Internal and External Communication on Sustainable Development Cooperation Projects for Your Cooperative Company
- Content with purpose for annual reports, brochures, sustainability reports, social media content, etc.
- Strengthening your own employer branding and added value for internal communication
- Visibility and enhancement of CSR engagement
Employer Attractiveness
- Supplemental element of HR: broadening horizons and competencies through participation in international projects
- Employee retention and recruitment through strengthened employer branding
- Increasing employee motivation
- Contributions from participants during and after assignments for corporate communication
- Job shadowing and expert assignments
- Building and expanding networks, including through partnerships with cooperative project partners worldwide
Our Participation Offers – The Power, Passion, Youngstars & Partnership Packages
Below we present our participation offers and their benefits. Interested? Then simply get in touch with us.
Power Package – Bringing Professional Experience to a New Context
- Opportunity for an organized job shadowing in a development cooperation project with cooperatives
- Sharing professional experience and exchange on specialist topics
- Insights and participation in subject-specific activities
Passion Package – Specialist Knowledge Advantageous
- Development opportunity that promotes employees by gathering new experiences and skills in an international project
- Unique opportunity to get to know new cultures, structures, and ways of working
- Insights and participation in project activities with cooperatives
Youngstars Package – Exchange and Collaboration with Young People in Cooperatives
- Horizontal professional development (broadening horizons and looking beyond the familiar)
- Strengthening foreign language skills and intercultural competencies
- Insights and participation in projects with young members and employees in cooperatives on site in an international project
Beyond Borders:
Impressions from the Pilot Projects with Volksbanken Kraichgau eG & Ihre Volksbank Neckar Odenwald Main Tauber eG
The project group with employees from the Volksbanks' HR and communications departments — joined here also by Volksbank am Württemberg eG — together with the International Relations Department of the DGRV, is jointly developing the project concept "Employer Attractiveness" for active participation in development cooperation with cooperatives.
Project Concept: Employer Attractiveness
Active Participation in Cooperative Development Cooperation:
- New development opportunity that promotes employees through gathering new experiences and skills
- Unique opportunity to get to know new cultures, structures, and ways of working
- Varied work content: chance to step out of the familiar environment
- Strengthening corporate image through assuming social and entrepreneurial responsibility
How It Works
Implementing the Concept
- The banks present the participation offers as a supplemental element of HR development
- Employees apply with motivational videos for the advertised packages for their assignment
- On-site activities are prepared by the staff of the DGRV International Relations Department, who support the preparation of assignments
- The GESTE Foundation coordinates and accompanies participants before, during, and after the activity
- All partners report on social media before, during, and after the assignment
Workshop with Bankers from a SACCO in Kenya
Miriam Schick from Volksbank Kraichgau eG and Julia Kilian from Ihre Volksbank eG present the organizational structure and business model of their Volksbanks in Germany. In the workshop with managers and employees of Kenyan SACCOs (Savings and Credit Cooperatives), aspects of corporate governance and current challenges for cooperatives in both countries are then discussed.
Paid Vacation and Leisure Fun? Not at All...
...concrete work is expected! As part of the job shadowing, employees of the cooperative banks take on a variety of tasks depending on the package, project, or target group, supplementing the consulting and training provided by the DGRV team on site!
Contributions for Internal and External Communication
The participating Volksbanks use the packages to increase employer attractiveness in internal communication with employees and highlight this attractive participation opportunity. Externally, the banks' engagement is a sign that even as a regional cooperative bank, they are committed to sustainable development in the countries of the Global South and show solidarity.
Multiple Wins...
...all participants benefit from the activities
- Employees of cooperative banks are motivated by the exchange on the work of cooperatives in other countries and bring new ideas for their work
- Project partners in countries of the Global South are supported and encouraged in their development
- The Volksbanks in Germany use the collaboration for HR development and recruitment
The collaboration of young employees in the Youngstars Package is, by the way, not a one-time action but will be continued with the preparation of the first World Savings Day for SACCOs in Eswatini.
Documentation of Engagement!
The participating cooperative banks receive confirmation of their engagement from the GESTE Foundation after successful completion of the packages. And of course, every participating employee does too.
Partnership Package
Signing of Partnership Agreement with Raiffeisen Market in India
Volksbank am Württemberg eG is supporting the establishment of another Raiffeisen Market in India for the Kubeer Women's Farmers Producer Organization, in partnership with the cooperative umbrella organization APMAS.
The Chairman of the Board, Armin Hornung, who is also Chairman of the GESTE Foundation Board, emphasizes that the collaboration also generates high motivation among employees. The insight into the work of cooperatives in India and the opportunity to actively contribute through exchange is inspiring!
GESTE Foundation in the #webBank Catalog of VR NetWorld
Join in and enhance your website in the "For You – Sustainability – Engagement" section with attractive articles on development cooperation with cooperatives!
GESTE Foundation on the BVR Sustainability Portal
The BVR Sustainability Portal supports you in achieving your company goals efficiently and effectively.
