Are you ready to ELBA-Xtreme? Going the extra mile in volunteering
The steeper the climb, the greater the view from the top; the longer the toil, the more the satisfaction at work’s end – and other such sayings. I had conversations this week with a number of ELBA business partners about how the more difficult and tricky volunteering assignments are often hard going at the time, but deliver the greatest impact in the end. Of course, every business volunteering session is going to have some impact, or else why do it, but we talked this week about those volunteers who are prepared to do more, and the situations which demanded more – a kind of ELBA Plus or ELBA Xtreme.
It makes obvious sense that when we match a business mentor with a Year 10 or Year 12 pupil and they work together for six to nine months there is going to be a significant impact. We also see it when we broker teams of business volunteers to work with community organisations on a defined project over a period of months.
It’s perhaps less obvious when volunteers are working in shorter time slots. It can be hard for a business person who is only able to give one or two days of their time to gauge the impact that they have. But they do make a difference, and it is often the tougher situations where their input can have the most profound impact. Nobody can pretend that working with a group of school children is always easy, or working with people who have been out of work for some time, but it is often in these situations that the input of business people can hit home and can change peoples’ lives.
We like to salute and celebrate the unsung volunteer heroes who make this difference and in the case studies section of our website you can see our “Volunteers of the Month” going the extra mile. Two examples from my own observations this week, one already delivered, one where ELBA Xtreme will be needed in the future:
It was the finale of ELBA business partners Zurich’s Financial Literacy programme. Five teams from three schools who have worked with Zurich volunteers over a few weeks were invited to present their ideas at the London headquarters – in front of the senior executive team, who all gave most of the their day to listen and engage with the pupils. Most interesting was how the pupils handled the questions from the Zurich team about their presentations– very well articulated ideas, eloquent arguments and one or two fearless challenges, it was all very impressive. Over lunch, some pupils proved themselves excellent networkers and held court with Zurich employees. In amongst that group of pupils will be some who prior to this work with Zurich would have had no insight into careers in the world of insurance or the City, and no expectation that they could ever aspire to work in them. This project and the trip to Zurich’s HQ will definitely have lit a fire in someone’s life. Bravo to Zurich for a great programme, brilliantly delivered.
To the future – our friends and business partner, Peabody Trust, have recently taken over responsibility for the Thamesmead estate in the Royal Borough of Greenwich. In south east London, Thamemead has a fearsome reputation, not helped by being the location for the film “The Clockwork Orange”. But when we went for a visit last week, we saw wild flower meadows, lakes, wide open green spaces, families out in the sun enjoying themselves. Schools are rated by OfSted as good or outstanding, crime is no higher than the London average, as is unemployment, and there are many community organisations and a strong faith community, as well as seeds of enterprise and entrepreneurship. But there are also problems, including low career aspirations and under-employment, hidden behind the front doors. Peabody has a 30 year programme of physical renewal about to start, and in parallel have ambitions for social and economic regeneration. ELBA will be working with them to support social mobility, employability and community resilience. It’s going to be tough, but the impact of business volunteers will be great. Anyone ready to EBLA-Xtreme?
‘Bye
Ian
