Gone are the days when the concept of “corporate social responsibility” was at the periphery of a company’s operations. Today, businesses incorporate volunteerism and giving back into the core of their strategy — not only because it’s the right thing to do, but because of the measurable benefits it brings to the business, the employees and the bottom line.
For businesses small and large, it’s imperative to be a good corporate citizen, as consumers and employees favor companies and brands with socially and environmentally responsible practices.
Here are two ways you can incorporate community impact initiatives into your business strategy.
Leveraging your employee base is a great way to create positive, public visibility for your organization.
Volunteer efforts provide natural opportunities for you and your team to build relationships and network with influential individuals and organizations. Volunteer work increases goodwill toward your brand — both among local consumers and community influencers.
For example, each year thousands of local Comcast NBCUniversal employees and our families, friends and community partners join together to make change happen as we volunteer at project sites in cities throughout Colorado as part of the annual Comcast Cares Day. The company’s long-standing tradition celebrates and exemplifies the spirit of volunteerism our employees bring to life each and every day of the year.
Comcast Cares is quickly approaching again this year, and on May 4, more than 5,000 volunteers will be conducting more than 90 service projects at schools and community centers across Colorado. Keep an eye out around Denver for volunteers in blue shirts at:
- Anchor Center for Blind Children
- Boys & Girls Clubs of Metro Denver: Denver Broncos Boys & Girls Club
- Clayton Early Learning
- Denver Public Schools
- Beach Court Elementary
- Columbian Elementary
- Cowell Elementary School
- Eagleton Elementary School
- Goldrick Elementary School with Wish for Wheels
- Newlon Elementary School
- STRIVE PREP Sunnyside Middle School
- Trevista at Horace Mann Elementary
- West High School Campus – West Leadership Academy & West Early College High School
- Denver Rescue Mission – Lawrence Street Shelter
- Food Bank of the Rockies
- Girls Inc. of Metro Denver
- HOPE at Park Hill Academy
- Lighthouse Writers Workshop
- Matthew Shepard Foundation
- Metro Caring
- Project Angel Heart
- Rainbow Alley @ The Center on Colfax
- The Salvation Army Denver Red Shield Corps Community Center
- The Greenway Foundation – Spring RiverSweep
- Blood Drives with Vitalant
Defining clear focus areas will help ensure your efforts are aligned with business goals and objectives.
There are multitudes of ways to give back to the community and make an impact. If you think through what resources – time, talent and treasure – you have to share, you will be better set up to address your community’s needs, while being authentic to your business.
At Comcast, we focus our resources around: digital inclusion, digital exploration and digital skills in the workforce. As a media and technology company, we invest in programs that serve diverse individuals seeking equal access to the advantages of technology and digital skills to help propel their success in life.
One example of how Comcast executes on our focus areas is through our partnership with local Boys and Girls Clubs across Colorado. In 2014, we partnered with Boys & Girls Club of America to launch My.Future, an interactive digital platform teaching critical digital and computer skills to club members. We continue supporting these programs for kids at Boys & Girls Clubs across Colorado every year.
Internet Essentials, our affordable home internet program for low-income individuals, is another example of how Comcast uses our expertise to address community needs.
These are just two of many corporate social responsibility strategies you can implement in your business to build brand love, a positive company culture and further connect with your customers.
Giving back is at the core of Comcast’s business. We work year-round to support and partner with our community organizations to connect people and our communities to what matters most.
Learn more about our community impact efforts.
This article was written by Comcast NBCUniversal