59 Companies That Give Back and Make Volunteering Essential to Their Culture

It's easy for any company to get lost in the bottom line. After all, the quarterly or yearly numbers are what keep businesses afloat. So it's pretty special when organizations add a few other key objectives to the plan like care, compassion and community. While some companies are new to giving back iniviatives, others are built on the idea.

For Omaze Vice President of Operations Jessie Segal, attending production meetings, replying to emails, and wrapping presents for the kids at Children's Hospital Los Angeles is all in a day’s work, as charity is weaved throughout her company’s mission. Omaze’s platform was created to help nonprofits fundraise. 

“Our mission is to serve world changers, including the nonprofits we support, our customers and our employees,” Segal said.

Companies that give back and offer employees the chance to do the same are becoming increasingly common in the tech industry. Whether it's paid volunteer days or company-wide fundraisers for important causes, businesses all over the country are creating programs and policies that are providing opportunities for employees to give back.

To give you an idea of the work that's being done, Built In has rounded up 59 companies in some of the nation's largest tech hubs that have gone the extra mile to grow the compassionate, human side of their mission. 

Learn more about their in-office and on-the-ground initiatives below, as well as how the spirit of giving back impacts each company’s culture. 

Omaze’s fundraising platform has enabled over 300 charities to raise more than $100 million. Vice President of Operations Jessie Segal shared the ways Omaze supports charities outside the office as well. 

 

How does your company give back to the local community, both during the holidays and throughout the year? 

We exist to empower nonprofits so they can do world-changing work. We have supported over 300 charities around the world with our once-in-a-lifetime experiences, including raising over $30 million for nonprofits in our home state of California. 

We worked with After-School All-Stars to create after-school programs for 17,000 kids in the Los Angeles Unified School District and we raised funds to get disaster relief resources to 100 victims of the California fires through the California Community Foundation. We are currently raising funds to build a $1 million community center in Downtown LA with PATH to provide resources and housing for the homeless population.

"We exist to empower nonprofits so they can do world-changing work."

 

How is this “spirit of giving” reflected in your company culture and the way your team works together?

Omaze's mission is to serve world-changers, including the nonprofits we support, our customers and our employees. Each year, the entire organization takes a break from our office jobs for an annual day of service, where we volunteer with a local nonprofit and give back to our community. 

For Giving Tuesday, Omaze allocated $2,500 to purchase, wrap and deliver gifts for kids at Children's Hospital Los Angeles. We also frequently have our nonprofit partners come into the office to speak at our bi-weekly team meetings.

 

E-commerce company Spreetail puts its money where its mouth is when it comes to philanthropy, matching employee donations to their favorite causes. Head of Talent Community Chad Kilpatrick said the company’s volunteering efforts also help employees make connections with colleagues they wouldn’t otherwise interact with on an average workday. 

 

How does your company give back to the local community, both during the holidays and throughout the year?

Giving is in our DNA. Throughout the year, our employees participate in volunteer opportunities, including Volunteer Week when over 200 employees serve communities across the country. Through our “New Beginnings” program, we donate mattresses and home essentials to families transitioning from homelessness into stable housing. While our team dedicates thousands of hours each year to volunteering, Spreetail also offers donation matching where employees can contribute to causes that they feel revolutionize their communities.

"We donate mattresses and home essentials to families transitioning from homelessness into stable housing."

 

How is this “spirit of giving” reflected in your company culture and the way your team works together?

At Spreetail, we’ve discovered relationships are a crucial part of our culture. Volunteer opportunities not only give us a chance to help others, but also the ability to build relationships with employees in different departments and locations. Collaboration among teams is evident, as weekly shout-outs highlight individuals sacrificing their time to help others achieve goals and overall make Spreetail better.

 

Redgate Software supported a wide array of causes this year, and broadens its impact by matching employee donations to charitable causes. Account Executive Josh Byus outlined the company’s philanthropic efforts.

 

How does your company give back to the local community, both during the holidays and throughout the year?

At Redgate, the primary way we contribute to our local community is through our “Give Something Back” initiative. Our GSB Team meets every month to discuss how we can support local people with philanthropy, outreach and inclusivity projects. They help organize charitable and volunteer activities for Redgate employees, make decisions on donations and encourage individual employee fundraising and volunteering across a range of causes.

In 2019, we sponsored corporate activities around planting trees with TreeFolks, volunteering at the Austin Pets Alive! animal shelter and wrapping holiday presents for in-need families with Blue Santa. GSB has also made donations to nonprofits that assist K-12 STEM educational programs like Wayside Schools, The Trevor Project’s LGBTQ suicide awareness campaign, Community First Village’s efforts with homelessness and senior support groups like Drive a Senior.

"In 2019, we sponsored corporate activities around planting trees with TreeFolks."

 

How is this “spirit of giving” reflected in your company culture and the way your team works together?

A driving principle at Redgate is one of our value statements: “We do our best work in teams.” We really believe in it too, because it encourages employees to be open and giving across departments to drive efficiency and innovation. Working together for the greater good strengthens this internal team-based mentality by showing how Redgate as a whole builds its relationship with the communities where our employees live. We strive to ensure that every one of our people has the opportunity to make a difference within their immediate teams, across the company, and for the general good of their communities. Redgate also matches the funds raised for registered charities and offers employees paid time off to dedicate to volunteering.

 

OJO Labs’ employees take time out to volunteer at least once a month, helping worthy causes and getting out into their community at the same time. People Operations Specialist Catie Orth explained how this culture of giving manifests itself in an everyday company culture of compassion.

 

How does your company give back to the local community, both during the holidays and throughout the year?

When first developing our OJO Cares program, our goal was for it to have the most impact possible on both our team and the local community. We surveyed our employees to see what causes they felt passionate about and then created a program around that. Once a month, we go out as a group to a local nonprofit and volunteer our time. Each month is different — sometimes we walk dogs; sometimes we cook to feed the homeless; sometimes we help harvest gardens or build houses. Since its inception, we have expanded this program across all of OJO’s global locations

"Sometimes we walk dogs; sometimes we cook to feed the homeless; sometimes we help harvest gardens or build houses."

 

How is this “spirit of giving” reflected in your company culture and the way your team works together?

One of our company’s core values is “show compassion.” Cultivating a culture of appreciation, kindness and giving is a defining characteristic of who we are. We embody this in our daily interactions through things like our “gratitude wall,” a place where employees can recognize their fellow team members by writing gratitude cards. People at OJO are genuinely willing to drop what they’re doing and jump in head first to help at any given moment. There is an authentic desire to be of service, be it in our company or the community around us.

 

Forward Financing’s employee-led service initiative allows team members to nominate organizations they would like to see the company support. Shannon Braley, director of people and culture, told us below how the program, in addition to dedicated days off for volunteering, has enabled employees to build homes through Habitat for Humanity and adopt a family of seven from The Boys & Girls Club of Greater Boston. 

 

How does your Forward Financing give back to the local community, both during the holidays and throughout the year? 

In 2019, we launched the Pay it Forward program, an employee-led initiative that donates $10 for every business we fund throughout the year to a deserving nonprofit. Our employees nominate and select an “impact organization” they feel aligns with our company mission, goals and values. This year, we have donated over $100,000 to deserving organizations that are making an impact on our community like the Boys & Girls Club of Greater Boston, BUILD and Year Up. 

Throughout the year, we provide employees two paid volunteer days and coordinate multiple opportunities to donate their time to giving back. This year, we’ve helped build homes with Habitat for Humanity, sorted food at the Greater Boston Food Bank, donated meals to the New England Center and Home for Veterans in Boston and more. 

We feel that we’ve really been able to make an impact on our community in a short period of time and we are really proud of that.

"This holiday season, we teamed up with the Boys & Girls Club of Greater Boston and adopted a family of seven."

