Originally published on the Velocity Werx blog.

May 30, 2018—Velocity Werx Ltd. announced its Pledge 1% quarterly profits went to the Humboldt Broncos Ryan Straschnitzki.

Like every Canadian, we were taken back when this tragedy occurred.

We followed the #SticksoutForHumboldt movement, and we participated in #Jerseysforhumboldt. But, it just didn’t feel like enough, what else could we do.

On Jersey Day we decided that 1% of our quarterly profits would go towards the Humboldt Broncos.

Our founder Trevor Perraton, who is always up for volunteering decided he would bartend at Paint & Wine Night, hosted at the Bearspaw Lifestyle Centre. He added to our profits all of the tips that he received that night.

This cause was especially close to Trevor’s heart, as his son’s name is also Ryan and he was born in the same hospital at the same time as Ryan Straschnitzki.

Ryan Straschnitzki’s mother reached out to Trevor via Social media after seeing our posts. They were able to arrange a meet up at the hospital. Trevor said that this was a visit he will never forget. He would like to thank Ryan and his family for reaching out.

We’re a family-oriented company, and we wanted to ensure that this cheque wasn’t faceless. What we mean by that is, we wanted Ryan and the other Broncos to know that there are people out there that care about their well being more than they know.

Please keep donating to this cause, these families will be dealing with medical expenses for the rest of their lives.

Let’s help take one less stress off their plates.

Please Donate At: HTTPS://HUMBOLDTSTRONG.INFO/

 

About Velocity Werx Ltd.  Velocity is a leading provider of Salesforce consulting and On-Demand Salesforce Administrator services to small & medium sized companies in North America.  Velocity is a Salesforce® registered partner, dedicated and trusted implementation consulting firm for its clients. Being an industry leader in Salesforce® innovation and creating operational efficiencies, we help our clients realize and accelerate their Salesforce implementation return on investment. Maintaining a socially conscious mindset, Velocity is a member of the Pledge 1% organization giving back 1% of its profits, 1% of its time & 1% of its products to non-profit organizations. We have offices in Calgary, Kelowna, Vancouver, Edmonton and Winnipeg.  To learn more about Velocity, visit www.velocitywerx.com.

 

Originally published on the In What Language website.

As the world continues to develop, the need for corporate social responsibility becomes even more important. Social problems exist whether we like it or not, so what can we do about it?
Well…
When corporations value social responsibility and make an effort to integrate social impact into their business, they can solve some of the most challenging problems that the world faces today.
A great example of combining social impact and business is the language technology company inWhatLanguage.
inWhatLanguage is a mission-driven translation and localization company. Our mission is to unify people and communities through innovative translation solutions. With that in mind, we donate 1% of our revenue to social impact initiatives. We want to make a dent for good in the world!
However, given we are a translation and localization company, we thought it made sense not to simply donate money to causes we believe in, but instead, donate our translation services. People often don’t think of translation as a critical element to improve livelihoods, but we know firsthand its powerful ability to do just that.
How we make an impact:

1. Supporting English Language Learners

There are millions of people in the United States who are learning English, as it is not their native language. They are often referred to as English Language Learners (ELLs). Both refugees and immigrants often don’t know English when they arrive in the United States. Relocating to a new country is already hard enough, but to not know the language makes life even more difficult. We want to use our translation services to help assist refugees and immigrants in the United States who are learning English. Specifically, we have focused our efforts on assisting ELLs and their parents in schools across the country.
According to an nprED report 5 million, or 1 in 10, students in the United States are ELLs. We recognized this as an opportunity to step in and provide translations for critical documents and parent-teacher communications, to empower diverse, non-English speaking students and their families with the information and resources needed to build successful lives.
In order to assist ELLs both in our community and the United States, we have provided translations to schools and education organizations at no cost. Some of our main partners include the International Rescue Committee (IRC), Utah Transit Authority (UTA), United Way andGranite School District.
Our work with the IRC and UTA has been to help refugees access and use public transportation. We helped the IRC translate important information for refugees about how to use the transit system. It is very difficult to try to navigate a public transit system in a language other than your native language. We plan to continue to support these two organizations when it comes to making public transit more accessible to ELLs.
With the United Way of Salt Lake and Granite School District, we have conducted similar work. Given there are a large number of refugees and ELLs in general at Salt Lake City schools, we have translated critical documents and parent-teacher communications. Many of these are traditional school documents, but some of them have included information sent home to parents about vision screenings and medical services available to whole families for free. Translation plays a critical role in ensuring that these students get the education they deserve and that families get the social services they need.
In addition, to these main partners, we carry out a grant program for schools and educational organizations across the United States. These organizations are able to submit applications explaining their needs in order to support ELLs and then we award them grants in the form of translation value. Again, giving in the form of our services as opposed to simply giving money is at the core of our social impact.

