The brochure I picked up at Whole Foods Market gave great details about how shoppers checkout donations had raised $675,000 for the Whole Planet Foundation’s microlending programs.  The back of the brochure also gave information about the Whole Planet Foundation Supplier Alliance, which I had NOT known about.  It says, “How are Others Helping?  Whole Planet Foundation Supplier Alliance for Microcredit is an alliance of vendors to Whole Foods Market who have catalyzed $1.05 million over 3 years to microlending programs to help plant the seeds of prosperity around the world.”  Very cool!

Vendor logos on the back included: Allegro Coffee, Back to Nature, Balance, Celestial Seasonings, Earth’s Best Organic, ITO EN, Naked Juice, New Chapter Organics, Seventh Generation, Stacy’s, and Teas’ Tea.

How can you leverage your vendors to join forces to support the philanthropic initiatives your company is involved with?

Waiting in line at Whole Foods Market over the weekend to buy some tasty treats, I noticed another one of their checkout promotions.  They had a nice little display board inviting me to donate to the Prosperity Campaign by tearing off a coupon in the amount of $2, $5, or $10 to add to my food stack, as well as pamphlets (printed on 100% recycled paper using vegetable ink) about the Whole Planet Foundation to take home to learn more.  I am always up for these things, so grabbed a $2 coupon and laid it on my cracker box.  As the cashier was ringing it in, he gave me a big genuine smile and said, “Thanks so much for your donation!”  Had a fleeting thought I should have grabbed the $5 coupon… 

I mentioned that I am always on the lookout for good examples of business philanthropy and that I was going to go home and write a blog post about their promotion.  We chatted a bit more and he called over Drew Calvert, the Cherry Creek Denver store’s Marketing Director to introduce me.  I told her what I was doing and that I really appreciated Whole Foods’ strategic approach to their philanthropy.  She said they were very proud of what they are doing and committed to make sure they actually do walk their talk.

The pamphlet I took does a nice job of explaining the program and says in several places “$2 can make a difference.”  I felt better about not having taken that $5 coupon.  Next time…  It also told me that “100% of the funds raised go to Whole Planet Foundation-sponsored microlending programs. (My company, Business Nonprofit Connections, Inc. has selected microbusiness development as one of our major causes to support with our time, talent, and treasure so turns out this mini donation was in alignment with our stated philanthropy focus.)  The pamphlet also stated, “Thanks to shopper generosity last year, over $675,000 was raised giving 22,500 people the chance to move themselves out of poverty.”

I really like it when a brochure such as this not only gives me some information about the program I am supporting, but as evaluation is one of my specialties, I get even more interested when a company goes the next level, is transparent, and provides ”data”!!  In this case, they told me how much was raised and how many people benefitted.  Gives me a sense of the value of the program in a very different way and makes it seem like my little donation is helping make a real difference.

At a minimum, be sure to have systems to track your company’s contributions. It is amazing to me how many companies have only a vague idea about their annual figures for cash, in-kind, and volunteer donations.  Also, it is useful to figure out ways to get information back from the organizations you support about how your resources were used, how many people benefitted, and what difference your company helped make so you have it to report to your stakeholders.

Do you track employee time spent volunteering either on company time or on their own time because it was encouraged/supported by your company ?  If not, you should. It is an important part of your overall contribution to the community.  I believe that companies should value that time, add it to the value of other resources they provide in a year and report it all as part of their overall philanthropic efforts to give a more accurate picture of their level of involvement.  Marc Benioff of Salesforce.com, in his book Compassionate Capitalism, reflects a similar sentiment by encouraging companies to think about donating three percent annually - one percent each from cash, in-kind donations, and employee volunteering.

Some companies, like Motorola, however, choose not to include their employee volunteer time valuation in their annual dollar figures.  Eileen Sweeney, Director, Corporate and Foundation Philanthropic Relations for the Motorola Foundation told me that Motorola has decided that their other philanthropic numbers from cash and in-kind donations are very strong on their own — so while employees do engage in volunteerism, they choose not to report the value of those hours.

