Community work is a win-win-win situation

Most companies like to think of themselves as socially responsible – and they like their employees, customers and the wider public to think of them that way too. But what does a company need to do to be socially responsible?

“We see a variety of approaches to Corporate Social Responsibility (CSR) among our clients, “ says Aideen Waters of Great Place To Work. “Everything from fundraising cakesales for local charities through to supporting employees to volunteer their time and talents for the local community. More and more organisations are taking a strategic approach to their impact on society through their CSR programmes.”

It can involve fully engaging with people in the area, with employees really making a difference in the community, rolling up their sleeves and getting down to the donkey work, whether refurbishing a new youth centre, landscaping a communal garden or cleaning up a local park.

It may be hard work, but instigating close community encounters can bring benefits which can’t be quantified in money, such as the respect of your customers, the loyalty of your staff and a renewed sense of purpose in the boardroom, as those on top reap the rewards of giving back to the community. You could call it a win-win-win situation.

"We are deeply committed to improving lives, communities and the environment," says John Chambers, chairman of global technology company Cisco, whose Galway office takes corporate social responsibility (CSR) to the next level. The company encourages employees to volunteer their time and talents to good causes – for every hour spent volunteering, Cisco will donate the equivalent of $10 (up to $1,000 a year and $10,000 per team).

All well and good, but who's got the time these days, with busy work and family lives? Cisco also allows employees to volunteer during working hours – and the hour outside the office can often be the most rewarding hour of the week. Sheila Greaney co-ordinates many of Cisco Galway's local fundraising, and is delighted with the feedback from staff, local people and from the big bosses at Cisco.

“Cisco allows me do what I want to do, there’s no micromanaging. I say to the employees: ‘Which charities do you want to work with this quarter?’ When it comes from themselves we get a lot more involvement.” Regular voluntary work by Cisco workers includes staffing ambulances, teaching first aid and CPR, taking part in Tidy Towns and working with special needs children as part of the Special Olympics.

Cisco staff are engineers and techies, and when you harness their talents, you can come up with some offbeat fundraising ideas, says Greaney.

“One of our engineers designed a game called Cisco Birds – like Angry Birds – and they put my face on one of the birds, and you had to kill it – kill me, effectively. It was a great money-spinner and very creative.” Cisco volunteers also work with Age Action to teach older people how to use computers and tablets, and how to navigate the web and social media. “We’ll have 20 70-year-olds coming into our office every Monday morning, and our engineers will teach them how to use the technology. It’ll be fantastic.”

Cisco encourages young people’s interest in Stem (science, technology, engineering and maths) and is a main sponsor of the Galway Science and Technology Festival. It has a fun, interactive stand to engage kids with cool technology, including robots, trains, videos and artificial intelligence. “Because a lot of our engineers have kids – we call them Cisco kids – we let the kids run our stand, so it’s kids talking to kids.”

In staff surveys, Cisco finds employees highly value the ability to volunteer, and approve of the policy encouraging community engagement. “One graduate said she wanted to work with Cisco ‘because it sounds like a real fun place to work’. They asked her: ‘Fun because they have snooker tables and Pacman machines?’ And she said: ‘No. It’s because you’re doing so much great work in the community, and I want to be part of that’.”

Exhibition

BT is best known for its involvement in the BT Young Scientists and Technology exhibition. The communications company doesn’t just lend its name and logo to the event; its employees get involved at the RDS in Dublin each January, which is a serious antidote to the post-Christmas blues, according to Priscilla O’Regan, head of communications at BT Ireland.

“We organise the exhibition ourselves. We don’t just hand over the cheque, we literally run it. And that’s really important because it makes it really stand out as an employee engagement tool,” she says.

“Our 200 staff got the opportunity to be in the RDS on January 4th, wearing red or blue coats. One minute they’re working on a customer delivery, the next they’re helping students pin up their projects on their stand. It’s brilliant to step out of the day job and go down to the RDS and put skills to work helping young people. And I’ll be honest with you, it’s my favourite part of my job.

“We all go out the door an inch taller, because these are very inspiring young people. They’re enthusiastic, optimistic and creative, just the kind of talent BT needs in its workforce.”

For BT, facilitating its staff to do voluntary work is a no-brainer. “In all our employee engagement surveys, feedback shows the opportunity to volunteer is really valued in the workplace, and a lot of people have causes and organisations close to their heart,” says O’Regan.

BT staff also want the chance to use their particular skills and expertise to help others, she adds. “We might let a finance expert work with a voluntary organisation that can’t afford a finance person in their team. I helped a voluntary organisation with public relations, to set up social media. It was a great experience.”

BT is also involved in the Great BT Charity Shops Challenge, which raised €117,000 for the Irish Cancer Society and Marie Curie Cancer Care last October, and Business in the Community's Building on Talent programme, which helps talented people in businesses to channel their skills and enthusiasm into voluntary work.

“We consider ourselves a responsible business, and we believe it’s very important for your reputation to give back to the community where you’re operating, where your staff live and where your customers live,” says O’Regan. “And, from an employee’s viewpoint, they want to be able to volunteer, they want to be able to use their skills. It’s good for the company, it’s good for employees, and it’s good for society. Everybody wins.”

Working with the community: ‘Fun, challenging and rewarding'

In February 2015, Global electronic design company Cadence instigated Volunteer Time Off (VTO), with five days’ paid leave for employees to volunteer for a local charity or community project.

Finance manager Edel Gannon worked with the Sunshine Fund, providing holidays for disadvantaged children. “For some children, this is the only holiday they’ll ever get,” says Gannon. “The week was fun, challenging and extremely rewarding and left me with a sense of satisfaction.”

Cadence credit and collections manager Neil Curran runs the annual Improv Fest Ireland, a theatre and comedy festival which raises funds for Our Lady’s Children’s Hospital, Crumlin.

Employees at data storage company EMC can take three days a year to volunteer as part of EMC Gives Back. Last year staff in Ovens, Cork, worked on community projects including painting at Marymount Hospice, renovating a St Vincent De Paul shelter and the Mahon community clean-up.

The company sponsors the I Wish conference, encouraging females to study Stem, and the Junior Achievement programme, which helps students develop a product or service.

PepsiCo World Flavours (PWF) also encourages kids in Stem, through a Kids’ Technology Workshop and PepsiCo Challenge Science.