Corporate Social Responsibility - How Companies are Giving Back

Companies are contributing to their communities, local and global, in a wide variety of ways. From sustainability campaigns to creating programs that teach STEM skills to kids and everything in between, there are myriad of ways companies are getting involved in the world around them.

Corporate Social Responsibility (CSR) has been around for some time. You’ve likely heard of TOM’s “One for One" business model, in which the company donates a pair of shoes to children around the world for every pair of shoes sold.

Consumers notice these give backs and build relationships with companies with causes that aligns with their goals. Many feel when they buy a product from a company with a relatable CSR plan, they’re doing their part to raise awareness and help create change.

While some smaller companies focus on one project, many larger corporations like Samsung have many different initiatives. We reached out to get more info from these 4 companies who are doing CSR right.

SAMSUNG

Tell me about your CSR program, what is it and who does it benefit?

As our flagship Citizenship initiative, the Samsung Solve for Tomorrow Contest is designed to address the growing education gap and career readiness shortage in STEM skills in the U.S. The Samsung Solve for Tomorrow Contest challenges 6th-12th grade classrooms from every state to use STEM to address an issue in their community and shows students first-hand the impact they can have on the world. It is a project-based learning initiative that fosters critical thinking and creative problem solving among thousands of students across the country.

We are kicking off the 2019-2020 contest on September 12 – the 10^th anniversary of the program. For the past decade, we’ve seen teachers and students tackle issues from homelessness to climate change, and health care access to water shortages. In celebration of our 10^th year, we have increased the prize pool by 50% and we will award more than $3 million in classroom technology to schools in every state. Teachers can apply online at Samsung.com/solve.

Why does Samsung feel it's important to give back?

Our commitment to giving back is rooted in one of our company’s core values, co-prosperity. At Samsung, we believe that success goes hand-in-hand with being a good corporate citizen. As such, we strive to focus our efforts in the communities where we live and work.  Not only are we passionate about giving back to the communities where we operate, but we’re also passionate about helping students today prepare for their tomorrows.

How do you involve employees in the process?

Samsung employees around the nation serve as mentors to the teachers and students participating in the Samsung Solve for Tomorrow Contest. Through in-school visits, video conferencing and more, employees are critical resources to schools as they develop their community STEM projects. Beyond Solve for Tomorrow, all employees are an active part of our Citizenship programming. For example, we host the annual Samsung Day of Service where we close our offices so all 4,000+ of our employees can collective serve the communities where we work. We also offer volunteer time off hours, and recently launched an employee-nominated grant program to support causes that they care about.

Ann Woo, Senior Director of Corporate Citizenship at Samsung Electronics America

T-MOBILE

Tell me about your CSR program, what is it and who does it benefit?

T-Mobile has a goal to harness our greatest strengths to support the communities we serve by mobilizing our network, technology and people to change the world for good.

T-Mobile has a variety of programs focused on important issues such as diversity and inclusion, supporting our military veterans, and sustainability. Youth development is also a main focus and currently, our second annual Changemaker Challenge is live and accepting applications through September 26th! The Changemaker Challenge is a nationwide contest seeking youth who have BIG ideas to change the world and their communities.

Why does T-Mobile feel it's important to give back?

At T-Mobile we’re not only committed to changing wireless for good, we’re committed to changing the WORLD for good! With 5,000+ retail stores across the country and more than 50,000 employees who are fired up to make a difference, we are steadfast in our mission to create positive change in the thousands of communities we serve – each and every day!

In August alone, some of our giving announcements includes:

• $1M to Feeding America through sales of the Slow Cooker Sunday cookbook

• More than $1M to little league to help make baseball and softball more accessible for families

• Nearly $5M to two school districts to help bridge the digital divide through our EmpowerED program. Beaumont ISD $2.3M Awardand Cicero ISD $2.6M Award

Through our employee volunteering and matching program – we match employee’s donation dollars and volunteer hours – up to $2,000 a year. Through our matching program, our employees and the T-Mobile Foundation donated more than $4.4M to our communities in 2018. Our employees also volunteered nearly 60,000 hours for causes they care about most.

Brigitta Witt, VP of corporate responsibility and sustainability for T-Mobile

OOFOS

Tell me about your CSR program, what is it and who does it benefit?

Project Pink is the "cause that found us"-- Over 4 years ago, our Head of Brand, Duncan Finigan, was diagnosed with Stage 4, Metastatic Breast Cancer. From that point on, she worked with OOFOS’ co-founders to launch Project Pink- a way for OOFOS to raise money for breast cancer research through sales on our website. Through Project Pink we donate 3% of each and every sale on our website to breast cancer research.

OOFOS is now partnered with Dana-Farber Cancer Institute (DFCI) here in Boston, as the Official Recovery Shoe of Dana-Farber and The Jimmy Fund.  All of our research dollars are currently donated to the breast cancer research team at DFCI, and through this partnership, employees at OOFOS have gotten to engage closely with the Institute and see firsthand where our research dollars are going.

Why does OOFOS feel it's important to give back?

At OOFOS, our mission is to make people feel better. Our line of recovery footwear does that for so many people— from runners, to fitness enthusiasts, to people looking for everyday comfort— and as a brand, we also aim to do that with Project Pink.

Furthermore, we've found that consumers are very interested in supporting brands who have a philanthropic cause, and consumers want to see their money going to the greater good.

How do you involve employees in the process?

Project Pink is truly engrained in our DNA as a brand, so employees at OOFOS have a variety of ways to get involved. In our current corporate partnership with Dana-Farber & The Jimmy Fund, we partner on a number of events and fundraising initiatives that give our employees volunteer opportunities.  Employees participate in check donation ceremonies at the Institute. This past May, unfortunately we lost Duncan Finigan after her 4.5-year battle against breast cancer, and as a brand we are always looking for additional ways to honor her and continue her legacy with Project Pink to support breast cancer research.

Jacqueline Cunniff, Public Relations specialist, OOFOS

BOSCH

Tell me about your CSR program, what is it and who does it benefit?

Bosch takes a collective approach in the US that consists of 3 parts: corporate initiatives, local initiatives near Bosch offices and a corporate foundation called theBosch Community Fund. Bosch programs include but are not limited to, grant making to STEM and environmentally-focused nonprofits, student scholarships for university and trade schools, and support to K-12 students in robotic programs like FIRST®.

Why does Bosch feel it's important to give back?

We are building on what our Founder Robert Bosch established over 100 years ago. He was extremely generous and passionate about the community. For example, he donated a hospital to the city of Stuttgart in 1936 and established his own foundation in Germany in 1964.  It is also part of our brand, Invented For Life, which includes CSR.  One example is The Bosch Experience, a corporate initiative that combines the power of local offices with the Bosch Community Fund and our partner Michigan Technological University’s Mind Trekkers to spark a curiosity for STEM in students.

How do you involve employees in the process?

Our associates volunteer and donate to charities they are passionate about. Many Bosch locations provide employees with paid time off for volunteering. WithFIRST® alone, Bosch associates volunteer

over 20,000 hours annually. We also make a practice of rewarding our associates by providing funds they can direct to their favorite charity through our volunteer and giving social responsibility platform.

Brad McKenna, manager, corporate citizenship for Bosch in North America