 

How is this spirit of giving reflected in your company culture and the way your team works together?

We are fortunate to have a highly supportive and collaborative culture where everyone is always willing to pitch in and help one another get the job done, whether it falls within their specific responsibilities or not. 

We spend a lot of time collaborating and working together, both in and out of the workplace. We have fun giving back together and team-building while making an impact. 

This holiday season, we teamed up with the Boys & Girls Club of Greater Boston and adopted a family of seven. Each of our departments elected to contribute with their own money to shop for this family in need. It was great to see each team come together and reflect the spirit of giving this holiday season. 

 

3Play Media emphasizes accessibility in their work inside the office and out. Amanda Ervin, office manager, told us that the team recently worked together to help build wheelchairs for local men and women in need. They also celebrated Giving Tuesday by donating to the American Society for Deaf Children, a cause close to the team’s hearts and in line with the transcription services company’s values. 

 

How does 3Play Media give back to the local community, both during the holidays and throughout the year? 

Giving back is important to 3Play Media. Every year we encourage employees to take advantage of our charitable contributions program. We match every donation made by a 3Player, up to $500. So far, we have donated to 12 different organizations in 2019. 

This past year, we built wheelchairs for those in need in the community through Wheels in Motion. Earlier this fall, we donated stuffed animals won at our building’s carnival to the children in the burn unit at Shriners Hospital. For Giving Tuesday, for every file our customers submitted for captioning and transcription, 3Play Media donated $1 to the American Society for Deaf Children. We raised just about $6,000.

"We match every donation made by a 3Player, up to $500."

 

How is this spirit of giving reflected in your company culture and the way your team works together?

3Play Media is all about making video accessible to everyone. Just because someone is differently-abled does not mean that they shouldn’t get to benefit from a product or experience just like everyone else. Along these same lines, everyone deserves to live their best life possible. It’s important to us to help our company and community be the best it can be.

 

Beth Conway, chief people officer at Nuance Communications, understands the fact that community service not only builds team morale but increases overall cooperation, both essential factors for business growth. Below, Conway shared how Nuance Communications has contributed to underserved populations in Boston.

 

How does Nuance Communications give back to the local community, both during the holidays and throughout the year? 

Nuance Cares, our global corporate social responsibility program, encourages employees to support their favorite local and global nonprofits by providing 16 hours of volunteer time annually and matching dollar-for-dollar donations. Our year-round focus on supporting the communities where we live and work is just one way that Nuance gives back. 

This holiday season, Nuance donated to the Ronald McDonald House, a global charity that provides travel and housing assistance for families so they can stay near their hospitalized children. Nuance is also proud to support local organizations throughout the year, including the Museum of Science, Bottom Line, Angel Flight, the Boys & Girls Club of Greater Boston and more.

"Our Nuance Cares program emphasizes the importance of giving our time and energy to organizations that need support." 

 

How is this spirit of giving reflected in your company culture and the way your team works together?

At Nuance, one of our four guiding principles is “Make What Matters.” But that dedication isn’t limited to our business philosophy. Our Nuance Cares program emphasizes the importance of giving our time, donations and energy to organizations that need support. 

We encourage employees to get outside of the office and make a difference in their communities by organizing individual or team volunteer activities with local nonprofits. Whether they are cleaning up local parks, assembling care packages for low-income college students or sorting everyday essentials for local children in need, Nuance team members can build team spirit and have fun outside of the office while giving back.

 

Giving back to others helps emphasize the value of empathy in social interactions. Nicholas Thurlow, chief people officer, told us how Vestmark invests in charitable experiences, which in turn encourages employees to connect with one another.

 

How does Vestmark give back to the local community, both during the holidays and throughout the year? 

Vestmark has a strong tradition of giving, during the holidays as well as throughout the year. We empower a Charitable Contributions/Community Relations committee of employees who are passionate about giving. Although this motivated team is the core of our program, they regularly reach out to others to create a network of giving throughout the company. 

We recently built bikes for children though our local Boys & Girls Club, and have hosted holiday gift drives for our local Department of Child Services (DCF) chapter. Animals are also important to us, so we provide volunteer time and monetary support to various local shelters.

"Empathy connects us and creates positive energy that motivates us to continue to serve."

 

How is this spirit of giving reflected in your company culture and the way your team works together?

Our company values a spirit of collaboration. This makes our giving programs part of the overall culture of the company. We like to emphasize not only the giving itself, but also the connection we create to one another and the community through service. Empathy connects us and creates positive energy that motivates us to continue to serve.

 

Tracey Willey, head of human resources, appreciated how friendly and forward-thinking the staff at the Greater Boston Food Bank were when the Panalgo team volunteered there this fall. Willey said that the outing fostered a real sense of community among employees, one of the company’s most significant values. They sorted over 12,000 pounds of food for those in need, all in a day’s work.

 

How does Panalgo give back to the local community, both during the holidays and throughout the year? 

As a company, we are big believers in giving back. We are lucky to live in a city where there are so many great opportunities to volunteer. Every year, we choose at least one all-hands-on-deck day of volunteering. Our offices shut down and we all travel to that years’ destination. 

This past October, we volunteered at the Greater Boston Food Bank, an organization that distributes food to thousands of people across 190 cities and towns in eastern Massachusetts. Our team sorted a total of 12,136 pounds of food and had so much fun doing it. The Food Bank staff were passionate and so efficient; every one of us had a specific role. They have built a process that was inspiring to watch and participate in.

In addition to onsite volunteering, we participate in other community initiatives, like Operation Sock Drop to benefit Boston’s homeless community. Panalgo team members have already brought in many pairs of warm winter socks for the homeless. 

"Our team sorted a total of 12,136 pounds of food and had so much fun doing it."

 

How is this spirit of giving reflected in your company culture and the way your team works together?

Because our company is relatively small but growing, its flat structure allows employees at all levels to collaborate on various projects. A lot of work is done across teams and job functions, which fosters a culture of openness and support. 

Fostering a sense of community service is part of our values as a company. It feels good to give back. Seeing your co-worker bring in warm socks, sort cereal from oatmeal or prep toys and clothing for kids in need leaves us all a little better.  

 

Mike Abram, head of customer success at Jobcase, credits the team’s volunteering efforts with allowing new and seasoned employees to get to know each other better in a productive setting outside of the office. Their service initiatives have also introduced team members to opportunities they otherwise wouldn’t know existed. 

 

How does Jobcase give back to the local community, both during the holidays and throughout the year?

We love to incorporate our mission of community-building into everything we do. For us, local outreach is all about fostering a relationship with our community by making a direct, hands-on impact every month. We work with about 10 different nonprofits including Cradles-to-Crayons, More-Than-Words, Greater Boston Foodbank, New England Center for Homeless Veterans and Community Servings.

"Local outreach is all about fostering a relationship with our community by making a direct, hands-on impact every month."

 

How is this spirit of giving reflected in your company culture and the way your team works together?

Every month, rain or shine, we get a team of Jobcasers to push back from the keyboard, roll up their sleeves and connect with our community. Not only does this directly support those in need, it also gives our fast-growing team an opportunity to get to know their co-workers in a different setting and exposes everyone to volunteer opportunities they might otherwise never have known existed.

 

Civis Analytics uses its proprietary technology and statistical advisory services to help private and public sector organizations use their personal datasets. Senior Applied Data Scientist Sherry Shenker explained that Civis offers its services for free to worthy organizations.

 

How does your company give back to the local community, both during the holidays and throughout the year?

Our employee-led program, “Civis for Good”, gives employees opportunities to give back throughout the year. There are two parts of the program: The first is paid time off that employees can use for volunteering with any local organization of their choice. We also organize employee volunteer days — for example, we’ve cooked meals and decorated for the holidays at La Casa Norte, an organization providing shelters and other support services in Chicago.

