SAN FRANCISCO, October 4, 2023 –  Pledge 1%, a global movement that inspires, educates, and empowers every entrepreneur, company, and employee to be a force for good, announced today that nearly 30% of this year’s Cloud 100 List, a prestigious ranking of top cloud companies made possible by Bessemer Venture Partners, Salesforce Ventures, and Forbes, have committed assets to social impact as members of the Pledge 1% movement. 

“The Pledge 1% member companies on this year’s Cloud 100 List understand that leveraging their business to be a force for good is both the right and smart thing to do,” said Amy Lesnick, Chief Executive and President of Pledge 1%. “As industry leaders, these companies are demonstrating that giving back is not just good for the world, it’s also a great way to attract and retain top talent, minimize churn costs, and boost your bottom line. We are proud that so many of today’s top cloud companies are donating their time, profit, product, and/or equity as part of their Pledge 1% commitment.”

Over the past few years, more and more companies have started leveraging their assets to address some of today’s biggest challenges. In addition to the companies on the Cloud 100 List, Pledge 1% has seen a steady increase in membership, with over 18,000 companies in 100+ countries committed to giving their time, profit, product, and/or equity to causes they care about. We are especially proud to recognize the Pledge 1% companies celebrated today on the Cloud 100 List: 6sense, ActiveCampaign, Algolia, AppsFlyer, Arctic Wolf, Automation Anywhere, Automattic, Canva, Celonis, Checkr, Collibra, Contentful, Dialpad, Guild Education, Kong, LaunchDarkly, Mambu, Notion, OwnBackup, Personio, Rubrik, Sentry, ServiceTitan, Snyk, Talkdesk, Workato, and Yotpo.

In addition, each year, Pledge 1%, Bessemer Venture Partners, Salesforce Ventures, and Forbes select one company on the Cloud 100 List to receive special recognition for their commitment to social impact. We are thrilled to announce that Checkr, which automates and speeds up the process of professional background checks, is the winner of this year’ Pledge 1% Impact Award. 

Checkr joined Pledge 1%  with a commitment to donate 1% of employee time, 1% of product, 1% of equity, and1% of company profits every year to the mission of enabling fair chances for all people, no matter their background. They have already donated over $2.7 Million in product through Better Future and its Expungement Initiative to empower people with arrest or conviction records  to access their own background checks for free and apply for a Checkr sponsored expungement for eligible records.  They have also enabled more than 1,800 justice impacted candidates to secure livable wage employment through their candidate story product. In addition, they provide discounts to non-profit customers to use their services and their team has volunteered over 5,000 hours towards building a fairer future of work by supporting initiatives that provide talent with records pathways to careers and economic mobility. 

Through their equity pledge, Checkr has committed current and future funding to fund their social impact programs (which include their own Fair Chance hiring and Apprenticeship programs) and to ensure the long-term sustainability and success of their mission to unlock talent and opportunity in the workforce.

“We’re incredibly honored to be selected for the 2023 Impact Award, and I want to thank our Checkr team for their commitment to our mission of building a fairer future,” said Daniel Yanisse, Co-founder and CEO of Checkr. “Through the 1% Pledge, Checkr has been able to scale the impact of our mission by reducing bias from background data and enabling our customers to create work opportunities for justice-impacted individuals.”

By accepting this year’s Pledge 1% Impact Award, Checkr joins an esteemed group of past Impact Award winners, including Twilio, DocuSign, Slack, Procore, Canva, Guild Education, and Snyk.

The entire Pledge 1% and Cloud 100 community congratulates Checkr, along with the other companies featured on this year’s Cloud 100 List. We also thank the Pledge 1% Builders community for their ongoing leadership and support of the movement, and Pledge 1%’s Boardroom Allies, a network of venture capitalists who  support their portfolio companies in setting aside equity to fund their social impact work, helping unlock billions of dollars in new philanthropy.

To learn more about Pledge 1% visit pledge1percent.org.

Pledge 1%’s #WomenWhoLead series celebrates female leaders who are paving the way for the next generation. While our featured leaders come from a variety of backgrounds and industries, they are united in their efforts to promote equality for all women in the workplace. We’ve asked them to share a bit about their journey to success, as well as lessons they’ve learned along the way. 

Amra Naidoo

General Partner, Accelerating Asia

Singapore / Thailand

What is your current role? Briefly describe in 1-2 sentences.

I serve as a general partner of Accelerating Asia, which is an early-stage venture capital firm focused on Asia Pacific.

This year’s International Women’s Day theme is “Embrace Equity.” What does this mean to you? How can we build workplaces that are more equitable and inclusive?

I think that equity means creating equal access to opportunities, while inclusion means creating spaces that are thoughtfully designed to enable equity. But how equity and inclusion are created should be ever-evolving. At the moment, in the startup and investment space, there are so many activities that are just noise and virtue signaling. There are so many mentor programs or networking events for women, or pitch events to get feedback on their startups. In order to really make a difference, I think we need to have a real conversation about the state of the ecosystem and put our money where our mouths are.

