Month: March 2023

Too often, in an effort to track something, corporate social responsibility and ESG leaders focus on metrics that don’t hold much meaning. When it comes to employee volunteering specifically, there’s a pervasive “check-the-box” mentality that values inputs over outputs and processes over people.

For instance, the number of volunteer hours your team logs (input) doesn’t mean much if most of the time was spent sitting around waiting for instructions instead of doing work that actually improves peoples’ lives (outcome).

In contrast, impact measurement seeks to understand the relationship between your efforts and real, meaningful outcomes. You want to know: are you moving the needle?

Impact measurement requires you to be more intentional about how you define and identify “impact.” This effort will not only help your team understand your program’s ROI today, it will help you evolve your initiatives to be more meaningful for your business, your employees, and the community in the long term.

Track the true impact of corporate volunteering

Impact measurement is a guide, not a grade. You’re not trying to slap a passing or failing grade on your program. Rather, you’re earnestly asking tough questions about how your efforts make change.

Does your employee volunteer program:

Create positive change in the community?Tap into your organization’s full potential?Successfully engage your employees?Provide the right framework for a transformative experience?Give meaningful support to your nonprofit partners?

These questions are large and unwieldy. There’s rarely a simple answer, and it can be difficult to tie specific inputs to clear and quantifiable outcomes.

To measure the impact of corporate volunteering, you have to embrace the complexity. Here’s how.

Prioritize outcomes over activities

The activities you do matter much less than what effect you make. Think about it this way: if you’re trying to put out a fire, you wouldn’t measure your success by how many gallons of water you pour on the flames. What matters is if you put the fire out.

It’s easy to get distracted by measuring inputs (like the amount of water you use), but be sure to tie the inputs you track to the outcomes you want (flames extinguished). Pumping a lot of water may feel important, but if you don’t aim that water at the fire, you’re not having the impact you want.

Focus on meaningful contribution 

As you set goals around specific outcomes, keep in mind that even an incredibly successful volunteer program isn’t going to single-handedly reverse negative trends or solve big issues. Set goals that are not only attainable, but also recognize the role your program plays within the larger context of your company, community, and society as a whole.

For instance, your program might play a role in increasing employee retention at your company, but that’s not the only factor determining whether people stick around. Other internal initiatives and policies matter along with external market forces. Measuring the impact of corporate volunteering is not about taking full credit for progress, it’s about making a meaningful contribution.

Consider how metrics are in conversation with one another

As you choose metrics to track, you’ll likely find some overlap. That’s natural. What’s good for employees is often good for the community, which is good for the brand. Be less concerned about drawing hard borders or categories and make space to think about how outcomes might influence one another.

Now, let’s get into what metrics you might choose to track for your volunteering program.

Which corporate volunteering metrics should I track?

To measure the impact of corporate volunteering, think about your impact across four categories: participants, corporate, the nonprofit, and the community.

Participants

The people who take part in volunteering stand to benefit from the experience of giving back.

Personal fulfillment: Volunteering can be personally rewarding. A Harvard report found that “higher levels of volunteer work were associated with higher levels of overall life satisfaction.”Skills development: As a venue to try on new roles and take risks, volunteering can help support employees’ professional development. One study found that “40–45% of the employee volunteers claimed some level of improvement in skills pertaining to leadership, mentorship, motivating others, project management, and public speaking and presenting.”Exposure to new people and perspectives: Stepping into a volunteer role can enable participants to meet people from different backgrounds and encourage them to be more open to perspectives that differ from their own.

What metrics to track:

% of employees who participate in volunteering% of participants who would recommend volunteering to others% of volunteers who report improved skills% of volunteers who continue to volunteerLevel of engagement in dialogue at the volunteer eventQualitative feedback from volunteers

Corporate 

The business itself can benefit from the impact of corporate volunteering.

Brand reputation: 77% of consumers support brands who share their values. Using your resources to give back shows that you’re willing to put your values into action.Recruitment and retention: CSR efforts can help you stand out from other companies as you vie for top talent. Plus, employees who volunteer are 32% less likely to churn.Improved company culture: Volunteering is an exercise in empathy and collaboration, two important building blocks of a healthy team culture.

What metrics to track:

Customer loyalty metrics like customer satisfaction scoreEmployee retentionEmployee satisfaction metrics like employee net promoter score% of employees who would recommend the company to a friend

Nonprofit organization

By building partnerships, you can leverage the power of your brand and resources to strengthen community nonprofits.

Increased capacity and reach: More volunteers means more capacity to reach new people and launch new programs. That’s no small thing. A projection from United Way estimated that if each company with the largest revenue headquartered in (or with a major office in) each state implemented one day of volunteer time off, it would add 75 million volunteer hours—that’s 9 million days—to the nonprofit capacity.Improved strategic planning and innovation: With volunteer support, nonprofit staff have more time to dedicate to the deeper strategic planning and innovation that’s necessary for long-term success.Name recognition and credibility: By partnering with a nonprofit, you can help increase their brand awareness in the community, helping them secure even more support.

What metrics to track:

Volunteer hours contributedIncrease in nonprofit outputsNumber of beneficiaries reachedNumber of new donations securedNew partnerships formedNew programs launched by the nonprofit

Community

An effective volunteer program not only benefits the institutions and participants, but it makes a meaningful difference in the lives of community members.

