Freese and Nichols and the Art of Community Service

From the current issue of Engineering, Inc. by Calvin Hennick - One Person, One Hour At a Time: Freese and Nichols challenges its employees to volunteer 100 hours or more for worthy causes each year:

"Ultimately the volunteering program is good not just for the nonprofit that receive help or for the employees who participate, it also benefits Freese & Nichols itself.  The program boosts the company's reputation with clients, prospective hires and the communities where the firm works, and it helps establish a positive culture that lives up to the firm's lofty guiding principles.

"It's absolutely a positive thing for the company," says Pence [Bob Pence, president and CEO].  "People want to be part of an organization that goes beyond just what their business is.  They want to feel good about whom they work for, and they want to feel good about the company's role in the community.  It's a big piece of our culture.""

Interesting how this interfaces with the management of millennial talent.  From the current issue of Fortune - Five Things You Can Do to Attract Millennial Talent:

1. Forget the 9-to-5 schedule
2. If you want them to stay, offer training resources
3. Don't wait for the next annual review for feedback
4. Give them purpose beyond the bottom line
5. The perks matter too