"Voices from Within: Employees' Sensemaking of Corporate Volunteerism" by Janet Laadi Anani

Graduation Term

Spring 2025

Degree Name

Master of Science (MS)

Department

School of Communication

Committee Chair

John Baldwin

Committee Member

Rebecca Hayes

Committee Member

Lance Lippert

Abstract

Corporate volunteerism is a key component of the philanthropic pillar of CSR, shaping employee engagement and organizational identity. This study employed the social exchange and sensemaking theories to explore how employees make meaning of their experiences in corporate volunteer initiatives and how their experiences influence their perceptions of their organizations. Data was gathered from in-depth interviews with employees with varied corporate volunteer experiences across multiple organizations. The findings show that despite employees’ strong motivations to engage in corporate volunteerism, they face challenges such as time and workload constraints and limited variety of volunteer opportunities. The study also found that employees’ involvement in corporate volunteerism shaped their perception of their organization’s commitment to CSR as more genuine. This study offers some important recommendations for organizations seeking to enhance their corporate volunteerism efforts and strengthen employee engagement in CSR initiatives.

Access Type

Thesis-Open Access

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