2. Assisting Disaster and Crisis-Affected Communities

According to a Relief Web report, 569 million people are affected by disasters every year. Overcoming language and cultural barriers is one of the most vital and often overlooked factors in disaster and crisis situations around the world. These crises present significant challenges for coordination and communication between the different responders on how to provide the most effective relief strategy. When earthquakes, hurricanes, and deadly disease outbreaks occur, it is imperative that accurate and timely translations are conducted to enhance communication between responders and subsequently the effectiveness of the crises response.
inWhatLanguage has partnered with and carried out a number of translation projects for the World Health Organization (WHO) at no cost. More specifically, the WHO’s – Health Emergencies Program, where inWhatLanguage helped translate training modules for OpenWHO. OpenWHO is an instructional platform that allows the WHO and its key partners to transfer life-saving knowledge to a large number of frontline responders during natural epidemics, pandemics and health emergencies. inWhatLangauge has provided a number of services for the WHO, including translating instructional material about how to manage Cholera outbreaks and Influenza into a number of different languages.

3. Fostering International Trade and Diplomacy

Given inWhatLanguage’s mission is to unify people and communities through innovative translation solutions, we think it only makes sense to commit to utilizing our social impact initiatives to help foster international trade and diplomacy. Fostering international trade and diplomacy helps to connect people all around the world and bridge cultural divides. When economies are connected, people are connected (or united).
In order to foster international trade and diplomacy, inWhatLanguage has worked with a number of different partners. inWhatLangauge has provided in-kind translation of materials for the World Trade Center of Utah and CHOICE Humanitarian.
The World Trade Center (WTC) of Utah’s mission is to promote prosperity across the state by attracting investment and increasing exports. The WTC of Utah frequently carries out international trade missions for members of the Utah business community to help them expand into global markets. We have assisted translating materials for the WTC of Utah that provide business leaders in other countries information about Utah’s business community and Utah’s economy. These materials help foreign business leaders gain a better understanding of the State, helping to encourage them to do business with Utah companies and consumers, in turn increasing international trade and diplomacy.
For example, in October of 2018, the WTC of Utah conducted a seven-day trade mission to connect Utah Companies to Middle Eastern Markets. The trade mission led by Gov. Gary R Herbert took 19 Utah companies (including inWhatLanguage) to Amman, Jordan and Tel Aviv and Jerusalem, Israel. We translated the materials highlighting why business leaders in those locations should engage in business with Utah companies and consumers into Arabic and Hebrew.
CHOICE Humanitarian is a non-governmental organization (NGO) based in Salt Lake City, Utah that focuses on improving the quality of life for people around the world. CHOICE provides assistance through the establishment of programs for better health and education, the eradication of extreme poverty and the strengthening of family and community efforts to learn valuable skills. CHOICE works around the world in Ecuador, Bolivia, Guatemala, Perú, México, Kenya, and Nepal.
We have helped Choice Humanitarian translate documents for an important initiative.
A small banana cooperative in Peru had done all of the work to be in compliance with organic, fair trade and Global GAP certifications but didn’t have the funds to pay for the certification itself. CHOICE is providing loan capital for them to pay for the certifications that will increase the value-per-box of bananas from $6.50 to $13 US, literally doubling their income. Not only will this increase the banana cooperative’s income, but it will allow the banana cooperative to expand into global markets.
To get this process started, CHOICE required the translation of the banana cooperative’s application along with the contract between CHOICE and the banana cooperative. In addition, CHOICE will start working with them on a soil restoration program to revive the soils and increase their production levels 100-200%. We consider this a great success, as our translations directly fostered international trade.

