How volunteering builds stronger people and better businesses, with Emma Gervasio, RVS 

In the latest episode of The Inspiring Leadership Podcast, Emma Gervasio, Chief Operating Officer at the Royal Voluntary Service, joins gunnercooke Founder Darryl Cooke to explore the impact volunteering can have on individuals, organisations, and society. 

At a moment when anxiety is rising, work and life feel increasingly intertwined, and leaders are searching for more meaningful ways to engage their people, Emma offers her case for why volunteering deserves far greater attention. 

Volunteering, purpose, and human potential 

Emma’s work involves research, public service, and leadership. Using raw data, she explains how volunteering is a workplace intervention that consistently creates positive outcomes. 

Those outcomes are not marginal. If volunteering were used to its full potential, it could generate productivity gains of over £5,000 per person, adding more than £30 billion to the UK economy. 

Volunteering provides something workplaces struggle to create; purpose. It makes people feel connected, valued, and part of something larger than themselves which helps stop disengagement and burnout. 

Wellbeing, belonging, and better outcomes at work 

Darryl and Emma explore the growing pressures facing today’s workforce and the role volunteering can play in supporting both mental and physical health. 

Emma’s research shows that well-designed volunteering programmes can: 

• Improve mental health and wellbeing 

• Build a sense of purpose 

• Develop skills, confidence, and employability 

• Reduce sickness absence 

• Increase engagement 

Over 40% of people report improved wellbeing through volunteering, and more than a third say it makes them happier. It can even provide a vital pathway back into work. 

Culture eats policy for breakfast 

Emma also addresses the gap between organisational policy and lived experience. 

Businesses often claim to support volunteering, but employees often feel that reality is different. Without approval from leadership, volunteering feels risky and something that harms career progression. 

It’s important for leaders to rethink how volunteering is supported. Small changes, such as offering volunteering time in hours rather than full days, can increase participation by making opportunities feel flexible and achievable. 

Additionally, volunteering must be visible and led from the top. Recognition and encouragement are vastly more important than policy. 

Making volunteering accessible: the story of GoVo 

Access is often the biggest barrier to volunteering. To address this, Emma and the Royal Voluntary Service have developed GoVo, a new platform designed to make volunteering simple, flexible, and accessible. 

GoVo connects volunteers with charities through short-term, “drop-in and do” roles that fit around modern working lives. By entering any UK postcode, users can instantly discover hundreds of nearby opportunities, whether they live in a city centre or a remote rural area. 

Emma describes the most common reaction: surprise at just how much is happening on people’s doorsteps. 

With thousands of charities already uploading opportunities, GoVo aims to widen participation and unlock the huge, untapped potential in volunteering across the UK. 

Leadership, responsibility, and everyday impact 

This episode is a conversation about leadership responsibility. 

Leadership is not only about results. It’s about the culture we create, the behaviours we reward, and the opportunities we provide. 

As Darryl reflects, volunteering will only realise its full potential when leaders move beyond good intentions and actively enable participation. When embedded into the fabric of organisations, volunteering becomes a powerful force for wellbeing, engagement, and social impact. 

You can listen to the full episode of The Inspiring Leadership Podcast on Spotify and Apple Podcasts.