ASQ April 11, 2015
Proposal for an ASQ Employee Volunteer Program For Consideration by the Senior Leadership Team Trish Borzon Membership Program Manager
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I. Cover Letter April 11, 2015 Senior Leadership Team Bill Troy, CEO Ajoy Bose, CFO Andrew Baines, Global Managing Director Brian LeHouillier, Managing Director
Laurel Nelson-Rowe, Managing Director Lynelle Korte, Managing Director Michael Berry, Managing Director
Dear Senior Leader Team: I am writing to you as an employee of ASQ requesting your consideration for my proposal to implement an employee volunteer program at ASQ. Currently staff must use personal time off (PTO) to volunteer. The employee volunteer program will allow staff to volunteer for a charity or community project during work hours without taking personal off. My goal is to put ASQ back on the list of ‘Best Places to Work’. This proposal would make it much easier for all staff to participate in community projects. Many staff would like to volunteer, but haven’t earned enough PTO or can’t afford to use personal time to volunteer, even for a good cause. While ASQ may not be able to provide additional benefits or days off, starting a volunteer program is a low cost way to show employees that you care about us and our community. It is also imperative to attract young new talent. Staff involvement in local communities will improve the ASQ image to other business and potential customers. Recent studies have reported bottom line benefits after volunteer programs were implemented. I propose that ASQ pay staff for up to 8 hours to be use for volunteer opportunities over the course of 1 year. I have broken down the proposal to include three options for the Senior Leadership Team to consider. If you have any questions please feel free to contact me directly at x7580. I look forward to hearing from you.
Thank you Trish Borzon Program Manager
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Summary ASQ has long supported charity contributions through the staff celebration team with programs such as Jeans for a Cause, The Giving Tree, Toys for Tots, and the newly incorporated Bake Off. ASQ staff has also joined forces when our co-workers were in need by donating PTO to help in times of illnesses. In addition to these activities, we were recently asked to volunteer in honor of our CEO, Bill Troy. We know ASQ staff is very willing to donate their PTO to be used towards helping others in the community. Recently CEO, Bill Troy, joined staff volunteers to make dinner for the residents at the Ronald McDonald House. The Ronald McDonald House is dedicated to easing the burden of families whose lives have been disrupted as a result of their child’s illness or injury. Team Leader, Jessie Miller, coordinated the menu and worked with the internal communications team to ask staff volunteers to purchase food and cook a dinner for the residents. Some staff left work early, using their personal PTO, to start cooking dinner for the 30-40 current residents of the house. Everyone worked well together, bringing people from various workgroups together to support our local community. The collaboration created through the project was remarkable. This project won the first quarter core value award. The purpose of this proposal is to request authorization for staff to volunteer during work hours to support various local charities. ASQ would incorporate a volunteer program allowing staff to volunteer during work hours without using personal time off hours (PTO). This proposal includes three (3) volunteer options to consider. 1. 2. 3.
Option 1: Four to Eight Volunteer Hours/Close Business ASQ Community Day. All staff activity. All staff to work together to support a local charity/community project. Close business Option 2: Four to Eight Volunteer Hours/Do Not Close Business Do Not Close Business – up to 1/3 of staff to join together for four to eight hours of volunteer activity
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Option 3: Individual given four to eight volunteer hours Allow staff to use four to eight hours towards volunteer activity of their own choosing
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The purpose and anticipated end result of this proposal include More engaged staff Improved staff satisfaction results Building cross teamwork Support Core Values by all employee
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The type and amount of support requested SLT support and involvement Management involvement Staff involvement Communications Volunteer Internal Team Support from HR
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15. Global considerations The total anticipated budget 16. Eight staff hours equates to $984K (if all staff participate) Closure of business/lost business (tbd) 17. Four staff hours equates to $492K 18. Individual time is estimated at $250K based on studies that reflect only a portion of the staff would participate.
