At Okta’s first office, our co-founders Todd McKinnon and Frederic Kerrest had a poster above their desks with former Southwest Airlines CEO Herb Kelleher’s famous quote: “We have a strategic plan, it’s called doing things.” That philosophy can be applied to almost every aspect of the business when you’re a fast-growing company like Okta, but nowhere does it resonate more than with social impact.
When it comes to making a commitment to your communities, you don’t have to have a grand plan or all the answers — you just have to start. And the earlier you do, the more impact you’ll make, and the more powerful the long-term effects will be.
Okta sent a signal when we took the 1% Pledge, and with the success of our IPO, that early commitment has paid dividends for the community. Here are a few highlights to give you an idea of how far we’ve come:
- To date, we, along with our employees, have donated more than $1.3M in cash and equity to nonprofits. But guess how much we raised in our first employee giving campaign? $9K!
- More than half of our employees participate in our programs nowadays. But at our first major volunteer effort, only 15% of employees participated.
- We now have a team of three that runs Okta for Good. But there was a committed group of employee volunteers to thank for getting the program up and running — before I even started.
That growth is due to the fact that we started with a commitment to give 1% of our equity, time and product back to our communities.
Our founders shot a signal flare into the sky by taking the pledge — and it lit the way for dedicated employees to build a culture of giving back. As we’ve scaled, we’ve continued to attract like-minded individuals into our ecosystem and employee base. We’ve heard from several new hires that Okta for Good was the deciding factor for them in accepting their offers. We’ve seen individual employees like Simon Marlor bring his personal passion to Okta, rallying hundreds of his fellow teammates to help children and families battling cancer, and developers like Matt Raible are using their technical superpowers for good.
And we know that our early, pre-IPO pledge signified to our community partners that we are a company authentically invested in their success. This has built trust and a feeling of shared outcomes that has led to strong partnerships, like our relationship with NetHope.
Our program wouldn’t be what it is today without our early pledge. You have to start somewhere. Send a signal, and then build from there.
In October 2018, Classy, a social enterprise that creates world-class online fundraising software for nonprofits, reached the incredible milestone of $1 billion raised on the platform by organizations funding programs around the world that provide disaster relief, advocate for human rights, cure disease, fight injustice, protect our environment, and so much more.
In the midst of the exciting celebration we shared with our customers, we discovered that The Sheridan Story, a Classy customer in Minnesota committed to fighting child hunger, received the billionth dollar raised. While we were considering the best way to celebrate their impact, we saw this as an incredible opportunity to honor our Pledge 1% commitment just ahead of the peak charitable giving season by visiting The Sheridan Story and getting a hands-on look at their mission. So, leveraging our volunteer time off (VTO) and our partnership with Southwest Airlines, we flew out to the Twin Cities.
Once there, we joined their team to learn more about their mission and programs. Rob Williams, the founder and executive director of The Sheridan Story, explained that they address child hunger in their community through food packing events and weekend delivery programs. The organization began because Rob saw a huge need in their community, where more than 90% of the students were on reduced lunches and often taking food home to eat during the weekends. The Sheridan Story now serves more than 5,400 students in 144 schools and continues to grow through a combination of grassroots events, online fundraising, and local business partnerships.
While in Minnesota, we attended a bag packing event where local volunteers meet at The Sheridan Story warehouse to fill bags with nonperishable food to be delivered to schools the next day. The energy in the warehouse was palpable, and with everyone pitching in, it took less than two hours for the team to pack 7,600 meals.
The next day, we joined the organization’s volunteers at a local elementary school to distribute the meals to their students. It was inspiring to see how passionate their volunteers were as they served their community.
We were even lucky enough to speak with the donor who made the billionth-dollar donation and learn why she got involved with The Sheridan Story as a recurring donor. Overall, it was a rewarding opportunity to see Classy’s mission—to mobilize and empower the world for good—come to life in such a tangible way.
The Sheridan Story is just one of the thousands of organizations that helped raise $1 billion for social impact on the Classy platform. The sky’s the limit, and we are so thankful to be on this journey to the next $10 billion with some of the most dedicated nonprofits—and alongside innovative partners like Pledge 1%.
To get a peek into our trip to The Sheridan Story, watch this video and visit the classy blog at https://www.classy.org/blog/. This piece was written by Stacy Meyer, Customer Success Manager at Classy.
Crunchbase’s mission is to help innovators discover opportunities. Whether you’re an entrepreneur looking for funding, a sales person looking for buyers, or you’re just trying to stay on top of the latest industry trends, Crunchbase has the information you need, in one place.
But Crunchbase also recognizes that not all innovators have equal access to opportunities. And those innovators’ ideas–no matter how great–may not have the same chances to break through the noise and be heard. That’s why Crunchbase has joined forces with Pledge 1%. Crunchbase plans to donate 1% of their product, equity, and employee time to help support nonprofits that are working to close the opportunity gap.
