson, Purposely

It’s National Volunteer Week, and a great opportunity to consider the ways that volunteerism can impact your organization!

At Purposely, our mission is to “bring employee volunteer solutions to small and medium sized businesses in an effort to get companies volunteering and giving back to the community.” Purposely matches passionate employees with inspiring non-profits. Our goal is to empower non-profits by co-creating projects, managing volunteers, and tackling impactful initiatives. It’s fun, rewarding, and delivers real results.

We work with hundreds of non-profits around the world, and time and time again we hear the same thing: there is significant, increased demand for non-profit services, especially over the past few years.

This begs an important question for us; how can we, at Purposely, support non-profits with this increased need for their services?

One way to combat this is to support organizations to recruit more volunteers to help take on a variety of tasks.

But that’s easier said than done.

Non-profits are experiencing a great need for their services in a time when volunteer rates are plummeting. The good news is that utilizing corporate groups can be a great way to complete projects and tasks in a short amount of time. Let’s dig into what this looks like!

Why Utilize Corporate Volunteers?

Corporate volunteers are motivated to help.

During COVID-19, many companies went partially or fully remote and were looking for ways to bring their employees together. As it turns out, volunteering is a great way for employees to meet and connect with their coworkers in person, all while giving back in an impactful way. It’s “feeding two birds with one scone” as we like to say! Secondly, corporate volunteers often bring a diverse set of skills and expertise from their professional backgrounds and life experience. If needed, for example, they can offer specialized knowledge in areas such as marketing, finance, and technology, which can be valuable for non-profits seeking to improve operations or achieve other goals more effectively or efficiently.

Not only this, but it’s cost-effective. Instead of hiring consultants or contractors, non-profits can leverage the skills and time of corporate volunteers to address specific needs and challenges. This can also lead to greater capacity for existing staff who might take it upon themselves to carry out these tasks.

There are also financial factors to consider. Collaborating with corporate volunteers can foster partnerships between organizations and the companies volunteering, leading to recurring volunteers and donations as the relationship grows.

How Families Matter Utilized Corporate Volunteers

Families Matter, a non-profit located in Calgary, works to strengthen families by creating learning opportunities that build confidence, competence, and connection through life’s transitions. They offer free programs for families of all kinds. The Families Matter team has grown significantly in the last few years, which has led to a need for more space for their staff to meet, as well as for all the families they service through their programming. They also needed their new office and classroom space painted with a fresh coat so that the space could be used for staff meetings and programs. 

While Families Matter had not previously worked with a corporate group, with our help they were able to work with a local company to paint two accent walls in the office, the wall of the classroom, and the adjoining hallway. All of this took place in just a few hours. The bright colours on the newly painted walls reflect the kind of space Families Matter wants to provide for their clients. The job was so well done that clients began complimenting the staff on how bright and open the space felt upon entering. 

Families Matter let us know it’s common for this kind of operational task to be completed by a few individual staff, or as a last resort, hired professionals. This is the first time Families Matter has utilized corporate volunteers and mentioned the task was completed more quickly than if it had been completed by staff, given their busy schedules. Now, staff use the office space and have made it their own, and many programs are running out of the classroom to support families in Calgary. This saved them valuable resources and time! 

How could a team of volunteers help your organization?

Every non-profit’s needs are unique. It’s up to you to decide how best to utilize volunteers to serve your mission. Whether it’s painting, gardening, setting up mentoring events, organizational tasks, or event preparation, there are plenty of options. Engaging corporate volunteers is invaluable, and many are ready to help! 

Purposely is an organization that brings employee volunteer solutions to small and medium sized businesses in an effort to get companies volunteering and giving back to the community. Reach out to Cree at cree@purposely.co if you’re interested to learn more about how Purposely can help your non-profit leverage corporate volunteers.