Guest Columns

Perspective:
Charitable Giving

Industry outreach: volunteer time off

Mat Bartkowiak

Mat Bartkowiak is vice president of corporate responsibility and development for Nelson-Jameson, Marshfield, Wisconsin. He contributes this column exclusively for Cheese Market News®.

Having gotten the chance to attend the most recent World Championship Cheese Auction, I was reminded of the remarkable engagement and charitable support that we see in the cheese industry. Companies across the country serve their communities, educational institutions, food banks and beyond with financial contributions, volunteer opportunities and so much more. To build on this theme of service, stewardship and ways the industry can keep making an impact, I’d like to focus on a program that we have found to be a welcome addition to our outreach efforts here at Nelson-Jameson: Volunteer Time Off.

Volunteer time off (VTO) programs encourage employees to represent the company in their local communities by providing a pool of hours to serve nonprofits. At Nelson-Jameson, employees schedule their hours and days much like they do PTO hours. These hours encourage employees to serve 501(c)(3) organizations in their communities, while providing them their normal compensation. So far, our employees use approximately 225 total hours per year, but our target is to reach 400 hours. These hours encourage employees and the company to help build our local communities in ways that are meaningful to employees, while reaffirming the commitment of the company to the health and well-being of the places that we are fortunate enough to call home.

Several years ago, we established the Nelson-Jameson Foundation. This helped us to focus on charitable giving in a more formulated and focused manner. However, it has also given us an idea of the great number of worthy charitable organizations that are trying to make a difference everyday. Knowing that we have only a finite amount of funds that we are able to award through the foundation, the pull for VTO has become even stronger. VTO allows companies a chance to have a direct impact on communities that goes beyond financial contributions. It combines the power of boots-on-the-ground volunteering with the passion and dedication of employees. This is a powerful reach that within a few hours can make a difference to already stretched thin organizations.

VTO programs can also have several meaningful impacts beyond the work getting done at those organizations that are welcome byproducts for businesses. One of those is employee engagement and encouragement. For purpose-driven employees, VTO can be an empowering way to give back while representing the company.

As one of our employees recently shared, “Nelson-Jameson’s Volunteer Time Off Program is more than just ‘nice-to-have.’ It has enabled me to show up and give back to an organization that has given so much to me over the years. Volunteering for my town’s music festival was the perfect way to spend a day off and actively contribute to my town’s culture.”

Another employee shared, “We often underestimate the weight of a single hour of service. For me, the reward isn’t in the recognition but in the quiet knowledge that my contribution has made a tangible difference in someone else’s story.”

Another impact that VTO has, if used strategically, is being an opportune chance for team building.

Sometimes getting outside the normal walls of operation energizes and connects people in ways that create a new sense of context and shared accomplishment. Whether gathering your leadership team for a shift at the local food bank or bringing together departments for a few hours at the local United Way to pack school supplies, the chance for teams to connect and to take on a tangible task creates more casual opportunities for colleagues to get to know each other, while accomplishing something they can be proud of collectively.

VTO can be viewed as a commonsense investment in the vitality of the communities that we depend upon for employee talent and development. Businesses have the chance to positively impact communities by being active neighbors and bringing much-needed resources to organizations looking to strengthen civic engagement and building resources for citizens. The cumulative impact of hours employees spend on these efforts may seem small, but even a small investment in time can make a massive, lasting impact when we commit to our communities.

To most effectively get your VTO program in action, it is advisable to set up procedures to ensure efficacy and standardize the process so everyone in the organization knows what to expect. For example, when submitting for VTO hours, incorporating a managerial approval process is advisable to assist with any concerns about coverage or to help strategically plan any group outings. Also, setting up expectations as to what kinds of activities and organizations are permitted and that align with company standards and values is important. For example, some organizations may set up partnerships with preferred community organizations, or may ask employees to refrain from using VTO for political or religious purposes to avoid any potential concerns.

Establishing the need for volunteering to be with a 501(c)(3) organization is a way to help align these standards but still may require some legwork in the approval process to avoid any conflicts or potential, problematic perceptions. Keeping these kinds of concerns in mind can go a long way to clarify the process before concerns have the chance to arise.

Building a VTO program is just another tool for your consideration to add to our industry’s impressive toolbox of giving back. Giving some further consideration to a VTO program, though, may provide businesses with several surprising and invigorating affirmations that can keep employees, and our communities, engaged in effective ways. It’s the people at the end of the day that make a difference, and we happen to have an industry chock full of authentic and passionate individuals. Working together, there’s so much we can accomplish.

CMN

The views expressed by CMN’s guest columnists are their own opinions and do not necessarily reflect those of Cheese Market News®.

© 2026 Cheese Market News • Quarne Publishing, LLC • Legal Information • Online Privacy Policy • Terms and Conditions
Cheese Market News • Business/Advertising Office: P.O. Box 24 • Sun Prairie, WI 53590 • 608/831-6002
Cheese Market News • Editorial Office: 5315 Wall Street, Suite 100 • Madison, WI 53718 • 608/288-9090