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Corporate Social Responsibility is no longer a fad or a box ticking exercise that Fortune 500 companies thoughtlessly embrace. CSR is strategic business thrust for many companies and the huge organic positive here is it is a win, win, win for the stakeholders involved. Win for the charity or cause, win for the company offering the support and a win for the individuals delivering the activities on behalf of the company.
6 min read
It is the individuals that will determine whether a campaign is successful or not, so we believe it is important to express what’s in it for you if you decide to take up a corporate challenge.
Whether you fundraise, champion diversity, go green, volunteer for a community program or simply donate money there are a raft of reasons both professionally and personally why you should consider playing your part within a CSR activity or campaign.
Find out why CSR activities are good for business in 2018
We’ve put together our top 14 reasons why it’s great for you both professionally and personally to get involved.
Professionally
1. Develop new skills
2. Expand your comfort zone
3. Impress your new employers
4. Educate yourself
5. Expand your network
6. Foot in the door at big business
7. Test vocations
Personally
8. Good for Mental Health
9. Good for Physical Health
10. Teaches humility
11. Enriches life
12. Travel
13. Social life
14. Community Social Standing
Professionally
1. Develop new skills
Charity and company driven CSR activities are a great place to learn new skills in different areas of work. Events need to be promoted so social media support, design, copy writing for press releases etc are involved as well as event organisation, ticketing, planning and execution.
Often these events will be understaffed so you may need take on a number of these responsibilities but do not be frightened by this; as you are doing it for a good cause you will find people will be more willing to accept mistakes. It is also a great tool to ask for support from people with expertise.
2. Expand your comfort zone
By undertaking and playing a part in a CSR campaign you will often find your comfort zone being tested and stretched.
Whether that is managing your time, workload, or even undertaking responsibilities that are alien to your normal workload, you will find added pressure will show yourself and your peers what you can achieve. You will have expanded your own expectations and created new benchmarks for personal and professional success.
3. Impress your new employers with your CV
Cultural fit can be more important to an employer than operational talent. We find often employers will spend less time reviewing your skill set and more time looking at who you are as a person.
If you have a CV that boasts charitable work, it can suggest to your potential new employer that you are a team player and someone whom is selfless and willing to go The Xtra Mile.
4. Educate yourself
When you agree to take part in a CSR activity you can also use it as a convenient excuse to educate yourself in the chosen field of your agreed responsibility. For example, an online course in blogging or social media management to help the promotional team might take your interest. Many charities will offer to pay for your course if you agree to commit your skill set to them for an agreed time.
5. Expand your network
They say in business ‘it’s not what you know but who you know’ and being a part of a CSR campaign can give you access to many decision makers and high-ranking managers, especially when the cameras are out. Use this opportunity to grow your network and show them you are a person that is dependable and committed.
6. Foot in the door at big business
Most big businesses will have a CSR policy and look to implement CSR activities on behalf of their organisations for reasons such as employee engagement, customer engagement, publicity etc.
You can use this information to your advantage if you are looking to work with these companies by aligning yourself with those activities.
When attending an interview, you can make yourself stand out by showing you have experience or interest working in their CSR sector (even if you only signed up the day before), it might be the leverage you need to give yourself a unique selling point for their role.
7. Test vocations
Volunteering can offer you a risk averse way to trial several different potential vocations. As discussed above, being exposed to new roles and responsibilities will help you understand if they are something you’d like to pursue further professionally.
Keep an eye out for what roles may interest you and put yourself forward for those roles, you never know, you might just find a brand new you.
Personally
8. Good for Mental Health
Altruism has been proven to improve your mental wellbeing. Studies suggest that helping others may release dopamine (feel good hormones) into your body, which has a similar effect as exercise on your brain. Positive frame of mind helps combat mental health issues like depression and anxiety.
9. Good for Physical Health
Associated to mental wellbeing, having a positive state of mind reduces stress levels and which has shown can boost our immune system and help fight against disease.
10. Teaches humility
Volunteering can help you understand how people less fortunate than yourself live. To learn to ‘walk a mile in another person’s shoes’ will teach you humility, perspective and a new way to understand others’ lives and their challenges. To pick up this skill you will need to have the capacity to immerse yourself in the struggles of a campaign.
11. Enriches life
Many people will undertake supporting CSR activities to enrich their lives and add new layers to their social and professional lives that entering the world of CSR brings. Most charities have a score of individuals that work hard, and the sense of completion, community and productivity is not only enjoyed at the completion of the activity but also along the journey.
12. Travel
Many CSR activities will need you to travel. Often fundraising is built around these events, leaving you with the ability to travel and experience new cultures as a part of your commitment to them and often this will not impact on you financially.
13. Social life
Volunteering is a great way to expand your social circles with likeminded people. A cause you feel strongly towards will often place you with a person or people that feel similarly. This is helped along by the group effort working towards a single outcome and the collective spirit developed.
14. Community Social Standing
Supporting charitable events and gifting your time and resources to positive business and public activities will help you look positive to your peer group and in your community. This can help you when you are ever in need of support yourself. It will allow you to build up social currency which can be spent at a time you deem appropriate or when it’s needed.
