A Billion + Change: Envisioning the Future of Corporate Service

Can you imagine a future where 500 companies decide to collectively lead social change and tackle the most pressing challenges of the 21st century through skills-based volunteer service (SBV)? This is the future that A Billion + Change discussed today at a Forum in Washington, D.C., “A Billion + Change in Action: Connecting to the Future of Corporate Service.” At this Forum, A Billion + Change announced that 200 companies have pledged an estimated $1.8 billion worth of skills-based services to help build nonprofit capacity.

This keeps A Billion + Change, a rapidly growing national campaign to mobilize billions from corporate America in skills-based and pro bono volunteer services, on track to inspire 500 companies to create or expand an SBV program in their workplace by 2013.

At the Forum, leaders in industry, policy and civic engagement discussed opportunities for businesses to scale efforts to meet the social, economic and environmental challenges of the 21^st century through skills-based service. They also explored ways to align employee volunteer programs with national initiatives to boost innovation, competitiveness and models of effective collaboration.

What leaders at this Forum really did, however, was encourage each pledge company to look ahead at what they are poised to contribute through skills-based service.

“Our challenge now is to expand A Billion + Change while partnering effectively with nonprofit professionals so we can change communities for the better,” said Senator Mark Warner, honorary chairman of A Billion + Change. “It’s through collaboration and collective impact that A Billion Plus really does add up to meaningful change.”

Every day, A Billion + Change pledge companies harness the skills and talents of their people to build the capacity of nonprofit organizations that create empowering opportunities for women and veterans, strengthen our schools and workforce, improve STEM education and tackle global development challenges.

“At IBM, we believe the best way to invest in the communities in which our employees work and live is to apply our best skills toward addressing specific societal challenges. We believe this concept of skills-based service can expand and be brought to scale, and we hope that the leadership IBM has provided to communities – which was more than 3.2 million hours in 2011 alone – will inspire other companies around the world to mobilize their volunteers,” said Stanley Litow, vice president of Corporate Citizenship and Corporate Affairs at IBM, which serves on the Leadership Committee of A Billion + Change.

Many pledges – across a variety of industries and company size – have found innovative ways to utilize their employees’ professional skills and talents to give back to their communities. A pro bono team from Capital One, for example, joined with the Virginia legal community to create a new technology solution, called Justice Server, which matches low-income clients with volunteer attorneys offering pro bono legal services.

Through “Succeed Through Service,” The Ritz-Carlton Hotel Company is helping address the school drop-out crisis by engaging at-risk middle school students. The company’s chefs, concierges, restaurant employees and trainers all lend their skills in teaching students about healthy eating habits, social skills and group presentation skills. And in Dallas and New York City, MEplusYOU, a strategic and creative agency, dedicates one weekend every six months to work with nonprofits in its “Weekend of Love” program. In just two years, these Weekends of Love have delivered $2 million in creative services to communities, while serving as important learning and development opportunities for its staff.

In the months ahead, A Billion + Change will focus on its goal of inspiring 500 companies to join A Billion + Change to create a marketplace for skills-based volunteering, and to make SBV the new normal in every workplace. Will you join us? Follow our progress and take the pledge online at: http://www.abillionpluschange.org.

