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Dear GoodLetter readers,

Your work week ends. Finally, a respite from your co-workers! OK, so a brief Friday night happy hour isn't so bad, but could you face a full day together on a Saturday? Volunteering even? Pouring out your blood, sweat, and tears doing something you're not that interested in? And away from your family?

Probably not. Are these similar to the questions you ask yourself whenever you think about why it's so hard to volunteer? Volunteering is one of those things many of us say we'd like to do regularly. But it's also one of those things it seems excuses were made for. Tell me I'm not the only one who mysteriously seems to have conflicts materialize on my schedule whenever the prospect of volunteering comes up. Let's face it. Volunteering is not exactly the new sky-diving.

But what if it were different? What if your company sponsored employee-selected volunteer projects? And what if friends and family were welcome to participate? Better yet, what if it became a way to meet a significant other? Put simply, if your company cared, would you volunteer?

Turns out, companies are finding this to be true. Through its alliance with the City Cares Network (whether it's Philadelphia Cares or Seattle Works or Hands On Atlanta or New York Cares or any of the other affiliates in 26 U.S. cities and throughout the U.K.), Accenture is finding that the more it cares, the more its employees do. The global consulting company has been associated with Cares since it formed almost a decade ago to help corporations get more bang for their community service buck. Cares had been working with non-profit organizations struggling to connect with enough willing volunteers. At the same time, it was hearing from companies who needed help finding good employee volunteer projects.

A conundrum? Hardly. Cares married the needs of both non-profits and companies and built a thriving union that companies like Accenture are happy to take advantage of. Whether through projects for local food banks and soup kitchens, Project Open Hand (a meal delivery program for people with HIV and AIDS), local elementary schools, conservation groups, the Boys & Girls Clubs, senior citizen centers, or any of scores of neighborhood-based programs, Accenture employees across the country are able to maximize their positive impact because of the City Cares Network. Tiffany Brott, who coordinates community outreach in Accenture's Atlanta office, thinks Cares is really onto something: "Cares definitely makes my job easier. Having a partner to help the company go out into the community helps to create a better volunteer experience."

That's, of course, the rub: making volunteering broadly appealing. But it's not something Brott and her counterparts are directing from the top down. Accenture employees form committees to determine the kinds of volunteer projects they want to prioritize. Then, Cares comes up with potential organizations, service project dates and places, and supply budgets, and the employee committees get to pick what works best.

Flexibility is the name of the game. Employees are encouraged to recruit family and friends for events so there's no weekend separation anxiety. In fact, the more social the events are, the better. Just ask any one of the number of Accenture folks who have met their spouses while volunteering. As Brott says, "It's hard not to bond when you're lugging a wheelbarrow full of mulch and somebody beside you is doing the same thing."

Accenture takes pride of its community commitment, but it also relishes the fringe benefits. A sprawling company, it considers volunteer outings important opportunities to build interpersonal teams and alliances that will improve its business. It also recognizes its support (both direct and unspoken) for volunteer activities, although difficult to quantify, may improve employee morale, which -- when translated into employee retention and productivity -- can mean money in the bank.

Still, the good things are the addiction. Take Philadelphia Cares' Discovery program, for example. For three years, it's connected Accenture employees with technology mentees at Ferguson Elementary School. When one Accenture consultant found herself staffed on a West Coast project for half the year, she worked it out to take the red-eye back east on weekends to be at Ferguson by 9 a.m. every Saturday. Says Patricia Ploussiou of Accenture's Philadelphia office, "She had developed such a great connection with the kids that she just didn't want to give it up."

GOODTHINGS (e-mail us)

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TALK ABOUT IT
Is your company committed to volunteering? Have you had a surprising experience volunteering? Didn't think you'd like it but then found it contagious? Tell us about it.

LEARN MORE ABOUT IT
2001 is the International Year of Volunteers. Learn more about activities near you.

Mentor, connect with other volunteers, or just get more info at the Points of Light Web site.

Check out Independent Sector's Ten Tips on Volunteering Wisely.

DO SOMETHING ABOUT IT
Connect your company with a City Cares affiliate near you and start leveraging your volunteer muscle.



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