Tag Archives: volunteer

The Results Are In: How Do You Give Back?

statistics 3When you’re busy working or job searching, it can be hard to find time to volunteer or give back to your community. But, the benefits of giving back are numerous. Giving back not only makes a positive impact on your community, it also helps you gain new skills, find networking opportunities, and position yourself as a more attractive candidate to employers.

Because there are many ways to give back to your community, we recently asked Movin’ On Up readers what they’re doing to make an impact.

Survey Results
The survey results revealed there are three major ways readers give back to their communities. Those ways are:

  • Donating food, clothes, or other items – 32%
  • Volunteering – 30%
  • Donating money to charitable organizations – 26%

While those three ways make up the majority of responses, an additional 8% of readers said they donate blood through blood drives.

Creative Ways to Give Back
Readers were also given the option to select “Other” and provide their own response. Five percent of respondents did so, and their responses give valuable insight into creative ways you can give back in your community, including:

  • Hosting events
  • Chairperson for an organization
  • Helping needy friends and family
  • Volunteer firefighter
  • Outreach to the homeless community
  • Serving on nonprofit boards
  • Working with a church on community improvements
  • Sponsoring children in underdeveloped countries

How do you give back? Share your stories in the comments section below!

Movin’ On Up is brought to you by Express Employment Professionals.

Brand It Blue Day 2016 Recap!

BrandItBlueDay2014On Saturday, June 11, in communities across North America, Express Employment Professionals offices came together to serve and give back as part of the fourth annual Brand It Blue Day.

More than 235 Express offices, from California to North Carolina to Canada joined with more than 1,000 volunteers to provide more than 87,000 meals for those in need. If you were able to be a part of this amazing effort in any way, thank you for your support and hard work.

As we recently shared, volunteering and serving in your community can do a lot for your career or job search. From an increase in networking opportunities to gaining leadership skills, serving others is a great way to improve your professional life.

But, did you know it can have an incredible impact on your health and well-being? A survey of more than 3,000 adults found that the majority of volunteers felt mentally and physically healthier after serving. Nearly 80% said volunteering lowered their stress levels, while 76% said serving made them feel healthier. And, a report by the Corporation for National & Community Service found that those who serve have lower mortality rates, more functional ability, and lower rates of depression later in life.

Giving back in your community, whether it’s through a group volunteer effort over the weekend, or by doing pro-bono work from your home for a nonprofit, can have a positive impact on your attitude on life and hopes for your future.

We hope Brand It Blue Day gave you an opportunity to serve in your community, increase your happiness, and possibly make some new connections that will help you soon find a new job. If you didn’t have a chance to join Express for this year’s event, make sure to check back with your local office for information about Brand It Blue Day 2017 and how you can be involved.

Through the hard work and service of Express offices, we’ve been able to donate more than 300,000 meals to nonprofit organizations across North America through the efforts of Brand It Blue Day. Think of all the meals we can provide next year with your help!

Check out some of the photos from Brand It Blue Day!

HQ group
Farmington Hills-Westland MI
HQ Volunteers

Tyler, TX

Midland, TXGrand Rapids

 

 

 

Making a Career Out of Giving Back

giving_back_makes_you_more_employable_webHow great would it be to blend your work life with a purpose you’re passionate about? The good news is, you can when you make a career out of giving back by joining the nonprofit workforce. Still, it takes more than good intentions to make a career, so we’ve laid out a few tips to help you get started on your nonprofit career hunt.

Lay out your career roadmap
Start with causes you’re passionate about, and think specifically about how you could fit into a role in that world. Like any job, you still have to be qualified to perform the tasks at hand. So, be sure to do a self-assessment to better understand how your skills and qualifications line up with the job you’re seeking. Once you know the areas you need to improve in, start working on those through volunteer work, online training, etc.

Volunteer, volunteer, volunteer
The best way to get moving on a career path toward nonprofit work is to volunteer with a nonprofit in a field you’re passionate about. This is a great way to establish your presence, network, and get to know potential employers. It’s also a great way to build experience in the sector you’re interested in while getting to know the organization better.

The job hunt
As you prepare your resume for potential nonprofit employers, be sure to highlight the volunteer experience you have. Then, start your search! If you aren’t sure where to begin, try one (or all) of the job search sites below. All are free to use.

What are some nonprofit causes you’re interested in? Let us know in the comment section below!

Movin’ On Up is brought to you by Express Employment Professionals.

Ask a Recruiter: Using Volunteerism on Your Resume

ask_a_recruiterListing volunteer efforts on your resume can seem a little tricky. And, some may wonder if it’s even worth it? We know there’s a lot to learn, and we want to help by answering your questions. Our very own industry experts at Express Employment Professionals have offered up helpful answers right here on the Movin’ On Up blog.

Question: How do recruiters view volunteer experience on a resume? 

Answer: Recruiters are people, just like everyone else. To that end, each recruiter will probably view previous volunteer work in their own unique way. At the end of the day, most recruiters are paid by clients to find the best candidate based on skill sets that are defined by the client. If the skill sets are very specific, and experience crucial, volunteer experience most likely will play a small role in the recruiter’s decision to present a candidate or not. That being said, it’s still important to include.

