Dirty. Icky. Gross.
A colleague who facilitates group volunteering shared a trend she noticed in Summer 2020. Some of the groups calling her began asking for service projects “with a diversity focus”. When pressed for what that meant, most could not offer specifics. One corporate representative replied that he was only the messenger, merely passing along his supervisors’ request. His tone suggested that he would not or could not seek clarification, but he added they would like to serve on Juneteenth.
There was a long pause among the Volunteer Directors after our colleague finished sharing.
And then their reactions: dirty, icky, gross.
The consensus: that these corporate groups were volunteering for optics. And that they had no idea that the optics of their approach were not a good look.
What’s the problem? The problem is that the project request seemed to be all about positioning the corporation to look woke instead of meeting an authentic community need. That any agency hosting this group would end up being a pawn, used as a backdrop in photos that are intended to put the company front and center. That volunteerism was more about checking a good corporate citizen box rather than connecting to real people and real lives in the community and making a meaningful contribution.
Using community members and nonprofit agencies is not a good look.
Unfortunately, this approach to group volunteering is not an anomaly, even if there has not been a spoken desire for diversity per se. Many companies have interpreted corporate social responsibility to mean dressing up their employees in matching t-shirts, giving them a day off of work to serve the community (willingly or not), and taking lots of photos that end up gracing the “Giving Back” page of the corporate website.
It’s not that corporate (or any other type of group) service is inherently bad.
It’s just that the good intentions behind these days sometime gets lost in the conversations about how to involve one of the senior execs for 30 minutes so he or she can be seen serving by the rank-and-file employees who are required to be there all day. They get lost in the list of demands that the company has about when and where and how many employee volunteers need to be accommodated at one site when the host organization really needs people to be staggered over multiple dates or locations. It gets lost when the company wants everything to be turnkey for their team but balks at underwriting the agency staff time and supplies needed to ensure the event runs smoothly. It gets lost when the group requests a project that interacts with program participants but cannot adjust their availability to support the structure and safety requirements that have been put in place to create a high-quality experience for said participants.
In other words, good intentions get lost when a company centers its needs before the needs of the people the company says it wants to serve.
I know, I know. These companies are just trying to help. After all, don’t community organizations need volunteers? Don’t the volunteers’ needs matter?
Yes, of course! I am not trying to scare off anyone from service (or even wearing matching t-shirts). Community organizations absolutely need volunteers. They are thrilled when groups want to get involved. The volunteers’ experiences are very important.
And.
Community agencies that engage volunteers are entrusted with meeting their participants’ needs (which do not necessarily fall on the corporation’s annual day of service). They welcome partnership on new projects (but do not necessarily have existing funding to purchase the supplies or muffins and juice or box lunches requested by the company). They want to engage groups in a meaningful way (but do not have a fleet of extra staff at the ready to do all the prep work necessary for turnkey projects nor to lead projects for dozens of volunteers). They are delighted to engage employee volunteers and participants in thoughtful ways (but not at the expense of the safety or dignity of those participants).
In short, community agencies do not have the luxury of only considering the corporate group’s needs. They need to meet the needs of their participants, their paid staff, and one-day volunteers from a company or other group. They need service with a measure of maturity and thoughtfulness. Everyone’s time and dignity are too precious to waste.
Finding the intersection of all these needs is a challenge and requires partnership. Especially because many agencies have very limited resources invested in volunteer engagement (often because donors do not like to pay for salaries or service even when those salaries advance the mission and the service provides valuable labor).
So.
When a corporation calls up asking for volunteering with a diversity focus, for one day, and cannot really articulate what diversity means to them, it leaves the folks fielding the call feeling like their participants and agencies are being used. And if diversity is defined and looks something like having (mostly White) employees interacting with mostly Black or Brown participants, it feels disrespectful and dehumanizing.
What should volunteer groups do instead?
If your group (corporate, faith-based, classroom, or otherwise) is considering volunteering, take some time to consider what it would look like to truly be of service. Being of service means that volunteering is not just about what you would like to do and when you would like to do it. It’s also about what the community and/or host agency needs and when they need it done. Start a dialogue with the host agency; ask about their needs. Listen to their responses, and be flexible and open. Understand if the agency says it cannot accommodate your group on a particular day. It may be that the most meaningful contribution your employees or members can make does not lend itself to a one-day group project. A longer-term engagement of a small team sharing their skillset may yield far more impact and satisfaction even if the photos are not as compelling. (And if photos are the driving factor, reconsider who the service is about.)
Share your budget upfront, or adjust your expectations if the agency is not able to underwrite project expenses. Be transparent about whether the service comes with a grant, now or in the future. Many agencies feel beholden to meet demands from corporate groups in particular because they think it may lead to funding.
Consider ways that one-day service can translate to an ongoing relationship with the agency or community. Ask the agency to include an orientation about the organization’s cause and a debrief that educates volunteers about ways to stay involved with the organization as an ongoing volunteer, a donor, an advocate, a newsletter or social media subscriber, or a participant. Explore ways that the group or individuals can make a commitment over time.
Finally, ask yourself or the group, why are we volunteering? What does a meaningful experience entail? Would we do it even if there were no photos? Is it important enough to do even if the rest of the world does not know we did it? Who is this service really about? Hopefully, the answers reveal a desire for authentic engagement.
That’s always a good look.
With gratitude to the Volunteer Directors, Corporate Social Responsibility professionals, and other volunteer group leaders who work toward meaningful and authentic service that lands at the intersection of many needs. Keep up the hard conversations and thoughtful work.
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