Civis also provides pro-bono services to organizations that do not have access to or expertise in data science. This year we worked with mRelief, a Chicago-based nonprofit startup that is working to increase access to food stamps, to help them measure the impact of their technology.

"Civis provides pro-bono services to organizations that do not have access to or expertise in data science."

 

How is this “spirit of giving” reflected in your company culture and the way your team works together?

At Civis, one of our principles is doing the right thing, even if it takes more time or costs us money. I see this come to life in my daily work: my team members are always taking time out to help with a tricky task or consult on a project. We have regular “office hours” and brown bags where Civis subject matter experts share their knowledge and advice with the rest of the company.

The people at Civis are naturally interested in supporting organizations that are making a difference, whether it is through our day-to-day work with nonprofits and government, our Civis for Good program or our own passion projects. Just last weekend, one of our engineers who is involved with Write/Speak/Code had Civis host their latest workshop.

 

On a normal work day, Wolverine Trading builds electronic trading infrastructure, including applications to automate stock trades, assess data and evaluate risk. Around this time of year, however, so-called “Wolverines” fan out to local food banks and begin practicing their Santa impersonations as they deliver gifts to a local elementary school. Principal Software Engineer Valentina Veselinovski told us how this spirit of giving infuses everyday company culture. 

 

How does your company give back to the local community, both during the holidays and throughout the year?

Wolverine runs many annual giving programs throughout the year. For example, every November we partner with the Greater Chicago Food Depository to raise funds to provide meals for those in need: this year we provided enough to fund over 9,000 meals! Another favorite event among Wolverine employees is in December, when we work with a local elementary school — who we have been partnering with for over seven years — for our “Secret Santa” program. The students write letters to Santa and Wolverine employees — acting as “Santa” — gift the student an item on their list. In addition to all of the firm-sponsored events we do throughout the year, Wolverines can be found tutoring local students, serving meals at local charities, doing magic for children in hospitals and collecting items for those in need, among many other causes.

"Wolverines can be found tutoring local students, serving meals at local charities, doing magic for children in hospitals and collecting items for those in need."

 

How is this “spirit of giving” reflected in your company culture and the way your team works together?

Wolverines are encouraged to volunteer and support local organizations, and employees who log volunteer time are offered an extra vacation day every year. We also have an internal mentorship program for new hires and interns that connects them with colleagues they aren’t working with every day.

 

As a digital consultancy helping business clients leverage the latest in back-end and customer-facing technology, Productive Edge is wired to think of how to best serve others. The company takes that same approach to its holiday giving, offering donations to clients’ chosen organizations and sending employees to volunteer with a number of local causes. Delivery Director Will Rolloff said his team’s “sweep the floor” mentality applies as much to community involvement as it does to their day-to-day work.

 

How does your company give back to the local community, both during the holidays and throughout the year?

During the holidays, we have a toy drive in our office to support a local charity. This year, we are donating the toys to Cal’s Angels, a nonprofit that raises money and plans events for children with cancer. We also started a “Holiday of Giving” campaign during which we ask our clients to pick from a list of charities that we’re passionate about and Productive Edge makes a donation on the client’s behalf to their chosen charity. Throughout the rest of the year, our PE Cares team coordinates many different volunteer initiatives. This past year, our team has had the opportunity to share our technical expertise through a workshop with TechGirlz, help clean the Alfred Caldwell Lily Pool with Lincoln Park Conservancy, and serve meals to the homeless at Pacific Garden Mission.

"Our team has had the opportunity to share our technical expertise through a workshop with TechGirlz."

 

How is this “spirit of giving” reflected in your company culture and the way your team works together?

We pride ourselves on having a “sweep the floor” mentality where employees are expected to step in and help each other when needed, even if it is not part of their explicit job responsibilities. We are also committed to investing in our employees’ growth, and we try to foster a top-down community of knowledge sharing to support everyone’s success. Whether by helping other teammates internally on a project, or connecting employees who don’t normally work together through our mentorship program, the “spirit of giving” is something we live out daily.

 

In April 2019, Vivid Seats  announced its first ever acquisition, buying Toronto-based startup Fanxchange. So when the company started getting ready for its annual holiday giving program, it partnered with a Toronto children’s hospital as well as Lurie Children’s Hospital in Chicago. Director of Public Policy and Community Engagement Michael O’Neil outlined how Vivid Seats engages with its communities all year long.

 

How does your company give back to the local community, both during the holidays and throughout the year? 

We believe in the joy of live events and throughout the year, we work with Lurie Children’s Hospital so families can enjoy Blackhawks, Bulls and Bears games. We are also proud to support local organizations such as Chicago’s Honor Flight program, the Mikva Challenge and the Kohl’s Children’s Museum. Vivid Seats has an employee-led affinity group, Vivid Cares, which brings staff together to volunteer with organizations that have meaning for them. This year, members of Vivid Cares volunteered as youth education mentors, raised money and awareness in support of the Trevor Project and supported veterans through various events.

This holiday season, Vivid Seats was thrilled to host families of Lurie Children’s Hospital in a suite at the United Center, and supported SickKids with an event in Toronto. Our team members were also excited to work with Lurie Children’s to pack and deliver over 1,000 toys and warm hand-made blankets to patients.

"Vivid Seats was thrilled to host families of Lurie Children’s Hospital in a suite at the United Center."

 

How is this “spirit of giving” reflected in your company culture and the way your team works together?

In a company survey, Vivid Seats employees expressed the desire to give back to families and children. With this year’s launch of Vivid Seats’ corporate social responsibility program and its first partners — Lurie Children’s Hospital in Chicago and SickKids in Toronto — employees are provided with formal and informal ways to give back to the hospitals.

In November, one of the Lurie families stopped by the office after treatment to play video games and connect with employees. Vivid Seats staff also rallied behind their IT team member, Gary Baugher, to support his 7th annual fundraiser for Extra Life, a grassroots charitable event that brings gamers together nationally to raise funds for local and national children’s hospitals.

 

As one of the largest providers of personal loans in the United States, OneMain Financial uses a wide range of technological tools to help customers reach their financial goals. The company opened its Chicago tech office a few years back but, as Executive Vice President and CTO Nag Vaidyanathan pointed out, the team has already established a tradition of supporting numerous causes in the local area.

 

How does your company give back to the local community, both during the holidays and throughout the year?

The Chicago office has a culture of giving back using a hands-on approach. This fall, we partnered with Volunteers of America Illinois (VOI) to collect backpacks for Chicago Public School students in need. We also organized a volunteer day at the VOI offices and spent the afternoon unpacking and sorting supplies. In addition, we just wrapped up a company-wide initiative with Operation Gratitude, an organization that supports service members, veterans and first responders. We collected black crew socks, wrote letters and stuffed and assembled teddy bears that will be donated to the children of deployed service members.

"Through our “OneMain Lends a Hand” program, we give our employees paid time off each month to volunteer."

 

How is this “spirit of giving” reflected in your company culture and the way your team works together

While our Chicago office is only a few years old, OneMain Financial has a long history of giving back to our communities through a variety of programs, including corporate grants, volunteerism, fundraising and our matching gifts program.

We’re passionate about supporting our communities and believe that donating time is just as important as money. Through our “OneMain Lends a Hand” program, we give our employees paid time off each month to volunteer with a non-profit organization.

 

As a marketplace for business catering, ezCater knows a thing or two about food and the importance it has in people’s lives. So it seems fitting that the Denver-based company would focus its philanthropic efforts on feeding those less fortunate. People Generalist Nadege Toomey said it’s a year-round effort on the part of her team, which partners with a range of local food banks and rescue groups. 

 

How does your company give back to the local community, both during the holidays and throughout the year?

