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The Value of Goals
When I took on the challenge to run the Gipsy Moth IV round the world voyage the obvious place to start was Sir Francis Chichester’s book, Gipsy Moth Circles the World. Something that particularly struck me was that Chichester spent many years away from his family sailing on various challenges; he… -
Celebrating Community Interest Companies
Employee Volunteering CiC is proud to be one of the founding Community Interest Companies when the concept emerged in early 2007. It is a great legal structure for organisations that want to make a difference in the lives of others but without the restrictions of being a registered charity. … -
The Volunteering Secret
What are the secrets to building a strong and sustainable colleague volunteering programme? Firstly, it must be easy for people to participate. Colleagues are under increasing pressure to work more efficiently, if volunteering is too difficult, or time consuming, people will stay at their desk. Secondly,… -
Skills Volunteering
When teams come together and give their time the difference they make can be amazing. They can turn something tired and neglected into something fresh and uplifting. What might have taken a charity or community group weeks or months to complete can be done in a fraction of the time. This is what… -
Social Action in Recruitment
To make a lasting impact, communities need long term volunteers. This excellent CIPD report shows that recruits with a track record of social action have developed essential skills that give them a competitive edge. It follows that employees that volunteer on a regular basis develop skills that… -
How Volunteering Connects People
We know that over 76% of our volunteers say that their volunteering activity has a positive influence on how they feel about their employer. This has stayed continually high over the last couple of years and I can see why. When you give time to your people to volunteer you are saying… -
Volunteering Safety, Safeguarding and Insurance
Employer supported volunteers are representing their organisation and deemed to be at work and the employer is responsible for compliance with H&SW legislation. When on site the charity or community group is responsible for their visitors so someone must clearly define roles and responsibilities… -
Principle Based Decision Making
The VW scandal is a stark reminder of the impact that flawed business decisions can have on people, economies and communities. This new CIPD report, based on a survey of 3500 business leaders, has found that 30% of them would choose to continue rewarding high-performing individuals regardless… -
Vulnerability
Our first EV branded programme was our Community Coaching Project. We train employees to coach and mentor disengaged young people from their local community and take them and their coach to the UKSA at Cowes for three days to develop trust and rapport. One young lad, let’s call him Bob, insisted he… -
Beliefs Shape Communities
It’s disturbing that 21 year old Dylann Roof believed that he should allegedly enter a church in South Carolina and shoot dead 9 innocent people because of the colour of their skin, and his beliefs and prejudices about their community. President Obama talks about the tragedies that many… -
Compulsory Volunteering Dichotomy
Cabinet Office Minister Rob Wilson is right to say that the benefits of volunteering, through improved motivation and productivity, can far outweigh the potential costs. Enlightened organisations that already offer employer supported volunteering opportunities understand this. The Communities Secretary… -
Doing the Right Thing
A good reputation is hard to build and easy to lose; and when things go wrong the meaning of CSR can get a little confused. When… -
Volunteering Strengthens Retention
According to the Office of National Statistics (ONS) the UK economy grew 2.6% in 2014, the fastest pace since 2007. Forecasts predict that this level of growth is likely to continue for a number of years to come. This is great news for the economy, but companies are going to have to work harder to… -
Learning Skills through Volunteering
The Corporate Responsibility (CR) community has an insatiable appetite for skills volunteering. But can it deliver Learning and Development (L&D) benefits? I think it can. But only if L&D collaborates with the CR team. And there are things it can deliver, and things it cannot. And that is predominantly… -
How we use Social Media
I’m neither a technology guru nor a Luddite. I do know that social media is a great way of reaching out both to the companies that we support, and the communities in which they volunteer. Our many charity and community partners often ask me where they should be putting their effort; I can never answer…