Out of the 28 countries that took part in this initiative, 14 took part in the Give & Gain Day movement for their first time: Argentina, Brazil, Colombia, Isle of Man, Jersey, Kenya, Latvia, Lithuania, Peru, Sweden, Switzerland, Taiwan, Ukraine and Venezuela.
In total, 435 companies participated internationally. 229 of them engaged in projects outside of the UK in partnership with BITC. Companies such as General Electric (GE), Siemens, Capgemini, Lloyds Banking Group, Eversheds and Prudential made their presence felt on Give & Gain Day 2012 by making a positive difference in more than one country.
The Give & Gain Day survey provided very positive feedback both from partners and businesses:
• 100% of the international partners rated BITC service and support on Give & Gain Day activity was very good (62.5%) or excellent (37.5%).
• Company feedback from employees was also very positive as 100% employees felt a sense of achievement and that Give & Gain Day was beneficial for team building
“It is impossible to describe how rewarding this experience was. Knowing that you have helped children who have to struggle everyday is the best reward for pro bono work. I truly hope that we will be participating in Give & Gain Day next year too”, said Ritvars Jakobijs, from Evershed (Latvia).
• Community groups, schools and charities globally were extremely happy and satisfied by being a beneficiary of Give & Gain Day, providing the right kind of help to pupils and service users. 75% respondents felt that interaction with employees on Give & Gain Day increased aspirations of service users/pupils, and they felt that it improved service users/pupils’ performance and confidence.
“Their participation was very inspiring for the students as they were able to understand the skills they will need as they decide on a career and a profession”, said Martha Cervantes, from IMPULSA (Mexico).
Give & Gain Day is the UK’s only national day of employee volunteering. Organised by BITC the day marks an annual movement of businesses that empower their employees to take action and tackle key community issues during work time.
Give & Gain Day has been running for five years and took place this year on 18 May. For 2013 edition of the programme, BITC is aiming to inspire over 30,000 employees across the globe to make a difference to those communities they operate and live within. The programme aims to inspire new employees and new employers to volunteer for the first time and to use 17 May 2013 to foster new sustainable community partnerships.
Fuente: CSR360 Global Partner Network