4. Engaging and Supporting Our Linguist Network

Our newest social impact pillar is engaging and supporting our linguist community. Our hundreds of linguists are crucial to our success as an organization. Without them, we would not exist. We truly value their contributions and want to give back. Not only do we want to give back to them, but we also realize their unique opportunity they have to do good in their own communities. With that in mind, we provide a micro-grant program for our linguists. The micro-grant program gives our linguists an opportunity to apply for micro-grants to be used to improve their communities all over the world. For example, linguists can be awarded the micro-grants for teaching English in their communities, mentoring youth, improving health outcomes, improving the environment, or identifying needs in their communities that are not formally listed in our micro-grant program but are equally important. A big component of their projects is documenting the amazing work they are doing in their communities. We love receiving pictures and videos highlighting their awesome work to make the world a better place.

In addition to our grant program, we make a point of assisting our linguists when they are experiencing challenges in their lives. When natural disasters occur around the world we make a point of reaching out to our linguists to make sure that they are doing ok and if there is any way we can assist them. For example, when Hurricane Harvey hit Houston, Texas in September 2017, one of our linguist’s daycare business was badly damaged. She lost most of her educational supplies and toys that were in the daycare. We found this out when we reached out to our linguists around the world after a string of natural disasters globally. As a company, we got together and collected educational supplies and toys to donate to the linguist so that she could get her daycare back up and running. We are committed to our linguists and constantly looking for ways to support them.
We are on a mission to unify people and communities through innovative translation solutions. By donating 1% of our revenue to social impact initiatives we are trying to make a dent of good in the world.

Originally posted: May 22nd, 2018

Originally published on the inWhatLanguage blog.

Originally published on Glassdoor.

You can’t have it all. The popular refrain has been shouted from magazine coverlines and even folk songs as a means to caution women who try to excel in their personal and professional lives. However, it’s a phrase that has also been directed towards all job seekers.

Exciting projects, innovative coworkers, a beautiful office, excellent pay — you can’t have it all.

Or so they said.

According to employees at New York-based Silverline, having it all is possible if you work with them. “You can have a job that you love, at a company you admire, with phenomenal coworkers (both in terms of personality and productivity) – Silverline’s got it all,” raved one team member. A director added, “Silverline has grown significantly over the past two years, the company has been able to retain fun small company culture.”

Pair that with unlimited vacation, flexible work options, education reimbursement programs, learning & development programs, it’s no wonder Silverline has been honored as a 2018 Best Place to Work in Glassdoor’s annual Employees’ Choice Awards.

With a near perfect rating of 4.9, Silverline has become the #1 small business on the Best Places to Work list. At the helm of Silverline’s success is CEO Gireesh Sonnad, who has a 100% CEO approval rating on Glassdoor. We managed to catch up with Sonnad to discuss the win, learn more about Silverline’s culture and to find out “What’s your favorite interview question to ask Silverline job applicants?”

Glassdoor: Congratulations on your huge “Best Places to Work” win! How does it feel to know that your employees made this win happen?

Gireesh Sonnad: Thank you so much! I am honored by the magnitude of this recognition. It is incredibly rewarding to know that the people I see and interact with every day have taken the time to show this type of support for the company. This is truly an amazing accomplishment for all of Silverline.

Glassdoor: What have you done this year to double down on employee engagement?

Gireesh Sonnad: Transparency and consistent communication is key to helping to build a solid foundation.  This will support the growth of a trusting environment and a team who feels that they can truly contribute to their success and the success of the company.   We regularly employ multiple channels to foster this trust and overall engagement.

