How to Keep on Giving

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When about 1,000 employee volunteers go out Friday as part of Deloitte LLP’s annual Impact Day in Los Angeles, many will be doing more than painting playground equipment and pulling weeds from vacant lots.

The consulting company has adopted “skill-based volunteerism,” which means the volunteer workers will, for example, teach various skills to the managers of non-profits. It’s a trend in corporate philanthropy: Volunteers are more inclined now to teach charity recipients directly, or help charitable organizations function more effectively.

Tony Buzzelli, vice chairman and regional managing partner in Deloitte’s downtown L.A. office, said today’s volunteers want to contribute in ways that have lasting benefits. And non-profits and other charity recipients want more than help stocking food kitchens or cleaning out storage rooms.

Impact Day is an annual event in which Deloitte gives back to the communities it serves. Half of Deloitte’s 1,000 employee volunteers use their professional skills on behalf of a non-profit. Assignments include writing a business plan, installing a computer network or organizing a non-profit board. Some volunteers teach in classrooms.

Buzzelli acknowledged that skill-based volunteerism isn’t always simple for every company to do. For a manufacturer, for example, it would be more difficult to match specific employees’ skills to non-profits’ needs. For Deloitte, it’s easier: Management consulting is what they do.

“At most companies, the intent to help is there, but the resources don’t line up to deliver that help,” Buzzelli said.

In an annual survey Deloitte releases in conjunction with Impact Day, 60 percent of companies now have skill-based volunteer programs, up from 50 percent in 2009. Moreover, 91 percent of companies think that their employees’ business skills could help a non-profit organization.

The next challenge is follow-up, Buzzelli said. A volunteer can draw up a business plan, but the document could then be placed in a drawer and forgotten.

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