In my experience, volunteerism can take center stage in other places during the hiring process. First, it can be a differentiator between yourself and another equally qualified candidate. Adding volunteer service tends to show how well-rounded a candidate is, or illustrates that they share time and abilities outside of the office. Often, for recruiters, making a great placement is about a culture fit or soft-skills fit, not solely based on past work titles. Volunteerism is a great way of illustrating your soft-skills to a recruiter or a hiring manager.

Additionally, if you are just entering the marketplace (think no experience or little experience) or you are changing seats in the marketplace (new industry, new specialized area, etc.), volunteerism can be a great way to show that even though you don’t have experience in a certain role or industry, you have picked up transferable skills while being a solid community member and giving back your time.

Finally volunteerism is a great conversation starter. If you’re interviewing with a company that is civic minded, and you’re passionate about volunteer work, share that enthusiasm during the interview. Employers in today’s marketplace want employees who get excited about working toward a goal bigger than themselves, and that’s what volunteering is all about!

Question: What are some tips for listing volunteer experience on a resume?

Answer: Unless you are new to the marketplace and volunteer work is the majority of your experience, I believe it’s best to keep it simple. List the organization, dates you’ve been associated, and possibly one sentence about the work you’ve been doing with the organization. When you can work in lessons learned from volunteering during the interview itself, it’s more impactful than listing volunteer experience on the resume.

If you’re someone who has lots of volunteer experience, don’t feel like you need to share every organization you’ve been a part of! In most cases, being affiliated with 10 or more civic organizations won’t necessarily gain you any more street cred than listing two or three. Pick the organizations in which you’ve invested the most time in, or the two or three that you’ve most recently been affiliated with.

Thank you to Joe Paquette from Express for providing the above answers!

Do you have a question about the job search, hiring, or recruiting process? Now’s your chance to have your question answered by industry professionals who find, interview, and hire people every day. Ask your question in the comments section below and check back soon to read what our experts have to say!

Why Volunteering Is Good for Your Health and Your Career

Helping sort canned goods at a local food pantry or building a wheelchair ramp for a house can leave you with a sense of accomplishment, but volunteering actually has many other long-term benefits, including better overall health and improved teamwork skills.

In fact, about a quarter of people who have volunteered in the past year say that volunteering helped them manage a chronic illness, while almost 50% of people new to volunteering say that volunteering helped with their career.

Check out this infographic to see more health and work-related benefits to volunteering:
Volunteering infographic

Movin’ On Up is brought to you by Express Employment Professionals.

Brand It Blue Day Is This Week!

BrandItBlueDay2014For the fourth year, employees from Express Employment Professionals offices across North America will gather together for an international day of service. The mission of Brand It Blue Day is to help in the fight against hunger in the communities where Express team members work and live, and you have the chance to be a part of the effort.

Taking the time to serve gives you the feeling of joy and a sense of accomplishment through helping someone in need, but it can also improve your chances to find a great job. When you volunteer you’re able to network with people you may not have otherwise met, learn new skills, and show potential employers that serving others is important to you.

If you’d like to join Express for Brand It Blue Day, click here to find out if your local Express office is participating. Then, contact them to find out how you can be involved.

Movin’ On Up is brought to Express Employment Professionals.

What Giving Back Can Do for Your Career

Colors hands upVolunteering is a rewarding way to make a positive difference in the lives of others. And, the benefits of giving back are countless. The fact is giving back not only affects your community, but your professional life, as well. From enhancing your resume to establishing new connections to growing leadership skills and more, take a look at what giving back can do for your career.

Networking Opportunities
Volunteering brings you into contact with people you may have never crossed paths with otherwise. Thus, the opportunity to build your professional network is an important benefit of giving back. You will be working with people who are interested in the same causes as you. When you make connections like that, the relationships you build are likely to last longer and lead to job opportunities. Someone you meet volunteering could become your co-worker, boss, or mentor.

Leadership and Other Skills
You can gain invaluable experience through volunteering. First and foremost, you can develop leadership skills if you give your talents to the board of an organization. You can also become a better leader by heading up one of the volunteer projects in your community. Finding an opportunity to lead in these instances is a great transferable skill for the workplace.
Additionally, giving back to your community can help you work on skills like time management, communication, confidence, and teamwork, to name a few.

Better Job Performance
Experts at Glassdoor.com suggest that employees who spend time giving back to their communities often feel more fulfilled. Making a positive difference in someone’s life can help you feel content and translate into your work life, where you’re bound to also be more productive. Just be sure to choose a cause that you’re passionate about.

Resume Building
Aside from the skills you’ll get from volunteering, you can build your resume through giving back. One way to do that is to find a skills-based volunteer opportunity where you can use your expertise to make a difference. You can then include that experience on your resume, highlighting how it’s relevant to your career goals. Check out sites like Catchafire.com to get started.

More Attractive to Employers
All things considered, volunteering simply makes you more attractive to employers. Be sure to include it on your social networking sites, resume, or anywhere else a potential hiring manager might come across it. According to Forbes.com, “Employers like to hire people who can demonstrate they’re motivated and hard-working, even if they haven’t been getting paid for their efforts.”

How do you give back to your community? Let us know in the comment section below.

Movin’ On Up is brought to you by Express Employment Professionals.