National Communication Museum’s Post

ELBA connects businesses with local communities, enabling over 12,000 business volunteers each year to share their time, skills and resources to support education, employment, and local organisations. Through innovative programmes, ELBA drives impactful community investment and places hundreds into work annually. Over ten weeks, our research director, Lee Linthicum brought his 20+ years of market research expertise to ELBA, helping tackle post-COVID challenges and cost-of-living pressures. 💡Here are a few standout moments from Lee’s experience with ELBA: 🔍 Conducted competitor research to address emerging challenges. 📚 Built training materials to sustain ELBA’s competitive intelligence. 🤝 Interviewed 15 corporate partners, including Euromonitor, to uncover insights on employer-supported volunteering. The insights Lee delivered will shape ELBA’s strategy for years, enhancing partnerships and improving volunteer programmes. A testament to the incredible impact our colleagues make through their dedication and expertise. #Euromonitor #CSR #SocialImpact #Volunteering

We agree with so much of this! Our #SkillsBasedVolunteering report found that corporate volunteering is a triple win for everyone involved, including charities, volunteers, and businesses. Our report is backed up with ten years of experience offering skills based volunteering to our small charity partners, and connecting with our colleagues Lloyds Banking Group. We have seen direct wins for businesses, including: ✅ contribute to staff learning and development directly impacting the strength of a workforce, its wellbeing as well as building staff connection, and relationships. ✅ added social value through programmes, directly having a positive impact on business' reputation ✅ enabling volunteers to gain a better understanding of societal issues can lead to greater support for customers who may themselves face the same issues. Find out more here, and the value of offering corporate volunteering opportunities https://bit.ly/3X0nVUe

April feels like a long time away but it gives you even more time to plan a fun thank-you for your volunteers! Don't have a big budget? You don't need one! So many volunteers are grateful for a small thank-you; very few are in it for the formal recognition, so don't worry about the big party with all the bells and whistles. And you don't even have to wait until National Volunteer Week to thank your volunteers. What about a fun Valentine's Day note of thanks with a candy for each one (You're truly a "lifesaver" with a roll of life savers)? Or split the list of volunteers amongst all your team and have each one write a personalized note for their volunteers. Or consider offering a fun social like a paint nite and follow along with an online free video. Remember, volunteers have many motivations for volunteering - social, skill building, giving back, making a difference, and so on - and so when you thank them and recognize them in ways that build on their purpose for being there, you are going to increase your chances of retaining them. Make it fun, don't worry about money, but remember the motivations for those people being there and ensure they are getting what they came for, and with that, a genuine thank-you will keep them coming back for more! Four months and counting....put that brainstorming hat on now and be creative.

This #InternationalVolunteerDay, CAF’s Philippa Cornish joined BBC News to discuss how businesses are using volunteering to engage employees, strengthen connections with local communities, and make a meaningful difference. Watch the full interview here ⬇️

Did you know that last week was National Volunteer Week? Neither did I! But now that I do, I want to give an anonymous shout out to all of the amazing volunteers and charitable organisations that I have had the pleasure to work with over the past-many years. Your mahi matters to me. And while I'm here - a few insights I can share from some of this work: 1 - Volunteers don't do it for the recognition. But, they do want to feel appreciated 2 - There is no single way to show appreciation for your volunteers in a way that will universally "land well". Sadly, misjudged expressions of appreciation sometimes do more harm than good 3 - The best way to get it right, is to understand your volunteers deeply, and have a well-stocked toolkit that your volunteer-managers can dig into to show authentic and well-considered appreciation on a case-by-case basis PM me if you want to know more about the research to support these insights, or how you can check whether the frameworks and approaches you have in place will land well with your volunteers. #NVW2024 #TheBigShoutOut