One of the best ways to foster trust and employee engagement is simply to listen and discuss feedback. In addition to a complete open-door policy, I hold office hours every other week with the primary purpose of supporting that feedback mechanism.  Employees tune in from home and gather in the office to hear about new developments, company strategy, and exciting news. Importantly, I directly answer ANY questions that are submitted (anonymously, through our corporate social intranet) or that are asked on the spot. The company has seen fantastic participation and have found it to be a wonderful opportunity to discover what’s important to our employees.

Additionally, we hold several organization-wide gatherings, such as quarterly All Hands meetings, that bring employees together to discuss the state of the company, share corporate goals and progress, and engage with our colleagues face-to-face.

Finally, I have recently made it a point to physically connect with each of our remote teams who do not come into the main headquarters office every day.  I am doing this through a ‘Vision and Values’ Tour in which I travel to each of our satellite offices and hold focused sessions on: where we are as a company, the values we hold dear as an organization, and the future that we see as a team.

Glassdoor: Your employees love working here as we see the strong rating on Glassdoor – How do you make this a great place to work day in and day out?

Gireesh Sonnad: As an organization, we continually look for new ways to help our employees learn, enhance their lives, and further their careers. We implemented  learning and development and career path initiatives, called Silverline Synapse and PowerUp!, which offer a variety of programs to foster professional and personal growth. These programs allow individuals to improve their technical and consulting skills, become subject matter experts, and share knowledge with their peers. We are enabling a world-class workforce through high-quality and timely learning opportunities.

Silverline has established a robust system to gain transparency into our employee’s goals at work and at home that everyone can be aware of. We have leveraged the Salesforce Platform to create a tool that allows our team to set individual and department goals, along with objectives for each, then measure and report on their results on a regular basis. However, not all goals are company centered; we encourage employees to also set personal goals to maintain their health and wellness.. Goals can be collaborative and employees are encouraged to push themselves above general expectations.

We also have our philanthropic initiative, Silverline Cares, and we are a proud member of the Pledge 1% movement. The goal of this initiative is to create community engagement opportunities through donations of our time, product, and profit.  We recognize that participating in these opportunities to give back will also enrich and inspire the lives of our employees while strengthening our communities.  My hope is that every Silverliner feels that they have given back to the community through their involvement with Silverline.

Glassdoor: Good leadership is not just one person – How do you work w/ your management teams to make sure employees have great leadership here?

Gireesh Sonnad: Silverline adheres to a core set of values that every member of the team is aware of and lives by.  This includes our management team who knows that the success of the organization is driven by the success of the individual, and uses these values as guiding principles.

We continually emphasize the concept of frequent and meaningful feedback at every level.  This includes our management teams providing feedback to our senior leadership, as well as every individual communicating with our management team.

It is important to be able to receive feedback as well, and we strive to give our managers the support that they need to effectively connect with their teams.   There is a dedicated group in the organization that combines all ‘Peoples Managers’, who  meet regularly to coach, educate, and continually groom our managers to be effective and supportive.

Glassdoor: When you’re hiring, what do you look for in informed candidates?

Gireesh Sonnad: Ultimately, I look for someone who has the passion to be part of an organization that is rapidly growing, is focused on the success of their customers, and driven by the desire to contribute to the team as a whole.   Certainly, skill in their role and the ability to bring a unique perspective are important traits.   But I believe that if there is a strong and meaningful fit between a candidate  and the team at large, then we will be capable of incredible things.

Glassdoor: What interview questions do you ask to ensure your companies recruit great employees?

Gireesh Sonnad: “Are you willing to learn as much as you teach? Are you willing to teach as much as you learn?”

“Describe for me the best example of day that makes you excited to jump out of bed that morning.”

We care deeply about the cultural fit of every new Silverliner – for their success and ours.   While it may not be unique, we make sure that our candidates have dedicated sessions with a large cross section of individuals from throughout the company – not just their department – so that we can gauge an individual’s overall fit with what we have built.  We spend a great deal of time with every candidate to make sure that they will be wildly successful as a Silverliner.

Glassdoor: What keeps you at the company for the long haul?

