Trendsetters recognize top employees by giving them the chance to get involved
Recently Vern Hall’s wife, a polio survivor, began experiencing post-polio symptoms — including muscle and joint problems. The two of them became involved with the Waterloo, Ont., chapter of the Ontario March of Dimes, which focuses on providing support and information for post-polio syndrome sufferers.
Hall, assistant vice-president business support services with Sun Life Financial Canada, has taken part in the company’s different charitable and volunteer programs since he started working there 35 years ago. But once he and his wife began volunteering with the March of Dimes, he gained a whole new appreciation for his company’s volunteer program. The program recognizes the hours put in by both Hall and his wife, and when they total 50, Sun Life gives him a $500 cheque to give to the charity. Since the program started about four years ago, Hall has been able to give the charity a cheque each year.
“It’s been great because I can direct these funds to this chapter and they benefit from it and they really appreciate having this support from a company that’s known in the community,” says Hall. “The cheque comes to me and I take it to the group and give it to them. Doing that presentation makes me feel good about the company.”
Hall isn’t the only Sun Life employee who feels good about the company because of its charitable works. Last year the company surveyed its employees and found that the number one factor in determining employee engagement wasn’t flexible work hours or bonuses, but rather the company’s philanthropy programs, says Vicken Kazazian, Sun Life Financial’s vice-president HR and public relations.
“Employees really value when a company contributes to the communities that they live in and conduct business in,” says Kazazian.
Last year Sun Life donated more than $3 million to charity through various initiatives, including the volunteer program, a matching gifts program (where the company matches employees’ charitable donations dollar for dollar) and its annual United Way campaign.
Valerie Graham, a Sun Life HR co-ordinator, has been heavily involved with the latter initiative for eight of her 10 years with the company.
Two years ago, she was the chair of the company’s bi-annual United Way garage sale. She promised that if the sale raised $7,400, she would dress as a clown and sing a song to the company’s president. The sale raised $7,800, which the company matched for a total of $15,600 for the United Way.
“I sang a song about the United Way and Sun Life to the tune of ‘You are my sunshine’,” says Graham. “A number of employees and executives also attended the festivities.”
She says she hopes other companies look at Sun Life Financial’s philanthropy program and decide to implement similar ones. “It makes me very proud to be part of an organization that is really community-based,” says Graham.
The company also honours employees who donate time and money to the community with an annual “top volunteer” award. The winner receives a $10,000 donation to her charity of choice and the three runners-up also get $3,000 donated to their charities.
Mississauga, Ont.-based recognition firm Maritz Canada has been honouring its employees in a similar way for the past five years. The caregiving award goes to the Maritz employee who has made an extraordinary contribution to a social cause or the community. The employee receives $1,000 to donate to the charity of her choice.
In the past two years Jo-Anne Pusateri, director of consulting incentive and loyalty strategy rewards at Maritz Canada, has seen a small percentage of clients begin to offer these kinds of recognition programs.
“It’s a fairly new trend, but it’s something that we’re trying to promote more and more,” she says. “Like anything, you need to have a few innovators out there and I would hope that over the next few years we’re going to see this be more of a common practice.”
One of her clients, which traditionally honoured top salespeople with an all-expenses-paid trip, recently gave the honourees on a trip to Costa Rica the option of a trip to the spa, a round on the golf course or a day working on a Habitat for Humanity project.
“We had a high percentage of them choose the community involvement project,” says Pusateri.
Many people want to give back to the community, but get bogged down in too many responsibilities at home, says Pusateri. So when the company organizes it for them and gives them the time to do it, many people jump at the chance.
Sometimes recognition can be viewed as too indulgent, so offering employees the opportunity to spread the wealth makes them feel proud, she says. But companies have to be careful about how they go about implementing these new programs.
“Recognition programs are about aligning (employee) behaviours to the values of the organization,” she says. “If the organization is one that has within its core value system community involvement or social responsibility, then it’s very logical that they align their recognition program to those values. When organizations don’t have that as part of their standard value system, then often it’s probably a little bit disconnected if it’s offered up.”