Case in point, I was recently considering attending a large conference for women fund managers where you could apply for the opportunity to pitch to investors for feedback. You would never see something like this at a typical investor conference where attendees are predominantly male – which given the nature of the industry, most attendees are. While I appreciate the effort by the conference organizers to create a platform for women to showcase their funds, I’m tired of feedback, tired of mentors, and tired of meaningless awards. I’m tired of being recognized as an “inspiring” female fund manager when female fund managers are considered a category of their own.

At this point, I believe that equity and inclusion means moving past labels. We should no longer call attention to the gender of a particular entrepreneur or investor, in much the same way we don’t label any other professional by their age, sexual orientation, or some other random personal attribute. Special programs to address under-representation are different from being labeled and bound by that label in your work. Excellence in any investing – or any kind of business activity – should not be bound by gender. If we want to build ecosystems, industries, and workplaces that are more equitable and inclusive, we need to do more than signal.

Do you have any mentors or role models who have helped you on your personal journey?

I don’t really believe in the whole mentor-mentee relationship for my personal life because I’ve always felt like there is a power dynamic and transactional nature of that kind of relationship. I also don’t think I’ve taken a very typical route in my career or personal journey and at each point in my life, I’ve needed or wanted different things. So I prefer to approach my relationships with people from a place of curiosity and pick and choose aspects of their lives or how they’ve dealt with certain situations as a framework for me to adapt to my own personal life. I really believe in surrounding myself with people who are doing interesting or different things and I actively seek these people out when I’m trying to learn something or solve a problem. They don’t need to be in the same industry as me, or at the same stage in their career, but I find energy in being around people who are truly passionate about their craft/ work/ life. I find that you can learn more from people who are not in your area with how they manage their work and their lives by potentially bringing across systems and ideas and adapting them to your own situation.

What’s the best piece of advice you ever received?

Your difference is your strength. Ten years ago, this kind of blanket statement would come across as any other general aphorism for self-empowerment. More research has shown that this idea is verifiably true: Organizations derive significant competitive advantage from being diverse. More diverse organizations perform better than less diverse organizations. On an individual level, people should celebrate what makes them different because this is what gives them an edge: They will recognize opportunities that others don’t, and view challenges from a different perspective. While I mostly speak from a professional lens, the idea that your differences are your strengths also applies to your personal life.

The past few years have brought many new and unprecedented challenges. What keeps you motivated or inspires you to stay optimistic?

Like many investors, we regularly back startups in business hubs like Singapore. Unlike other investors, we also make a concerted effort to back startups in emerging markets, including everywhere from Bangladesh to the Philippines. While there are undoubtedly more challenges in these markets – such as a still-developing business ecosystem and growing infrastructure – there are also many more rewards. Compared to a place like Singapore, a startup in an emerging market can more easily create exponential impact. That’s because their solution will not be merely an improvement over others as it would be in a developed market – it will often be leaps and bounds ahead of the legacy solution. With enough of this innovation, an emerging market rich with startups can leap ahead of its counterparts. We’ve seen this with Indonesia, we are seeing this with Vietnam, and we hope to see this in more emerging markets around the world. It’s easy to stay optimistic in this scenario: We’re not just investing in startups – we’re investing in the future of a country or region.

Pledge 1% helps companies of all sizes and stages leverage their assets for social good. Why do you think it’s important that companies prioritize social impact? Do you have any specific stories or examples from your work or colleagues you can share?

At Accelerating Asia, we believe that entrepreneurs are humanity’s greatest catalysts for positive change.

That statement is on our website and our collaterals, but it is one we really believe in and we try to live up to on a day-to-day basis as investors. We seek to support entrepreneurs, especially those who hail from underserved markets, such as Indonesia, Thailand, the Philippines, Myanmar, Bangladesh, and Pakistan.

Due to the nature of these markets, the entrepreneurs here are not just making a shiny app – they’re devising solutions that address major challenges in their country, including everything from transportation and healthcare to agriculture and small business. These solutions drive their citizens and economies forward.

Every company in Accelerating Asia’s portfolio addresses at least one sustainable development goal of the United Nations, and most address multiple SDGs. This alignment toward social impact is important because it ensures entrepreneurs remain user-centric in how they develop their products and services.

This user-centricity is evident in a cross-spectrum of our startups, who have not only enjoyed enormous business success, but who have clearly made a difference in their communities. In Bangladesh, iFarmer is extending finance to small farmers who would otherwise not have access to capital to grow their farms. In the Philippines, Beam and Go is making it easier for overseas foreign workers (OFWs) to provide key goods to their loved ones back home.  In Thailand, Easy Rice is digitizing the quality assessment of staple food to improve sustainability in the supply chain. These are just three examples of why startups should prioritize social impact: Because these solutions are highly tailored to their end users, they put themselves in the best position to succeed and affect positive change.

If you could describe yourself in one word what would that be and why?

Determined. This word came to mind for three reasons: I am determined to guide the many brilliant founders in our portfolio as best I can; I am determined to produce winning investments for the limited partners who invest alongside us; and I am determined for our portfolio to affect change in Asia Pacific and beyond.

Do you have any unique or useful life hacks to help get through your day?

