Looking for supplemental experience to inspire your employees and give them the strength to face the coming months? Why not try a philanthropy team-building experience?
After almost a year of remote work, your team members might not feel as connected as they used to. Everybody’s at home, in their own little routine.
Out of sight, out of mind, as the saying goes. A team-building activity lets employees get to know each other in a non-working context.
By choosing a philanthropic activity, we also make it about social solidarity. More than welcome during times like these.
Mixing team-building and philanthropy is far from new. According to Episode’s report on philanthropic trends in Quebec, in 2018, 77% of big corporations chose this team-building method to strengthen their workforce. According to the same report, the number went back down to 69%, only two years later.
« The three activities generating the most financial contributions from employees and their entourage in big corporations are sporting challenges (73%), Movember or Leucan Shaved head type challenges (47%) and benefit dinners (42%). Challenges, especially sporting ones, are excellent ways of encouraging team-building », the 2020 report explains.
In touch with the cause
Before getting started in sporting challenges – which are very popular nowadays -, companies can also look into philanthropic activities that bring their employees closer to the cause at hand.
This kind of activity usually generates more engagement from employees. A good example of this is Moisson Montreal’s activity in its Ville-Saint-Laurent warehouse.
« Companies are always welcome to come lend a strong hand and help us sort goods», Maggie Borowiec, philanthropic development and communications director at Moisson Montreal, adds. »
The charity relies on volunteers to rapidly sort perishable goods they receive, in order to avoid waste.
« This volunteering is really nice to see. We see people who are used to office work – in front of computers all day – rolling up their sleeves in the warehouse and working towards a common goal. It allows groups to know each other in an alternative environment. »
The Leucan Shaved head challenge is another type of action that brings people « in touch » with the cause. The participants’ gesture of solidarity is directly linked to what children suffering from cancer go through, like losing their hair because of their treatments.
« Companies who want to give back to a cause often do it with internal mobilizations goals in mind as well », Julie Veilleux, digital communications director at Leucan, explains. « The entire mobilization campaign happens before D-Day (shaving day), to raise money for the cause. »
Raising money can be done in a fun way – with activities and games like « donate something to have the right to wear jeans in the office » – but can also include educational activities.
« Before the pandemic, it was possible to get companies in touch with a family receiving Leucan’s services, making them really understand the impact of their donations », the digital communications director adds.
Moving and helping at the same time
Fund raisers that put you directly in contact with a cause are really interesting, but we can’t dismiss that sporting challenges are still really popular. Plus, in the middle of a pandemic, finding ways to get your employees moving is even more relevant.
And there are a lot of sporting challenges for companies out there :
- The Tour du Courage
- Tremblant’s 24h
- The two Mario double challenge (Feb. 5th to 14th 2021)
The « strengthening » effect might not be as strong when the activities are held online. Leucan found an interesting formula that met a lot of success this year : The Mighty Challenge.
« Originally, this sporting challenge was for men located in the Monteregie region. This year, we opened the challenge to all companies online. »
For five weeks, registered companies – represented by groups of 5 employees – received weekly physical tests : squats, weight lifting, running, and so on and so forth.
« People had a lot of fun participating, Julie Veilleux adds. Teams were getting their challenges every week, and team captains had to make sure everybody was completing each task. There were collective challenges, which were really exciting. This formula will definitely come back next year. »
If a company can reignite its teams’ spark, while making them move and contribute to a philanthropic cause at the same time, it’s a win-win-win!
