Skill Hacks

Volunteering to promote your professional integration in the impact

Hello ! I'm Clément from Ma Petite Planète (MPP for friends!). After co-founding La Fourmilière in 2016, a community around volunteering and civic engagement, I decided to put my energy action by the general public for the preservation of the Planet and living things by co-founding the Ma Petite Planète ecological challenge challenge, which will become an association in March 2020. At MPP, I co-lead a community of 150 volunteers from the association, who are former MPP Players.

The world needs committed people more than ever. The needs in the ESS and associative sector are immense with regard to current social and environmental issues.

And the good news is that we have been witnessing a general professionalization and growth in these sectors over the past ten years or so.

Building a “dream-team” is, in my opinion, the most determining key success factor.

Do you want to put the social or environmental impact at the heart of your professional project by joining one of the many existing projects?

Volunteering is undoubtedly the best possible gateway to professional integration in this sector!

Impact recruiters scrutinize candidates' volunteering experiences

How to differentiate people who have professional experience and similar skills?

At MPP, we have made 30 recruitments to date (permanent contracts, work-study programs or internships), 27 of them have had volunteer experience. (especially at Alternatiba, Ticket For Change, Oxfam, Le Noise, la Fourmilière, La Fresque du Climat, Zéro Waste France, Kabubu) We found 70% of them in response to our ads on jobs_that_makesense by the way 😉

The simple fact that candidates choose to apply on this platform is indicative of a search for impact and a quest for meaning. At MPP, we are looking for people who are deeply committed to ecological transition. This "impact filter" therefore saves us time, and reassures us about the primary motivations of the candidates.

As you will have understood, with equal skills and know-how, we will most likely take the person who has already volunteered.

The skills you develop as a volunteer

They are many ! I have divided those which seem to me the most important into two.

The "soft skills"

  • adaptability. There are often limited resources in associations. This "constraint" calls for pragmatism and resourcefulness. We do with the means at hand and often… we find effective solutions!
  • open-mindedness: getting involved as a volunteer promotes discovery and the development of skills on current social or environmental issues. Meeting recipients very often allows you to get out of your social circle… and at the same time realize that you are very lucky and have reasons to be happy.
  • team spirit: being a volunteer means giving your time and energy to others. We therefore acquire the reflexes of a good Team Player.

The “hard skills”

  • a better understanding of the functioning and governance of an associative or hybrid structure.- project management and taking initiatives: a volunteer rarely has a very precise job description. If it is a long-term commitment, it is likely that they will have to carry out projects to develop the association and its impact. This can be likened to intrapreneurship.
  • knowledge and reflexes of the SSE ecosystem: our decisions are above all guided by the impact they will create. A person who has already been a volunteer will have a better knowledge of our performance indicators and will better understand our choices.

In short, open-mindedness, knowledge of how the SSE works, ability to work in a team, to adapt, to set up projects... who wouldn't want to recruit such a profile?! Nobody ! These skills are quite valuable in the professional world and all the more so in the SSE.

3/ The contributions of volunteering in your life. (just that !)

Small dedication to the Fourmilière which is a community that aims to make volunteering as fun and accessible as a drink with friends. (Find out about the concept and our available missions here !)

Here too, the advantages are numerous! Here is my shortlist:

  • Test professions in unknown fields without having the pressure to fail or to commit to the long term. - Quickly access responsibilities and be socially valued. This is all the more true when you are young with little professional experience, and you have, thanks to volunteering, the opportunity to become President, Treasurer, Project Manager, Respo Com', Antenna respo…
  • Build a professional network: volunteering is a great lever for weaving it! The people you will meet in the field will have a good impression of you because you come to see them with your volunteer cap. (At MPP, we have hired people who have first volunteered with us on 5 occasions!)

In conclusion, and as the famous Abbé Pierre said "We are never as happy as in the happiness we give, giving is receiving". I am convinced that volunteering is as much for yourself as for others (and so much the better if it's "win-win" by the way!)

Indeed, our investment in time and energy for the project is often very largely compensated by all the contributions seen above :)

So get ready. to commit? :)

MPP is looking for:

👉 volunteers - you don't necessarily need any special skills! :)

👉 ambassadors to animate an MPP league and get your entourage to take action

👉 Discover all MPP job offers

Find here all the volunteering offers available on Jobs That MakeSense. JeVeuxAider. Benevolt. La Fourmilière.

Take action

👉 Find a purpose-driven job

👉 Training in the professions of ecological and social transition

NB: You are not (yet) considering a career in impact? More traditional structures will also value your commitment!