After experiencing burnout early in my career, which took a long time to recover from, I have two rules when I’m planning my day. First, I always fit in some kind of exercise. I used to do this 6 times a week. Since having a baby 3 months ago, I obviously had to take a break so I am working back up to this.

Second, despite the hustle culture prevalent in the startup world, I find energy in balance. I make it a point to spend time with my friends and family as well as get alone time. By setting aside this personal time, there is a palpable difference over the course of a day. I am more creative, productive, and fulfilled.

Because this work-life balance has been so beneficial to me, I try to promote this culture at Accelerating Asia. Our team members can take time off whenever they need, and we help them stay truly offline with an official calendar (so no one pings them when they should be rejuvenating). I would encourage others in my field to incorporate similar practices for themselves and their organizations if they can.

Do you have any go-to apps or tools use love to use?

Rather than name a flashy, new app, I would like to cite an old favorite: Google Apps, and in particular, Calendar. I am religious when it comes to scheduling not only professional activities, but also personal ones: I block off time with family and friends and even workout sessions with different color codes. This may seem like a small touch, but it really makes a difference in ensuring I live a balanced life. During a normal workday, it’s not enough to rely on good intentions to go to the gym or spend time with your loved ones. When things get busy at work, it will be easy to skip out on these personal activities. Scheduling them in advance keeps me committed and prevents ad hoc interruptions that may arise. So when I return to work from my “me” time, I am more energized than ever.

What are you looking forward to this year? Are there any goals (personal or professional), activities, or experiences you are excited about?

I’ve been off work for several months now due to maternity leave. I’m of course excited to get back full-time, and deal with the challenges of now attending to three babies: my dog, my newborn, and my first baby (in a manner of speaking), Accelerating Asia.

Personally, I’m looking forward to getting back into the gym and carving out me-time and learning how to balance the changes at home and continuing to grow Accelerating Asia. My return at Accelerating Asia also comes at a major crossroads. Our portfolio of more than sixty plus startups has collectively reached major revenue, growth, and valuation milestones, and our team that supports them has grown exponentially as well. When I return, I expect to be able to perform less operational work and focus on the bigger picture of becoming the best early stage venture capital firm in Asia Pacific. When promising young founders in the region need support, I want our name to be top of mind. This is of course a bold ambition given the many excellent investors operating here – I’m excited to work on the initiatives and programs that I think could bring us to this next level.

Originally posted here 

We’ve always set out to ‘do the most good we can’, and as Canva turns 10, we’re shining a light on some milestones we’ve achieved so far.

Since the very beginning of Canva, we’ve been driven by the belief that it’s possible to build a great product while also having a lasting positive impact on the world. While lots has happened over the last decade, our aspiration to do the most good we can remains unchanged. Everything we do contributes to our Two-Step Plan as a company: Step One – to become one of the world’s most valuable companies; and Step Two –to do the most good we can.

As we reflect on our journey over the past decade, we’re incredibly proud of the progress we’ve made and feel more inspired than ever to supercharge our impact in the decades to come.

Here are 10 of our most momentous milestones achieved so far.

 A group of Sydney-based Canvanauts came together to make sandwiches and snack packs for those in need during our first-ever ‘Force for Good Week’ in June.

1. We joined Pledge 1%

In 2019 we embodied our value ‘be a force for good’ and joined Pledge 1%, a global initiative where companies pledge 1% of their time, profit, product, or equity to have a positive impact. We pledged all four. We do this day-to-day by donating our time through volunteering, donating funds through partnerships with organizations such as GiveDirectly, and empowering close to half a million nonprofits and over 45 million teachers and students with free access to our Canva Pro product.

In 2021, we took this 1% even further with the announcement that we’re committing an additional 30% of Canva towards doing good in the world. Today, more than 30% of Canva’s value has been pledged towards making a difference.

 As part of our first-ever ‘Force for Good Week’ in June, we partnered with OzHarvest to provide Canvanauts with the opportunity to cook meals for people facing food insecurity.

2. Launching the Canva Foundation

Step Two is made up of a number of initiatives including how we give away our core product, our company resources, and our team’s time and skills to create positive change. As our main charitable arm, The Canva Foundation is another one of the ways we bring our Two-Step Plan to life and is the vehicle for our philanthropic work.

We believe there’s enough money, goodwill, and creativity to help solve the world’s biggest challenges in our lifetime, so we’re proud to partner with a variety of organizations via the Canva Foundation to provide support to communities that need it the most.

 In 2022 we were proud to launch a two-week Aussies for Afghanistan appeal to provide urgent relief for the millions of Afghans facing a devastating humanitarian crisis.

From the Afghanistan crisis to the Ukraine war, and so many other crisis situations, we’ve been able to play a small part in assisting some of the world’s biggest humanitarian crises through the Canva Foundation. Our biggest project to date is our partnership with Give Directly, where we’ve worked together to send funds to provide direct cash transfers to some of the world’s poorest people in an effort to learn more about the most effective ways to contribute towards ending extreme poverty.

3. Empowering nonprofits with skills to make a difference

We’re now empowering close to half a million nonprofit organizations to champion important causes with Canva for Nonprofits. From workshops and design training sessions to social media webinars and resources such as marketing, sustainable development goals, or crisis toolkits, we’re proud to play a small role in the tremendous difference these organizations make.

