How to design a volunteering program in your workplace

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More workplaces are bolstering their volunteer programs, especially as employee demands grow for socially responsible employers and engagement

More workplaces are bolstering their volunteer programs, especially as employee demands grow for socially responsible employers and engagement. Nearly three in five companies surveyed by the Association of Corporate Citizenship Professionals reported increased opportunities for group volunteering last year.

With National Volunteer Week in the rearview mirror, coworkers buoyed by recent acts of kindness might be looking for ways to integrate service more regularly into their professional schedules. They stand to benefit themselves, too. Recent University of Oxford research suggests organized volunteering is one of the most effective workplace programs for improving workers' well-being.

But not all corporate volunteering is created equal. The following advice from experts and nonprofit leaders provides some best practices for anyone interested in building or strengthening an officewide culture of service.

Dr. Eddy Hogg, a University of Kent lecturer who studies volunteering, recommends giving agency to employees in the design of their workplace volunteer program. People who volunteer on their own time likely have a much more personal connection to the cause, he said, whereas an employee group will have varied levels of interest in any given act of service.

Allowing employees to select from a range of local community groups, and suggest their own, can help ensure everyone feels connected to their nonprofit partner's mission. Affinity groups can be a good place to start aligning employee interests with service work.

Still, buy-in from the entire corporate ladder is necessary.

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