In addition, Crunchbase is also partnering to help spread Pledge 1%’s vision to other companies around the world. With Crunchbase’s unique ability to tap a millions-strong community of innovators, Pledge 1% can reach the individuals who will help promote a new normal in which all companies—big and small—integrate giving back as a core value.
By Randall Ward
From the very beginning, every major decision we’ve made at Appfire has been driven by our number one core value — be human.
Today, we are incredibly proud to launch an entirely new brand in line with that value: Feed Three. For every Feed Three enterprise license purchased from the Atlassian Marketplace, Appfire will donate 100% of the profits to help feed three children for a year.
Our mission in this new endeavor is to provide children around the world with the essentials they need to live healthy, happy lives.
Why invest in giving back?
My co-founder Mat Gauvin and I believe that being philanthropic is an integral part of operating our business, not merely the result of our success. That’s why, three years ago, we joined a small group of pioneer businesses that pledge 1% of our equity, 1% of our employees’ working time, 1% of our profits, and 1% of our product towards helping our communities.
Initially backed by three successful businesses that are deeply committed to philanthropic efforts and foundational giving (Salesforce, Rally, and Atlassian), Pledge 1% wasn’t simply an experiment in giving back. No, this was much more — this was an experiment in humanity. Fast-forward to today, and Pledge 1% is now represented by more than 5,000 companies in over 100 countries.
Since joining the Atlassian ecosystem more than a decade ago, Appfire has generated hundreds of millions of dollars from product and professional services, and in turn, we’ve contributed well over $1.5 million towards non-profits and educational organizations such as Room to Read, American Cancer Society, and others.
While we certainly felt satisfaction from these contributions, deep down, we knew we could do more. A lot more.
Feed Three: A new brand and a new challenge
By launching Feed Three, we’re challenging our team, our customers, our partners, and the entire Atlassian ecosystem to do more and give more to leave a lasting impact on humanity.
Over 800 million people don’t get the food they need to live a healthy life, according to the Food and Agriculture Organization of the United Nations, and the World Food Programme estimates that one-third of the food produced in the world is either lost or wasted.
But, we can make a difference. Hunger is a solvable problem — there is enough food in the world to feed everyone, and no scientific breakthroughs are needed to accomplish this mission. We can “be human” enough to see that we’re not simply giving to those in need; we’re standing with our fellow humans.
Our journey is no more special than any of the other businesses that have committed themselves to this great cause. However, it is one that we hope might help pave the way for others. Will you join us and take the Pledge today?
By: Louis Maldonado
As members of the ever-growing Salesforce ecosystem, we at Silverline spend a lot of time thinking about the future—of technology, customers, team members, and the world as a whole. As problem solvers, we turn that thinking into action, impacting the future for the better.
One way we seek to improve the future for our customers and team members is through our Silverline Academy, a rigorous and challenging program designed to provide its alumni with the necessary skills, both soft and technical, to deliver quality innovative solutions to clients. Now in its seventh class, the Academy continues to mold enthusiastic minds into top notch Solution Architects, Client Services Managers, and Developers that will stand out in projects for all the right reasons.
Beyond creating a pipeline of talented team members, the Silverline Academy also cultivates a future where doing great work is about more than the bottom line. This is accomplished through onboarding new recruits through the lens of consulting with purpose, which is why Silverline aligns the Academy with its dedication to the Pledge 1% movement, providing opportunities for hands-on skill-building through projects that give back to the community.
One recent example of this was our work with Project Sunshine, a non-profit organization headquartered in NYC. Project Sunshine partners with medical facilities across the United States and in four international locations to meet the psychosocial and developmental needs of pediatric patients. Project Sunshine’s programming supports these critical needs by providing increased opportunities for play and authentic engagement in the medical environment—restoring a crucial sense of normalcy for patients and their families.
With a long history of delivering innovative Salesforce solutions in the Healthcare space, Silverline selected Project Sunshine as a pro bono project because we knew we could use our expertise to help them increase their donor base, which in turn would allow them to give back to the community that much more. The solution we delivered leveraged the Salesforce Nonprofit Success Pack and other applications like Classy to help Project Sunshine create a volunteer and donor platform that allowed them to see the full picture of all the donation and grant amounts, providing a 360-degree view of their donor lifecycle.
Being part of projects like this is so important because it reminds us to take a step back, connect human-to-human and be grateful for all that we have. As a general practice, Silverline encourages all of its employees to give back whenever possible by hosting different Silverline Cares philanthropic activities such as assembling care packages or building toys for children. Not only that but, Silverline is proud to have an official Volunteer Time Off Policy which encourages employees to donate their time toward 501c3 charities.
By making giving back the norm within the Silverline culture, together, we can make the future extraordinary.