We know for many nonprofits, finding the time and resources to produce visual materials can be a challenge. Forever Projects is an inspirational example of how nonprofits can use the resources we’ve created to achieve their goals.

4. Our commitment to GiveDirectly

We’re firm believers that nobody should live in poverty, yet 700 million people live on less than $2.15 per day (the daily amount required to meet your most basic needs). We have a bold and optimistic goal to help change this.

In 2021, we first partnered with GiveDirectly, a global nonprofit dedicated to enabling the world’s poorest households to improve their lives through direct cash transfers. Our first partnership saw us distribute $10 million to 12,800 people living in extreme poverty in rural Malawi. Studies have shown that an effective way to help someone who has no money, is to give them money, as it not only enables recipients to buy what they need, but it provides them to make the choice for themselves on how best to improve their lives.

From the research we conducted, we’ve learned that cash transfers are having an immediate positive impact on recipients, and a long-term positive uplift for their entire community. We were extraordinarily proud and grateful to have been in a position to further back this with an additional $20 million dollar cash transfer earlier this year.

 5. Our first-ever ‘Force for Good Week’

Volunteering is baked into our culture at Canva. Each year, every Canvanaut is given three days of paid ‘Force for Good leave’ to use to give back to the world, and we empower our team to take time out of their busy schedules each month through dedicated ‘Force for Good Fridays’. In June this year, we were thrilled to take our volunteering program to the next level with our first-ever ‘Force for Good Week’: a week-long takeover of our quarterly ‘Season Opener’, where Canvanauts lent a helping hand across more than 100 events dedicated to assisting those experiencing homelessness and hardship.

More than 1,500 Canvanauts came together to give back and provided more than 20,000 individuals with food; created more than 2,100 moments of connection for those facing disconnection or loneliness; and more than 450 moments of dignity for those experiencing hardship.

6. Growing the minds of the future

We know education is often the key to a brighter future, which is why we’re passionate about equipping educators and classrooms with design and digital literacy skills through Canva for Education – our free program for K-12 students and teachers around the world.

We’re now empowering more than 45 million teachers and students with Canva, and supporting educators with thousands of in-built lesson plans and templates to inspire creativity in their classrooms. One element of our education program we’re particularly proud of is our partnership with Upschool, where together we developed a 10-week course aimed at educating students on the importance of protecting our planet, and how they can be the change agents we need for the future.

 Our 10-week course with UpSchool aimed at educating students on how to be change agents for the future.

7. Planting seeds of the future with One Print, One Tree

A huge part of our efforts to make the world a better place is championing sustainability and helping to protect the environment, both now and in the future. Since launching our One Print, One Tree program almost two years ago, where for each Canva Print order we plant a tree, we’ve planted over 4 million trees as part of our efforts to support environmental recuperation.

 Children in Tanzania helping to plant trees as part of our One Print, One Tree partnership.

Through One Print, One Tree, we’ve been able to plant more than 200 different species of trees across 22 individual sites, with more than 4,500 hectares of land planned for restoration. The program has also provided employment opportunities for more than 170 people across 10 countries. As we look to the future, we’re excited to continue to create social and ecological change.

8. Shaping a sustainable future

Over time at Canva, we’ve achieved a number of important sustainability milestones including participating in the Australian Government’s Climate Active program in both 2020 and 2021, and supporting our Beyond New Zero phase, where we focus on regeneration and restoration. We were also proud to sign The Climate Pledge in 2021 for the opportunity to combat climate change alongside a number of global organizations.

Our two Australian campuses also serve daily breakfast and lunch sourced from fresh food farms that practice regenerative agriculture, and snacks from some of our favorite social enterprises. In Sydney, we partner with Food for Change to donate our food waste, and the campus is even home to some rooftop bees, with our hives having produced hundreds of kilos of honey!

 One of the local farms that provided Canva with sustainable produce for our kitchen.

Our commitment to solving some of the world’s biggest problems goes beyond what we do at Canva. We know we need to join forces with others, so we’re thrilled to have extended our partnership with Watershed to support Frontier: a collection of forward-thinking companies who are making the commitment to scale a portfolio of world-class carbon removal solutions.

9. Helping those in crisis

When a crisis hits, we strive to support vulnerable communities in the areas of the world that need it most. Examples include the Aussie Tech for India call to action we launched during the Covid-19 pandemic and the urgent relief we provided to millions of Afghans facing a humanitarian crisis in 2022 through the Aussies for Afghanistan Appeal.

We’ve been proud to donate funds to communities battling natural disasters, including the Philippines following Typhoon Rai and Nalgae; $500,000 toward the destructive Australian bushfires in 2020; three days’ worth of proceeds from Canva Marketplace purchases to the victims of the 2023 Türkiye and Syria earthquakes; and just last week, $100,000 to aid crisis responses for the devastating Moroccan earthquake and the Libya flood. One of the biggest crises our world has seen in recent times is the heartbreaking illegal war in Ukraine. We strongly oppose the ongoing war and provided support in a variety of ways, including blocking access to Canva in Russia.

