Incentive - December 2007 - (Page 23)

CASE STUDY directly to the for-profit sector that you wouldn’t otherwise learn,” says Kellner. For starters, it taught volunteers to abandon consultancy terms and speak in regular language. “You become much better at explaining yourself and your methodology,” says Kellner. The work was “almost identical, in some ways, to the analysis we do for our commercial clients at Booz Allen,” says Kellner. “Except that it was on a much smaller scale.” Instead of surveying 10,000 consumers, they’d stand out on street corners, passing out questionnaires, and survey 110. Booz Allen’s people had to learn to explain business concepts from scratch to people who’d never even done computerized inventory. “It helps me with bono work for clients such as the New York Foundation for the Arts. The firm sets aside resources and billable hours and treats its pro bono work as if it was for paying clients. However, UEI is unique in that it’s all volunteer. Employees cannot bill their time or expense their travel. Therefore Booz Allen’s work with UEI can serve as a template for firms unable to afford allowing their employees to work for free, but that nonetheless want to start volunteer programs. The main ingredient to UEI’s success, both as a volunteer project and as a tool for building better employees, is that the project uses Booz Allen’s strengths. Instead of manning a soup kitchen, or volunteering at a public school, UEI has benefits of being involved with a megacommunity are subtle, but wide-ranging. This outer-directed involvement gets people out of their bubble, away from their security blankets, and forces them to listen to and deal with real problems that real people face. That’s knowledge that can invigorate any company. s “There are lessons learned in the nonprofit sector that apply directly to the for-profit sector.” –Karl Kellner, Booz Allen Hamilton partner my corporate clients, the government clients and the not-for-profits,” says Van Lee. Van Lee feels the work he did with Katrina Parris, which started with two people making bouquets, taught him more about how to deal with nonprofit and governmental clients than any other work he’s done. Booz Allen’s involvement with UEI helps attract talent, too. Van Lee says students are coming out of business school wanting “to do more than just line the pockets of CEOs.” He believes, “They don’t want to work for a not-for-profit, because there is no money in that, but they want to give back to society.” Booz Allen Hamilton’s commitment to service is one of the things that makes the firm stand out to desirable young MBAs. Van Lee has seen students who heard him speak about UEI at Columbia University show up at Booz Allen as new hires and tell him that his speech inspired them. its volunteers doing market research and business strategy—what the company’s people do best. The second ingredient is that the program is local. People get excited when they see progress in their own backyard. The third thing is harder to define, but it’s something that may just help keep cutting-edge firms vibrant and help make average firms cutting-edge. This is something Van Lee calls “megacommunity.” In its work with UEI, Booz Allen has had to bring together accountants, lawyers, people who can advise on real estate, entrepreneurs and nonprofits. What this means is that a firm has to be open to working with people outside its usual sphere of influence. When managing a mega-community, it helps to have a charismatic leader of some sort—in the case of UEI, it’s Bill Clinton. It’s important too that the leader be separate from the commercial firms involved, and be able to inspire people and break gridlock when it arises. From talking with Reggie Van Lee and Karl Kellner, it’s apparent that the All-Volunteer Program Booz Allen Hamilton actually has a longstanding commitment to nonprofit work, though it has usually taken the form of pro Evetta Petty (bottom) and products on display at Harlem’s Heaven Hat Boutique incentivemag.com | December 2007 | Incentive | 23 http://incentivemag.com

Table of Contents Feed for the Digital Edition of Incentive - December 2007

Incentive - December 2007 Contents Editor’s Note: Revved Up In the News Cover Story: Rolls-Royce Empowers Its Own Case Study: Booz Allen Hamilton Beating Your Best Incentive Primer: Add Value to Your Event Keeping Safety In Mind Incentive Interview Potentials Here and Now Research: Corporate Gifts Facts Report Tabletop Awards: Travel Gift Cards Travel News Viva Puerto Vallarta Indigenous Spas Advertiser Index Off the Cuff: Ambassador Christoph Bubb Luxury Brands Special Supplement

Incentive - December 2007

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