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Needs/Problems Staff satisfaction has continued to decline over recent years. According to the ASQ Staff Satisfaction Survey this is largely due to lack of cross work group team work. Staff does not feel engaged, empowered or appreciated for their work. Staff lacks a sense of community. While people are encouraged to volunteer and participate in ASQ staff events, staff often feel compelled to do so. They only participate because they feel their job may be at stake. Only 73% of staff would recommend ASQ as a good place to work compared to the industry norm of 78%.
IV. Goals/Objectives In 2001 ASQ was voted as one of Milwaukee’s Best Places to Work. I would like to see ASQ gain this recognition once again. I believe implementing a Volunteer Program will help us achieve these goals. ASQ recognized as a Great Place to Work Create an environment that embraces the ASQ Core Values Engage staffing in the core values Improve employee retention ASQ Core Values and Value Attributes Providing Value to Members of the Community Our focus is to provide an indispensable member experience. We anticipate, understand, and act on the needs of the members of the community. Through active listening we build enduring member relationships. We move quickly and embrace opportunities to provide value. We rely on feedback from the members of the community to tell us if we are successful. Innovation and Quality • We use quality to manage the enterprise and our daily work. • Individual creativity and perspective are welcomed in the organization’s thinking and planning. • We rely on innovative ideas, large and small, to fuel our future. • We are agile in times of changing priorities to respond to the community needs. • Through taking risks we learn and grow. • We use data and facts to make decisions.
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People with Passion and Commitment • Our strength lies in our people; we encourage and celebrate initiative, learning, and development. • We energize and inspire each other through encouragement and sincere recognition. • We foster and thrive in a positive environment of our making. • The commitments we make and honor hold us accountable to each other. • We take pride and joy in making our mission a reality. • We cultivate knowledge—through the contributions of our members—to build a quality legacy. Teamwork and Partnering • We have high regard for the worth, dignity, and uniqueness of each person with whom we interact. • We respect the commitment, contribution, and expertise member leaders bring to the community. • Through open and honest communication regarding projects, accomplishments, and lessons learned, we build trust with one another. • We strive to create a work environment where motivated team members can flourish and succeed to their highest potential. • We empower teams; listen to each other’s opinions, respect our differences, and seek ways to ensure we achieve our goals.
V. Procedures/Scope of Work A staff team would be created to manage the program. This team will lead the program, determine community projects and coordinate activities. ASQ will support charities and community programs with the 503c status as outlined in Jeans for a Cause and Bake Off charity requirements. Volunteer Program Team will work closely with the Staff Celebration and Core Values Team.
VI. Budget Hard costs would be staff hours, while this seems like a high investment the non-tangible benefits of raised moral, developing skills and increased employee loyalty are well worth the investment. The cost to replace and average employee is estimated at $5,000. By making the business more attractive you will reduce the rate of employee loss. Description of Work
Anticipated Costs
Option One
4 to 8 hour all staff activity. Close Business
483K to 966K plus lost business
Option Two
4 to 8 hour partial staff – business remain open
483K to 966K – no loss of business
Option Three
4 to 8 hour made available to staff to use
250K - based on number of employees taking advantage.
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VII. Evaluation The first step is to gage interest of staff and charities to participate. The program will be evaluated by survey after volunteer event by both the volunteer and the non-profit benefiting from service. Questions will be added to the Staff Satisfaction Survey to evaluate progress to goal of recommending ASQ as a great place to work.
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Endorsements In today’s corporate culture finding and retaining employees is increasing difficult. A company’s reputation in the community strongly effect employee loyalty. Listed below are four companies named on the 2014 Best Places to Work, each involve corporate giving or volunteer programs. These companies include: Northwest Mutual: 27,000 hours donated towards community projects Harley Davidson: Day of Giving program benefits Disabled American Veterans, Hunger Task Force, Big Brothers/Big Sisters and many more Baird: Baird Gives Back Week gave 4000 hours towards various non-profit organizations Rockwell Automation: Volunteer Recognition Program, Focused Giving, and Educational Outreach
IV. Next Steps Specify the actions required of the readers of this document. Select Option SLT Champion and Establish Team Assess Employee interests and community needs Identify Charities, community actions to support Develop program structure and policies Develop timeline of implementation Measure results/impact of program Establish recognition and/or awards program Publicize efforts
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