Doing Well by Doing Good Part III

In my last two posts, I shared some insights from the Main Line Chamber of Commerce’s panel discussion Doing Well by Doing Good.  A member of the audience asked the question-“ how do you decide which charity to invest in?”  The answer from Jay Coen Gilbert the Co-Founder of B-Lab was right in line with many of these blog postings—measure!   He looks for nonprofits who relentlessly measure their performance.  An organization that demonstrates measurable results attracts more support.

Doing Well by Doing Good Part II

In my last post, I talked about the great panel discussion Doing Well by Doing Good presented by the Main Line Chamber of Commerce.   In a previous post here I had discussed why I am not in favor of paid time off for employees to volunteer.   I was pleased to hear Mandy Cabot, the CEO of Dansko discuss their employee volunteer plan.  Dansko will accumulate the time that an employee volunteers and then donate the value of that time to the charity of the employee’s choice.  This program preserves the true spirit of volunteerism and still provides the employer a way to financially support an employee’s charity.

Doing Well by Doing Good

Thank you to Susan Bishop with Wells Fargo Bank for inviting me to the Main Line Chamber of Commerce panel discussion Doing Well by Doing Good.    The panel of corporate leaders inspired the audience with ways they serve both their community and their employees.     Kevin Nolan President of Nolan Painting, Inc. strongly encourages all employees to be involved in the community.  It is one of the interview questions at the hiring stage and it become part of their life.  

Volunteering impacts the life of the volunteer probably as much as it impacts the charity.  Statistics show that volunteers are generally healthier, report greater job satisfaction, and develop new skills.  They are able to meet more diverse people and build satisfying relationships.     Encouraging your employees to serve the community actually serves your employees by enriching their lives.