 A Community Pantry volunteer in Maginhawa, Philippines, holding a sign created in Canva.

During the COVID-19 pandemic, many Filipinos lost their livelihood, with some left hungry and unable to meet their daily needs. A community pantry movement, sparked by Ana Patricia Non, inspired communities across the country to come together to share food supplies. The Canva Philippines team helped the cause by designing and printing signages for the community pantries, and donated 18 tons of vegetable produce sourced from local farmers, benefitting more than 900 community pantry locations.

10. Developing a resource-rich content library

An important part of our work at Canva is helping to provide our community with design templates to scale their ability to champion important causes and make a difference. From Ukraine peace templates, to GivingTuesday Creator templates, and even bespoke nonprofit billboard templates to help nonprofits scale their impact, we’re always looking to equip nonprofits with assets to help show support and spark change.

A range of different poster templates available for free in Canva to assist our community in supporting Ukraine and promoting peace.

We’re incredibly proud to house hundreds of education templates and nonprofit toolkits and resources within our Canva library, free for our education and nonprofit communities to use. From webinars to workshops, we’re regularly connecting with these groups to better understand their needs and equip them with impactful tools and resources.

 We’re proud to empower more than 45 million students through Canva for Education, providing them with visual communication tools to create engaging educational resources and posters like the above.

Thank you

If you’re familiar with Canva, you’ll know we often say we’re only 1% of the way there – and with so much left to do, it’s something that will forever be the case. We’re incredibly grateful, proud and humbled to have been able to bring our Two-Step Plan to life over the past decade – but we know there’s still so much left to do.

None of this would be possible without our extraordinary team of Canvanauts, and our amazing global community of 150 million people who’ve been instrumental in our ability to make a difference. Thank you for designing with Canva and for being a part of our Two-Step Plan. We truly couldn’t have done it without you, and we hope we can continue to make you proud as we look towards the 99% ahead.

Originally posted: LINK

ALEGRANT announced today that it has joined Pledge 1%, a global movement to create a new normal for companies of all sizes and stages to have a positive social impact through their business. ALEGRANT is joining over 18,000 companies around the world who have committed to Pledge 1% of either their product, profit, equity, and/or staff time to whatever charity of their choosing.

ALEGRANT is proud to announce its commitment to donate 1% of TIME to Scottish SMEs.

ALEGRANT pledges to donate 1% of our time by dedicating its Customs expertise to help local businesses navigate the complex landscape of Customs regulatory and legal requirements.

Small and medium-sized enterprises (SMEs) play a vital role in our local economy. However, understanding and adhering to the ever-evolving Customs regulations, particularly post-Brexit, can be a barrier to global ambitions. ALEGRANT recognises these challenges and is committed to work with local trade associations, advisers and charities to assist local businesses trade globally in a safe, compliant and profitable manner.

“We are delighted to help small businesses, from talented fashion designers to first-class start-ups, to bring their products to foreign customers.” says Catherine Truel, director of ALEGRANT.” We hope to contribute to their international success, ultimately benefiting our entire community.”

ALEGRANT is proud to join the Pledge 1% community and encourages other companies to take the pledge and leverage their business as a force for good. To learn more about ALEGRANT’s program contact Percy at info@alegrant.com.

ABOUT ALEGRANT
ALEGRANT is an award-winning advisory firm in Customs law and international trade law with experts in over 25 countries. Based in Glasgow and Marseille, ALEGRANT’s experts have been working for more than 30 years with companies and Customs authorities around the world. To learn more about ALEGRANT visit www.alegrant.eu.

ABOUT PLEDGE 1%
Pledge 1% is a global movement that inspires, educates, and empowers every business, company, and employee to be a force for good. Over 18,000 members in 100+ countries have used Pledge 1%’s flexible framework to ignite half a billion dollars in new philanthropy. To learn more about Pledge 1% and to take the pledge visit www.pledge1percent.org.

This release was published on openPR.

Alegrant Ltd | UHatch GCU, Cowcaddens Road, Glasgow, G4 0BA, Scotland, United Kingdom
Media Contact
Percy Knightsbridge
info@alegrant.com

Originally posted on PR Newswire

Scaled Agile, Inc. Donates to Rocky Mountain Institute and Maui Strong Fund as Part of Pledge 1% Commitment

Scaled Agile, Inc., provider of SAFe®, announced donations to the Rocky Mountain Institute and the Maui Strong Fund. The contributions are part of Scaled Agile’s commitment to the Pledge 1% movement and Do All the Good You Can campaign.

Scaled Agile’s $100,000 donation to the Rocky Mountain Institute (RMI) will support RMI’s Third Derivative initiative, built to accelerate the rate of climate innovation. RMI is an independent nonprofit that engages businesses, communities, institutions, and entrepreneurs to accelerate the adoption of solutions that cost-effectively shift from fossil fuels to efficiency and renewables.

“Scaled Agile’s generosity is going to help us do even more to support and scale critical climate technologies and innovation, further accelerating our journey to a net zero carbon world,” said Rushad Nanavatty, managing director, Third Derivative.