Our ezVolunteer committee organizes monthly volunteer opportunities for our team all year long. We partner with organizations that fight hunger: food banks, food rescue groups, etc. In Denver alone, we have worked with The Urban Farm, Food For Thought, Metro Caring, JEFFCO Eats and GrowHaus, and have hosted multiple food drives for Project Angel Heart and Food Bank of the Rockies. We worked with a pit crew at this summer’s BBQ festival and donated all tips to Metro Caring. Plus, we always encourage team members to share causes and organizations they are passionate about supporting so we can explore new opportunities moving forward.

"We partner with organizations that fight hunger."

 

How is this “spirit of giving” reflected in your company culture and the way your team works together?

A common thread throughout our teams is the desire to make things better for each other and our customers. “Aim higher and make it better” is one of our core values. We really embrace an all-hands-on-deck approach, and I see that not only in how our teams work together but also in the community our Denver office has become.

For example, this summer a team member suggested that we hold a diaper drive as we had a large number of teammates growing their families — it was a hit! It’s not always about giving something material, either. At ezCater, I’m given tremendous autonomy, the ability to give feedback and see it implemented to make things better, as well as the opportunity to take initiative and grow my career. 

 

According to Recruiting Manager Meghan Munzel, a spirit of generosity is woven into the fabric of Recurly’s company culture. Whether they’re collaborating on project in the office, working together to clean up a Boulder park or pooling their resources to buy holiday gifts for LGBTQ+ youth, the Boulder-based team finds ways to give back to each other and their community.

 

How does your company give back to the local community, both during the holidays and throughout the year?

Recurly participates in quarterly volunteer or donation events every year. For the past few Decembers, Recurly has partnered with A Precious Child, a non-profit organization that assists families who are faced with difficult home situations, such as abuse and neglect. In December 2019, we partnered with Out Boulder County for the first year to purchase holiday gifts for LGBTQ+ youth. Out Boulder County specializes in educating, advocating and providing services, programs and support for Boulder County's lesbian, gay, bisexual, transgender and queer communities. 

Outside of the holiday season, Recurly partners with Boulder Parks and Recreation at least once a year. In the past, Recurlians have planted seeds, weeded gardens and mended fences in the Boulder area. Recurly gives back to the engineering community by attending events such as Turn IN Insight Hour to assist in preparing jobseekers for the market, as well as multiple tutoring events throughout the year.

"We partnered with Out Boulder County to purchase holiday gifts for LGBTQ+ youth."

 

How is this “spirit of giving” reflected in your company culture and the way your team works together?

Recurly is a huge advocate for team collaboration in our everyday culture. We encourage all Recurlians to “Be Mindful,” which is one of the five values our company was built on. Being mindful of fellow Recurlians and working together to meet our collective goals is reflected by our accountability to one another and our community. Whether our team works cross-functionally to meet a business goal or the team comes together to raise money to donate a gaming laptop for LGBTQ+ youth, Recurlians are always in the “spirit of giving.”

 

Director of Reputation Management Katerina Kugel says Golden Hippo has donated to over 12 charities over the past few years. But they do more than fundraise: Golden Hippo gives back to its employees’ mental health, too. For World Smile Day, Golden Hippo matches donations for each employee that participates in a yoga class. 

 

How does your company give back to the local community, both during the holidays and throughout the year? 

We have partnered with 12 different charities over the last few years, donating throughout the year to charitable causes such as Smile Train, Vitamin Angels and Action Against Hunger. The company also organizes various opportunities for giving during the year. 

On World Smile Day, we host a donation-based yoga class where Golden Hippo donates on behalf of each employee that participates in a 30-minute yoga class. This holiday season, we are hosting a food drive for a local food bank.

"We create the “spirit of giving” at work each and every day."

 

How is this “spirit of giving” reflected in your company culture and the way your team works together?

At Golden Hippo, we actually reward each other for collaboration. We have a fantastic spot bonus program where you can give a fellow ‘hippo’ a cash bonus just for going outside of their call of duty and helping you out. This really pushes us to seek out collaboration and create the “spirit of giving” at work each and every day.

 

This year, Smartling employees raised $6,000 dollars across its global offices for Movember, an initiative designed to raise awareness around men’s health. The company’s HR Director Beatriz Albini-Ruiz said that fundraiser is just one of the ways the team gives back. 

 

How does Smartling give back to the local community, both during the holidays and throughout the year? 

Giving back to our community is something that Smartlings cares deeply about. Every year, the company has donated to Translators without Borders, and this year will be no exception. On a quarterly basis, our Global Culture Club (an employee resource group) plans activities at each of our locations to give back to our local communities.

This year, our employees in NYC organized a blood drive with the Red Cross. Together, the Smartling team donated 19 pints of blood, enough to save 57 lives. In April, our team put together care packages of essentials (shampoo, toothpaste, toothbrushes, socks, etc.) that were donated to a local homeless shelter. This event was so successful that we’re now carrying out a similar initiative in our Ireland office for the holidays. 

Our favorite initiative, one that we’ve been doing the past two holiday seasons, is Toys for Tots. Our employees feel passionate about this cause as we are not only putting smiles on children’s faces but also contributing to our U.S. service members.

"This year, our employees in NYC organized a blood drive with the Red Cross." 

 

How is this spirit of giving reflected in your company culture?

One of our most cherished values is, “We take care of our people.” Our culture encourages openness, collaboration and peer-to-peer support. It is the No. 1 attribute mentioned in all engagement surveys and recognized on online forums. 

 

BigCommerce is a SaaS provider for e-commerce companies. The company’s suite of tools help e-commerce businesses optimize conversions, streamline site performance and even boost their SEO.

 

How does your team decide which causes to give back to?

“Our initiatives are driven by passionate employees, like one of our tech support agents who started a food drive with the help of some coworkers.

Our work with the Texas Humane Heroes Annual Chili Cookoff and the Partnerships for Children’s Holiday Wishes Toy Drive are traditions that date back to before I joined almost six years ago. Some of our newer partnerships have sprung from the addition of two employee resource groups: Equality Texas, partnering with our LGBTQ+ Allies group, and the Ann Richards School, partnering with our Women’s and Allies group.” - John Hebron, Engineer

 

Imprivata is a developer of privileged remote access and remote support cybersecurity solutions that control permissions, ensure compliance and boost audit transparency.

 

What gets employees excited about charitable opportunities?

“We’re a company of passionate people, and that passion definitely comes through in our philanthropic efforts. By varying the types of outreach and activities we offer, we create a culture in which we are never going to become stagnant and can avoid compassion fatigue. For our most recent event, a canned food drive benefiting the Central Texas Food Bank, our sales team had a competition — as salespeople tend to do — and our VP of sales matched the total donation raised by his team.” - Sales Development Representative Jeff Schmelzer 

 

Ellevation Education is a web-based software platform designed for ELL educators. The platform helps teachers track student English learning progress and craft strategy through an in-depth analytics dashboard.    

 

Favorite local charity/nonprofit?

“We recently did a survey with our employees and found that Boston Partners for Education, English for New Bostonians and Boston Cares are some of the local nonprofit organizations that our employees love and want to partner with in the future. For our remote team, we've created one volunteer day per year so they can take a full day off from work to commit to their choice of charitable organizations.” -Mayya Bozhilova, Office Manager.

 

Klaviyo is an email and marketing automation platform specifically designed for e-commerce companies. The tool personalizes customer experiences, uses data science for a deeper understanding of customers and crafts targeted email campaigns. 

 

How did you choose which org/nonprofit to volunteer with?  

“Our marketing team uses Boston Cares, which is the largest volunteer agency in New England, an Innovation Hub within the national HandsOn Network, and an award-winning leader in the volunteer engagement sector. Our other departments use Boston Cares or volunteer with agencies close to their family or personal stories -—The American Liver Foundation is supported by our customer success team members.” - Agata Celmerowski, VP of Marketing.

 

CrunchTime is an enterprise restaurant management platform for the hospitality industry. Restaurants, cruise lines and entertainment venues all use the CrunchTime platform to automate tasks in everything from HR to payroll and operations.  

