Using volunteerism to combat absenteeism

Volunteering activities and associated time off were once sold as a perk to prospective employees, but these values have switched in the wake of a society-altering pandemic. Employees now expect their employers to match their corporate mission with some real-world actions that leave a positive impact.

Enterprise businesses, particularly ones with developed ESG data frameworks, are responding to this shift by offering employees opportunities to participate in volunteering activities that enhance environmental or social progress. In 2021, a global coalition of sustainable enterprises found that 66% of companies offered volunteer time off, up from 56% in 2016.¹

Is this action purely philanthropic? Not entirely. Companies that offer volunteering opportunities to their employees have much to gain from the feeling of engagement and a greater sense of meaning that this brings to their people.

Evidence shows that corporate volunteering programmes increase both employee loyalty and engagement by 72%² which is a staggering figure when you consider that only 20% of employees report feeling engaged at work.³

This feeling of engagement can reduce absenteeism by up to 41%³ and for companies dealing with 2023’s number-crunching challenges, volunteerism presents a low-hanging solution.

Choosing the right programmes to undertake is critical for capturing this engagement opportunity. Volunteering activities should always match the company’s core mission and ideally support the vision that the products and services seek to solve. For example, Salesforce provides 1% of the company products for free to communities that would otherwise not be able to access them. This also provides a long-term value because, as the company grows, so can the philanthropic impact.

Medical studies show that being altruistic increases serotonin and makes us happy⁴ so, from an employee engagement perspective, volunteerism is a no-brainer. It offers a sense of well-being, connections to the community and an overall purpose. For people working in hybrid or remote roles, volunteering can also be an opportunity to get together and connect as a team.

The lockdowns and subsequent remote working of the last few years have created a new, virtual way of working and volunteering activities have proved to be no different. What was once an in-person team day activity can now start at home and be delivered remotely to otherwise inaccessible communities.

The benefits of volunteering grow when barriers to participating are removed. For people with disabilities or caring commitments, the prospect of travelling to volunteering locations just isn’t feasible but a virtual programme means they can engage in feel-good activities from the comfort of their homes.

Conferencing technology that allows for virtual conversations can also be used to scale up volunteering efforts and increase the reach of impact. PwC’s partnership with social enterprise The Tipping Point connected teachers with students in remote areas so they could access remote learning and ensure they didn’t get left behind by their city-dwelling peers.⁵

Using conferencing tools to offer volunteering opportunities means programmes that begin in person can continue virtually. This doubles the impact of volunteering efforts and creates a continuity of care that can’t be achieved in the typical team off-site. For employees seeking greater meaning from their work, this continuity also means that their professional development can complement their volunteering activities.

As well as reducing absenteeism, volunteering enables greater community outreach and allows companies to align their principles with community-supporting activities. For example, companies with advanced digital expertise have the opportunity to close the digital divide by upskilling community members on digital competence.

Microsoft’s ongoing ‘hack for good’ invites employees to build apps and support digital transformation for non-profits,⁶ an activity that creates value well beyond the employee's initial time commitment.

Singtel’s volunteerism work with Senior Activity Centres provided digital skills such as using smart devices, video calling and using digital payments to citizens who would otherwise suffer at the pace of technological change. This also allowed us to share costly hardware with recipients and remove the expense barrier of accessing these tools.

Volunteerism can improve employee engagement, reduce absenteeism, develop the communities we operate in and support company growth. Technology can empower that hard work by easing connections and supporting programme delivery.

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References

1. Harvard Business Review, 2021, Volunteer Programs That Employees Can Get Excited About
2. Forbes, 2022, Why Meaningful Long-Term Volunteer Opportunities are the Key to Engaging Your Top Talent
3. Zippia, 2023, Employee Engagement Statistics
4. Medical News Today, 2017, Generosity makes you happier
5. PwC, 2022, Our PwC Volunteers
6. Microsoft, 2023, Employee Engagement