Not many businesses, especially startups, have huge amounts of money to churn into charity and contrary to what many may think, money isn’t the only way to give back to society. You can also give back with your talent and even your time.

This in itself is no easy feat and takes great commitment to the cause especially because not all employees may like to get involved of their own volition. Some may even have to be urged or motivated to do so and this falls on the shoulder of the entrepreneur and his/her management team.

Here are some key ways to immerse social responsibility into your company:

• Rewrite your story. If not already a “recessive” part of your company values, that you need to reactivate, you have to rewrite your company story to include social responsibility in it. This is a core facet of any company’s identity. When incorporated as one of the pillars of your business, it’s easier to get your employees to be a part of it. While seemingly tasking and challenging at first, social responsibility is a good cause which people grow into and are happy being a part of. You could choose to sponsor libraries in schools, volunteer to help at the hospitals, or even serve food to the less or underprivileged in your immediate locality. Having said this, it is therefore important to carve out a public-spirited or benevolent arm of your company with a goal to impact positively in your society. Granted, you may not be able to do much but the little you do would be much appreciated.
• Create an official panel: For the fact it is a volunteer event, if not properly handled, it is easy to fall apart. In the light of this, it is highly advisable you form a panel singled out to take charge of the responsibilities of this event. These people would handle the research, planning, partnerships, and implementation of your business’s goodwill in whatever volunteer programs your business partakes in. They would source for or even create volunteer opportunities. This panel would be rotated among your employees and wouldn’t be solely for some specific people. However, if people choose to stay put in the team, then that is fine. The reason for the rotation is to ensure everyone is actively involved.
• Make it fun. Unlike the other tasking parts of the job, this aspect shouldn’t be seen as a task but a fun activity that your employees would always look forward to. This should be a time they get to meet other people, make new friends, and give help in any way they can. This break from work helps to rejuvenate the mindset of your staff and possibly re-orient them in their perception of your business. It can also foster their bond as a team and strengthen your company culture too.

Social responsibility is a great way to boost the morale of your team while motivating them to do more good in society. You would discover there are so many amazing sides to your staff that you wouldn’t normally see if it was just work, work and more work. Make this cause a part of your company from the start. Already established companies can also fit this into their businesses. It’s never too late.

Remember the words of these great men – Henry Ford said, “A business that makes nothing but money is a poor kind of business” and Dayton Hudson said, “The business of business is serving society and not just making money”.