Gireesh Sonnad: The people!  It has been a truly incredible experience watching this organization grow from just a handful of people to what it is today.   I am extremely proud of who we are as a team, and inspired to continue to do better through my interactions with every Silverliner.  I absolutely love what I do, and the people that I do it for.  I cannot wait to see what we do next.

Glassdoor: How do you recruit talent – what are some of your best practices?

Gireesh Sonnad: We view employee happiness as a competitive advantage. Employees that are excited and engaged develop strong relationships with clients which in turn, ensures our customers are also happy and having a positive experience. Employee well-being can also impact strength in talent acquisition. We encourage our employees to bring in talent that will help grow the organization in a way that they can be proud of as well. The more talented people we have, who enjoy the environment that we have created, the more successful we can become.

Glassdoor: If you could speak to millions of job seekers interested in Silverline, what would you want them to know about what it takes to succeed at Silverline?

Gireesh Sonnad: At Silverline, we pride ourselves on striving for an unparalleled Employee Experience. We are a tight-knit team made up of the best and brightest people. Our employees are problem-solvers, self-starters, and innovative technologists. If you want to succeed at Silverline, you are a person who innately loves finding solutions to difficult challenges in a truly collaborative team environment.

Originally posted: January 15, 2018

At CRM Science we are committed to charitable causes in our community by contributing 1% of our time, profit, and product. One of our biggest passions is supporting the National MS Society, through our participation with the Salesforce & Friends Bike MS team.

In 2016 we had 8 team members travel to San Francisco for the Salesforce & Friends Bike MS Waves to Wine. After that amazing experience, we made a goal as a company to bring the excitement we had at Bike MS Waves to Wine to the East coast by creating a Salesforce & Friends team for Bike MS City to Shore. Our initial goal was to raise at least $15,000 with a team of 15 riders and we crushed it! On Saturday, September 23, 2017, our inaugural team cycled through the countryside of New Jersey on their way to Ocean City completing a total of 1,710 miles traveled, over $20,000 raised, with a team of 20 riders. We finished 2nd in the rookie team of the year recognition and had 2 riders in the Top 250 out of 6000+ riders for an event that is the #2 fundraiser in the world for MS.

Over the last 2 years, CRM Science has directly donated over $45,000 to the MS Society which accounts for well over 1% of our profit. Our total impact on the MS Society has been over $110,000 through direct donation, matching contributions and team participation and fundraising. We plan to continue into 2018 with another $25,000 direct donation to start the year and already have team members committed to riding again.

Originally posted: December 22, 2017

From the RFPIO team.

It’s hard to believe we’ve already made it to Q4 and are closing out what’s been such a great year for RFPIO. But beyond the growth of our business and the excitement that has brought us, something we are really proud of is our commitment to the Pledge 1% movement. Their objective is to integrate giving into the fabric of company practices, and we are in full support.

We’ve had a chance to return the favor back to our community in some incredible ways this year. We donated to the Oregon Food Bank, worked with SOLVE to clean up Kelley Point Park, and contributed to Elmonica Elementary School’s MakerSpaceprogram.

This quarter is a special one, though. Now that the holiday season is in full swing, we know it’s an extra difficult time for many people.

According to data from the Oregon Center for Public Policy, Oregon’s poverty rate is higher on average than the United States as a whole. Among those living under the poverty line in Oregon, one in five is a child under the age of 18.

With that in mind, the RFPIO team wanted to offer up some holiday cheer to children in our community. We came across many fantastic organizations to choose from, but found our match with the Christmas Family Adoption Foundation (CFAF).

CFAF was created in 2002 when founder Mike Burright gathered gifts for a local family that didn’t have much that Christmas. Since then, they have adopted over 2,500 families. The organization’s mission is, “to create a positive and memorable holiday by giving gifts, clothing, and necessities to families in need.” With their help, RFPIO had the opportunity to adopt an area family who is going through a hard time, and check some items off their Christmas wish list.

So in the spirit of the season, we encourage you to join us! You can go to the CFAF website and choose a family to sponsor or nominate for adoption, or take a look at the ways to donate financially.

Happy Holidays from the RFPIO Crew! 

Originally posted: December 15, 2017