Career Benefits from Volunteer Work Jennifer Kovacich University of St. Thomas May 18, 2004

My volunteer experience Candy striper work as teenager provided self-motivation and hospital knowledge. Public relations job lead to a professional communicator role in hospital setting. Hospital setting introduced others with similar background and volunteer involvement.

Does volunteering benefit the careers of professional communicators who work in hospitals?

Surveys sent 205 surveys – Mailed to professional communicators who work in Minnesota hospitals Surveys sent and received by mail – Prepaid response envelope enclosed Minnesota Hospital Association mailing list – 139 Minnesota hospitals

Who responded from MN hospitals? President/CEO24 VP/Director36 Supervisor/Manager26 Specialist/Senior Acct Exec14 Coordinator/Acct Executive10 85 female respondents 34 male respondents

Respondent demographics Of 119 respondents: – 88% are married or have a domestic partner. – 71% are between ages – 96% are college or graduate school educated.

Respondent commitments Of 119 respondents: – 89% work in a paid job 40 hours or more each week. – 76% volunteer twice a month or more. – 60% have volunteered 11 years or longer.

“Volunteer work adds value to my career.” 42% strongly agree 38% agree 9% neutral 3% disagree There was no reply from 8% of the respondents.

“Do you volunteer?” 111 individuals currently volunteer. 8 individuals do not volunteer at this time.

Volunteer work takes time Seven respondents report not having time to volunteer. One respondent prefers to make financial commitments rather than time commitments.

“It is important to be involved in volunteer work.”

How benefits are perceived (check all that apply) The respondents said… Provided opportunities for growth57% Assumed a leadership role55% Provided a larger skill set54% Other25% Of the respondents, 7% saw no benefit.

Volunteer settings (check all that apply) Church70 responses Board membership63 responses Nonprofit organization56 responses School54 responses U.S. Bureau of Labor Statistics shows 20% of Americans volunteer for their church, school or another organization of interest.

Consider volunteer work Volunteer work may be an obvious answer for anyone looking to grow in their career. – 70% of volunteers in U.S. work a paid job; 89% of survey respondents work a paid job 40 or more hours each week. – Most volunteers in U.S. are at least college educated; 96% of survey respondents are college or graduate school educated.

Does volunteering benefit the careers of professional communicators who work in hospitals? Overwhelmingly, yes!

Recommendations Broaden group to include entry-level and part-time professional communicators – Minnesota Hospital Association list does not usually include these individuals. – These groups may have swayed results.

Recommendations (for Minnesota hospitals) Hospitals should offer volunteer opportunities and/or information to employees – Responses show volunteer work can help develop skills for career growth. – Responses suggest nearly 40% of Minnesota hospitals do not provide volunteer information to employees.

Questions or comments?