Unit 4: Partner with nonprofits

[Alicia_Schmidt]

If your company plans to organize regular employee volunteering opportunities, selecting the right nonprofit partners will be critical. Part of the power of volunteering is the deep sense of meaning participants feel when they give back. And your nonprofit partners are the ones largely responsible for delivering that meaning through the volunteering experience. If employees feel like the company doesn’t care about the outcomes and is only trying to create good PR, they will be much less likely to participate. Consider the following when selecting your nonprofit partners:

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1. Mission Alignment

When choosing the causes your company intends to support, consider their alignment with your values, mission, and objectives. It's essential to establish a natural connection between your company's operations, products, or services and a social cause. For instance, Remitly, which facilitates international money transfers, supports initiatives focused on enhancing the economic, financial, and social inclusion of immigrants and their families.

2. Stakeholder Alignment

Ensure the chosen cause resonates with your employees and customers to foster greater engagement and support. Board and Leadership Buy-In: Engage leadership and board members to ensure alignment and support for the partnership. Lastly, ensure that the chosen cause aligns with your brand image and resonates with your customer and employee base. Engage trusted stakeholders in the decision-making process to validate and socialize the chosen cause. Their insights can provide valuable perspectives in ensuring alignment with your company's overall vision and values.

3. Geographical Relevance

Additionally, factor in geographical context. Assess if the nonprofit's initiatives address pressing issues specific to your company's location or community. And consider global nonprofits if your company operates internationally or has a broader global focus.

4. Leveraging Your Company’s Unique Assets

Furthermore, evaluate how your company's unique capabilities can contribute to creating a substantial impact for the specific cause. Identify distinctive assets or resources your company possesses that can be leveraged for social good.

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5. Experience and Resource Utilization

Look for nonprofits that have the capacity to work effectively with corporate volunteers and who offer relevant and meaningful volunteering opportunities for your employees. Ensure the nonprofit can effectively utilize the time, skills, and resources your company intends to contribute.  

As you build your volunteer strategy, evaluate your capacity and the types of organizations best suited to make use of your time and skills. Be careful about the burden you are putting on your nonprofit partners and/or the communities you strive to support.

If small organizations are a strong match for your team, remember they are often understaffed. It is not their job to ensure your employees have a good experience, rather it is their job to continue supporting the communities they serve. Your time pledge only works if you’re able to help your partners fulfill their mission, so be sure your expectations are communicated and executed thoughtfully.

Asking a nonprofit to plan a big event for your employees will take a lot of their staff time to host and manage, and will often come with many hard costs. Things you might expect in a corporate environment—like having food and drinks for your employees or having admin support for an event you’re coordinating—are not necessarily available in the nonprofit sector. We recommend companies provide cash support for group events in the form of small grants to deflect any cost incurred by the organization in managing volunteers and event logistics.

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Next: Intro to Volunteer Program Measurement and Evaluation