I also went to the Macy’s website to see what they had to say there about their community involvement and was surprised to see not the $17 million number given in a newspaper ad I had seen but the figure of $74 million!  Turns out the number given on the website does include employee volunteer time: “Macy’s encourages its employees to be active volunteers through the company’s award-winning Partners in Time program. Approximately 130,000 hours were volunteered through Partners in Time in 2006, which is valued as a $2.4 million contribution by the charities we benefit.”  

At first glance that seemed high to me but it comes out to $18.46 per hour which is a bit less than the value for volunteer time published annually by the Independent Sector .  “The dollar value of volunteer time for 2006 is estimated at $18.77.” 

This figure is used by nonprofits and business to estimate the value of general volunter time such as painting a shelter or doing trash cleanup.  Independent Sector’s website states: “It is very difficult to put a dollar value on volunteer time. Volunteers provide many intangibles that can not be easily quantified. For example, volunteers demonstrate the amount of support an organization has within a community, provide work for short periods of time, and provide support on a wide range of projects. The value of volunteer time presented here is the average wage of non-management, non-agricultural workers. This is only a tool and only one way to show the immense value volunteers provide to an organization. The Bureau of Labor Statistics does have hourly wages by occupation that can be used to determine the value of a specialized skill.

It is important to remember that when a doctor, lawyer, craftsman, or anyone with a specialized skill volunteers, the value of his or her work is based on his or her volunteer work, not his or her earning power. In other words, volunteers must be performing their special skill as volunteer work. If a doctor is painting a fence or a lawyer is sorting groceries, he or she is not performing his or her specialized skill for the nonprofit, and their volunteer hour value would not be higher.”

How many hours do you or your employees volunteer for organizations on behalf of your company?  Does the $18.77 figure help you value those hours?  Or…are your people providing more specialized skills valued at a higher level?

I was cleaning off my desk this morning so I have maximum space to work on my book and I found an ad that has been sitting around waiting for me to write about it - so now it is time!   I find in my work that companies are sometimes hesitant to report on their community involvement.  They worry that tooting their own horn will have the opposite effect of what they are hoping for by causing consumers to view them as cold and self serving.  Of course if the reporting or sharing provides trumped up details or is making a mountain out of a molehill for a pretty small effort considering the size of the company, perhaps they should think twice before doing that.  However, these days many consumers do want to know that the companies whose products or services they use are making the effort to be socially responsible and give back to their communities.  Helps with strengthening loyalty of existing customers and draws in new customers, as well.  They like your offerings AND they like your company values. 

I’d like to tell you about two nice examples of companies sharing what they have done in low key but direct ways through newspaper advertisements.  First, Macy’s Department Store took out a full page color ad in the Denver Post on January 1, 2008.  The page is largely black - a night sky view with stars, 2008 written in stars and a shooting star exclamation point.  The bottom show the Macy’s logo and above “WISHING A MAGICAL NEW YEAR TO ALL.  AND A WARM THANK YOU TO OUR EMPLOYEES AND CUSTOMERS - AND TO THE MACY’S FOUNDATION.  THEY ALL HELPED MACY’S GIVE BACK $17,000,000 TO OUR COMMUNITIES.”  Simple and gets the message out about their commitment to the community.

Second, In today’s Denver Post, there was a similar one page black and white ad from the Post-News on Community Programs of the Denver Post and Rocky Mountain News.  The ad features a letter from Harry Whipple, President and CEO of the Denver Newspaper Agency,  highlighting their 2007 Annual Report to the Community.  The letter outlines that they invested ” value of more than $13,000,000 in 257 nonprofit organizations through financial funding, sponsorship, in-kind advertising, volunteer hours, and more.”  The ad then goes on to give some examples of including 1,800 hours of employee volunteer service, more than $2 million cash to 91 local nonprofits, and sponsorships of community events including Race for the Cure and A Taste of Colorado.  In the ad, they also subtly let people know their philanthropic focus areas. “Thank you for taking the time to review this report of our community efforts, focused primarily on the arts, youth, education and literacy, and the provision of basic human services.”  Well done!  If you go to their website, the full 2007 Annual Report is available as a pdf.

I really liked the letter’s closing line: “Together we can make a difference.  And thanks to your support we did that last year.  We look forward to many more years of continued partnership and impact in our community.”