Inspiring Change Through Skills-Based Service

A Billion + Change, a growing national campaign to mobilize billions of dollars of pro bono and skills-based volunteer (SBV) services from corporate America, is bringing into sharp relief the valuable role SBV programs play in building the capacity of nonprofit organizations to meet community needs at home and around the world. In less than a year, nearly 200 companies have pledged an estimated $1.8 billion worth of time and talent to nonprofits, keeping the campaign on track to inspire 500 companies to create or expand a SBV program in their workplace by 2013. Campaign pledge companies like Capital One, HP, Deloitte and IBM shared the inspiration driving their SBV programs, and how they are achieving high-impact, transformative change through service at a special Pre-conference session, “Leading Service and Inspiring Change.” “At HP, we ask ourselves how we can harness all the skills of our company to give back to our communities. For example, HP worked with nonprofits and ministries of health on a pro bono basis to develop a system to verify counterfeit drugs abroad and help save 700,000 lives lost every year due to counterfeit drugs. The concept of shared value to give back to both your company and your communities is very important,” said Caroline Barlerin, director, Communications and Global Community Involvement for HP. PepsiCo, Kraft Foods, GlaxoSmithKline and the Advisory Board Company also discussed how their programs are addressing critical issues such as global health and education, water resource management and improving STEM education through skills-based service. Today, Pranav Kothari, managing director of Mission Measurement, will lead a dynamic conversation about innovations in business and philanthropy and how corporate innovation can spark broader social change in “Beyond Business as Usual: Leading Innovation and Driving Social Change.” These sessions are the latest in a national tour of A Billion + Change events that will culminate in a White House Forum on June 27, at which the campaign will start to imagine the phenomenal possibilities of collective action, with 500 companies working in partnership with nonprofit professionals to change communities for the better. To learn more about A Billion + Change and to take the pledge for free, visit: www.abillionpluschange.org.

The Requirement to Care – Leading the Way for Pro Bono Commitment

Today’s post is written by Points of Light Board Member Jeff Haidet, chairman of international law firm McKenna Long & Aldridge LLP, where he is also a partner. In addition to Jeff’s role as chairman, he maintains an active corporate practice and is involved in pro bono legal service and other community service work on behalf of the firm.

Earlier this month, the state of New York announced a new requirement for all lawyers applying to the New York State Bar. Starting in 2013, aspiring attorneys will need to demonstrate that they have performed 50 hours of pro bono legal work in order to be eligible for admission.

The legal profession has long held the professional standard that the pursuit of justice and the practice of law must include providing legal services to those who can not afford to pay. Law firms manage pro bono practices to varying levels of success. But all lawyers understand this underlying ethic to their profession.

And while you can debate the rationale and benefit behind any mandatory requirement for volunteer service, New York’s bold act invites an important conversation for the larger business community around setting standards that place value on pro bono contributions. If companies within every industry adopted an ethic of service that encouraged and incented skills-based, pro bono contributions from employees, imagine what could be accomplished.

First, there is the value of pro bono volunteer service to the individual and the practical skills acquisition for employees. For the legal industry, the unprecedented move by New York highlights the question about the readiness of emerging law students. Prior to practicing law, law students have varying levels of experience actually applying classroom skills to real-life situations. A requirement or ethic of pro bono service incents law students to gain tangible skills prior to practicing and encourages law firms to focus summer training programs on engaging students in pro bono matters applying legal skill to tangible urgent needs.

As a bonus, emerging research from firms such as Deloitte tell us that millennials, today’s law school graduates, place a higher value on corporate cultures that have a social responsibility platform and offer opportunities for young professionals to hone their skills while giving back. The New York requirement simply gives law firms in New York increased incentive to actively engage their summer associates and young lawyers in their pro bono programs whereby they will meet the legal services needs, provide fledgling lawyers practical experience, and potentially garner the interest of top candidates who find community involvement a critical element to their employment decisions.

The move in New York also invites discussion around the tangible value of pro bono or skills-based volunteer service to the larger community. In the legal profession, providing legal services to people struggling with criminal legal issues as well as foreclosures, evictions, domestic violence or a variety of civil legal matters, hones the skills of any attorney and provides invaluable service to people in crisis. Expanding on this traditional legal services paradigm, providing legal services to meet the organizational needs of a non-profit has a ripple effect. Again the attorney gains valuable skills. But in addition, the non-profit receives direct operational expense off-setting services that strengthen the organization and enable that non-profit to then serve a greater number of clients in need. Another mutual win for all involved.

The decision in New York resonates with me as the head of a law firm with a New York office. As chairman of McKenna Long & Aldridge, I understand that part of my role in leading this law firm includes championing the importance of pro bono involvement, recognizing the value internally and finding ways for our people to use their skills to meet legal needs in the community. Yet, providing professional skills to meet critical community needs is a win for any industry, not just the legal profession. Individuals builds vital professional and leadership skills, learn deeply about community issues and vital needs are met.