 

How do you volunteer through CrunchTime?

“CrunchTime makes it extremely easy to give back. Everyone has hectic lives, so having the opportunity to volunteer with your coworkers during work hours is greatly appreciated. My three favorite activities are volunteering at Community Servings, donating blood at MGH and serving lunch at the New England Center and Home for Veterans. On a quarterly basis, a group of 10-15 CrunchTimers head over to Jamaica Plain and volunteer in Community Servings’ kitchen to help with meal prep. We have made thousands of meals that are delivered to critically ill residents and their families around Massachusetts.” - Elizabeth Russo, Senior Marketing Specialist. 

 

ActiveCampaign is an email marketing, messaging, marketing automation and CRM platform helping sales and marketing teams automate processes so they can focus on higher-level, customer-centric tasks.

 

What is the next big philanthropic initiative the company is working on?

“We are planning several service days where large groups of employees will come together for a full day of giving back, across three or four different initiatives. This is in addition to some of the other employee-driven events including clothing and toy drives, our Best Buddies partnership and volunteering with Chicago Scholars.” - Denise Bindelglass, Vice President of People.

 

VelocityEHS is software that allows enterprises to streamline their environment, health, safety and sustainability activities. The software suite helps companies measure and manage everything from air emissions to waste compliance and office ergonomics. 

 

What is the next big philanthropic initiative the company is working on?

“For the program’s second year, we’re excited to participate in Habitat for Humanity Chicago’s The House That Tech Built. This initiative brings together local tech companies to completely fund and build a Habitat Chicago home. Throughout the summer, our employees will be rolling up their sleeves and participating in build days. It’s a great opportunity for us to give back as a company and also for our employees to make a difference personally as well.” - Rachel Kaiser, Vice President of Human Resources. 

 

Yello is a user acquisition software and CRM designed to optimize recruiting operations and manage talent relationships. The platform is used by well-known brands like Walmart and Spotify. 

 

How did giving back become such an important part of your culture?

“Yello’s volunteer initiatives started the same way all our best ideas start — with our employees. A group launched our volunteer committee, Yello Cares, to organize volunteering events the whole company can participate in. Team members have the opportunity to introduce their coworkers to initiatives they are passionate about. Whether it’s a park cleanup, animal adoption or supporting local schools, it’s exciting to see the team come together for a cause.” - Jay Meza, VP of People

 

NetApp creates cloud-based data and storage management solutions. Whether it’s hybrid cloud infrastructure management or flash storage solutions, NetApp has wide range of solutions for IT needs. 

 

Why is giving back important to you as a business?

“The success of a business is now measured by its impact on people, communities and the environment. Our success is driven by economic results as well as our behaviors. For over 25 years, we have contributed to the communities where we operate and empower our employees to make a difference. Giving back engages employees, builds strong bonds and demonstrates why NetApp is a great place to work.” - Michelle Mann, Senior Manager of Global Community Impact.

 

FRONTSTEPS is an all-in-one solution for property managers, HOAs, condos and builders. The platform helps building owners streamline payments, engage with residents, alert security of concerns and manage board approvals — all in one place. 

 

How do you give back to the community throughout the year?

“Earlier this year, we started a partnership with local nonprofit A Stronger Cord. In the summer, our team members kicked off the partnership by joining a community workout at Phoenix Multisport. 

Our office has also been collecting donations throughout the year that we plan to donate to Colorado Coalition for the Homeless at the end of the year. We are always looking for ways to give back. From Stronger Cord workouts to ordering all office supplies and snacks through AmazonSmile — which contributes to Habitat for Humanity of Metro Denver — we are dedicated to doing what we can to positively impact the lives of those in our community.” - Sarah McDonald, Senior Accountant.

 

Conga’s suite of products automate and streamline documents, contracts and eSignatures. The company’s solutions are designed to automate monotonous paperwork-related tasks, accelerate contract cycles and make digital signatures on-the-go.  

 

Aside from formal initiatives, how else do you support team members in giving back?

“We hold many team-building off-sites that are focused around volunteering for an organization of the team's choice. A Precious Child is an organization that has been important to Conga for 12 years, so we’ve made it a focus to have teams volunteer for them on a quarterly basis… We deeply believe that giving back to the community cultivates an inspiring and positive workplace.” - Joanne Biggar, Manager of HR Operations and Culture.

 

Prodege operates multiple customer engagement brands, like “SwagBucks” and “MyPoints.” In exchange for watching videos, playing games or answering surveys, customers are rewarded with points that they can redeem for rewards like gift cards. Brands all over the world use Prodege’s engagement system to build better experiences for customers.  

    

Can you talk about some of the current volunteer efforts your company is involved in, or other ways you empower the team to give back to the community?

“At Prodege, we’re passionate about giving back to our communities and we strongly believe that charitable giving and volunteering is one of the greatest things we can do personally and as a company. Employees are given $200 a year to donate to a charity of their choice.

We have also partnered with Children’s Hospital Los Angeles in the past by supporting their Make March Matter program as well as offering volunteer opportunities for employees with CHLA’s Companies for Kids program. We also support and partner with Mychal’s Learning Place, an organization that works with children and adults with developmental disabilities.” - Josef Gorowitz, Founder + President.

 

Core Digital Media is an online marketing and consumer acquisition platform. Using big data and predictive analytics on their websites “LowerMyBills.com” and “ClassesUSA.com,” Core Digital Media says its able to drive leads to advertisers who can convert them to sales. 

 

How is your company giving back this year?

“Core Digital Media has two initiatives that are extra dear to our hearts. We wanted to do our part to support the victims of the Woolsey Fire that burned over 95,000 acres of land in our surrounding area. This year, we created a dollar-for-dollar match program that resulted in CDM donating over $2,000 to the American Red Cross to help rebuild. The second is a CDM tradition of supporting the Salvation Army’s Angel Tree program. This year, we will be providing gifts for 100 children in the LA area through this program.” - Matt Ennis, Senior Recruitment Manager.

 

Updater’s app is designed to streamline the moving process by centralizing tasks. The app runs through a checklist of tasks usually associated with moving, like booking movers, mail forwarding, utility transfers, insurance purchases, TV/Internet setup scheduling and more, to cut down on the time spent on administrative costs and processes. 

 

This is how Updater gives back to their community:

Last year, they collected more than 2,000 pounds of food and supplies for their holiday food drive.

“We have an amazing, talented team who wants to give back, so it's an incredible experience to coordinate an initiative that brings us together and makes a difference both within the moving industry and outside of it,” - Ashley Lundford, People Experience Manager

 

Teachable is designed to give instructors the tools they need to create and share engaging online course material. The platform is packed with customizable learning, content, marketing and analytics tools so content creators can not only measure the educational impact, but the financial benefits of their work.

 

This is how Teachable does their part to help: 

Year-round, the Teachable team can be found participating in food drives, volunteer workshops and mentorship programs. 

“The online education industry is uniquely positioned to do good in the world, and Teachable’s commitment to positively impacting our community is reflected in our company culture, starting with our employees. “Giving back is a huge motivator in creating a company-wide volunteer culture that encourages employees to spread goodwill and kindness throughout our shared society.” - Casey Kwon, Office Manager + Recruiting Coordinator.

 

Yotpo offers a multitude of e-commerce tools designed to boost customer reviews, visual marketing, loyalty programs and referrals. Away, GymShark and GoPro have all used Yotpo’s suite of tools to better engage with customers across their entire e-commerce processes. 

 

This is how Yotpo does philanthropy: 

Yotpo has a team of employees that perform year-round community service called “Yotpo Cares”. They’ve organized both onsite and offsite volunteer opportunities, including bingo parties at a senior citizen center and holiday card drawing for children in the hospital.

