I have been volunteering at company events for various charities and contributing more to the networking groups in the hopes that it could help my career. am I dreaming that this will do anything for me? They talk about the what and how in the mid-years and year ends. And my boss loves to include the pictures in his updates to his boss. Could this actually help me get more exceeds, a higher bonus, more opportunities for promotion etc.? Not interested in hearing whining about how the company su-ks….but from directors and others that have been in the room for stacking and talent discussions who know how it works. Thanks
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What matters most to your career is doing your job well. Volunteering is going above your daily routines and should not distract from the work efforts so you can network and leave teammates to pick up your workload.
4 hours a month is the limit for volunteering. Those hours are for su-k ups like you. Try volunteering for the Red Cross Disaster Teams. Get up at 2am to help a family that just lost everything due to a house fire. Sit with them for 2 or 3 hours to get them vouchers for a hotel, clothes, medications, and items they need on a daily basis. Keep a bag of stuffed animals in your trunk so you can give them to a terrified child that needs reassurance that things will get better.
Your post is about real volunteering, it's all about climbing the corporate ladder. Simply pathetic.
Since it's clear you have sociopathic tendencies: You want to know what will get you promoted and ahead in your career? instead of kissing up and getting nothing to show for it but 'token' appreciation? It's really 3 things:
- Show up on time. Respect other peoples time. Don't be late to work, Don't be late to meetings.
- Be really damn good at your job. Knock it out of the park. Be better than everyone else on your team.
- Have other people like you (This might be the most difficult given your kissing up tendencies).
That's it. Do all 3 and you are a rockstar. Do 2 and you can keep your employment. Do 1 and you're likely going to be shown the door when the opportunity presents itself. Now you can quit all that corporate BS you think is going to get you where you want to go and actually start doing the meaning stuff that actually matters. Good luck.
what does volunteering at Bank of America get you for your career?
Bupkus!
If you enjoy volunteering for its own sake, then go for it. Just don't let it take away from your actual job or time with those who are most important to you (family/friends). Or maybe you will make new friends. (yay!)
No, you do that by volunteering to show up to the office 6 days a week from 8am to 6pm. You've got to put an extra 13 hours into your workweek to get a sliver of recognition from upper management for "Operational Excellence."
People like you sicken me. Let me give you some advice, no one cares about your volunteerism at the bank. Your boss is doing it just to check a box. Their boss is doing it just to check a box. All it shows them is you are a pawn they can give some worthless assignments to and you'll eat it up thinking it will help your career. Guess what, the joke is on you.
Volunteering is wonderful, and should make you feel proud of yourself for doing so. That being said, I absolutely refuse to do it under the guise of Bank of America. It’s not in my job description to do so, and I will NOT do it to make the bank “look good”. You want me to wear your advertisement while building a fence for habitat, you pay me extra to do it. Otherwise, I will do it on my own time in my own time for whatever organization I choose, with no Bank of America involvement. Sorry, but when they reward the “growth” and penalize the “responsible”, I simply don’t care.
Matthew 6:1–4
[1] “Beware of practicing your righteousness before other people in order to be seen by them, for then you will have no reward from your Father who is in heaven.
[2] “Thus, when you give to the needy, sound no trumpet before you, as the hypocrites do in the synagogues and in the streets, that they may be praised by others. Truly, I say to you, they have received their reward. [3] But when you give to the needy, do not let your left hand know what your right hand is doing, [4] so that your giving may be in secret. And your Father who sees in secret will reward you. (ESV)
Volunteerism has become self-serving. Some have been using it to promote themselves, not the cause. They use it to sneak from work, while their teammates are toiling their b**t off. They know that if they accumulated X number of hours, they would be recognized like saints. Please do it for the right reasons.
You do not volunteer to advance your career. You volunteer,because it helps people less fortunate and organizations such as food share, or soup kitchens. You can add it to your resume as a feature sure, but you are doing this for all the wrong reasons. I’ve been volunteering for years, but I never tell the bank. I submit for matching donations, but otherwise - well that is personal and my business. Only a few times I did tell because I needed time off, but for many years no.
if you are already strong, it can help a lot. if you are normal performer, it probably won't move the needle. if you are not naturally bright it helps you hold on.
It doesn’t help at all….kisser.
Depends on which group you are in and your manager, their manager, etc. Some groups and managers couldn't care less and find those activities are a waste of time and rather have you producing.
From your description though, sounds like your manager does value the rah-rah activities. Is that what they value most, then by all means, jump in!
Might help raise your profile in a positive way and get you on the track to become a "favorite". Particuilarly if you select causes/opportunities aligned to their values. Being a Favorite is what drives promotions, higher pay, etc. If rah-rah does that in your team, then go for it.
(I had a manager who LOVED great power point presentations, so I became the best at that on my team and got the biggest bonus of my entire career. Focus on what they value.)
As for ENs, volunteering, etc. -- for high perfomers -- it's given me more ammunition to advocate for ky people on my team with my own manager and HR to promote them as I can point to not only strong "What", but also strong "How" as it demonstrates inclusiveness, adherence to our values, going above/beyond.
For medium performers, I've put ENs, volunteer stuff on PDPs to help improve soft skills (culture, leadership, etc.)
Just make sure you are hitting it out of the park on your core job performance and su-king up to your manager first. The rest just helps make you stand out.
That said, if you have a manager who does not value the soft stuff or in a group that could care less, then it won't help unless you want to use those opportunities to expand your network to wrangle a transfer to another part of the company or outside orgs.
I think only if you are active in a specific position with them it might spruce up your resume when you apply to something. Mostly, it helps with your career through networking (or any career advice you gain from events or people in it).