🌊🌊🇨🇲Introducing the Volunteer Guide for BRIDGES!🌟 Volunteering has the power to transform communities and build lasting connections, and at BRIDGES we’re thrilled to launch a comprehensive Volunteer Guide designed to inspire and empower individuals to take meaningful action. This guide is a resource tailored to help volunteers navigate their roles, maximize impact, and contribute to sustainable change in our communities. It covers: 🔹 Clear steps for effective community engagement 🔹 Tools for creating impact-driven projects 🔹 Stories and insights from real-life volunteering experiences Whether you’re a first-time volunteer or a seasoned community builder, the BRIDGES Volunteer Guide offers everything you need to make a difference. ✊🏽✊🏽Why This Matters: In communities where resources are scarce, volunteering bridges gaps, builds resilience, and creates opportunities. Youths in the Cameroon’s coast have little experience with regards to the ocean sector and with this initiative, they’ll be opportunities to learn on field. This guide is a step toward sustainable growth and development. 💡 Together, we can transform challenges into opportunities and create a brighter future for all. Ready to learn more? Let’s work together to empower change! 🌍 Forbah Sandra . N WARRI BILSON NKEH ESTHER ENOW LAETITIA EGBENCHONG II Ghemkam kevin Enjema hope Agbor Tabe brandon Karla Aguilera #BRIDGES #VolunteerGuide #sdg14 #CommunityEmpowerment #oceanscience #impact #YouthEngagement #SustainableDevelopment #LeadershipInAction #EmpowerChange

In the current context of growing inequalities, companies can and must be a key player for social cohesion. To achieve this, we support people in vulnerable situations through our foundations. This involves both the efforts of people from within our company as well as collaboration with bodies and organizations that have been leading the way on these issues for years. Through our Collective Action pillar we seek to carry out actions that contribute to giving back everything we can to society, by reinvesting where it is truly needed, making a difference through volunteering, and building alliances. These are some examples of the main milestones achieved in 2023. We are Ferrer. Ferrer for good 💙💚

🇬🇧As well as serving people in need in Hong Kong, we also send 📦shipments of aid internationally. For example, this container is going to 📍Moldova. Are you interested in volunteering with us? sign up to volunteer with us here: https://lnkd.in/gh8ceTh 🇭🇰除了在香港服侍有需要的社區外，我們也會透過海運將📦救援物資轉送海外其他地方。 例如：這個貨櫃就會送到📍摩爾多瓦。 你也想成為一份子？現在就報名加入我們的義工行列: https://lnkd.in/eeRctEC2

The Prime Minister, Justin Trudeau, today issued the following statement on National Volunteer Week: “As we celebrate the start of National Volunteer Week, we come together to recognize the generosity and invaluable contributions of Canadian volunteers to our communities – and to our world. #CanadaServiceCorps #Canadiancommunitysupport #Canadiandisasterresponsevolunteering #CanadianVolunteerAwards #Canadianvolunteersimpact #communityvolunteeringCanada #ThérèseCasgrainaward #volunteerleadershipskills #volunteerrecognitionCanada #volunteerstoriesCanada

On this International Volunteer Day, I want to share a personal story—a story of passion, determination, and the belief that collective action can drive meaningful change. When I founded Friguia for Strategies, it wasn’t just about launching an organization; it was about building a safe space where ideas meet impact. Our mission is rooted in fostering peace, strengthening resilience, and issues deeply tied to the well-being of our communities. Friguia’s story goes beyond its objectives. It’s a testament to the power of volunteering. In the early days, we had no roadmap, just a shared vision. Every small success came from countless hours of brainstorming, mobilizing resources, and working alongside inspiring volunteers who believed in the cause as much as I did. Through Friguia, I’ve witnessed firsthand the transformative power of giving back. Whether it’s organizing awareness campaigns, creating safe spaces for dialogue, or empowering youth to take the lead in their communities, volunteering has been the heartbeat of our journey. Today, I want to celebrate all the volunteers who have contributed to Friguia’s impact. You are the reason we continue to grow, learn, and inspire. To anyone considering volunteering: know that your time, energy, and skills have the potential to create ripples of change. Let’s continue to build a world where solidarity and hope pave the way for a better future. #VolunteerDay #FriguiaForStrategies #PeaceBuilding #Resilience #CommunityImpact