Originally posted: November 27, 2018
By: Brian Bachofner, Chief Marketing Officer at MapAnything
“Attitude is a choice. Happiness is a choice. Optimism is a choice. Kindness is a choice. Giving is a choice. Respect is a choice. Whatever choice you make makes you. Choose wisely.”
― Roy T. Bennett
Ingrained in the heart of the MapAnything organization is a spirit of giving back and of making the world a better place. No matter the recipient – an individual, a group, a community, or our environment – MapAnything strives to provide support whenever and wherever it is needed. That’s why, for us, the ‘Season of Giving’ lasts 365 days a year.
As proud participants of Marc Benioff’s Pledge 1% initiative, we commit each year to donating 1% of our employees time, 1% of our profits and 1% of our equity to various causes and organizations.
MapAnything and Pledge 1% By the Numbers. Since 2016, our teams have:
- Participated in 25+ Pledge 1% events
- Contributed over 1,500 volunteer hours
- Donated over $700,000
And, I’m thrilled to report that 2018 has been an exceptional year for us: 1,022 employee hours and upwards of $35,000 have been donated thus far. We have been incredibly lucky to work with many incredible non-profit organizations, such as:
Second Harvest Food Bank
In August, over 50 MapAnything team members participated in the Second Harvest Food Bank Sort-a-Rama, one of the largest corporate volunteer service gatherings in the Charlotte area, and logged over 200 hours of combined volunteer time with the organization.
At the event, volunteers sorted bulk food into family-sized bags for distribution to those in need. It’s a meaningful opportunity to combine volunteerism with employee engagement and customer relations. Sadly, no school means no breakfast or lunch for thousands of children. Sort-a-Rama is part of Second Harvest’s annual Stop Summer Hunger campaign which aims to fill the summer meal gap.
Habitat for Humanity
2018 marked our second full-day event with Habitat for Humanity of Charlotte. The organization was founded in 1983 by seven local churches and has remained a top Habitat for Humanity affiliate since its establishment. Through faith, innovation and passion, and thanks to the support of countless community partners, volunteers, donors and advocates, Habitat Charlotte has made a significant impact in Charlotte since its founding.
Over 15 employees at our headquarters in Charlotte, NC donated an entire Saturday, from sun up until early evening, to frame and finish a home for a local family. In total, over 130 hours were donated among the group.
Toys for Tots
For the third year in a row, MapAnything is supporting the Marine’s Toys for Tots program to make a child’s holiday wishes come true. Since 2001, Toys for Tots has ranked as one of the top charities by “Philanthropy 400”, and today has nearly 800 local coordinators and over 40,000 Marine volunteers every year.
To date, MapAnything has collected over 150 toys every year, and we look forward to topping that number during the 2018 Holiday Season.
We’re committed to keeping the momentum going for years to come and are continually on the hunt for more ways we can participate in Pledge 1% to give back to our communities. The smiles of those we help are what fuel our efforts, and we’re looking forward to creating more smiles than ever as we head into the new year.
For more information on our Pledge 1% activities, please visit https://mapanything.com/company/pledge1percent.
Originally posted: November 27, 2018
By Michael Quinn, Director of MediaMath.org.
On #GivingTuesday, there is a 24-hour period in which there is a temporary shift in our society from a focus on consumption to generosity as we hear about the amazing charity work that individuals, companies, foundations and philanthropists are funding around the world.
As the person who runs MediaMath.org, a relatively small philanthropy department with a big vision, I am privileged daily to decide which causes we support. In a sea of worthy causes and charities, what elevates one over another? What criteria are people in my situation using and how do they make decisions? Some are choosing to support extreme poverty, others their local theater and others universities that have more resources than many countries. What gives? Giving is personal, but coming from a highly data-driven company, I feel that we need a more organized and methodological approach to our giving. How can we enable our resources to have the largest impact?
Here is an idea, using three simple steps:
- List all the causes/problems in the world, then rank them objectively by priority and scale of problem.
- Next list all the nonprofits that work in each cause area, then rank them by effectiveness* in solving these problems. (*Not efficiency; that’s a separate thing.)
- Finally, overlay how much funding each charity gets from various sources.
What we end up with could look something like the below image, before layering on the funding amounts. Of course, it is an oversimplified idea, but even thinking through Step 1 would be valuable for many donors. Getting to Step 3, you could easily see which areas are over and underfunded, and where your resources might make the greatest difference. Where would homelessness in San Francisco be on the scale compared to malaria, which still kills 1,000 children under age 5 every day, and how much funding are both getting from donors?
This simple framework could help us be more informed about our donations, instead of giving randomly, which is always based on good intention, but often not as impactful as we would like.
So, this Giving Tuesday, I’m challenging us all to “Do Good, Better”- whether you’re a corporate philanthropist deciding where to gift millions or an individual with $100 to donate.