How do you get the word out to your customers and/or the general public (potential customers) about what your company does in the community?  Is a newspaper ad something that could work for you?  If you run ads in the newspaper anyway, perhaps you do not have to dedicate an entire ad to this but place a statement about the value of your philanthropy prominently on an ad selling your products.

The title of this article written by Randolph E. Schmid, Science writer for the Associated Press in today’s Denver Post caught my attention.  He writes that a report in Friday’s issue of the journal Science states that “those who spend more on others and charity rate themselves happier, regardless of income.”  A study conducted by Elizabeth W. Dunn, associate professor at the University of British Columbia showed that how people spent their money made a difference on their level of happiness.  Schmid states that Dunn “was struck by how big the effect was and that how people spent money was more important than how much they had….and there’s nothing special about money.  Giving can involve time or special skills to help other people.”  The study found “Personal spending was unrelated to happiness…but higher social spending was associated with significantly greater happiness.”

The article also mention another study published in the Proceedings of the National Academy of Science in 2006 by Jorge Moll et al. that studied the brain and the good feelings that are produced when a persons gives to someone else.  I looked it up: “Human fronto–mesolimbic networks guide decisions about charitable donation” - what a title!!

Science is a highly respected journal produced by the American Association for the Advancement of Science (with whom, by the way, I had a two year AAAS Science, Engineering, and Diplomacy Postdoctoral Fellowship to the U.S. Agency for International Development in DC in the early 1990s).  The current Science article, The Secret to Happiness? Giving was written by Elsa Youngsteadt in the March 20, 2008 issue and cites an earlier 2005 article in Science NOW.  I couldn’t get to the original ScienceNOW article without wangling an online pass or getting a subscription so I did not read it.

So…creating opportunities for your company and your people to be engaged with philanthropic activities can make for happier employees.  If employees are happier and credit you with having given them those opportunities to give back, they will like your company better increasing morale and retention, they will be more productive, and provide better customer service - all which directly relate to a stronger bottomline!!. 

I was at Metafolics Salon in Denver today for a hair cut with owner Jason Linkow.  I am a big Jason fan - he gives a fabulous hair cut AND he a smart, insightful business person.  I interviewed him for my forthcoming book, The Business Handbook of Strategic Philanthropy, because I felt he was a great example of a small business committed to doing good in the community and at the same time growing the salon’s business.  Metafolics sponsors an annual event to raise money for melanoma which is very impressive.  But I digress - I’ll write more about that in another post. 

While I was “in the chair,” Jason and I got into a discussion about Oprah’s Big Give Show.  Because I really value his perspective, I now will go to http://www.abc.com and watch the two episodes I did not watch as I was underwhelmed with Show One.  Jason told me several things about the Big Give that I had not gotten from watching the first show.  He watches the Oprah Show regularly so he saw the episode where Oprah set the stage for the Big Give and gave more details about who the judges are and their amazing personal philanthropic activities.  I wish I also had seen that Oprah Show to give me a better context when watching the Big Give. Had there been a few more of those details given during the Big Give premier show itself, I probably would have been a little less harsh in my critique.

Jason felt the “tapestry of the show” was being woven with each new episode exanding and deepening the overall message of the series.  I trust him to get such things “right” - he has never steered me wrong on a big screen production and always adds a layer of analysis that I somehow missed.  So I’ll write more after I watch the next episodes.  Check back later this week! 

I ‘d love to hear what your thoughts are about the Big Give, as well.  Is it just another tear jerker way to get viewers or is it really moving us all to more heartfelt and generous action?

On my morning dog walk to Starbucks, I noticed two signs in stands - one at the register where I ordered and another where the coffee condiments are - promoting World Water Day on March 22.  Starbucks now owns and sells ETHOS Water so highlighting a water-related event make sense to me as it is in alignment with one of the corporate philanthropy focus areas.

I went on the site from the signs when I got home, http://www.worldwaterday.net.  Didn’t see any mention of Starbucks just the event itself which I actually liked.  I learned that “World Water Day is an international day of observance and action to draw attention to the plight of the more than 1 billion people world wide that lack access to clean, safe drinking water. Celebrated since 1993, World Water Day was designated in 1992 when the United Nations (UN) General Assembly passed a resolution. With each passing year, the observance has grown larger and stronger.

