Charity works

Citation

Heap, J. (2002), "Charity works", Work Study, Vol. 51 No. 3. https://doi.org/10.1108/ws.2002.07951caa.001

Charity works

Charity works

I was recently involved in a project run by a (small-sized) charitable organisation. The charity has about three (full-time equivalent) staff and an army of volunteers. The collective workload – and the collective imagination – of this workforce is quite astonishing and it set me thinking about the nature of both teamwork and motivation.

The members of the workforce came from a variety of backgrounds and yet seemed to gel well together. Even more remarkable was that the volunteers put in what time they could and so the workforce was never the same – whoever was available pitched in as best they could. The job of the paid employees was to organise the effort – remembering that they were dealing with volunteers, they had to organise but not antagonise. They, themselves, had little training in the art of such complex organisation, yet they seemed to have mastered it – perhaps because the volunteers were willing – indeed wanted – to be organised.

So what is the "secret"? Well, first – and probably most importantly – the common bond running throughout both paid employees and volunteers was a strong commitment to the underlying aims of the organisation: almost all of the volunteers had some connection to the "cause" (medical) through personal or family illness. Yet, more than this, many of the volunteers stayed because they enjoyed their work with the charity – it was not a duty or a calling. They were not being rewarded, not financially anyway … They were giving, and getting satisfaction from that giving.

Does any of this have implications for commercial organisations?

Well, it is plain that if one can line up the members of an organisation with the underlying aims and values of the organisation, such commitment is much more likely to occur. The first step in achieving this is to identify and articulate those aims and values – in a way that is "real". Too often, mission and vision statements could be transferred from any organisation to any other – they are not precise or individual enough. Constructing a set of core values that can be used to cement an organisation together is a difficult task. Yet, it is certainly worth doing.

Success also relies on the organisation respecting and trusting their employees to understand and share the aims and values. Such trust will be shown in all sorts of small – even tiny – ways … ways which allow a degree of autonomy and self-control over appropriate components of people's roles.

Instead of imposing "productivity" on employees, this releases natural productivity. Of course, the organisation still has to create the conditions in which this can be released and allowed to thrive – there is an infrastructure of productivity contained within the underlying business processes, hardware, software, tools, equipment and working procedures, and associated training.

At the macro level, the organisation must establish an underlying potential for high productivity. But if it can then add to this a commitment within the workforce, that potential will be realised.

This is not easy. Relationships between individuals are complex. Relationships between groups are more so. Some organisations may have a history of mutual distrust or indifference to overcome. Because it is difficult does not mean it should not be attempted. There is little to lose, but an awful lot to gain.

John Heap