Design an Employee Volunteer Program
Maximize shared value for the organization, employees, and the community through an employee-powered volunteer program.
- A lack of leadership support, especially middle manager support, derails participation in an employee volunteer program.
- Measuring the social impact of employee volunteer programs is difficult, as it is an abstract concept. As a result, organizations often avoid measuring impact altogether. This is a missed opportunity to demonstrate the value and many benefits of the program to fellow employees and senior leaders.
Our Advice
Critical Insight
- Employee volunteer programs are best positioned to maximize shared value when they are aligned with the organization’s priorities and harness the power of employees to drive community impact. It’s a win-win-win.
Impact and Result
- Involve senior leaders, middle managers, and employees in program design from the start to gain support and buy-in at every level.
- Design an employee-powered volunteer program, aligned with organizational goals, that measures success and empowers employees to champion events and causes they are passionate about.
- Build long-term partnerships with existing and new community partners to ensure shared value.
Workshop: Design an Employee Volunteer Program
Workshops offer an easy way to accelerate your project. If you are unable to do the project yourself, and a Guided Implementation isn't enough, we offer low-cost delivery of our project workshops. We take you through every phase of your project and ensure that you have a roadmap in place to complete your project successfully.
Module 1: Frame the Employee Volunteer Program
The Purpose
- Determine program scope, metrics, and goals.
- Assess current initiatives and level of employee interest.
Key Benefits Achieved
- Established program scope, metrics, and goals
- Reviewed current initiatives and level of employee interest
Activities
Outputs
Review organizational implications to set program scope.
- Organizational implications reviewed
Examine organizational data to determine program needs.
- Organizational data examined
Review existing volunteerism and employee interests.
- Existing volunteerism and employee interests reviewed
Set program goals and metrics.
- Program goals and metrics set
Review and select elements.
- Elements selected
Decide parameters of selected elements.
- Selected elements parameters decided
Module 2: Operationalize the Program
The Purpose
- Decide on strategic initiatives, program management, and technology that may be necessary.
- Integrate with existing HR programs.
Key Benefits Achieved
- Assessed strategic initiatives, program management, and technology required
- Integrated existing HR programs
Activities
Outputs
Assess the feasibility of selected elements.
- Feasibility of selected elements assessed
Review internal data to decide if a strategic cause will be selected.
- Internal data reviewed
Decide on and draft a volunteer program manager role.
- Program manager role drafted
Decide if technology will be used.
- Technology use decided
Identify required integration points with other HR program areas.
- HR program integration points identified
Module 3: Plan to Iterate and Implement the Program
The Purpose
- Set the program parameters.
- Incorporate volunteer recognition practices and share the program’s impact.
- Solicit feedback to evaluate and iterate the program.
Key Benefits Achieved
- Determined program parameters
- Integrated recognition practices
- Generated methods to gather feedback.
Activities
Outputs
Determine required policies, guidelines, and procedures.
- Policies, guidelines, and procedures required determined
Identify ways to track and share impact.
- Ways to track and share impact identified
Identify how employees will be recognized.
- Employee recognition methods identified
Determine how feedback will be gathered for program evaluation.
- Program feedback gathering determined
Create an action and communication plan.
- Communications planned
About McLean & Company
McLean & Company is an HR research and advisory firm providing practical solutions to human resources challenges via executable research, tools, diagnostics, and advisory services that have a clear and measurable impact on your business.
What Is a Blueprint?
A blueprint is designed to be a roadmap, containing a methodology and the tools and templates you need to solve your HR problems.
Each blueprint can be accompanied by a Guided Implementation that provides you access to our world-class analysts to help you get through the project.
Need Extra Help?
Speak With An Analyst
Get the help you need in this 4-phase advisory process. You'll receive 8 touchpoints with our researchers, all included in your membership.
Guided Implementation 1: Frame the employee volunteer program.
- Call 1: Assess the current state of volunteerism in your organization.
- Call 2: Determine the program scope and internal data to set program goals.
Guided Implementation 2: Review and select elements.
- Call 1: Select elements for inclusion in the employee volunteer program.
- Call 2: Assess the feasibility of selected elements.
Guided Implementation 3: Operationalize the program.
- Call 1: Decide how causes and community partners will be selected and aligned with the program’s needs.
- Call 2: Confirm other support factors required to operationalize the program (e.g. technology and program management).
Guided Implementation 4: Plan to iterate and implement the program.
- Call 1: Plan the program launch and ongoing management accountabilities.
- Call 2: Define customization of program resources and program communications.
Contributors
- Dr. Ken Allen, President, Civil Society Consulting Group LLC
- Bea Boccalandro, President and Founder, VeraWorks
- May-Lynne Bulato, Senior Associate, National Volunteer Days Lead, Willis Towers Watson
- Jim Davey, Corporate Volunteer Resources Coordinator, Centre for Addiction and Mental Health (CAMH)
- Lauren Fitzgerald, Community Investment Specialist, Meridian Credit Union
- Chris Jarvis, Co-Founder and Chief Strategy Officer, Realized Worth
- Kate Masson, Community Manager, Ian Martin Group
- Nicole Mitchell, Director, Social Commitment, Meridian Credit Union
- Nancy Moloney, U.S. Community Relations Specialist, Sensata Technologies
- Alan Neal, Vice President Workshop Delivery, Info-Tech Research Group
- Dr. Akwasi Opoku-Dakwa, Assistant Professor of Management, Dunquesne University School of Business Administration
- Cassandra Sturk, Stewardship Council Member, Ian Martin Group
- Jerome Tennille, Consultant, Manager Social Impact & Volunteerism, Marriott International
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