Corporate Volunteering For Remote Teams
In today’s modern world, with the advent of technology, many people are starting to turn to working remotely, and so it follows that the charitable sector is also looking to take advantage of this rise in corporate talent looking to give back virtually through volunteer opportunities.
As a result, it has become increasingly difficult for companies to encourage their employees to participate in traditional, in-person volunteer work. However, in this article we'll explain exactly how remote teams can continue to give back, and why you can actually end up having far more impact from the comfort of your desk!
We'll also cover how to get started with remote volunteer opportunities, and highlight some of our favourite skills based volunteer projects for you to volunteer online with at the moment.
What is Remote Volunteering?
To summarise, virtual volunteer opportunities (or online volunteering), is a type of corporate volunteering that can be done from anywhere, as long as you have a decent internet connection!
It involves using technology to participate in volunteer work, such as online mentoring, fundraising, and awareness campaigns, and these virtual volunteer opportunities lend themselves to more skills-based, online tasks that many charities don't have the time or budget to complete themselves in-house. Remote volunteering has become increasingly popular in recent years as it allows people to make a difference no matter the geographical limitations.
Does Virtual Volunteering Create Less Impact?
One of the biggest misconceptions about virtual volunteering is that it creates less impact than traditional volunteering. However, this is categorically not true.
Remote volunteering can make just as much of a difference as traditional volunteering. In fact, virtual volunteering has several advantages over traditional volunteering, such as:
Flexibility: Virtual volunteering allows volunteers to work on their own schedule, making it easier for them to fit volunteering into their busy lives.
Accessibility: Remote volunteering can be done from anywhere, making it accessible to people who may not be able to participate in traditional volunteering due to geographical or physical limitations.
Cost-effectiveness: Remote volunteering is often more cost-effective than traditional volunteering as it eliminates the need for travel expenses and other costs associated with traditional volunteering.
How to Find Virtual Volunteering Opportunities
Now that you know what remote volunteering is and its benefits, you may be wondering how to find remote volunteering opportunities. Here are some ways to find your next volunteering opportunity:
A dedicated volunteer platform: There are multiple different online platforms out there that you can partner with to help source and organise online volunteering opportunities. For example, the Matchable platform allows volunteers to search for online volunteering opportunities based on their interests and skills.
Partner with your favourite charitable organisation: If you already have an existing relationship a non-profit near you, or you’re business is aligned with a very specific cause, then you may want to find volunteering opportunities yourself with select charities.
3 Examples of Online Volunteering Opportunities
Below we've summarised three innovative examples of online volunteer opportunities that remote teams can participate in on the Matchable Platform to give you an idea of the kind of exciting projects you can get involved with, and the amazing impact you can create with a nonprofit organization or charity:
1. Take Part In A Diversity Survey To Improve Diversity In The Workplace ✅
Historically, entrepreneurs from ethnic backgrounds have had significantly lower success rates in the long term. But you can help to tackle this problem head on with virtual volunteering activities.
Help this social enterprise to collect richer data across multiple demographics and provide insight into how diversity factors impact people by taking part in a simple diversity survey that only takes 10-40 minutes!
2. Online Mentoring For Disadvantaged Children 🧑🏽🏫
If you and members of your remote team have specific skill sets relating to their role, then mentoring/tutoring could be a fantastic opportunity for them to create real impact in their community.
You can help to close the attainment gap between disadvantaged pupils and their peers by giving just one hour a week per employee to tutor disadvantaged kids in maths and English and develop their confidence and abilities.
3. Create A Sales Strategy For A Local Domestic Violence Charity 💷
This is an incredible project that our Head of Commercial Tash here at Matchable actually matched with previously, and gives a great idea of the level of impact digital volunteers can have.
She lended her years of expertise in sales to support this community interest company creating safe spaces in local stores, and turning bystanders into allies against abuse.
She started by volunteering a few hours of her time towards helping them develop an initial sales strategy, but she found her work so rewarding that she agreed to become a longterm commercial advisor for them in order to continue to help their cause.
Conclusion
In conclusion, remote teams can make a significant impact through virtual volunteering, and create strong partnerships with local or global nonprofit organizations.
Professional skills-based online volunteering allows employees to work on their own schedule, is accessible to people who may not be able to participate in traditional volunteering due to disabilities or location, and is often far more cost-effective than traditional corporate volunteering for both employers and charitable organisations.
Virtual volunteering opportunities are a brilliant way to contribute towards tackling local and global problems as a business, and also offers fantastic opportunities for up-skilling your team and improving employee retention, motivation, and wellbeing 🤩
Hopefully this article has given you the information (and motivation) to start implementing your own volunteer program. Whether you want help hitting your CSR/ESG goals, or want to use virtual events to help engage your staff, virtual volunteer opportunities are one of the most effective options.