This is why McKenna Long & Aldridge is a founding partner for a pro bono service campaign called the Billion + Change which was created for the very reasons illustrated by the move in New York: to encourage an ethic of giving back in every industry in the country. A Billion + Change is a national campaign championed by more than 100 companies to mobilize billions of dollars of pro bono and skills-based volunteer services from corporate America by 2013.

As a Founding supporter of Billion + Change, McKenna Long & Aldridge joined the effort to try to bring the lessons learned from the legal community to help envision how every industry can adopt of standard of giving a portion of their professional skills and services to address critical issues. We hope to help tell the story and further the message that there is work to be done and every industry has the human capital and professional skill to meet the needs.

If this notion of giving your professional skills to meet critical needs resonates, learn how your company can create value and make a lasting impact on society visit www.abillionpluschange.org.

News Flash: Points of Light Partners with NCoC, Bloomberg News to Launch Civic 100

Points of Light has partnered with the National Conference on Citizenship (NCoC) to launch The Civic 100, a national initiative to survey, rank and recognize corporations on how they engage the communities they serve and institutionalize these practices as part of their corporate culture. Bloomberg News, one of corporate America’s most respected sources of business and financial information, will serve as The Civic 100’s media partner in this endeavor.

“The business sector plays a critical role in promoting civic engagement. The Civic 100 will not only acknowledge corporate leadership in service, but encourage companies to find new ways to build and strengthen their communities,” said Neil Bush, Points of Light’s board chairman. “The Civic 100 will showcase innovation, honor those serving as stewards of their community and create an incentive to create change.”

The Civic 100 isn’t the first effort to track corporate social responsibility, but it is the first initiative to implement a scientific approach to measuring and evaluating corporate civic engagement.

A recent CSR Perception Survey conducted by Penn Schoen & Berland found that 40 percent of respondents were willing to take a pay cut to work at a socially responsible company, and 72 percent would sacrifice spending or salary to support corporate social responsibility initiatives. The same survey found that 75 percent of consumers say corporate responsibility is important to them, and they are more likely to purchase products or services from a company after reading its responsibility agenda.

“As a company committed to global sustainability, Bloomberg is proud to partner with NCoC and Points of Light to produce The Civic 100 survey,” said Curtis Ravenel, Global Head of Bloomberg L.P.’s Sustainability Group. “Corporations are increasingly adopting business practices that reflect their commitment to community engagement, yet there has been little formal recognition of these efforts.”

The Civic 100 survey is available to S&P 500 companies at www.Civic100.org now through July 31. Responses will be used to generate an overall composite score, resulting in a rank ordered 1-to-100 list to be published in Bloomberg Businessweek in mid-November.

To learn more about The Civic 100 survey as well as the importance of civic engagement in corporate America, please visit www.Civic100.org.

Change Notes: American Express Engages Volunteers to Help Preserve New York City

Friends,

American Express, a Points of Light Leadership Partner, is engaging volunteers in a whole new way this summer – to help preserve New York City’s historic landmarks.

The company and the National Trust for Historic Preservation have chosen New York City as the 2012 location for Partners in Preservation, their community-based initiative to raise awareness of the importance of historic places. The program will infuse $3 million in grants to preserve the city’s historic buildings, icons and landmarks. As New York City’s first-ever, citywide grassroots preservation effort, the call-to-action program will enlist the aid of all New Yorkers, and anyone who loves New York, to vote online for the preservation project most important to them.

The participation of volunteers is critical to the program’s success. American Express is partnering with New York Cares, a HandsOn Network Action Center of Points of Light, to engage volunteers. Most recently, New York Cares volunteers prepared for and hosted an Open House Weekend, which brought thousands of people to the sites to learn more about their place in New York City history.

“New York City’s historic places across all five boroughs – both the familiar and the lesser-known – are part of the city’s fabric and make it one of the most exciting places in the world,” said Timothy J. McClimon, president of the American Express Foundation. “Partners in Preservation aims to raise awareness about historic places in New York and mobilize support for their preservation, a linchpin in neighborhood development and a key to expanding economic vitality and growth.”

