The Case for Volunteerism in Employee Engagement at Invicta
Employee retention and engagement is top of mind for executives across all industries. The “great resignation,” “quiet quitting,” “upskilling,” “reskilling,” and many other hot terms have arisen in strategic discussions about the psyche of the current workforce. Donny Zamora, Invicta’s Chief Executive Officer, shares some insights from Invicta’s leadership team.
The healthcare industry has been particularly hard hit and vast technology advances in the revenue cycle space have caused movement in scope of work for longtime employees. Companies like Invicta continuously refine comp packages, training opportunities, perks, and employee relations efforts to provide the best combination of assets to attract and retain today’s high performers. We’ve long known that corporate citizenship and community service volunteer efforts provide intrinsic value far beyond doing the right thing. Teamwork and team building activities in the local community foster relationships among colleagues and – bonus – support professional development. Now is a great time to boost these efforts.
According to Gallup, volunteer activity dropped tremendously in 2020 and is still below pre-pandemic rates. In fact, during the latest poll the volunteer rate was still hovering around the same volume as it was during the Great Recession. This is not surprising. Health concerns, new rules for on-site volunteer experiences, and a forever changed multi-generational workforce have all impacted volunteer service. Without a doubt, remote employees often don’t have the same opportunities to join a group of colleagues for a service exercise. Further, our youngest generation – Generation Z – is projected to exceed even Generation X in civic engagement IF they can be successfully mentored by their leaders in effective community engagement. What can we do to combat the challenges that individuals face in making the choice to volunteer?
The Points of Light Foundation tells us that these barriers below most often prevent people from volunteering:
- Unsure of how to find opportunities
- Not sure what I can do to help
- Haven’t found a group with which to volunteer
We can erase these barriers above for our employees with a few simple counterpoints:
- Encourage employees to share their volunteer experiences with others through internal channels
- Leadership team members must “walk the walk”
- Share information about community needs
- Offer incentives for employees to volunteer
- Encourage people to support causes that are personally meaningful
Invicta created InvictaSERV as a way to amplify the value our leadership team places on civic engagement and community support. We provide paid time off for volunteer activities for all full-time employees, and we coordinate group service projects several times a year. In fact, employees in Texas and Florida recently completed SERV projects in alignment with the federally recognized 911 National Day of Service, supporting several non-profits: Memorial Assistance Ministries, United Way, and Boys & Girls Clubs. It never fails; There is always at least one person who says something like, “This is the first time I’ve ever volunteered.” Smiles on faces and a shared sense of accomplishment and company pride guarantees that the world has just welcomed a new community servant…and we have just built a stronger connection with an employee.
The 4th quarter and the ensuing holiday season is just around the corner. What are your plans for employee opportunities to serve the communities where your employees live and work? We welcome collaboration.
Contact info@invictahs.com today for more information on our capabilities.
Employee retention and engagement is top of mind for executives across all industries. The “great resignation,” “quiet quitting,” “upskilling,” “reskilling,” and many other hot terms have arisen in strategic discussions about the psyche of the current workforce. Donny Zamora, Invicta’s Chief Executive Officer, shares some insights from Invicta’s leadership team.
The healthcare industry has been particularly hard hit and vast technology advances in the revenue cycle space have caused movement in scope of work for longtime employees. Companies like Invicta continuously refine comp packages, training opportunities, perks, and employee relations efforts to provide the best combination of assets to attract and retain today’s high performers. We’ve long known that corporate citizenship and community service volunteer efforts provide intrinsic value far beyond doing the right thing. Teamwork and team building activities in the local community foster relationships among colleagues and – bonus – support professional development. Now is a great time to boost these efforts.
According to Gallup, volunteer activity dropped tremendously in 2020 and is still below pre-pandemic rates. In fact, during the latest poll the volunteer rate was still hovering around the same volume as it was during the Great Recession. This is not surprising. Health concerns, new rules for on-site volunteer experiences, and a forever changed multi-generational workforce have all impacted volunteer service. Without a doubt, remote employees often don’t have the same opportunities to join a group of colleagues for a service exercise. Further, our youngest generation – Generation Z – is projected to exceed even Generation X in civic engagement IF they can be successfully mentored by their leaders in effective community engagement. What can we do to combat the challenges that individuals face in making the choice to volunteer?
The Points of Light Foundation tells us that these barriers below most often prevent people from volunteering:
- Unsure of how to find opportunities
- Not sure what I can do to help
- Haven’t found a group with which to volunteer
We can erase these barriers above for our employees with a few simple counterpoints:
- Encourage employees to share their volunteer experiences with others through internal channels
- Leadership team members must “walk the walk”
- Share information about community needs
- Offer incentives for employees to volunteer
- Encourage people to support causes that are personally meaningful
Invicta created InvictaSERV as a way to amplify the value our leadership team places on civic engagement and community support. We provide paid time off for volunteer activities for all full-time employees, and we coordinate group service projects several times a year. In fact, employees in Texas and Florida recently completed SERV projects in alignment with the federally recognized 911 National Day of Service, supporting several non-profits: Memorial Assistance Ministries, United Way, and Boys & Girls Clubs. It never fails; There is always at least one person who says something like, “This is the first time I’ve ever volunteered.” Smiles on faces and a shared sense of accomplishment and company pride guarantees that the world has just welcomed a new community servant…and we have just built a stronger connection with an employee.
The 4th quarter and the ensuing holiday season is just around the corner. What are your plans for employee opportunities to serve the communities where your employees live and work? We welcome collaboration.
Contact info@invictahs.com today for more information on our capabilities.