Barbara Schafarczyk is a service delivery manager for an automotive customer at Capgemini who shared social media expertise with non-profit organizations in Germany during Social Academy Week. She discusses the experience and explains how CSR is all about “doing.”

“During the pandemic, I became interested in the power of LinkedIn to promote your organization – and your own expertise – through written articles,” says Barbara. “In my opinion, women sometimes need an extra boost of confidence to do this.

After Barbara conducted a webinar on the subject within Capgemini, she was invited to lead a session for the Social Academy week.

Digital training and upskilling for non-profits

The annual event is organized by tech companies based in Berlin and Munich and takes place over the course of a week. Participating businesses conduct online seminars and workshops with the aim of empowering and upskilling non-profit organizations on a pro bono basis.

Barbara was astonished when she found out her class was the second-most subscribed. “I was completely shocked,” she says. “The organizers told me 100 people had signed up. It turned out the number was actually 250.”

Adjusting expectations and adapting to new experiences

Barbara conducted the talk in German, which is not her first language. “I was concerned people would notice my mistakes,” she says. “But once I started, I realized that didn’t matter. They were simply interested in what they could learn.”

The fact the session was online rather than face to face also proved to be no obstacle. “I was blown away by the energy and enthusiasm I could feel from the participants,” says Barbara. “It was something I didn’t expect from a virtual workshop.”

Maximizing value of social media platforms

For not-for-profit organizations, understanding how to maximize the value from LinkedIn and social media can be crucial. “It can become a reliable source of donations, further pro bono work, as well as future collaborations,” explains Barbara.

“I was also really honest about the need to self-publicize because non-profit organizations need clear and candid advice. I emphasized that if I hadn’t heard of their organization, none of my colleagues had either.”

Finding satisfaction in helping others

For Barbara, the main benefit of participating in pro bono work is the satisfaction of helping others to create the future they want.

“People ask why I spend extra time working on these projects,” she says, “I tell them that, rather than being a burden, it’s a fantastic way to deal with stress. After you see not-for-profit organizations take your suggestions seriously and start to use social media more effectively, you get a great sense of reward.”

Back to school

Barbara also supports some of her colleagues in the CSR team on a project to help schools in Germany learn how to use Microsoft Teams as a teaching resource. This has meant literally “going back to school” because the training, which is being expanded, takes place on site, with appropriate measures in place.

“Schools have struggled during the pandemic, so we’re supporting them by training teachers to get the most out of Teams, alongside some of our partners from Microsoft,” she says.

Becoming Robin Hood through CSR

Barbara feels that doing CSR is like becoming Robin Hood. “You’re not taking away anything, but you’re enriching people’s lives. And you do feel heroic once you get involved because, honestly, you can find yourself changing someone’s life for the better.”

Further digital inclusion schemes

Capgemini Germany is involved in several other digital inclusion schemes, including:

• Online mentoring with Volunteer Vision:
  More than 60 Capgemini colleagues in Germany have been helping refugees to gain new skills through one-to-one tuition that covers CVs, careers, and generates a “strengths and development” plan for participants.
• Cyber mentoring for schoolgirls:
  Each year, female Capgemini colleagues work with schoolgirls between the age of 14–18 through the CyberMentor platform to act as a role model and mentor on STEM-related projects while providing careers guidance.
• Hackathons:
  Capgemini colleagues participate regularly as hackers and judges in virtual hackathons that aim to solve social problems and generate technology solutions while connecting the tech community with NGOs and politicians.
• Virtual strategy workshops for NGOs:
  As part of a virtual volunteering day in Germany, Capgemini has supported several NGOs by giving their employees virtual strategy workshops on topics such as online fundraising and virtual collaboration. For example, Capgemini delivered two online workshops for the “Wilderness in Germany” initiative, which brings together 20 environmental NGOs in Germany, sharing best practices for online fundraising, defining personas, tools, communication, and payment solutions.

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