Staff engagement is the hot topic among corporate leaders. KPMG lists talent retention, attraction and engagement as one of the top three issues keeping CEOs awake at night. The latest Gallup research shows that only 33% of employees are actively engaged. That’s a staggering 67% of people who are feeling underwhelmed about their employer or actively thinking about leaving their jobs.

Why does it matter so much? Gallup estimates that not engaged or actively disengaged workers cost the global economy $8.9 trillion in lost productivity: the equivalent of 9% of global GDP. It matters to corporates because it hits their bottom line. Employees who are fully engaged are 87% less likely to leave and costly staff turnover is 18% lower than average. Companies with highly engaged staff earn 147% more per share than their peers.

It’s one of the biggest challenges for corporates and you can be part of the solution.

Staff engagement can be an opportunity and a burden. The opportunity allows new potential donors to experience your organisation, learn more about your cause and broaden your brand awareness. The burden is felt when you are thinly resourced, not paid for the volunteering or creating an activity that isn’t valuable to your core mission. We’ve all been on the receiving end of that call; ‘I’ve got 40 people wanting to volunteer next Tuesday. What can you offer? And, by the way, do you provide lunch?’

Some non-profits are lucky enough to have endless volunteering opportunities where teams can physically participate. But even if you run a soup van, there are only so many people you can fit in it. If your work is primarily overseas you can’t take a team of bankers to dig a deep water well in Uganda or help with medical care in a conflict zone.

The answer is to tap into your secret superpower: your expertise.
When COVID changed the landscape for volunteering, non-profits got creative and realised the untapped potential of their expertise. What do you know and do on a daily basis that would be valuable to a wider audience? It’s probably what makes your unique or special but you haven’t thought about leveraging your knowledge and skills beyond running your core programs or services.

When Australian Childhood Foundation partnered with retailer Target, they couldn’t offer many traditional volunteering opportunities. ACF works with abused and traumatised children, so it wasn’t an option. Instead, they used their expertise in parenting and counselling to create a series of workshops for Target staff. Bringing up Great Kids was the core of the partnership and helping parents navigate tough times with their children was really valuable to the Target staff cohort of mainly mums.

Dolly’s Dream have created a range of resources to help parents navigate bullying. That includes what to do if your child is being bullied and how to respond if your child is the bully. The resources bring to life the core mission of Dolly’s Dream, enhance their brand awareness and encourage participants for their annual Do it for Dolly fundraising campaign.

Milk Crate Theatre works to create social change through the power of performance. Their core expertise is in creativity and helping under-represented voices to be heard. They have used their skills and expertise in building skills, confidence and connection to design creativity workshops for corporate partners. It helps employers create memorable experiences for their teams and foster greater connection. I wish I’d been a fly on the wall when Milk Crate had a bunch of investment bankers doing a murder mystery afternoon.

RSPCA allow volunteers to help in their rescues centres- but there are only so many puppy experiences to go around. They are using their expertise to create resources and workshops on how to be a great pet owner. They offer heartwarming experiences but also help to stop animals needing their services in the first place.

Staff engagement doesn’t mean creating a meaningless activity so that groups of people have an easy day out. By tapping into your core knowledge and expertise you can create an experience that will surprise, delight and make people learn. Don’t keep your expertise locked in a vault, or in the heads of your team. Be generous, share widely and let them uncover what makes you special. You’ll create a generation of brand champions and a valuable offering to future partners. If your ambition is to make people think differently about your cause, then give them opportunities to experience you in a new way.