GadellNet has always put an emphasis on giving back to the communities we serve. When we were a small company with less than 10 people, we got together to rake leaves and donate technology. As we continued to grow, we have been able to grow our philanthropy efforts. Last year’s Season of Giving campaign shined a light on five deserving organizations.
There are three simple ways we have made philanthropy a priority and created a giving culture within our organization.
1. Paid Time Off
Each employee at GadellNet is given 8 hours of PTO, just for philanthropy. They can use these hours as they choose. Some parents use these hours to volunteer with their children’s schools, others use the time to do STEM activities with Girls Inc., some use the hours to volunteer for animal rescues. The sky is the limit.
This was a simple policy to introduce to our team and its adoption has been great!
2. Philanthropy Committee
Two years ago, GadellNet decided to start a philanthropy committee. We took volunteers from our organization to head it up. The committee was given a budget and a few objectives. We wanted to ensure there was some kind of philanthropy effort going on every month and we wanted to make sure our employees were engaged. Some months they spread the word about a charity 5k and get the GadellNet team signed up, other months they organize drives for food or clothing items, the committee will go out and give monetary donations to local organizations, and worked to organize blood drives. It varies greatly, and the impact on our communities has been incredible.
3. Partner with Selflessly
As GadellNet grew and our philanthropy efforts expanded, we decided we needed a better way to connect our employees with philanthropy opportunities and well as track what they were doing. This helps us know how many individuals are taking advantage of the 8 hours of PTO for philanthropy each year. Selflessly is focused on helping organizations develop purpose-driven cultures through giving and volunteering. This platform helps us to track, coordinate, and celebrate our philanthropy.
