12/30/04 - Some firms track, reward employee volunteer activities

Bank of America Corp. employees volunteered 650,000 hours last year by building homes for the poor, cleaning coastlines and doing other charitable work, and the bank is eager to tell people about it.

So eager, in fact, that it puts that number in glossy brochures and alerts local news media when its employees collect toys or fix homes for charity.

That impressive 650,000 estimate may get more precise. The bank is one of a growing number of companies using software to track individual employees' volunteer hours, including nights and weekends. Employees enter their volunteerism into the computer system, which helps the company see where and when they volunteer, as well as match them with new opportunities.

Some of these companies, which include other big names such as IBM Corp., San Francisco's McKesson Corp., BearingPoint Inc. and the California affiliate of the American Automobile Association, compile the information to match gifts to workers' favored charities. In what could be more controversial, some factor the data into employee promotions. Companies also incorporate the volunteer work into company marketing campaigns that highlight community involvement.

BofA introduced the software this year, but it had previously calculated its volunteer hours using another method.

Generally, the data on volunteering are reported by the employees, though some come from group events where one employee takes the roll. Companies can restrict which types of nonprofit groups count toward employees' total hours. Some bar religious and political groups.

But new software also may mean problems for employers, especially if workers feel pressured to volunteer in their free time. If not implemented carefully, the program could spur employees to claim that their volunteerism actually should be viewed as work and that they should be paid for it, said New Hampshire attorney Andrea Johnstone.

"Volunteerism may be viewed as a component of one's employment, as opposed to being truly voluntary," Johnstone said. "The risk that an employer runs is that, because of the way they want to use the evidence of employee volunteerism, it may be viewed as part of one's job."

Companies vary in how they use the data. BofA executives said they post notices to employees telling them that participation is voluntary and that they do not include the information in performance reviews. But other companies said examining employees' volunteerism helps them identify people who deserve a chance at higher positions.

At AAA of Northern California, Jeff Tackett works in a call center in Elk Grove (Sacramento County) and helps direct emergency roadside assistance. But when his employer noticed through the computer software that Tackett volunteered a lot and organized events for his colleagues, AAA decided he had the makings of a leader.

Now Tackett is moving his desk into the middle of the call center, and he will oversee volunteerism and diversity at two AAA offices. He also is likely to get a pay raise, but Tackett said that has not been decided.

"We made it known to management in Elk Grove, 'Hey you've got a real ringleader over there,' " said Roger Hancock, AAA's manager of community services. "With this reporting system, we were able to identify someone way far and beyond."

Other companies use the volunteer data indirectly. IBM executives, for example, said employees frequently gain critical skills from volunteer work, which can be factored into promotions. Executives at BearingPoint, a Virginia consulting firm, said they plan to use the software for internal awards and to help identify new leaders for the company.

Executives at all of the companies said they stress that the programs are voluntary, not required. Some also give paid time off for volunteering. Anita Allen, executive director of BearingPoint's corporate giving, said she has seen other companies push to meet unreasonable goals so they can boast of high employee volunteerism, but she does not want to follow that approach.

"You can go over that line if you're pushing employees to volunteer on their own time," she said. "Our approach is that we have people out there volunteering, and we want to encourage and reward what they're doing. We're trying to support employees engaged in the community, rather than forcing our employees to be out there."

Volunteering can boost a company's image in the community, especially for large companies, said Andrew Mercy, chief executive of AngelPoints Inc., the Mill Valley company that makes the software used by all of the companies except IBM.

Those companies get the word out about their good works through aggressive marketing campaigns and through word-of-mouth in the community when they show up at the local food bank or homeless shelter in matching company T- shirts.

McKesson puts photos of its employee volunteers on its Web site and quotes one saying, "Once I realized how dedicated the company was to serving people in need, it has become a source of pride as I continue to work here." It also alerted the media recently when it sent its employees out to volunteer. McKesson's vice president of community relations, Marcia Argyris, said the company publicizes its employee volunteerism because "we wanted to highlight McKesson as a concerned corporate citizen."