Below are examples of how MediaMath has leveraged our 1% Pledge to “Do Good, Better” by seeking out high-priority problems, and the effective charities with proven solutions to these problems, making maximum impact with our resources, using our heart and head. We suggest The Life You Can Save, whose mission it is to “raise annual donations to highly impactful nonprofits that reduce suffering and premature death for people living in extreme poverty,” as a great place to start.
We hope you can join us not only on this #GivingTuesday, but as you consider your philanthropic efforts throughout 2019, in doing good, better.
Originally posted: November 27, 2018
Since Postmates began FoodFight!, they’ve made some pretty significant leaps and bounds in their journey to reduce hunger and food waste in the US. FoodFight! currently operates in Oklahoma City, Nashville, Detroit, and Los Angeles, and are actively working on expanding their reach. Between their four established cities, Postmates caters to over 600 FoodFight! enabled restaurants.
If you have a restaurant, a food truck, a taqueria or any kind of food business and would like to become a part of FoodFight!, email Postmates at FoodFight@postmates.com.
On this Giving Tuesday, Postmates is proud to tell our story about a transformative technology product we built thanks to our partnership with Pledge 1%: FoodFight!
FoodFight! allows restaurants that partner with Postmates to have a member of our fleet pick up their leftover food and take it to a local shelter at the touch of a button!
Thanks to our pledge of time and product, we put together a coalition of employees passionate about solving America’s dumbest problem, food waste, and leveraging our existing product to do so. We knew that we could use our logistics superpower for good, and so we did.
After meeting with shelters and restaurants to determine the most useful and efficient way for Postmates to support the connection between leftover food and those who need it, this coalition met once a week starting in May 2018 to put together a plan to build a first of its kind technology solution.
Employees volunteered their time from product management, design, data, communications, operations, engineering, account management, merchant support, and more to help us launch in Los Angeles on October 1, 2018. This cross team effort was inspiring to watch as it happened, and as our first FoodFight! Delivery happened in Los Angeles, we all celebrated.
The coalition isn’t done yet! Since October we have added additional employees into the FoodFight! Coalition in an effort to expand the program to additional cities with the goal to offer this service nationwide by the end of 2020!
Want to learn more or join the FoodFight? Click here!
About Postmates:
Postmates helps people unlock the best of their cities – and their lives, with an insanely reliable on-demand “everything” network. Launched in 2011, Postmates is the first and leading company in the on-demand space – helping customers in over 400 cities get whatever they need, whenever they need it. Postmates has the largest on-demand fleet in the U.S. – with 200,000 Postmates and the biggest network of merchants. While some companies try to build a warehouse outside of a city and funnel goods into it, Postmates believes that our cities, our towns, and our communities are our warehouses. Postmates is helping transform the way food and merchandise move around cities – by connecting the city to customers while helping local brick and mortar businesses better compete against retail goliaths.
Originally posted: November 27, 2018
GiveFirst is a core value for all of us at Techstars – a way for us to continually improve the world around us.
We want to ensure that the cycle of giving continues indefinitely and we believe that we, as the tech industry, through a cultural evolution, can fundamentally shift corporate and individual philanthropy. It’s why we’ve partnered with Pledge 1% and created the Techstars Foundation.
The world of startups and entrepreneurship is largely lacking in diversity, yet from our decades of experience, we know that diversity improves outcomes and increases innovation. The Techstars Foundation’s mission is to foster diversity and inclusion throughout the entrepreneurial ecosystem by breaking down barriers to entrepreneurship worldwide. The foundation collaborates with nonprofit organizations, corporations, and individuals throughout the world by providing grants, educational resources, and increasing engagement with the Techstars Network in order to increase diversity in entrepreneurship.
Through our network of thousands of companies and startup programs worldwide, we have a massive opportunity to alter the trajectory of entrepreneurship on a global basis. We believe that it is vital to promote diversity and inclusion early in the life of a startup as the company culture is being cultivated and to weave it into the fabric of company identity. We encourage each founder to be a leader who actively seeks to include people without regard to race, ethnicity, gender, gender identity, sexual orientation, or ability.
A study of 500 U.S. businesses found that companies with diverse teams outperform their less diverse competitors—generating higher sales revenue, more customers, greater market share, and greater profits. Another study found that companies in the top quartile for gender diversity are 15% more likely to perform above the mean in their industry and those in the top quartile for race/ethnic diversity are 35% more likely to outperform others in their industry.
That’s why Techstars is working to improve opportunities for women and underrepresented minorities throughout the global ecosystem and to be a leader in inclusive entrepreneurship. We know that diversity not only brings diverse perspectives and a wealth of innovative ideas but the potential to outperform less diverse companies.
We are committed to actively breaking down barriers to entrepreneurship. After all, if you’re not part of the solution, you’re part of the problem. #GiveFirst #GivingTuesday
Originally posted: November 27, 2018