5 Tips that help you do good, do well

We are partners; your company/employer and we: Together for Eindhoven. Together we are going for a closer Brainport and making our region even more beautiful. Closing the gap and contributing to the global goals of the UN, there are so many dreams to be realised. So get to work!

You and your colleagues can do 'something good' with your head, heart and hands - during working hours. This can be done in a day or part of a day, online or longer, by committing yourself as a coach to a concrete issue of a foundation.

In practice, many employees are willing to volunteer, but actually doing it is another matter. The secret of a successful volunteer programme lies not in winning the hearts of colleagues, but in getting the legs moving.

How do you activate employees to do voluntary work (during working hours)? What is the best way to get people to take action? When recruiting 'corporate volunteers', it is important to literally help people on their way. Below, you can read 5 activation tips:

Tip 1️⃣ 

Everyone wants to do good, but the willingness is often even greater if your colleagues feel a link with the mission, core values or global goals of your organisation. If volunteering is in line with what your company stands for, you are more likely to take action. A good example of this is Philips; volunteering is often linked to the theme of 'good health and well being', which ties in with the mission to improve people's lives. For example, Hans de Jong (president of Philips Nederland) and residents of Archipel Landrijt visited the Philips Museum, which is all about vitamin A for attention.

 Tip 2️⃣

There is plenty of choice, so it is important that an (online) volunteer activity matches the interest and passion of employees. Search with colleagues for what fits; does your colleague like to cook? Then he/she probably wants to cook with refugees or elderly people. And your IT colleagues might want to use their knowledge for an IT question from a foundation? For communication colleagues there is the annual Pro Bono Communication event where they can put their talent to work for a foundation, and are there teams that want to roll up their sleeves for a day in the countryside? There is always room for this at various social organisations, together with clients.

Tip 3️⃣

Experience shows that doing good together always does good. Therefore, use the volunteer activity as a meaningful team outing. But actually it is so much more than that. Corporate volunteering also brings you a lot. Meaningfulness, more understanding, new insights and contacts and fun. Ask your colleagues personally to participate in an activity, this works best. Volunteering during working hours' is also a lot of fun! It also looks good on your CV.

Tip 4️⃣

Corporate volunteering is during working hours - the hours you dedicate to a good cause can be done during working hours. Make your colleagues aware of this. And doing something good, small or large, not only brings a lot to the other person, but also to the employees. You work on your vitality, step into another world for a while, develop skills and perhaps even have a transformative experience.

Tip 5️⃣

The more concrete you can make an activity, the greater the chance that people will want to get involved. Therefore, communicate clearly: on that day, we are looking for so many people to fulfil the wishes of the elderly at this location. Get involved! Another good idea to make volunteering concrete; use colleagues who are already fans of doing good as ambassadors: with examples, photos, videos and quotes from previous experiences. Their enthusiasm is contagious! Especially if there is support from leadership and management, because good examples are followed...

Doing good makes you happy

We like to think along with you and put our years of experience to good use. Together, we make every activity - whether it is skills-based or a day of helping hands - impactful, memorable and above all fun. We are curious to know what surprised you, what you learned...

Call, email, app or chat with us!

Are you in?

Through our calendar we make it easy for you to do your bit for a charity that you find passionate and talented. Decide when, for whom and how often you want to volunteer? Join us and start right away!

👉🏽 Read also:

The 5 principles of valuable corporate volunteering for engaged entrepreneurs.

Toolkit

In order to make doing good easier, NOV developed the Good Busy toolkit. It is part of the Good Busy programme and is based on three pillars:action: 'our company also participates', inspiration: examples, webinars, exchange and finally knowledge. Download the toolkit here.

Founders / Co-makers