Corporate social responsibility is not only the right thing to do — it helps enhance both your brand and your culture.
The 2013 Good.Must.Grow. Conscious Consumer Spending Index proves this point — 60 percent of respondents said buying goods from socially responsible companies is important to them.
And 30 percent said they expect to increase the amount of goods and services they buy from socially responsible companies over the next year (12 points higher than the year before).
There are many ways companies can be socially responsible — charitable donations, volunteer efforts or environmental sustainable operations — all of which we do. But, charitable outreach has become a real passion for our people. Here are three methods we’ve discovered at Safelite as ways to involve our employees in giving back.
Allow time for volunteering
At Safelite, we offer two paid eight-hour days off work to volunteer annually. One is an individual day at a charity of the employee’s choice. The second is a community service day coordinated by a department to spend time volunteering together. This equals nearly 160,000 possible hours of community service.
Beyond that, Safelite encourages its employees to give 2 percent of their time to volunteer in their community. That includes the 16 hours of paid time off the company allows in addition to 24 hours of their personal time for a total of 40 hours, which equals 2 percent of the average hours in a “work year.”
Lead by example
If we are to ask our employees to volunteer — then the same applies to our leadership team. We encourage our leaders to volunteer their expertise by serving on a board of a charitable organization. In Columbus alone, 17 local charities are positively impacted by one of our leaders on a board. These leaders are encouraged to use their experience for change.
One example is our senior vice president of our supply chain, Dino Lanno, who serves on the board of LifeCare Alliance.
Not only did Lanno work with the organization to establish a corporate Meals-on-Wheels delivery route, but he also lent his expertise in logistics to streamline their fleet operations and he participates in monthly production and quality assurance meetings.
Create opportunities for shared giving
Finally, we make it a priority to come together company-wide several times a year for fundraising events. Two great examples are the Safelite Challenge and our National Giving Campaign.
The Safelite Challenge is an annual fundraiser inviting our employees to participate in a triathlon, duathlon or motorcycle poker run. We have about 300 participants each year, raising $250,000 or more.
The National Giving Campaign is an annual program that encourages all employees to raise funds for the charities of their choosing. Thanks to the logistical support of the United Way, funds are directed to charities of employees’ preference nationwide.
In addition, employees can elect for a one-time or on-going payroll deduction over the coming year to those charities.
By formalizing these efforts — one in the spring and one in the fall — employees “catch the spirit” and help to make a significant impact for the greater good.
