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Technical paper

Increasing employee engagement through corporate volunteering

Bea Boccalandro
Latin America and the Caribbean
Volunteerism
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Fast read

  • This research looks at how corporate volunteering can boost employee engagement.
  • Data was collected by surveying two groups over time: a volunteer group composed of employees who performed an average of 18 hours of unskilled volunteer events over a three-month period; and a control group composed of employees who did not participate in corporate volunteering activities. Longitudinal data was collected from 117 workers across companies in Latin America.

Summary

The study found that six out of seven workers are not engaged in their work and that participation in corporate volunteering activities increased employee engagement significantly. It also found that corporate volunteering boosted other positive workplace attitudes and behaviours. Compared to the control group, the volunteer group experienced a 24 per cent increase in sense of purpose at work; a 20 per cent initial increase in pride in the employer’s products and services; a 19 per cent initial increase in personal growth; and a 13 per cent initial increase in job satisfaction.

The study provides corporate volunteering programme managers with new data and insights on how volunteering can be a tool for increasing employee engagement, regardless of the age, gender, tenure and role of volunteers.