The scale of Citi’s Global Community Day, which falls this year on June 11, is impressive – in over 90 countries on one day, tens of thousands of volunteers will get together in order to help. In last year’s event, in Poland alone, volunteers, their families, and friends got involved 3367 times, carrying out 195 projects for 23,000 beneficiaries. In the 10 years of this initiative, help has reached over 185,000 people. According to organizers of the initiative from The Citi Handlowy Leopold Kronenberg Foundation in Poland, this year more than 3,000 employees of Citi Handlowy and Citi Service Center and their families and friends will participate in more than 200 projects.
Employee volunteering involves the undertaking and supporting by a company of charitable activities carried out by employees of that company. While it is not an entirely unknown concept in Poland, unfortunately it is quite rarely implemented by companies. Most often it is large companies that get involved in activities connected with employee volunteering; in this way, they transfer to Polish soil the best solutions from other countries. The activities of The Citi Handlowy Leopold Kronenberg Foundation in this field are among the best examples of CSR in Poland – this is confirmed by numerous prizes and honors, such as the title “Benefactor of the Year 2016” in the category “Corporate foundation – community project” and continuous presence on the FOR list of “Good practices”.
From the viewpoint of the Foundation running the leading program of business volunteering in Poland, by means of which we directly make a contribution to local communities through the knowledge, experience, and skills of people working in our corporation, the personal satisfaction of volunteers is also important, says Krzysztof Kaczmar, President of The Citi Handlowy Leopold Kronenberg Foundation. The feeling that something useful has been done adds energy to both the private and professional spheres. It is therefore an excellent example of a win-win situation, in which all sides gain: the beneficiary, the volunteer, and the employer, and indirectly the local community as well.
What kinds of projects do volunteers like to get involved with? According to a survey on satisfaction of people involved in activities through Citi’s Employee Volunteering Program, renovation, gardening, and cleanup activities are the most popular. Volunteers also help others by, for example, conducting classes for children and organizing special events.
People are always the key element in volunteering. The framework created by us, i.e. the portfolio of projects and the system of funding, provide them with support and create an opportunity to respond to the needs of local communities, says Jenny Grey, Vice-President of The Citi Handlowy Leopold Kronenberg Foundation. The role of the Foundation is to create comfortable conditions for development of the grassroots initiatives of employee volunteers, who are the best ambassadors of CSR. Their enthusiasm and dedication speak for themselves.
The satisfaction felt by employee-volunteers is of course valuable, but it is also important that this feeling bring tangible benefits to one’s professional life. As demonstrated by a survey conducted by Citi, the vast majority of employees interviewed pointed to an improvement in their project management and team building skills and to strengthening of their creativity. The respondents acknowledged that volunteering also had a positive impact on their motivation. 85% of them confirmed that involvement with volunteering has led to increased awareness of social problems, while a similar number admitted that it was now easier for them to understand the situation of other people.
For quite a long time already, salary, non-wage benefits, and employment stability have not been essential elements in building the job satisfaction of employees. People looking for sources of motivation and commitment increasingly want new experiences, the building of relationships, and a sense of continuous development, as well as a sense of purpose in doing tasks. In this context, employee volunteering functions very well at Citi Handlowy and Citi Service Center.
