Imagine an employee who spends every other Saturday morning tutoring kids at a local literacy nonprofit. She is not asking the company for money. She is giving her personal time because she cares. Now imagine the company says: because you volunteered 10 hours this quarter, we are donating 100 dollars to that nonprofit on your behalf. That is Dollars for Doers+ -- a program that converts employee volunteer hours into charitable donations funded by the company. It is one of the most elegant concepts in corporate philanthropy because it rewards the behavior companies say they value most: employees actively engaged in their communities.
How Dollars for Doers+ Works
The mechanics are simple. A company sets a threshold -- a number of volunteer hours that triggers a donation. When an employee reaches that threshold, the company makes a donation to the nonprofit where the employee volunteered.
Here are common threshold structures:
The tiered model is especially effective because it creates multiple moments of recognition and gives employees a reason to keep going after hitting their first milestone.
Why Dollars for Doers+ Programs Are So Effective
They Reward Action, Not Just Money
Donation matching rewards employees who write checks. Dollars for Doers+ rewards employees who show up and do the work. For many employees -- especially younger workers or those earlier in their careers -- time is easier to give than money. A Dollars for Doers+ program ensures that every form of generosity is recognized.
They Create a Multiplier Effect
When an employee volunteers at a food bank and the company then donates 250 dollars to that food bank, the nonprofit receives both labor and funding from the same relationship. The volunteer hours have tangible value on their own, and the donation amplifies that impact. For the nonprofit, this combination is incredibly valuable.
They Drive Repeat Volunteering
Programs without thresholds treat every volunteer event as a one-off. Dollars for Doers+ creates an ongoing incentive to keep volunteering. Employees track their hours, see their progress toward the next threshold, and stay engaged over months rather than attending a single event and forgetting about it.
Setting Up Dollars for Doers+ in Selflessly
Selflessly makes Dollars for Doers+ easy to configure and fully automatic. Here is how it works in the platform:
The entire process runs without manual spreadsheets, email approvals, or HR intervention. Set the rules once and the system handles everything.
Best Practices for a Successful Program
Start with achievable thresholds. If the first milestone requires 40 hours, most employees will never reach it and the program will feel irrelevant. A 10-hour entry point is low enough that a single volunteer event or a few hours spread across a month can trigger the first donation.
Pair Dollars for Doers+ with VTO. Volunteer Time Off gives employees paid hours to volunteer during the workday. When you combine VTO with Dollars for Doers+, you remove both the time barrier and the recognition barrier simultaneously. Employees get paid time to volunteer, and the company donates on top of that.
Celebrate milestones publicly. When an employee triggers a Dollars for Doers+ donation, announce it. A Slack message, a shout-out in a team meeting, or a mention in the company newsletter goes a long way toward encouraging others to participate.
Let employees choose where they volunteer. Just like employee-directed giving, the best Dollars for Doers+ programs let employees volunteer wherever they are most passionate. Mandating specific organizations limits participation.
The Takeaway
Dollars for Doers+ is a powerful complement to donation matching and direct giving. It recognizes employees who contribute their time, creates ongoing engagement rather than one-off events, and delivers dual value to nonprofits through both labor and funding. If your company already offers volunteer opportunities but has not added a Dollars for Doers+ component, you are leaving significant impact on the table.
Book a demo and see how Selflessly can help.