 “It's easy to lose sight of the big picture in a hyper-growth startup...There's no better way to come together as an entire company than with the mission of simply giving.” - Stevie Cogan, Senior Talent Acquisition Specialist. 

 

CB Insights offers a market intelligence platform that analyzes millions of data points on everything from venture capital to startups and news in order to answer complex market questions and predict future trends. Cisco, Salesforce, IBM and RedHat all use CB Insights.

 

How CB Insights gives back:

The company donates to the Good+ Foundation, buying diapers, and blankets for parents in need. They also hold charity bake sales to benefit City Harvest.

“CB Insights believes it's important to give back and donating to the Good+ Foundation in NYC was the right place when CB Insights started donating there in 2014.

 We have some great cooks at CB Insights so hosting a bake sale is a great and fun way to have the team show off their creative talents and help those in need. The company will match the total amount donated by employees for the bake sale.” - Menaka Chang, HR Manager.

 

Stack Overflow is one of the largest online communities for software developers who want to learn, share knowledge and develop careers. The open community site is filled with public Q & A’s on some burning developer questions, as well as, a job board. 

 

Here’s how Stack Overflow does their part in the community:

The engineering and IT teams pick five charities to receive donations, giving back to open source projects that positively influence the digital world.

“In what has become a yearly tradition at Stack Overflow, we set aside this time of year to make sure we are ‘giving back’ to effect positive change in the world.. As a small gesture of thanks, we make sizable donations to charities that need our help.” - Karen Mascavage, Senior Recruiter.

 

Experimentation software company Optimizely sends most new hires into the community to volunteer on their second day on the job — so you could safely say that philanthropy is at the center of their culture. Senior Recruiting Programs Manager Julia Lopes showed how Optimizely’s Austin-based team leads many of its volunteering drives. 

 

How does your company give back to the local community, both during the holidays and throughout the year? 

In Austin, 89 percent of our employees volunteered for local organizations including the Central Texas Food Bank, Project Linus, The Heart of Texas Lab Rescue and Keep Austin Beautiful during Impact Week this past June. “Optigive” is the company’s annual employee giving campaign in December. More than half of employees contribute and the company picks up all fees so that 100 percent of donations go to the charities. For the holidays this year, the Austin office is volunteering at Urban Roots Farm and The Food Bank’s Mobile Food Pantries.

"Nearly all new employees volunteer in the community on their second day on the job.”

 

How is this “spirit of giving” reflected in your company culture and the way your team works together?

Social impact is embedded in Optimizely’s DNA. Nearly all new employees volunteer in the community on their second day on the job. Charitable activities are integrated into all of the company’s big events, such as sales kickoff, our holiday party and Opticon, our annual user conference.

We give a quarterly employee award for social impact. Employees regularly participate in office drives for clothing, electronics, toys, food and blood. Even purchasing is leveraged for good, like sourcing employee t-shirts from a vendor that employs the formerly incarcerated. Volunteer ambassadors on every team and in every Optimizely office across the globe lead these efforts.

 

When they’re not working on business finance software, ScaleFactor employees deliver Meals on Wheels and recognize one another for their volunteering efforts throughout the community. Chief People Officer Katina Kenyon said the company makes a point of supporting employees who want to contribute toward a philanthropic cause. 

 

How does your company give back to the local community, both during the holidays and throughout the year?

ScaleFactor makes philanthropy a priority all year long, and we love to focus our efforts on a local level. As a team, we’re responsible for a weekly Meals on Wheels route, and each week we switch up which employees will go. Over the years, we have built relationships with the families on this route, and we love having a direct impact on the East Austin neighborhood where we’ve been headquartered for years. On top of this weekly engagement, we support employee-led initiatives like clothing drives, food drives, book sorting, volunteering at the local food back and participating in Toys for Tots at the holidays. We will back any employee who wants to support a cause they care about.

"As a team, we’re responsible for a weekly Meals on Wheels route.”

 

How is this “spirit of giving” reflected in your company culture and the way your team works together?

One of the hallmark features of ScaleFactor culture is our “Weekly Wins” meeting. Every Friday, we gather together and each employee shares a personal win with their team. This practice, we have found, is less about the accomplishments themselves and more about our team supporting one another. The act of giving praise, encouragement and thanks to fellow team members on a weekly basis helps to pull our team away from individual tasks and recognize their work in a larger context. The same perspective inspires our local philanthropic work, which is also meant to help team members see the tangible impact they have on the community and gain a broader perspective. We love focus and productivity, but the “spirit of giving” is what keeps us going day after day.

 

Vista Consulting Group supports programs that lift underrepresented groups into the tech industry all year long. The consulting partner for the Vista Equity Partners venture capital and private equity firm also uses the practice to foster collaboration, which Go-to-Market Managing Director Jessica Cash said is central to her team’s work with portfolio companies. 

 

How does your company give back to the local community, both during the holidays and throughout the year? 

At Vista, we believe in giving back as a core value. There are a range of partnerships we currently support, like partnering with Girls Who Invest, a three-year program seeking to increase gender diversity in asset management. I loved working with our Girls Who Invest interns on a series of special projects during their internship summer — what an inspiring, savvy, group of future leaders.

"I loved working with our Girls Who Invest interns on a series of special projects during their internship summer."

 

How is this “spirit of giving” reflected in your company culture and the way your team works together?

Collaboration is a priority initiative for Vista; in fact, it is one of a small handful of firm-wide workstreams that we have invested in across 2019. To us, collaboration means ensuring that the right people are solving the right problem, with a diverse and inclusive approach. This requires a “giving” mindset and posture — that the team is greater than the individual and that no one person has all the answers. It also makes working on the super challenging problems facing our fast-growing portfolio companies even more fun.

 

Pine Street Inn has been providing the Boston homelessness community with housing, workforce support and emergency services for 50 years, thanks to dedicated staff and volunteers. Benjamin Basch, small business sales manager at FareHarbor, told us that their employees value contributing to that mission.

 

How does FareHarbor give back to the local community, both during the holidays and throughout the year? 

At FareHarbor, there are multiple opportunities to volunteer throughout the year. Whether  it’s a hands-on experience like going to Pine Street Inn to lend a hand in their efforts to help the homeless population of Boston or hosting a winter coat drive, FareHarbor works to be a positive influence in our community. At the moment, we have a station set up in our office to create holiday cards for children in the hospital.

"We have a station set up in our office to create holiday cards for children in the hospital."

 

How is this spirit of giving reflected in your company culture and the way your team works together?

One of the first things you learn when you work at FareHarbor is that we are “ohana.” That sentiment permeates our office culture and how we represent ourselves in the surrounding community. We rolled out an entire program for the sole purpose of volunteering called “FareHarbor Cares.”

Throughout the year, we encourage our employees to donate their time or resources to worthy causes, such as participating in the school supply drive we did with School on Wheels at the end of the summer. We hope to give back to the less fortunate in any way we can in order to enrich our lives and our community.

 

In order to gain maximum traction, Principal Project Manager Erin Jackson says that Cantina pairs fundraisers and drives with holiday events like office celebrations and bake-offs. Leadership makes sure their community impact is as significant as possible by thoughtfully assessing the reach of each project. 

 

How does Cantina give back to the local community, both during the holidays and throughout the year?

Our company builds relationships with organizations in our community who do good. We like to give back to those groups the most. Around the holidays, we’ve found that a company-wide drive receives the most participation. We’ll pair such drives or fundraisers with holiday events like cookie-baking competitions and parties. We’ve provided products for women at Rosie’s Place and pies for people struggling to meet basic needs in the past. This year, we are providing resources for the homeless with St. Anthony’s Shrine.

"Around the holidays, we’ve found that a company-wide drive receives the most participation."

 

How is this spirit of giving reflected in your company culture and the way your team works together?