American Express has also provided a grant to Reel Works, a school-based program that uses the art of filmmaking as a means to self-empowerment and skills development for at-risk youth. With the guidance of volunteer filmmaker mentors the students in the program created films showcasing 17 of the 40 historic places participating in Partners in Preservation. The films are viewable on YouTube.

Join American Express in supporting New York City’s treasures. From April 26 to May 21, anyone 13 years of age or older, can vote from anywhere in the world – either from their web-enabled mobile device, online or on Facebook – for one of the 40 historic New York City places. Click here for voting terms.

American Express is a Points of Light Leadership Partner, recognized for its commitments to developing next generation leaders, preserving and sustaining historic places and encouraging service in communities where its employees and customers live and work. In 2011, American Express was the lead national contributor to the I WILL campaign, promoting volunteerism as part of the 10th anniversary of the 9/11 Day of Service and Remembrance. The company engaged more than 1,000 employees in volunteer service as part of its 9/11 commitment, and launched the first-of-its-kind Facebook I WILL Volunteer app to make it easy for people to search, register and share volunteer opportunities. Over the past three years, Points of Light and American Express have engaged thousands of students, employees, teachers and community members through Travel with Your Mind, a HandsOn Schools program designed to help revitalize deserving schools through a series of travel-themed, transformational projects and multicultural initiatives across several U.S. cities. American Express also brings its acclaimed American Express Leadership Academy to the National Conference on Volunteering and Service, providing in-depth leadership development opportunities to 24 emerging leaders each year.

Points of Light’s Leadership Partner Program recognizes and engages companies and business leaders whose social responsibility investments have resulted in significant advancement of its mission to inspire, equip and mobilize people to take action that changes the world. One partner organization will be highlighted each month.

In service,

Michelle Nunn CEO. Points of Light

News Flash: A Billion + Change Reaches 100-Company Milestone

A Billion + Change, a growing national campaign to mobilize billions of dollars of pro bono and skills-based volunteer services from corporate America, announced today that 100 companies have pledged to create or expand a skills-based volunteer program in their workplace.

In just six months, these companies have pledged a combined total of $1.7 billion and at least 11.5 million hours of time and talent to nonprofits, taking the campaign a one-fifth of the way toward its goal of recruiting 500 companies by 2013.

“We believe that building the capacity of businesses to more effectively engage the time and skills of their employees in service is central to meeting the critical needs in our communities,” said Michelle Nunn, CEO of Points of Light, which houses and manages A Billion + Change.

Pledge companies – including Allstate Insurance Company, IBM and The Ritz-Carlton Hotel Company – work to support many aspects of community needs, from workforce development, health care and the needs of veterans and military families, to creating empowering opportunities for women and girls. For nonprofits and communities, the value of skilled support in areas such as general operations, technology and professional services can be 500 percent greater than the value of traditional volunteering.

A Billion + Change is a national campaign to mobilize billions of dollars of pro bono and skills-based volunteer services by 2013. It was launched by the Corporation for National and Community Service in 2008 and continues as an initiative of the federal agency. Reinvigorated in 2011 with expanded leadership under the honorary chairmanship of Sen. Mark Warner, it is now housed and managed by Points of Light, the world’s leading volunteer organization that is dedicated to inspiring, equipping and mobilizing people to take action that changes the world.

The initiative is powered by the support of Deloitte, HP, the Case Foundation and IBM with additional founding support from State Farm, McKenna Long & Aldridge LLP and Morgan Stanley.

A list of pledge companies, and information about how to take the pledge, is available at www.abillionpluschange.org.

The Impact of Employee Volunteer Programs

Today’s guest post is written by Jennifer M. Highsmith, Senior Director, Corporate Training & Consulting for The Points of Light Corporate Institute.

Employee volunteer programs (EVPs) have a significant impact on businesses and the community, but the impact on employees is far greater.

Studies indicate that organizations who engage employees actually outperform those who do not.