In many ways though, World Water Day is still a relatively unknown event. Even with the support of the UN and efforts by leading non-governmental organizations (NGOs) and committed individuals, World Water Day is today at a similar stage as Earth Day was in the early 1970’s – important but relatively unknown.”

The website goes on to move us readers to action.  “You can help. Sign up to participate in a live event, and / or the Virtual Walk for Water – a strong, symbolic act to demonstrate your support for Action on the world water crisis. We hope you’ll help spread the word and take a moment to lend your voice to this important issue. Join us. Get involved today.”

The Walk for Water “is inspired by the example of women in water stressed countries who often walk 6 miles each day just to get water for their family.”  Since there is no live event scheduled for Denver, I joined the virtual walk on March 22nd and learned that my name will be carried in a jug at one of the walks symbolizing my commitment to World Water Day — I even got a pdf ticket to print out!  Once I signed up I was able to set up a personalized Advocate Page online to use to leverage getting my friends and colleagues involved.

I next went to Starbucks home page  and saw a block ad for World Water Day with the logo and a link to the May 13th Press Release about Starbucks support for water projects. ”Starbucks Foundation Awards US$2 Million from the Ethos Water Fund to Help Improve the Lives of People in Water-Stressed African Communities  Ethos Water Launches World Water Day Activities to Build Awareness for the World Water Crisis.  Starbucks Coffee Company (NASDAQ: SBUX) today announced the Starbucks Foundation is making two new grant commitments to help support water, sanitation and hygiene education programs in water-stressed African communities. Over a three-year period, CARE and Project Concern International will each receive US$1 million from the foundation’s Ethos Water Fund. Collectively, the organizations’ efforts are expected to benefit an estimated 54,000 people who currently lack access to clean water and sanitation services.”

Having done international development work myself, I understand how critical the issue water is, especially in developing countries.  I like that Starbucks has picked this as a focus area for their philanthropy and are using multiple strategies to make a difference.  Since coffee is brewed with water and they already support international development projects, it is a very good choice for them.

Why don’t you and/or your employees go to World Water Day and at least sign up participate in the virtual walk to support clean water in developing countries.  The site also allows you to donate dollars, as well.  The timeline for this year is short, but you could have employees set up advocate pages and see who can use their networks to drum up the most participation - perhaps giving a small prize to the winner.

Through my work with the Corporation for National and Community Service, I attended the annual conference for Executive Directors of Governor’s Commissions on National and Community Service in DC in December.  (NOTE: For those of you who don’t know, each state (except SD) has a Governor appointed nonpartisan board that selects and oversees the AmeriCorps programs in the state and serves as a catalyst promoting service as a strategy to address critical local issues.)  At the conference, there was a session presented by Shannon Maynard, Executive Director of the President’s Council on Service and Civic Participation, and Michelle Pullaro, East Coast Regional Director of the Taproot Foundation on the Pro Bono Summit being held in New York City in February.

The Pro Bono Summit brought together more than 150 top corporate, government, and nonprofit leaders, to:

• “Create a new definition for pro bono service that directly addresses nonprofit groups’ most pressing needs, including:
  • financial management
  • technology
  • organizational development
  • communications and marketing
  • human resource management
  • fundraising assistance
• Identify the benefits to companies of providing pro bono services, and expand the pro bono ethic among the corporate community
• Share best practices in providing pro bono services

Participants at the Summit also kicked off The Pro Bono Challenge, a three-year campaign to leverage $1 billion in skilled volunteering and pro bono services from the corporate community. To date, more than 18 companies have become Pro Bono Champions, collectively pledging to provide more than $118 million in professional services to help nonprofits address critical social needs.”

The Pro Bono page provides links to some great resources:

• Making the Case for Pro Bono Service (762 KB PDF)
• Pro Bono Examples (653 KB PDF)
• Spotlight Your Pro Bono Story – If you are a company or nonprofit who would like to highlight your successful pro bono partnership, e-mail Julie Proulx at jproulx@cns.gov. Please provide a brief description and contact information (phone and e-mail) so that someone may follow up with you.
• Profiles of Recipients of the 2008 Pro Bono Awards (59 KB PDF)
• What Corporations Are Saying about Pro Bono (12 KB PDF)
• Related Research and Readings (2 MB PDF)

Check out the Pro Bono Junkie’s Blog by Aaron Hurst at Taproot Foundation for current updates.

