Employees get their kicks by giving back
Business First of Buffalo - by Tracey Drury Business First
It’s not every twenty-something guy that will proudly admit that he was trounced on the soccer field by an 11-year-old kid.
But Gregory Dooley, marketing coordinator at Algonquin Studios, says he willingly accepts the mild humiliation – as well as giving up a few hours of his after-work time – to help improve the lives of underprivileged, inner-city kids.
“The whole idea of donation is giving something that is valuable to you to someone else. For a lot of us, that’s our time,” he says. “We get to go out and play soccer with a bunch of little kids, like pick-up games. And these kids, they love it.”
Dooley loves it too, as do his co-workers at Algonquin, a Buffalo technology firm. Instead of spending long hours writing code and creating Web sites, Algonquin workers are encouraged to participate in a company-sponsored nonprofit soccer league created by CEO Stephen Kiernan.
The league is the Buffalo Soccer Club, an initiative of Algonquin Sports for Kids, incorporated last year as a nonprofit dedicated to youth sports. The soccer program began in 2005 when Kiernan partnered with Buffalo United Soccer, a league for premier players, to sponsor a series of soccer clinics on Buffalo’s East Side. The clinics continued, proving successful enough to warrant the start of a house league this July.
Starting with 10 players the first night, with open registration the league has since grown to more than 225, each registered on a pay-if-you-can basis. Every Tuesday and Thursday night, teams are assembled based on how many kids show up to play at JFK Community Center on the city’s East Side. Participants receive uniforms and are coached by volunteer and professional trainers and referees.
Here’s where the staffers from Algonquin come in: volunteering in whatever capacity they can, helping to set up nets, corralling kids and balls or coaching. Volunteering with the soccer program isn’t required, but there’s some friendly pressure in the office, says Tom Garigen, executive director for Algonquin Sports.
Garigen says the employees don’t really have to know anything about sports because the professional coaches are there to direct them.
“Usually it doesn’t take much – they’re happy to do it,” he says. “When you’re out there and you see four, five, six year old kids thrilled to death because they’re part of a team, they talk about how much fun it is. It really enhances the work environment. We’ve had some employees say that’s why they’ve stayed, because of the kind of fun programs we do in the community.”
Kiernan, who has been involved in amateur sports for 20 years, says he saw the benefits of soccer when his own children played, but recognized there wasn’t anyone running a program in the inner-city. Besides helping area kids, opening the program up to his employees has created an unintended training opportunity.
“I much prefer to get my people in the trenches and take up a cause. It’s more meaningful,” he says.
At least a dozen different employees from the firm have come out to coach or help with administration or some other way. The program gives them a way to give back without having to write a check or solicit friends and family for sponsorships, but also make a hands-on contribution in the community. Because Algonquin also maintains the Web site for the Roswell Alliance Paintbox Project, employees volunteer with children with cancer at various events throughout the year.
The in-office vibe is laid back too: Nerf guns, video games and scooters give staffers a way to relieve stress. The company also shops for fresh sausage and vegetables at the twice weekly farmer’s market downtown on Tuesdays and Thursdays, after which employees cook full meals for each other in the kitchen at the office.
Kiernan recognizes that not everyone is comfortable working with kids and that’s OK, but he offers other opportunities to get involved. Doing it this way seems to have better results than just writing a check.
“It’s a selfish thing: I end up with much more well-rounded employees who really do understand the issues that face the City of Buffalo,” he says. “It’s a good way to identify those types of skill sets, but many of the employees feel very strongly it’s become an important part of what they are at Algonquin Studios.”
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