A $50,000 contribution was also made to the Maui Strong Fund. Founded by the Hawai’i Community Foundation, the fund is providing financial resources to support the immediate and long-term recovery needs for the people and places affected by the devastating Maui wildfires.

“When we experienced the most destructive wildfire in Colorado’s history and witnessed over 1,000 homes destroyed in less than 24 hours,  we learned how valuable support is in these unprecedented situations,” said Scaled Agile’s cofounder Dean Leffingwell. “Now we see that and far worse, loss of life, in Maui. It’s important to remember that the recovery effort will take years, so we encourage broad support of the Maui Strong Fund, even in small amounts. It’s never too late to make a difference.”

“Giving back is an integral part of our culture,” said Scaled Agile’s CEO Chris James. “Since joining the Pledge 1% movement, we’ve been able to accelerate and energize our giving and volunteering activities. Our employees love the sense of purpose this provides, and we have been amazed by the passion and effort they put into their paid volunteer time. I can’t say enough about the value of the program, and I strongly recommend it to any company looking to enhance this part of their culture.”

Originally posted on Bucher-Suter.com.

One year on: The b+s PLUS Program

A year ago, Bucher + Suter committed to Pledge 1%, to give more back to the communities we’re a part of, and to start viewing more of our activities through a lens of social responsibility. A year ago, the b+s PLUS program was born. 

There have been successes, there have been challenges, and there have been failures. There’s a lot still to do – but it feels like we’re on the right path! 

This blog serves as a record of where we are right now, where we want to get to, and how we plan to get there. While, as an organization, Pledge 1% does not audit and does not require us to report our progress, they encourage each company to take ownership of their program’s success. So, it feels right and fair that we take accountability for the things we’ve managed and that that still proves out of reach. 

The b+s PLUS program is tied to 3 pillars of Pledge 1%: Time, Profit, and Product. So, let’s explore our commitments and our progress regarding all 3: 

Commitment: 1 – 3% of profit split between NFPOs and the sponsorship of Noser Young apprentices education 

The reality is that giving up 1% of our annual profit was something we had long achieved at Bucher + Suter. In fact – it’s been beyond 3% every year for the last ten years. When the PLUS task force was assembled, it wasn’t because the members felt that Bucher + Suter needed to do considerably more giving back across the three pillars – it was because we wanted to give back in a more orchestrated manner, avoid siloed endeavors, and get better at recording our successes (and failures) when it comes to corporate social responsibility. 

Given the nature of a new program and the importance of reaching for low-hanging fruit in building momentum, the task force proposed remaining committed to 1-3% of our profit. The idea being that we should concentrate our energies on making sure that we grow the program in the areas we’ve been less focused on – giving up our time and products. It may seem like a cop-out, but being able to focus on the things we haven’t been doing at all has allowed the program to gather pace in a way it wouldn’t have if we’d force-increased our profit commitment. 

Every event we’ve sponsored so far this year has been influenced by the b+s PLUS program and our profit-giving pillar. From charity donations on behalf of our booth visitors to bikes bought (and then built by our very hands. See: Giving Time) for underprivileged kids and planting trees for those willing to give up some time for a chat and a demo, we’re making sustainable giving part of our participation at events – as standard. 

One year on: In the last year, Bucher + Suter has given well in excess of its profit-giving goal to various charities on behalf of our customers and through sponsoring the education of Noser Young apprentices. As we look into the next year of the program, we will strive to maintain our commitments, and we remain ever on the lookout for charities and organizations making a difference on a local and international level. 

Commitment: 1% of company time donated to NFPOs and local community organizations in company teams or individually.  

Since the inception of the b+s PLUS program, each Bucher + Suiter employee is granted two days of VTO per year. The commitment to pledge 1% of our time has proved ultimately more challenging than giving up profits from the company, and the primary reasons were two-fold: 

• Inherently, more work is involved in organizing VTO than handing over money or paid-for physical items. Whether it be active employee engagement to encourage and educate around individual VTO or organizing full-day events for multiple staff members, the Time pillar is, by its very nature, more time-intensive than the other two pillars. However, as you’ll see summarized below, it is what we, as employees, take the most from. 


• There’s also been a difficulty in finding organizations to work with. This issue has been somewhat localized. As Bucher + Suter has three distinct global offices: headquarters in Switzerland, an office in Germany, and one in Colorado, USA – we’ve had to organize events at a local level – for our local employees. Switzerland has proven more complicated than we anticipated – and running VTO days in Switzerland has proven somewhat complex, bureaucratic, and expensive. Contrary to that, organizing VTO in the States has proven relatively straightforward. Many organizations are open to help, and volunteering seems to be more widely engrained in US society. Indeed, more than 50% of our US employees (all of whom work remotely, making team events slightly more challenging to organize) already volunteered at an individual level. 

Individual endeavors 

As mentioned above, a significant number of people at Bucher + Suter have been regularly involved in individual volunteering since well before the birth of the program. The difference now is that, as part of the program, they’re paid by Bucher + Suter for some of that volunteering – if they so choose. From snow sports trips for kids and people with disabilities to guided cycling for people with visual impairment and helping out at food banks and soup kitchens – there was a wide array of volunteering activities already being undertaken by Bucher + Suter staff members. 

