November 2, 2016
Written by: Jason Zoellner, Rockwell Automation
Have you ever thought of completing a community service project, but didn’t know where to start? Did you give up before you even started planning? My name is Jason Zoellner, I am a Global Product Manager at Rockwell Automation and I’m here to tell you that taking the time to organize an awesome volunteer project for your employees is totally worth it when you partner with United Way. Over the past seven years, I’ve had the opportunity to organize hundreds of projects for thousands of Rockwell employees and I’ve had a great time doing it.
From day one, United Way’s team has made the process easy. They provided all the tools to give our employees a five-star volunteer experience. With the wide array of projects available and agencies in need across our four-county region, the hardest part of the whole process is determining what to choose. From reading to 2nd graders, building playground equipment, painting a men’s homeless shelter, or doing yard work at a local senior center, each project, has brought me closer to my coworkers and shown us the visible impact we can make in our community. If you are thinking of planning a project, I have listed four tips to ensure that process runs smoothly.
- Know your audience: Before picking a project I try and determine what kind of causes the group of employees are interested in. From education, mental illness or people experiencing homelessness, picking something your employees are passionate about will increase the amount of them who will sign up to participate.
- Get them excited: Pick something that really connects with at least one of your team members. Their passion for the cause will definitely help get the entire group excited to go above and beyond the call of duty.
- Show them the incentive of volunteering: Having your team participate in a volunteer experience will help them grow and build better relationships, and that will help the company build productivity! Giving back to the community also provides employees with a sense of pride when they know their company offers philanthropic opportunities.
- Get your management team involved: Encourage your management to offer these volunteer projects as team building opportunities. There are plenty of projects to choose both within the work day and after work hours.
Each year, Rockwell Automation is proud to sponsor United Way’s Season of Caring volunteer event which provides a great opportunity to kick start the volunteering experience. Projects are available now, and this year your help is needed more than ever. The team is trying to reach a goal of 16,750 volunteer hours by December. Right now they are eighty percent there, but you could be the corporation that helps them reach this milestone mark. Take a couple of minutes today and schedule a United Way Season of Caring project.
If you have you and your team already completed a project, let me know below what your favorite project was and what you personally took away from it?