Yesterday I went to Safeway on Colorado Boulevard in Denver to buy groceries.  A sign on pink paper near the register about donating to Easter Seals caught my eye.  Easter Seals is a nonprofit, community-based health agency dedicated to helping children and adults with disabilities attain greater independence. When it was my turn in the checkout line, the cashier told me my total purchase price and then asked if I would like to round up to the next dollar as a donation for Easter Seals.  For me it meant adding $0.96 to my bill.  Of course I said yes and told her I appreciated Safeway doing this. 

I mentioned I am always on the look out for examples of how companies support local nonprofits.  Turns out she was the front end manager and shared with me that initially she had thought the round up idea that another employee had proposed wouldn’t work well.  She had thought asking people to donate a dollar when they were checking out would be a more effective way to raise money from customers.  The store tried both approaches and, to her initial dismay, the round up model raised a lot more money.  So now the store uses the round up “ask.” She is very pleased how well it works and is proud of the dollars they are raising to support this good cause.

If you are a retail business, could a round up checkout promotion be a strategy to enlist your customers as partners to support one of your company’s causes?  For nonprofits, if you approach retail stores for a donation and they have already allocated their budget, perhaps you can negotiate a similar checkout promotion to raise dollars from their customers?

I am in San Francisco this week doing training for AmeriCorps.  Last night I talked two colleagues into going with me to an award winning vegan restaurant, Millennium on 580 Geary Street.  Wow - it was one of the best dinners I have EVER had on the road anywhere in the world! 

Millennium is part of Joie De Vivre Hospitality.  I heard Chip Conley, Founder and CEO, speak at Millennium to a small group from the Co-op America’s Green Business Conference a couple years ago while we sampled fabulous vegan treats.  I was so impressed by Chip - such a smart, energetic guy and really committed to running his hotels and restaurants in socially responsibile ways.  His book, Peak, is a must read. 

Millennium is a great restaurant - that happens to be vegan - which is also what makes it so exciting.  One of my foodie colleagues asked before we got there, does it serve gluten stuff made into different shapes?  Not hardly!  Their website says, “Millennium Restaurant is dedicated to supporting the essential earthly concepts of organic food production, small farms, sustainable agriculture, recycling and composting. We cook with fresh produce delivered every day, and choose organic whenever possible. We believe that a gourmet dining experience can be created out of vegetarian, healthy, and environmentally friendly foods. We are proud to state that our restaurant is completely free of genetically modified foods.”  Trying it is to be a believer!

Having heard him speak and having read his books, I am a big Chip Conley fan.  However, last night, in addition to eating totally scrumptious food, I was thrilled to see on the back of the menu the “Millenium Restaurant Philanthropy Statement.”  “Millennium Restaurant is affiliated with Joie De Vivre Hospitality.  JDV is a grass roots organization that strives to have a positive impact on our community.  Millennium Restaurant celebrates health & wellness for the body and soul.  As part of our on-going philanthropic efforts, we have partnered with Episcopal Community Services to support C.H.E.F.S. - Conquering Homelessness Through Employment in Food Services.  This Bay Area organization gives under-privileged adults the education & training necessary to develop the skill-set needed to find employment within the food & beverage industry.  In addition, we have also sought to forge a relationship with the District 6 Rooftop Garden Project located atop our very own Tenderloin YMCA.  This project is dedicated to providing members of the tenderloin community a sanctuary for growing produce, trees, & flowers.  We invite out guests to learn more about how you can contribute to these important institutions.  For more information about the C.H.E.F.S., please visit their website: www.ecs-sf.org/programs/chefs.html.  If you are interested in receiving a donation from Millenium Restaurant, please call Erica: 415.345.3900 x11 or email your request to eculp@jvdhospitality.com. ”

What’s not to like?!  Be sure to check Millennium out next time you are in San Francisco!  I went back twice this week myself to take various colleagues for a gastronomic delight and sent others from our training another night!