Member Article

Why volunteering is the best boost for your CV

Next time you think about burning the midnight oil in the office, just pause and remember this - volunteering in your spare time can boost your career more than doing hours of overtime at work.

Volunteering is an ideal way to polish your CV, impress potential bosses and learn new life skills. And now is a perfect time to think about it as next week is national Volunteers Week, which is celebrating its 30th anniversary. The week (June 1-7) celebrates the contribution made by millions of volunteers and showcases the different ways to get involved.

Volunteering shows real dedication and is a great way to meet new people, boost your Linked In or networking circle and get references. You can gain experience, maybe in skills you wouldn’t normally have the chance to learn at work. The skills you learn and people you meet can also help you get your foot in the door in competitive industries

If you’ve been job hunting for a while, voluntary work can boost your self-esteem and if you’re looking to change your career, it can give you a valuable insight into different vocations.

There’s also a lot to be said for the feel-good factor as helping others gives you a sense of purpose and social conscience.

James Caan, from Dragon’s Den, Karren Brady, vice-chairman of West Ham football club, and Martha Lane Fox, founder of Lastminute.com are just some of the country’s top bosses who value volunteering on people’s CVs.

And there are also benefits for employers who give their staff time off to volunteer. Giving someone day release once in a while won’t seriously impact on your business but can be a real help to a small charity – many are desperate for people with management, IT, marketing, accountancy, project management, HR, finance and business skills.

For a company, it can help your corporate social responsibility and when you’re a successful business, it’s nice to give something back to the local community for supporting you.

Sheffield Volunteer Centre has plenty of vacancies available and also has a section on employee volunteering and Voluntary Action Sheffield is also a good source of information. There are perks to volunteering with some organisations -

Girl Guiding has a fabulous members’ scheme offering discounts on High Street brands while Festaff recruits hundreds of volunteer stewards who can enjoy music festivals for £15.

This was posted in Bdaily's Members' News section by Benchmark .