Dubai – December 07, 2022: QNET, the prominent e-commerce based direct selling company, is promoting the adoption of employee volunteer programs in corporations on the occasion of International Volunteer Day. The company has a long and decorated history of undertaking corporate social responsibility (CSR) initiatives through its CSR arm, RYTHM Foundation. 

International Volunteer Day was first observed by the United Nations (UN) in 1985. Since then, on December 5, every year, the day recognizes and celebrates the power of collective action to produce positive change, through volunteering. 

Commenting on the benefits of volunteering, Ms. Malou Caluza, CEO of QNET, said, “The power of workplace volunteerism is undeniable. Not only is it an effective means to make a real social difference, but essential to building a culture of empathy and giving for internal stakeholders. volunteering strengthens employee bonds, encouraging better teamwork and leading to higher engagement and productivity. 

“Volunteer programs also help align a corporation's values with the values held by its team members, fostering a feeling of shared purpose and pride in the company. Companies can attract and retain highly qualified employees by demonstrating a commitment to social responsibility. By allowing employees to develop personal growth, new skills, and interests outside their daily work routines, we can encourage our team members to push themselves to new levels of responsibility and take on new leadership challenges,” she added.

Beyond benefiting communities, volunteer programs positively affect a company's bottom line. According to Ms. Caluza, employee volunteer programs improve morale, with 89 per cent of workers agreeing that organizations encouraging volunteering have a better overall work environment per a Deloitte study.
Ms. Caluza further said, “As a senior executive in a global organisation, I believe in the potential for real, sustainable change that we can achieve by dedicating employees' immense talents and energies to meeting the challenges facing our communities. I am proud to say that we are an organisation that successfully transformed our Founders' commitment to contribute positively to society.”

Ms. Caluza also stated that the RYTHM Foundation serves as a positive case study for how organizations can benefit through an employee volunteer program. For example, QNET implemented a groupwide policy for its employees to dedicate a minimum of 16 hours each year to volunteer in their community to be eligible for their annual bonus.

“This innovative employee programme was born out of our philosophy of RYTHM (Raise Yourself to Help Mankind). Built on our core values of empowerment, volunteerism, and resilience, our Corporate Social Responsibility arm, RYTHM Foundation, strives to unlock the potential within each of us to rise above our challenges,” she said.

Elaborating on the role that RYTHM plays in QNET, Ms. Caluza said, “Through RYTHM, our staff give their time, skills, and talents to efforts such as reforestation in our Green Legacy initiative, helping special needs children, and reaching out to underserved communities. Our employees act as forces for good in their communities, empowering individuals, and communities to overcome the obstacles in their lives so they, too, can help others. In this way, we can transform an entire community. And with one community at a time, we can change the world.”
“That culture of RYTHM is self-perpetuating. It spreads from person to person, inspiring others to be the change they want to see in the world. Often, our team members go well beyond the minimum requirement, some volunteering as much as 30 hours annually, motivated by the positive changes they see in their community,” she added.

The RYTHM Foundation carries out a variety of CSR initiatives around the world, in Africa, South Asia and Southeast Asia. Some examples of RYTHM’s CSR activities include cleaning plastic waste from beaches, caring for elderly at an old folk’s home, spending time with children at an orphanage and so on. Since the program launched in 2013, QNET employees have contributed over 100,000 hours to volunteering in more than 20 countries.