Companies that encourage their employees to offer their
skills to help local charities stand to improve staff retention,
attract the best potential recruits and promote a positive image
for their organisation.
That is the experience of IT4Communities, an organisation that
matches IT professionals with charities and community projects in
need of help with their IT.
IT4Communities provides the framework to optimise the value of
those volunteering their technical expertise. It also offers IT
directors several ways of helping their staff to help local
charities and projects in a structured way.
The simplest option is for IT directors to promote
IT4Communities to their staff, who can then register with the
programme and select suitable projects, donating their skills to
charities in their spare time.
IT4Communities can arrange quarterly reports on the number of
staff registering with the programme and the progress on specific
projects.
It can also help organisations that already have an employee
volunteering programme and are looking for additional
opportunities. The organisation can also accommodate IT directors
looking to offer their staff customised volunteering
opportunities.
“Research indicates that there are real competitive advantages
to be gained by companies that actively promote IT volunteering to
their staff,” said John Davies, programme director at
IT4Communities.
“Organisations that promote employee volunteering can benefit by
improving staff retention and motivation, attracting the best
potential recruits, and promoting a positive image of the company
to customers and the local community.
“Volunteering is also an effective way of developing employees
through stimulating innovative thinking and hands-on learning by
placing the IT professional in an unfamiliar world. It also helps
them enhance their individual and team working skills.
“As well as enhancing your business, your staff will be helping
to meet a real need, with large numbers of excellent charities and
community groups currently struggling because they cannot afford
the IT expertise they need to function effectively.”
IT directors who would like to take part in the IT4Communities
corporate volunteering programme should contact John Davies on 020
7796 2144.