Our spirit of giving comes from the top-down. Our leaders at the highest levels direct and encourage giving. They provide the space and support for community leadership. Every year, we’re getting more thoughtful about our investment and impact in local communities. One of our core values is helping others, and we plan to do just that.

 

According to Guaranteed Rate Founder and CEO Victor Ciardelli, the Guaranteed Rate Foundation was founded in 2012 to provide assistance to families and individuals in times of dire need. “Every penny raised goes directly to a community member seeking relief,” Ciardelli said, adding that the Foundation has granted over $3.3 million to assist individuals and families faced with terminal illnesses, disabilities and domestic violence. The foundation also achieved its goal of granting $1 million in 2019.

 

How does your company give back to the local community, both during the holidays and throughout the year?

Giving back to the community is a huge focus at Guaranteed Rate, both during the holidays and throughout the year. During the holiday season, we host an annual company-wide food drive competition. We’re proud to announce that this year, our employees from branches all over the country collected and donated more than 150,000 pounds of food and personal care items, adding up to nearly 500,000 meals, totaling almost 1.5 million meals since the initiative started six years ago. Throughout the year, Guaranteed Rate also hosts quarterly drives, organizes volunteer days to clean up the city’s parks and beaches, and participates in partner events such as Sox Serve Week, which benefits the White Sox Charities.

"During the holiday season, we host an annual company-wide food drive competition."

 

How is this “spirit of giving” reflected in your company culture and the way your team works together?

Making a positive impact in people’s lives is at the core of who we are and what we do. Our employees show that they care through their generous contributions to the Guaranteed Rate Foundation and through their participation in our give back challenges. Every day, we work collectively as a company and with our real estate partners to make a meaningful impact in the community by helping people find and purchase their dream homes. 

 

Geographic isolation no longer locks you out of higher education. All Campus aids universities like DePaul, Purdue and Michigan State in living up to that promise, helping to launch and maintain online programs. Assistant Director of Enrollment Matthew Starr and Assistant Director of Enrollment Tiffany Parker serve as co-chairs of the company’s charity committee, and pointed out how an ethos of giving back feeds into All Campus’ wider culture. 

 

How does your company give back to the local community, both during the holidays and throughout the year?

Starr: We have continuous opportunities throughout the year to get involved and make a difference. All Campus Cares, our employee-led charity committee, has several annual initiatives that we participate in. These include cooking and serving a meal for Ronald McDonald House; our school supply drive for CPS; and our fundraising efforts for the Chicago Liver Life Walk, which is to honor a former colleague and friend who lost her battle with liver disease in 2014. We take the time to explore new opportunities to get involved, and act as an open forum for ideas and causes that are close to the hearts of people we work with.

"Caring is an essential part of what we do, and why we do it."

 

How is this “spirit of giving” reflected in your company culture and the way your team works together?

Parker: It’s really great to be a part of an organization that cares so much. Caring is an essential part of what we do, and why we do it. The principle is even ingrained in our core values — it’s basically a job requirement! When you truly care about your colleagues, clients and your work, it translates to a collective celebration of our successes and creates a helping atmosphere. AC Cares, our internal charity initiative, was created out of our passion for giving back to others.

 

Coming together as a team to do something good isn’t just an opportunity to touch the lives of those in need; it’s also an opportunity to build deeper relationships with colleagues. Office Manager Helena Czaban shared some of the charitable initiatives her team has been a part of recently and how they’ve helped strengthen Mersive’s bonds as a team — and with the Denver community.

 

How does your company give back to the local community, both during the holidays and throughout the year? 

Some examples of how we have given back this year include serving lunch at Denver Rescue Mission, hunger-fighting with MetroCaring, building bikes with Wish for Wheels and tutoring STEM programs to local students. We recently just kicked off our first annual food and hygiene product drive for Denver Rescue Mission. Employees are donating products, and Mersive is matching a monetary donation to each product. Moving into 2020, our goal is to commit to a company-wide initiative each quarter and a 40-percent increase in participation in our volunteer time off plan.

"We recently just kicked off our first annual food and hygiene product drive for Denver Rescue Mission."

 

How is this “spirit of giving” reflected in your company culture and the way your team works together?  

Mersive culture is deeply rooted in collaboration and inclusion. We are always looking for opportunities to connect with our local and global communities. Our teams, both local and remote, are encouraged to volunteer together using the generous VTO plan that we offered. Serving together builds our relationships both with the community and one another.

 

On a recent 250-mile bike trip across the African savannah, Fluent Sales Director of Mobile Willis Nelson got to pursue a personal passion and connect with his team while doing good. While every employer might not always be able to pack adventure, employee preference, teamwork and community service into one experience, leadership can identify which areas of service are most important to the team.   

 

How does Fluent give back to the local community, both during the holidays and throughout the year? 

As part of our GiveMe5 pledge in partnership with Lucky Forks, I’ll be volunteering at Knock Knock Give a Sock’s holiday carnival for homeless children in the Lower East Side. 

Per Fluent tradition, we’ll also take time in-office to stuff stockings to donate to families in need via Services for the Underserved. Throughout the year, the Fluent team participates in Cycle for Survival and holds an annual service day, engaging in a variety of initiatives including volunteering at local soup kitchens and mentoring students in after-school sports and arts programs.

"Per Fluent tradition, we’ll take time in-office to stuff stockings to donate to families in need via Services for the Underserved."

 

How is this spirit of giving reflected in your company culture?

Fluent promotes a “spirit of giving” by investing in the personal and professional development of its people and encouraging them to pay it forward. In October, Fluent gave me and five of my colleagues the opportunity to complete a 250-mile bike challenge across the African savannah as part of our Dream Grant trip, an initiative that empowers employees to pursue their passions while doing social good. 

Together we raised enough funds to donate over 270 bikes to World Bicycle Relief, an organization that addresses the need for affordable transportation in developing countries. This was the most fulfilling trip I’ve ever taken in my life. From start to finish, I felt like I was giving back to a community that needed support while working closely with my teammates toward a common goal. 

 

How does your company give back to the local community, both during the holidays and throughout the year?

At EagleView, we pride ourselves on giving back both during the holiday season and throughout the year. Each year as the holidays approach, we participate in an Adopt-A-Family program, placing a tree in each office lobby decorated with tags that contain the names of a local family and their desired gifts. Employees can take a tag, purchase the gift and bring it back into the office to donate. 

Outside of the holiday season, our offices participate in local events like the annual United Way's Day of Caring by volunteering at local organizations to partake in activities such as gardening, painting and more. Additionally, this fall we supported 10 families to stay at the Ronald McDonald House Charities of Rochester (RMHCR) and helped out at RMHCR's annual “The Sale” event to raise program funds for children and families in the local community.

Our internal Women in Tech initiative has sparked other volunteer opportunities such as the Hour of Code, where we are introducing coding, machine learning and the importance of STEM work to the Girl Scouts of America. We also volunteer at the Rochester Terra Science and Engineering Fair where members of our Women in Technology group act as judges and host the winners for a job shadow event in our offices. 

Furthermore, we understand that the work we do each day can benefit communities, especially following a natural disaster. In times of need, such as post-Hurricane Michael or the 2019 Texas tornado, we have donated high-resolution aerial imagery to the most highly affected areas to help with recovery efforts.

"We understand that the work we do each day can benefit communities, especially following a natural disaster."

 

How is this “spirit of giving” reflected in your company culture and the way your team works together?

Whether we're participating in a volunteer activity, such as the RMHCR’s “The Sale” event, or gathering and donating our aerial imagery to those in need, our employees and leaders are always eager to put in extra hours and step away from their expected responsibilities to lend a hand. Our culture at EagleView is filled with goodwill for the communities we live and work in and we're extremely proud of it.

 

Social Solutions creates software for nonprofits to track data, manage organizational cases and measure outcomes. The company’s platform helps nonprofits and charities of all sizes manage reporting capabilities and measure  impact.