Why is that? The answer lies with the employees that are engaged in the program.

EVPs are not just effective in tackling community needs and addressing problems, but they are also advantageous to the workplaces where they exist. Successful EVPs have a direct effect on employees and business operations.

With more and more businesses operating with decentralized offices, workers working from their homes or on flexible schedules, EVPs can be an essential tool in strengthening workforce culture. Just look at the benefits for employees:

Increases employee performance, loyalty, morale, recruitment, retention and reduces absenteeism
Develops employee skills and competencies such as teamwork, communication, planning, project management, problem solving, budgeting and listening skills
Spurs innovation and creativity
Helps build community and cohesion inside the workforce
Provides leadership opportunities and improves employee relations
Helps motivate the workforce
Attributes to higher levels of life satisfaction, sense of control over life and feeling physically and emotionally healthier (UnitedHealthcare / VolunteerMatch Do Good Live Well Study. 2010)

And there’s more.

The Deloitte 2011 Volunteer IMPACT Survey found that more than one-third (37 percent) of those who frequently volunteer are more likely to be very satisfied with the progression of their career. These and other findings from the survey suggest a link between volunteerism and the quality of employee engagement as well as favorable employee perceptions of organizational culture.

With these benefits, EVPs are a huge win for businesses – strengthening communities and engaging employees all while increasing revenues and contributing to the bottom line.

Learn more about EVPs and some of the innovative practices associated with them during the Points of Light Corporate Institute’s free webinar on Thursday, April 26, 2012, 1:00-2:00 p.m. EST. The webinar features Corporate Engagement Award of Excellence winner McKesson.

McKesson was honored for building a strong and effective volunteer program that helps build healthy communities and provide a better quality of life for residents. McKesson’s EVP uniquely aligns with the company’s business mission “to create better health for all.”

Learn more about the practices that have led to the success of their EVP and the many lessons they learned along the way. Register Now!

To learn more about innovations in employee volunteering download your free copy of the Trends of Excellence – Innovations in Employee Volunteering.

For additional information or for assistance with developing or enhancing your EVP, contact Jennifer Highsmith, senior director of corporate training and consulting at Points of Light Corporate Institute at [email protected].

News Flash: Innovative Strategies for Serving Atlanta

As part of National Volunteer Week, A Billion + Change brought together leaders from Atlanta’s business and nonprofit communities yesterday for a special panel discussion, “Innovative Strategies for Serving Atlanta.” Hosted by Deloitte and McKenna Long & Aldridge LLP, the panel focused on the power of corporate skills-based and pro bono volunteering to address community needs and challenges.

“As the birthplace of the civil rights movement with a long-standing tradition of philanthropy and service, Atlanta has long been called ‘The City Too Busy to Hate,'” said Atlanta’s Chief Service Officer Amy Phuong. “But Mayor Kasim Reed believes Atlanta can do more and become the city that is also not too busy to love one another. Our city has a deep culture of business innovation, so we strongly believe A Billion + Change is the kind of challenge our city’s leaders can rise to meet.”

A Billion + Change, housed and managed by Points of Light, is a national campaign to mobilize billions of dollars of pro bono and skills-based volunteer service from corporate America by 2013. As this movement grows, there have been some amazing examples of businesses and nonprofits working together to address critical needs, including:

Deloitte’s commitment to provide $60 million in pro bono professional services is made real by the work of its employees as they provide strategic planning and IT solutions to organizations like the Girl Scouts, Professional Business Women of California and the YWCA
UPS logisticians and engineers are helping international relief organizations respond to and prepare for disasters while their drivers are teaching low-income teenagers road safety and driving skills
Skanska USA has partnered with the Atlanta Mission to design and create the Atlanta Urban Garden, a downtown community garden that benefits more than 500 homeless and recovering men, providing not only reduced cost, healthy and locally grown fresh produce, but also vocational training and purposeful work

So far, A Billion + Change companies have pledged nearly $1.8 billion in service to help nonprofits be more effective agents of change.

