Volunteers must pay!

I WAS at a (rather good) dinner in the City last week and I was seated next to the 'Head man' of a very large corporate organisation. We got talking about this and that and he raised the subject of Community Service and Volunteering, writes Jimmy Lockwood.

It transpired that his company has a Social Responsibility policy that staff should give something back to their local community, so all are encouraged to participate in volunteer projects. The company organises the groups and the staff attend during working hours. So there is valuable input from both the staff and the corporate. A fantastic scheme and they are to be applauded for their initiative!

Volunteering for CaRT

Some of their teams had a session volunteering on a canal for CaRT which went very well. So well in fact that staff and management wished to repeat it.

However, CaRT, in its wisdom, decided that it was not enough to have free labour so it wanted more. Why not charge the corporate for this gift?

Surprise, surprise the company didn't think this was in the spirit of volunteering in the community. So they now focus their highly valued resources on a different community project.

Well done CaRT!

The hand that feeds you

Early in life I was taught 'not to bite the hand that feeds you'. CaRT management are clearly such fat cats that food is not important to them!

Don't they realise that companies in a community talk to each other? Now CaRT has lost the goodwill of a potentially much wider group than just one organisation.

Don't be surprised

Next time you plead poverty CaRT, and look for assistance from the business community don't be surprised if you receive a lukewarm response.

It takes a long time to build good relationships—you can lose all your goodwill in a matter of moments—or in one poor management decision!