 

How will Social Solutions be giving back throughout the year?

“In 2019, we will continue our focus and strengthen our Volunteer Impact Program and our commitment to local communities. This past year, our team spent over 600 volunteer hours with different nonprofits across the country, and we aim to make an even bigger impact next year. All of our employees are given — and encouraged to use — eight hours per quarter to spend volunteering with an organization of their choice.” - Leigh Kellner, Content Marketing Manager + Hannah Otalora-Fadner, HR Associate 

 

Modernize’s platform connects homeowners who need projects completed with quality contractors. Need a window replaced or a new roof? All homeowners need to do is fill out a short questionnaire and the site will make recommendations of quality local contractors who have been vetted and have high reviews.  

 

How does your team decide which causes to give back to?

“Modernize is in the home improvement space, and we strive to give back to nonprofits that support the same mission. Hands on Housing’s mission is to utilize volunteers to repair homes of senior citizens and disabled individuals who are living in deep poverty. Their goal is to keep homeowners safe and help them remain in the homes and neighborhoods they love.” -Christina Wells, Director of People Operations.

 

HotSchedules provides cloud-based solutions for the restaurant, hospitality and retail industries. The company’s suite of tools helps streamline everything from compliance to workforce and inventory management.

 

How does your team decide which causes to give back to?   

“Hotties Helping Hotties is a yearlong effort to give back to any team member with an undue hardship. We raise money through our culture day festivities and give a Visa gift card to help offset unexpected financial burdens… On Global Charity Day, we shut down all of our offices for the entire day and go support a local charity together. This year, in town, we helped a charter school prep for the return of students by painting and landscaping their playground and moving furniture from temporary structures into their new, permanent building.” - Chris Sundgren, Product Manager.

 

Centro’s advertising platform combines programmatic buying, workflow automation and business intelligence under one system. With the tool, digital advertisers can measure the success of marketing campaigns, manage external and internal communication and automate routine tasks.

 

Why do you believe it’s so important to give back to the Chicago community?

“Giving back to our community through volunteer groups, non-profit organizations, charity or other means provides much help to those in need and contributes to the common good. Centro is dedicated to helping our team members become better versions of themselves, and we believe that participating in community service has great benefits to one’s overall well-being… Participating in community service not only makes a difference to those being served but also makes a difference to those providing the service.” - Emily Barron, Vice President of Talent and Development.

 

Carbon Black develops cloud-based endpoint protection solutions, including threat prediction platforms, antivirus tools and incident response protocols designed to aid in quickly identifying and negating security risks. 

 

How do you volunteer through Carbon Black?

“Carbon Black has a team called Life At Cb that is dedicated to preserving and bettering the company culture. One aspect of that is focused on philanthropy. Our main philanthropic initiative is partnering with TUGG, where our team participates in a range of events throughout the year, including our favorite: Tech Gives Back.

In addition to TUGG, we participated in an Earth Day event at the Mass Audubon, the Greater Boston Food Drive, fundraising for the Home Base Program, helping needy children through the Santa Program and more.” - Ashley Perez, Talent Brand Ambassador

 

CloudHealth is an all-in-one cloud management platform that assists enterprises in managing costs, usage, permissions and security. The platform helps IT teams uncover unnecessary costs, create custom workflows and even has the ability to give real-time insights into multiple clouds at one time.

 

Favorite local charity/nonprofit?

“As a company, we have pledged to improve the lives of others in the community through volunteerism and charitable giving. We have had a four-year partnership with The Wonderfund (formerly known as the DCF Kids Fund)... Larry Begley, our CFO, has been involved with the Wonderfund for over 15 years and currently chairs the board of the fund. Larry wrote a great blog post on the CloudHealth Technologies’ philanthropy work that can be found on our website.” - Karina Svenson, HR Generalist.

 

 

SpotX is a video advertising platform that allows publishers to monetize content across mobile, web or connected devices. The ad serving platform includes ad and campaign management and trafficking tools that manage traditional and programmatic direct deals. 

 

Why is giving back important to you as a business?

“At SpotX, we are family. We care about our employees, customers and global community at large, and giving back to the community helps give our team a greater sense of purpose beyond their day-to-day tasks. 

As a large company, we recognize that finding a cause to support can bring employees closer together and help them connect with one another outside of the office walls. Volunteering is also a powerful way for coworkers to find common interests and build relationships by working together to make a difference in the lives of others.” - Nick Hoffman, Director of Global Client Education.

 

KAR provides buyers and sellers across the global used-vehicle industry with re-marketing solutions. The end-to-end platform supports car auctions, logistics, financing and reconditioning services.

 

How did giving back become such an important part of your culture?

“Our commitment to community involvement started organically with our employees. Our workforce is culturally and geographically diverse and represents a vast array of communities with different needs. KAR employees are creative and industrious, and they regularly apply their talents to benefit organizations where they work and live… Giving back is also something our leadership is very passionate about. KAR CEO Jim Hallett often says that when people and communities thrive, so does our business.” - Becca Polak, Chief Legal Officer.

 

Four Winds Interactive’s software powers digital signage across airports, casinos, arenas and hotels all over the world. With FWI’s platform, digital advertisers can manage content, monitor display settings and fully customize each advertisement. 

 

How did giving back become such an important part of your company culture?

“About five years ago, my co-founder Dave Weidner and I were hiking a 14er. During the hike, we started talking about Dave’s lifelong passion to save endangered species and his unique idea to use technology to help solve the problem. 

The more we discussed, the more we felt FWI’s software could be a key part of the solution and how meaningful it would be to use our product to solve a world problem. Thus, FWI’s support for Wildlife Protection Services was born. From there, we began supporting a variety of other initiatives, transforming a single act of altruism into what is, today, part of our culture.” - CEO David Levin

 

Can you talk about some of the current volunteer efforts your company is involved in, or other ways you empower the team to give back to the community?

“One ongoing project that MNTN has been involved in is a community pantry just outside of our office. We fill it with books and food, making these resources available to anyone who might need them. SteelHouse also organizes group volunteering events. An example is when we make lunches for the homeless living along the LA river, which is located right next to our office. Everyone at MNTN will stop by the kitchen to make sandwiches and pack the bags, and then we ride our office bikes to hand them out.” - Anna McMurphy, Head of People, Culture and Entertainment.

 

Criteria Corp’s HR software is designed to streamline the hiring process with more than 1,100 pre-employment tests that gauge aptitude, personality and skills. The company features tests across a wide variety of sectors, including automotive, IT, computer science, hairstyling and almost everything in-between. 

 

Can you talk about some of the current volunteer efforts your company is involved in, or other ways you empower the team to give back to the community?

“We have charity events at least quarterly that are chosen by our volunteer committee. Anyone is welcome to attend these monthly meetings to help choose the next event. The events range from reading to kids and educational programs to feeding the hungry, cleaning up beaches and attending charity walks to help fight diseases...In addition to the company-wide events, we also provide an annual benefit where every employee can choose a charity, and Criteria will donate $250 to that charity in their name.” - Adam Welsh, Director of Sales.

 

Nativo is an adtech platform for deploying, serving and optimizing integrated ads and branded content. Amazon, Verizon, Chase, UPS and IBM all use Nativo’s platform to showcase their content and increase sales conversions. 

 

How is your company giving back this year?

“We led two global volunteer initiatives this year to give employees a chance to give back to their local communities. Here are a few organizations that our employees chose to contribute to: The Los Angeles Regional Food Bank (over 10,537 pieces of produce sorted), My Friend’s Place ($500 worth of clothing and other goods donated), Operation Gratitude (many, many letters written), Sit Stay Read (57 cards for summer reading kits assembled), and The Night Ministry (67 hygiene kits built).” - Eve Shieh, Manager of Global Officer Operations.

 

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