The vast majority of people involved in individual VTO this past year were already volunteering on their own. Some work remains for us to encourage, educate, and help mobilize those who are interested but haven’t quite taken the step yet. 

Team Events

At the program’s birth, the marketing team collaborated with Caritas Switzerland for a farm mountain mission. They experienced the mountain farm lifestyle, partaking in labor-intensive tasks like spreading cow manure and erecting fences. Despite the physical challenges and a few comical mishaps, the team left with an appreciation for Alpine farming and the importance of Swiss mountain maintenance. Their journey culminated in a deeper connection with one another, a sense of accomplishment, and a fierce commitment to the Pledge 1% initiative.

Read more.  

In November, Bucher + Suter employees from our Bensheim office took part in a VTO day at the Drachenberge local community adventure park, run by the Sterntaler non-profit association. Braving challenging weather, the team assisted in constructing walls and other maintenance tasks for the park, which aims to offer experiential learning for local youths. The day, which ended with drinks, reflections, and camaraderie, underlined the importance of community service and the pleasure derived from it. 

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On June 4th in Las Vegas, the Bu cher + Suter team converged for a special VTO day, where they participated in two different activities, working with two different local Vegas organizations. The morning began with assembling 15 bikes for the local community in partnership with Bikes for Goodness Sake. Despite challenges like missing toolkits, the team’s resourcefulness ensured that most bikes were nearly complete before the professional mechanics arrived to check them over and give them a seal of approval. These bikes were then donated to the Stupak Community Center, a hub of resources for local children. In the afternoon, the team collaborated with the Nevada Partnership for Homeless Youth (NPHY) to transport school supplies for NPHY’s annual Education Drive. The day underscored the significance of community involvement and companies’ impact on supporting and uplifting those in need. The Bucher + Suter team remains dedicated to making positive change, emphasizing the daily opportunities to make a difference in the world.

Read more.

Additionally, during our festive meet-up in the States last year, our employees helped deliver hearing tests to older people with the wonderful charity Songs for Sound in Nashville, Tennessee. 

If you know of organizations based in Switzerland, Germany, or the US that could make good use of our time in some capacity, please reach out to plus@bucher-suter.com. 

One year on: The truth is – we’re nowhere close to our target of 1% of staff timedonated. Complications around organizing team events, especially in Switzerland, where the majority of our staff reside, and what we’ve recently realized has been a lack of internal education and guidance from the PLUS task force, mean we have a lot of work to do. However, the good fight continues – because we know that giving up our time to good causes has benefits all round. Empowering, organizing, and promoting as much participation as possible remains our goal. 

Giving Product

Commitment: 1% of our product licenses should be given out for free

While Bucher + Suter is a partner, reseller, and managed service provider of Cisco, we also have our own in-house development, producing industry-leading applications for the Webex and Cisco Contact Center platforms, including our flagship line of CRM connectors: b+s Connects. It’s the licenses of those products that we’d like to give to non-profit organizations – helping them to streamline and personalize their service at the point of interaction and helping their contact center agent teams run as efficiently as possible. 

Giving product remains, by far, the most challenging of the three pillars. Communication with TechSoup and Salesforce for Nonprofits has, until now, yet to lead to anything, and we get relatively few inquiries directly from NPOs. 

We’ve given away our product in the past, giving all types of businesses and organizations burst licenses to help them cope under the strain of peak contact during the COVID-19 pandemic but to date – we’re yet to bring a charity or NPO on board, as part of our Pledge. 2 conversations with two large non-profits remain ongoing. We hope to have some positive news on that front soon, but we need to find a way to achieve better outreach.  

We must better promote our solutions to non-profits and show how they can help them solve their organizational challenges in the contact center. Work is underway to dedicate a page of the website to non-profits to help with messaging and active outreach through our technology partners continues, but again – we’re closer to the start than we’d like. 

One year on

We honestly thought that giving up our product would be pretty straightforward – but so far, we’re struggling with this pillar. A lot of work remains, not least in the area of marketing, but we’re up to it and have an extensive network and community that we know can help match us with organizations in need. If you know of or work for an organization using Cisco or Webex Contact Center and think that running a more efficient contact center could be of benefit, get in touch with us at plus@bucher-suter.com. 

So, in summary, it’s been a dynamic and fluctuating inaugural year for the PLUS program and our commitment to Pledge 1%. There’s plenty to do as we look to the year ahead, but the main thing is we’re started, dedicated, and have backing across the breadth of the company to continue pursuing our commitments. 

For more information on the b+s PLUS program or for inquiries regarding the availability of our time or products, please reach out to plus@bucher-suter.com or fill out the contact form below. 

Pledge 1%’s #WomenWhoLead series celebrates female leaders who are paving the way for the next generation. While our featured leaders come from a variety of backgrounds and industries, they are united in their efforts to promote equality for all women in the workplace. We’ve asked them to share a bit about their journey to success, as well as lessons they’ve learned along the way. 

Francesca Vietor

California State Parks Commissioner, State of California

San Francisco, CA

What is your current role? Briefly describe in 1-2 sentences.

