Here are three business benefits of volunteerism, a key element of philanthropy in today's insurance industry:

An employee from Sullivan Group works with children at a classroom as part of 2011's IICF's volunteerism event. Education is a key area for both funding and volunteerism in the insurance industry.

1. Employees' Gifts of Talent and Time Redouble the Industry's Donations

The watershed 2011 report “Charitable Giving in the Property-Casualty Insurance Industry” from the financial services practice of McKinsey & Co. showed that this sector provided approximately $500 million in charitable funding in 2010. (Other sectors of the industry, including life and health insurance and benefits, also make significant charitable contributions, although McKinsey's study did not include them.)

Charitable giving includes volunteerism, employee matching gift programs, and corporate grant programs from company foundations.

The McKinsey study found most P/C industry charitable giving was directed to four areas:

• Education (34 percent of the funding)

• Health and social services (20 percent)

• Community and economic development (18 percent)

• Culture and arts (7 percent)

These areas match up with the charitable interests of insurance employees. Employees who volunteer often choose to work in classrooms, parks, and food banks. They look to their local neighborhoods and regions to try to make a difference.

Read related: “Why Charitable Giving is Your Business' Best Investment.”

From 1998-2011, the Insurance Industry Charitable Foundation (IICF) has hosted Volunteer Week, the largest ongoing volunteer initiative in the insurance industry. Initially based in California where IICF started, Volunteer Week grew into a broader annual initiative held each October. To date, Volunteer Week has provided over 155,000 hours of volunteer community service. Most recently, in 2011, 3,627 IICF volunteers from more than 100 companies logged 14,241.5 hours in 18 states on more than 400 projects.

Volunteer Week has been expanded in 2012 into “IICF Week of Giving,” which will be held Oct. 13-20. Volunteer teams can sign up to volunteer at http://volunteer.iicf.org/. The weeklong industry-wide event includes a new donation component: Employees can donate $5 by texting INSURANCE to 50555. Givers also may donate online at www.IICF.org. Text donations will be divided among four nonprofit organizations: Feeding America, St. Baldrick's Foundation, Starlight Children's Foundation, and the Wounded Warrior Project.

Workers from the Arch Insurance Group pitched in at a southern California food bank in 2011.

2. Volunteerism Builds Leadership and Teamwork

Companies and employees that have taken part in volunteer efforts report several benefits, including leadership development and improved morale in the workplace.

Some employers believe so strongly in volunteerism that they take a formal company-wide approach to support it. For example, XL Group holds a “Global Day of Giving” — a business day set aside where thousands of XL workers around the world roll up their sleeves and work in their local areas. Chubb, a multiline property-casualty carrier, has an organization-wide initiative during IICF Week of Giving, while other organizations make similar efforts.

Teamwork extends across company borders, as trade associations are fostering volunteer efforts and also raising charitable funds. For example, the Independent Insurance Agents and Brokers of Los Angeles in 2012 will once again make a $5,000 directed grant coupled with volunteerism at the Los Angeles Regional Food Bank.

Trade associations, law firms, actuarial consultants, brokers – many different types of insurance employers are getting involved. Twenty-four independent agents, insurance carrier representatives and employees of the Independent Insurance Agents and Brokers of New York are volunteering at the Rescue Mission in downtown Syracuse during the Week of Giving.

Read related: “Insurance charitable foundation highlights industry's good side.”

Even after an initial volunteer project comes and goes, some employees carry on. This is a goal of IICF Week of Giving. One example is a team from Travelers that started volunteering in 2010 at The Interfaith Nutrition Network (“The INN”), a charity based in Long Island, New York. With more volunteers than could contribute in the first week, employees organized a second week – then made a long-term commitment to provide volunteers for the second Tuesday of each month. Commented one of the Travelers employees about the ongoing effort: “I am tired physically, but pumped mentally, when I leave there after a volunteer shift.”

The Long Island team was part of an effort led by Lisa Tepper, Travelers regional president, who encouraged every office in the region to get involved. More than 1,000 Travelers employees participated in the New York tri-state in the first IICF Northeast Division Week of Giving.

New York City employees of Travelers pitched in at a City Kids charity volunteer effort in 2011.

3. Volunteerism Attracts and Motivates Employees

The millennial generation values volunteerism, and many younger employees expect their employer to be involved in the community. For some, it's a “must-have” when they look for their first job or the next step in their career.

It's not just younger and new employees in the workplace that want to get involved in volunteerism. Many employees tie together their perceptions of their employer not just with the job, workplace, salary and benefits but also with the company's brand in the community. The word “community,” by the way, can mean anything from the global community for a large employer to the local neighborhood for an independent insurance agency.

Read related: “Charitable Giving is Good Corporate Policy.”

Other benefits of volunteer projects for the company and employees include expanded networking opportunities both within and outside the walls of the organization, as well as enhanced brand recognition.