What is Social Return (SROI)?
Social Return, also known as SROI (Social Return on Investment), is a way to weigh social value alongside financial value in procurement and tendering. Clients, often municipalities and other government bodies, require contractors to allocate a portion of the contract value to social goals. Examples include providing work experience placements, internships, or guidance to people who are distant from the labor market.
Companies can fulfill their Social Return requirement in various ways: by hiring people, offering internships, or investing in programs that demonstrably contribute to work and development.
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Why choose a mentoring program to fulfill Social Return?
Not every organization has the capacity to hire someone directly or offer an internship. A mentoring program is an alternative that contributes in a different way: employees use their knowledge, network, and time to help someone else get closer to employment.
This has several advantages:
- It suits a wide range of organizations. Whether you have many vacancies or few, the voluntary commitment of employees is always possible.
- It also benefits the employee themselves. Mentors develop skills, expand their network, and gain new experiences.
- The hours count. Volunteer hours can be included in Social Return reporting, either alongside or instead of financial contributions.
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How does the DUO for a JOB mentoring program work?
DUO for a JOB matches young job seekers with a migration background (aged 18-33) with experienced professionals aged 50 and over. Together, they form a duo for six months, during which the mentor guides the young person toward a job, education, or an internship.
The guidance is not about taking over the young person's work, but about sharing experience, networks, and confidence. This could involve reviewing a CV together, practicing for a job interview, or simply broadening someone's network in a sector where they do not yet have an entry point.
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How a company can use this to fulfill requirements
An organization can contribute to the mentoring program in two ways, or a combination of both:
- Deploying employees as volunteer mentors. Employees aged 50 and over participate as mentors. The time they spend on this (approximately 80 hours, spread over six months) counts as social commitment toward the Social Return requirement.
- Funding mentoring trajectories. An organization can also choose to fund (part of) the costs of guidance, matching, and training for mentors as a direct social investment in the program.
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From pilot to structural partnership
Organizations that want to get to know the program can start with a pilot: 1 to 3 employees participate as mentors, allowing the organization to experience the benefits for both the employees and the young people being mentored.
Was the pilot a success? The next step is a structural partnership, in which an organization funds multiple mentoring trajectories. We would be happy to discuss how we can shape this and which partnership best suits your company.
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What does DUO for a JOB offer participating companies?
DUO for a JOB handles the entire process for the organization:
- Recruitment and matching of mentors and young people
- Training and guidance for mentors throughout the program
- Reporting and impact measurement, tailored to the accountability required for Social Return obligations
- Internal communication about the program
- Support in showcasing social impact, for example through storytelling and communications
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More than just an obligation: what are the benefits?
Social Return is often viewed as a box-ticking exercise. A mentorship program offers the opportunity to link that obligation to concrete, measurable impact: young people moving closer to employment, and employees continuing their professional development. For organizations also working on diversity and inclusion policies, this also aligns with attracting and supporting diverse talent.
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Curious if this is a good fit for your organization?
Whether you have a Social Return requirement from a tender, or your organization simply wants to contribute to equal opportunities in the labor market, DUO for a JOB is happy to explore the possibilities with you. Please contact Jet van Beuningen at j.vanbeuningen@duoforajob.org.
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