Every day, the campaign’s pledge companies are redefining what it means to help by investing their time and talent to build nonprofit capacity at home and around the world.

“At Deloitte, we try to select nonprofit engagements in a way that lets us use our employees’ talents and skills to give back to communities-we think that is an important thing to do. We challenge you to think about how you can give back through pro bono and skills-based volunteering,” said Ed Heys, managing partner, Atlanta and Birmingham, Deloitte, and chair, Georgia Chamber of Commerce.

A Billion + Change looks forward to working with Deloitte, the Corporate Volunteer Council of Atlanta, Hands On Atlanta and the mayor’s office in the coming months to engage the Atlanta business community in skills-based volunteering.

To learn more about how your organization can join A Billion + Change, visit our website at www.abillionpluschange.org.

Innovative Strategies for Serving Atlanta: Kicking-off National Volunteer Week in Our Home Town

National Volunteer Week (April 15-21) is a time to celebrate people doing extraordinary things through service.

As the President said earlier this week, “Our Nation has been profoundly shaped by ordinary Americans who have volunteered their time and energy to overcome extraordinary challenges…During National Volunteer Week, we pay tribute to all who give of themselves to keep America strong, and we renew the spirit of service that has enriched our country for generations.”

We are excited to have Deloitte and McKenna Long & Aldridge LLP welcome A Billion + Change to Atlanta on Monday, April 16to kick off National Volunteer Week with a panel discussion, “Innovative Strategies for Serving Atlanta,” focusing on the power of corporate skills-based and pro bono volunteering in addressing community needs and challenges. Speakers at this event will include Michelle Nunn, CEO of Points of Light, Edward S. Heys, Managing Partner for Deloitte’s Atlanta & Birmingham offices and the Chair of the Georgia Chamber of Commerce, and Jeffrey K. Haidet, Chairman of McKenna Long & Aldridge.

“As the birthplace of the Civil Rights Movement with a long-standing tradition of philanthropy and service, Atlanta has long been called ‘The City Too Busy to Hate,’” said Atlanta’s Chief Service Officer Amy Phuong. “But Mayor Kasim Reed believes Atlanta can do more and become the city that is also not too busy to love one another. Our city has a deep culture of business innovation, so we strongly believe A Billion + Change is the kind of challenge our city’s leaders can rise to meet.”

In the spirit of the week, we are reminded how proud we are to house and manage A Billion + Change. As this national campaign to mobilize billions of dollars of pro bono and skills-based volunteer service from corporate America by 2013 continues to grow and catch the attention of companies across America, we have already seen some amazing examples of businesses and nonprofits working together to address critical community needs at home and around the world.

So far, A Billion + Change pledge companies have pledged nearly $1.8 billion in service to help nonprofits be more effective agents of change:

Deloitte’s commitment to provide $60 million pro bono professional services is made real by the work of its employees as they provide strategic planning and IT solutions to organizations like the Girl Scouts, Professional Business Women of California and the YWCA
UPS logisticians and engineers are helping international relief organizations respond to and prepare for disasters while their drivers are teaching low-income teenagers road safety and driving skills
Right here in Atlanta, Skanska USA has partnered with the Atlanta Mission to design and create the Atlanta Urban Garden, a downtown community garden that benefits more than 500 homeless and recovering men, providing not only reduced cost, healthy and locally grown fresh produce, but also vocational training and purposeful work.

Every day, the campaign’s pledge companies are redefining what it means to help by investing their time and talent to build nonprofit capacity at home and around the world. Building upon the immense success of the pro bono movement in the legal industry, including the valuable services Points of Light received from groups like McKenna Long & Aldridge, A Billion + Change, together with their pledge companies, is inspiring the largest commitment of corporate pro bono service in history.

We look forward to building on this momentum to engage the Atlanta business community next week in a meaningful discussion on highly impactful opportunities for businesses to engage in pro bono and skills-based volunteer service.

We hope you can A Billion + Changes’ breakfast and panel discussion on Monday! Register online for free!

To learn more about how your organization can join A Billion + Change, visit our website at: www.abillionpluschange.org.