This is especially true if employees are already feeling undervalued and unappreciated. These employees are unlikely to appreciate a charitable donation in lieu of their usual monetary bonus. In this case, instead of feeling more engaged and valued, they will likely feel frustrated and resentful, says Pusateri.
Hall, assistant vice-president business support services with Sun Life Financial Canada, has taken part in the company’s different charitable and volunteer programs since he started working there 35 years ago. But once he and his wife began volunteering with the March of Dimes, he gained a whole new appreciation for his company’s volunteer program. The program recognizes the hours put in by both Hall and his wife, and when they total 50, Sun Life gives him a $500 cheque to give to the charity. Since the program started about four years ago, Hall has been able to give the charity a cheque each year.
“It’s been great because I can direct these funds to this chapter and they benefit from it and they really appreciate having this support from a company that’s known in the community,” says Hall. “The cheque comes to me and I take it to the group and give it to them. Doing that presentation makes me feel good about the company.”
Hall isn’t the only Sun Life employee who feels good about the company because of its charitable works. Last year the company surveyed its employees and found that the number one factor in determining employee engagement wasn’t flexible work hours or bonuses, but rather the company’s philanthropy programs, says Vicken Kazazian, Sun Life Financial’s vice-president HR and public relations.
“Employees really value when a company contributes to the communities that they live in and conduct business in,” says Kazazian.
Last year Sun Life donated more than $3 million to charity through various initiatives, including the volunteer program, a matching gifts program (where the company matches employees’ charitable donations dollar for dollar) and its annual United Way campaign.
Valerie Graham, a Sun Life HR co-ordinator, has been heavily involved with the latter initiative for eight of her 10 years with the company.
Two years ago, she was the chair of the company’s bi-annual United Way garage sale. She promised that if the sale raised $7,400, she would dress as a clown and sing a song to the company’s president. The sale raised $7,800, which the company matched for a total of $15,600 for the United Way.
“I sang a song about the United Way and Sun Life to the tune of ‘You are my sunshine’,” says Graham. “A number of employees and executives also attended the festivities.”
She says she hopes other companies look at Sun Life Financial’s philanthropy program and decide to implement similar ones. “It makes me very proud to be part of an organization that is really community-based,” says Graham.
The company also honours employees who donate time and money to the community with an annual “top volunteer” award. The winner receives a $10,000 donation to her charity of choice and the three runners-up also get $3,000 donated to their charities.
Mississauga, Ont.-based recognition firm Maritz Canada has been honouring its employees in a similar way for the past five years. The caregiving award goes to the Maritz employee who has made an extraordinary contribution to a social cause or the community. The employee receives $1,000 to donate to the charity of her choice.
In the past two years Jo-Anne Pusateri, director of consulting incentive and loyalty strategy rewards at Maritz Canada, has seen a small percentage of clients begin to offer these kinds of recognition programs.
“It’s a fairly new trend, but it’s something that we’re trying to promote more and more,” she says. “Like anything, you need to have a few innovators out there and I would hope that over the next few years we’re going to see this be more of a common practice.”
One of her clients, which traditionally honoured top salespeople with an all-expenses-paid trip, recently gave the honourees on a trip to Costa Rica the option of a trip to the spa, a round on the golf course or a day working on a Habitat for Humanity project.
“We had a high percentage of them choose the community involvement project,” says Pusateri.
Many people want to give back to the community, but get bogged down in too many responsibilities at home, says Pusateri. So when the company organizes it for them and gives them the time to do it, many people jump at the chance.
Sometimes recognition can be viewed as too indulgent, so offering employees the opportunity to spread the wealth makes them feel proud, she says. But companies have to be careful about how they go about implementing these new programs.
“Recognition programs are about aligning (employee) behaviours to the values of the organization,” she says. “If the organization is one that has within its core value system community involvement or social responsibility, then it’s very logical that they align their recognition program to those values. When organizations don’t have that as part of their standard value system, then often it’s probably a little bit disconnected if it’s offered up.”
This is especially true if employees are already feeling undervalued and unappreciated. These employees are unlikely to appreciate a charitable donation in lieu of their usual monetary bonus. In this case, instead of feeling more engaged and valued, they will likely feel frustrated and resentful, says Pusateri.
