Business Volunteers Maryland

doing good. better.

Baltimore Business Journal recognizes community efforts

by

You’ve heard of six degrees of separation, right? The 2020 Baltimore Business Journal Better Baltimore Awards is a Who’s Who of our friends and partners. While we were not directly recognized, we are so proud that nine of our business and nonprofit partners made the list for “making Baltimore better.”

Business Volunteers envisions a future in which all individuals and businesses in Baltimore are engaged and investing in building strong and thriving communities. By working with over 50 businesses to make their community engagement more strategic and impactful, we act as a connector to build the capacity and fill mission critical needs in over 150 unique Regional nonprofits each year.

SC&H Group, a long-term partner and “consumer” of Business Volunteers’ services, was recognized in the small/medium company category. The article mentions that last year, 192 SC&H employees volunteered at eight different organizations, resulting in 768 volunteer hours in one day. That day was facilitated and supported by Business Volunteers Maryland.

Ron Causey welcomes guests to the 2019 Business Volunteers Business Impact Summit. 

“SC&H has used Business Volunteers Maryland to direct its efforts and connect the company with nonprofits in need of its employees’ skills,” Ron Causey, SC&H CEO, and board chair for Business Volunteers Maryland noted. In addition to SC&H, Aerotek, BGE, M&T Bank, T. Rowe Price, and Venable were all recognized for their contributions to the community. Representatives from each of these organizations currently hold a position on our board of directors and many also have at least one representative in the 2020 GIVE Class (GIVE is a fellowship program for emerging community leaders, programmed and hosted by BVM).

BGE and Business Volunteers recently collaborated with Code in the Schools to deliver a virtual Team Volunteer Project for 100 high school and college interns. Participants assembled 2,500 Squishy Circuit kits that will be distributed to elementary school students by Baltimore City Recreation and Parks. Squishy Circuits are circuits made from play dough, modeling clay, LED lights, a battery, and connection wire encouraging skills helpful in STEM classes and professions.

The connections do not stop with the corporate award winners. Many of our nonprofit partners were also recognized for their contributions to the community, including the Maryland Food Bank, Moveable Feast, and Volunteering Untapped.  It is an honor to be affiliated to organizations making such an impact in the communities where we work and live.

Congratulations to all the organizations recognized in this year’s list. We are thrilled to be a partner with you and grateful for your efforts of doing good. better. in the community.

If your organization is looking to be more strategic with your community engagement initiatives, contact Business Volunteers today.

Want to Volunteer? Consider Board Service.

by

Throughout the COVID-19 pandemic, individuals and business partners have inquired about ways to safely engage in the community. The words innovation and flexibility have served as mantras for the nonprofit sector as volunteer activities have shifted to virtual gatherings and fundraisers have transformed into online events. However, no matter the state of the world, there is one way to engage with a nonprofit that, is always timely, impactful, and productive: nonprofit board service.

Board service is the perfect opportunity to make a significant contribution to a nonprofit, develop leadership skills, and build new networks.

Board Leadership Program

Our Board Leadership Program trains and matches diverse business professionals to positions on nonprofit boards and committees. For professionals seeking to become involved in community leadership, our Board Leadership program prepares and connects candidates for board positions, according to the needs expressed by nonprofit organizations, and the interests and skills of individual candidates.

FACTS: In 2019, Business Volunteers fulfilled 56 nonprofit board placements with 143 candidates either matched or in progress.

Board Matching during a global health crisis

Like many of our programs, all board matching at Business Volunteers has moved to virtual. This includes both our one-on-one concierge service through the Board Leadership Program and our famous boardCONNECT, a “round robin” coordinated event where professionals and nonprofits engage in brief conversations.  Regardless of the format used to make connections, BVM is pleasantly surprised that within the past few weeks we’ve seen a great increase of interest in the board leadership program.

FACTS: This year, Business Volunteers has fulfilled eight board placements at Casey Cares Foundation, Gunpowder Valley Conservancy, TasteWise Kids, The Peale Center for Baltimore History and Architecture and more. We anticipate more successful matches in the coming weeks as a by-product of our virtual boardCONNECT.

As part of our board leadership work, Business Volunteers is launching a NEW, in-depth board training- businessONBOARD: Fundementals. This training provides an engaging, comprehensive, real life look at board service for professionals. Co-branded and with thought partnership and funding support from the T. Rowe Price Foundation, this training represents a significant shift in programming and an exciting new phase of work for Business Volunteers. Learn more about businessONBOARD and register for the training here.

Creating a diverse board

The National Council of Nonprofits, shares that having a board with diverse perspectives is critically important. Each person brings their own expertise and experience – both personally and professionally – that positions a nonprofit to plan, manage risk, make decisions, and take full advantage of opportunities in a stronger, more strategic way.

Boards that are not diverse risk becoming stagnant, especially when it comes to recruitment. Nonprofits often share that recruitment of candidates can be the biggest challenge when managing their board.

Business Volunteers works to help nonprofits build qualified and diverse boards through our partnership with businesses across the Region. By utilizing our Board Leadership Program and boardCONNECT, nonprofits run less of a risk of having board members travel in the same social circle, making identifying and cultivating future board members easier, resulting in a stronger circle of influence for the nonprofit.