Why charity employees can also benefit from corporate volunteering

Traditionally corporate volunteering schemes have been considered a domain of big business. Large organisations often have a CSR initiate, where they send teams of employees out into the local community for a few days to a week each year, to volunteer with smaller charities. The charities and community groups concerned stand to benefit significantly from this arrangement, as they often have limited budgets or staff time to get something done, so they really appreciate the corporate help.

 

On the flip side, the big businesses benefit by showing they have a ‘human’ side and are willing to give back to the community. This also gives the staff the opportunity to spend time away from the desk, boosting their confidence and skills, and increasing team work.

 

But there is no reason why charity staff shouldn’t also be given the opportunity to benefit from a corporate volunteering scheme. Often third sector training is ignored by HR teams, not because they don’t want to provide it, but because they don’t have the capacity to do so. And a corporate volunteering scheme need not be restricted to the model mentioned above. Charity staff stand to really add value to a mentoring scheme such as the one offered here at IME. And the bonus for charity budgets is that staff who take part automatically get enrolled on one of our accredited online training programmes for employees. This is a great opportunity to gain access to third sector training at a massively reduced cost, whilst still adding value to the experience for your staff.

 

How does IME corporate volunteering work?

 

Unlike traditional corporate volunteering programmes, at IME you will get the opportunity to mentor a young person who is looking for a job. This boosts management and leadership skills, both of which are popular choices for third sector training. Added to this, staff will also get access to our online management and leadership training course, boosting skills even further. IME manage the process by matching volunteers with mentees, and both will get access to a dedicated online portal providing advice and guidance every step of the way.

So far, the programme has created 360 mentoring relationships across the country to boost skills and employability, both for the mentor and the mentee. Sara, currently being mentored, explains: ““My sessions so far with my mentor have been extremely positive. I enjoyed being able to speak to people in the profession and appreciate all the input given already!”

 

We match our mentors field of expertise to your career aspirations. For example, if you are keen to get a job in Marketing, we could match you to a Marketing Director. This means your mentor will be able to share valuable insights as to what the people on the other side of the interview table are looking for and will better prepare you for the role and workplace. You can read more about the programme on our corporate volunteering pages.