The State of California has 280 parks and is widely considered to have the highest quality park system in the world. As a member of the State Parks Commission, I develop policies and recommendations to improve and protect our park system–my role includes expanding access and increasing diversity in our parks.

This year’s International Women’s Day theme is “Embrace Equity.” What does this mean to you? How can we build workplaces that are more equitable and inclusive?

In addition to my role promoting equity as a State Parks Commissioner, I also work to advance environmental equity through grant-making and community building at the San Francisco Foundation, where I have worked for twelve years to build a more inclusive and equitable Bay Area.

Do you have any mentors or role models who have helped you on your personal journey?

Wangari Maathai, Dorothea Lang, Mary Oliver, Michelle Obama

What’s the best piece of advice you ever received?

Lead from behind.

The past few years have brought many new and unprecedented challenges. What keeps you motivated or inspires you to stay optimistic?

The beauty and resilience of nature.

Pledge 1% helps companies of all sizes and stages leverage their assets for social good. Why do you think it’s important that companies prioritize social impact? Do you have any specific stories or examples from your work or colleagues you can share?

Many companies have been able to grow and thrive because, and in spite of, destructive practices, from exploiting and destroying our natural resources to unfair labor and human rights practices. It’s time to give back!

If you could describe yourself in one word what would that be and why?

Enthusiastic. I am amused and curious about everything.

Do you have any unique or useful life hacks to help get through your day?

Morning nature walks every day.

Do you have any go-to apps or tools use love to use?

Love hiking with the Relive app and taking a selfie with my friends midway. Also getting ready to launch my parks challenge on OuterSpatial!

What are you looking forward to this year? Are there any goals (personal or professional), activities, or experiences you are excited about?

I made a public commitment to visit all 280 of our state parks so that I can not only learn about the issues our parks face but also experience the awe and joy that parks inspire.

Pledge 1%’s #WomenWhoLead series celebrates female leaders who are paving the way for the next generation. While our featured leaders come from a variety of backgrounds and industries, they are united in their efforts to promote equality for all women in the workplace. We’ve asked them to share a bit about their journey to success, as well as lessons they’ve learned along the way. 

Natasa Marinkovic

Vice President of Marketing, Atrium

Sanford, Florida, United States

What is your current role? Briefly describe in 1-2 sentences.

I am responsible for leading Atrium’s marketing strategy by working across all departments to align marketing efforts with overall business goals while building and maintaining our brand image and driving customer acquisition and engagement.

This year’s International Women’s Day theme is “Embrace Equity.” What does this mean to you? How can we build workplaces that are more equitable and inclusive?

To me embracing equity means not only acknowledging that different circumstances lead to different outcomes and opportunities for people, but also being part of driving change. For most businesses the easiest place to start is providing diversity and inclusion training to create more awareness about unconscious bias and educating on the difference between equity vs equality. That awareness alone often inspires inclusion councils that want to drive change and from there the main goal should be to support and enable them to do so.

Do you have any mentors or role models who have helped you on your personal journey?

I’ve been lucky enough to have many mentors and role models and I’ve been blessed to have leaders who allowed me to take on various roles and carve out a career path for myself based on my interests as opposed to boxing me into a standard career path. This experience has clarified that I am very passionate about marketing and the previous sales and business development experience has made me a better marketer.

What’s the best piece of advice you ever received?

Growth happens with every mistake you make, whether you realize it at the time or not.

The past few years have brought many new and unprecedented challenges. What keeps you motivated or inspires you to stay optimistic?

What really inspires me as we navigate change is the resilience that is born from it. Seeing people come together for support, to innovate, and find new ways to solve problems keeps me motivated. What specifically keeps me optimistic is the small acts of kindness that you can find in the midst of any terrible situation or headline. You just have to look for them.

Pledge 1% helps companies of all sizes and stages leverage their assets for social good. Why do you think it’s important that companies prioritize social impact? Do you have any specific stories or examples from your work or colleagues you can share?

Companies have a platform that individuals don’t necessarily have. They can contribute to the sustainable development of their communities and the world by leveraging that platform to create awareness and opportunities for individuals to come together and create change.

There’s one story in particular that comes to mind for me. Recently, Atrium worked with ​​Housing Development Alliance, Inc. (HDA) to improve their Salesforce infrastructure in order to better support their response to flash flooding in Kentucky that caused damage to over 2,000 homes and businesses in late July. You can read the full story on Atrium’s website: https://atrium.ai/resources/how-hda-quickly-supported-flood-victims-with-improved-salesforce-infrastructure/

If you could describe yourself in one word what would that be and why?

Open-minded. I want to always be open to trying new things, taking on new challenges, and also be a safe space for those around me. In order to do those things, I have to be open-minded.

What are you looking forward to this year? Are there any goals (personal or professional), activities, or experiences you are excited about?

Watching my daughter transition from infant to toddler has been delightful! She’s got such a fun personality and I can’t wait to see what she’ll be into as she starts exploring more of the world. In caring for her, I have been gifted the opportunity to view the world with a fresh perspective and it has allowed me to appreciate the small things in life, like stopping to smell the roses. I’m excited for more of that this year!

Originally posted on Business Wire

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