Increased access to services: Meeting people’s basic needs can have a profound impact on their ability to thrive. A study published in the American Journal of Preventive Medicine found that food insecurity, for example, was “associated with poorer mental health and specific psychosocial stressors.”Improved quality of life: No matter what causes your volunteers are dedicated to, they have the potential to improve the quality of life for the whole community, whether that’s through direct service work with people or projects that improve communal spaces and resources.Deeper awareness of community needs: A volunteer program is also a natural way to draw attention to a cause. As volunteers learn more about community needs, they become advocates, spreading awareness and building support for new initiatives and policies.

What metrics to track:

Number of people servedQualitative feedback from community membersQuality of life metrics like unemployment, mortality, or graduation rate

Build the right framework for your volunteer program

Do not try to track all the metrics listed above. If you’re just starting to measure the impact of corporate volunteering, choose one or two meaningful targets and build from there. You don’t want to get so bogged down with reporting that you lose sight of the mission at hand.

As you build structure around your program, keep in mind that you can rely on systems that are already in place. Rather than starting from scratch, you could use existing:

Employee surveysSales and revenue trackingRetention metricsNonprofit impact reportsCommunity statistics and indicators

Identify what levers you think will support change. If employee engagement is one of your goals, you might want to ask yourself what mechanisms are in place to ensure that volunteer events align with employee values. If you can’t point to anything specific, that’s a red flag. You might consider democratizing the process to allow employees a voice in building nonprofit partnerships and planning events.

Don’t view impact measurement (or your program) as static. You’ll need to stay open to iteration as your team and the community evolves. The right technology can help you manage this dynamic process.

Lenovo’s Service Supply Chain team recently developed a proprietary, AI-driven process to generate an alert, called the Intelligent Excessive Pre-alert, that identifies high-density packaging within the company’s worldwide distribution hub in Suzhou, China. Once identified, that packaging is then reconfigured or replaced to be more efficient and environmentally friendly, yielding a reduced impact.

As a result of this innovation, Lenovo’s worldwide hub has made a real, measurable difference in advancing Lenovo’s sustainability goals: packaging materials were reduced by over 35% and related carbon emissions by 50,000KG, or the equivalent of 9000 trees, annually.

“As a tech company, innovation is a key tenet,” said Steven Chen, Executive Director, International Services Supply Chain, Lenovo, who helped pioneer the solution. “We always look at how we can use technology solve challenges of not just our customers, but also ourselves. This is a great example of how we’ve used Artificial Intelligence to help us identify and reduce excessive packaging of our products, and ultimately be more sustainable.”

The Muse Award is one of the leading recognitions for creativity in the world. The international competition recognizes designers “whose craftsmanship shift paradigms. Their ingenuity and thorough works leave others in awe, and in so doing redefine boundaries and scope – much like a muse.”

The award runs once a year with a strict panel of 42 professional experts in the International Award Association determining the winners.

The recognition is emblematic of Lenovo’s ongoing business transformation, streamlining operations and creating more intelligent solutions across the enterprise. Lenovo also continues to prioritize environmental, social, and governance (ESG) excellence in everything, from supply chain operations to PC materials. Learn more in the 2022 ESG report.

About Lenovo

Lenovo (HKSE: 992) (ADR: LNVGY) is a US$70 billion revenue global technology powerhouse, ranked #171 in the Fortune Global 500, employing 75,000 people around the world, and serving millions of customers every day in 180 markets. Focused on a bold vision to deliver smarter technology for all, Lenovo has built on its success as the world’s largest PC company by further expanding into key growth areas including server, storage, mobile, solutions and services. This transformation together with Lenovo’s world-changing innovation is building a more inclusive, trustworthy, and sustainable digital society for everyone, everywhere. To find out more visit https://www.lenovo.com, and read about the latest news via our StoryHub.

Originally published by Ericsson.

In January 2021, Rogers Communications became the first operator to roll-out a national 5G standalone (SA) network in Canada. The implementation of Ericsson’s cloud-native dual-mode 5G Core has enabled Rogers to continue their commitment to investing in technologies and infrastructure to serve their business customers, large and small.

The roll-out process presented many challenges but with collaborative learning, development and implementation with Ericsson, the result is a highly capable and reliable, fully cloud-native standalone 5G Core network that is ready to be used by Rogers and their customers to harness the full potential of 5G and transform industries and organizations.

The challenge

As Canada’s only 5G national network, and the country’s largest wireless carrier, Rogers is considered a key contributor to the development of Canada’s digital infrastructure, delivering world-class networks and next generation technologies to both its consumer customers and forward-thinking enterprises.

The key drivers for Rogers core network transformation to cloud-native were:

Be first to launch 5G SA services in Canada and offer unprecedented flexibility and speed to meet current and future customer demands.Build a cloud-native foundation for all of Rogers next-generation core network functions, unleashing the power of the microservices architecture design paradigm in order to deliver seamless scalability, resiliency and super simple in-service upgrades to bring cutting-edge solutions faster than before.Set the base for network slicing deployments able to offer real-time, on-demand highways of 5G for entire industries and organizations.

The solution

The Ericsson products and solutions empowering Rogers 5G SA network are:

Ericsson Evolved Packet Core (EPC): The existing Ericsson Cloud Packet Core for EPC solution was upgraded to support 5G non-standalone services (NSA) and 4G services.

Ericsson Service-Aware Policy Controller (SAPC): Existing policy controller solution upgraded to cope with the first stage of the 5G network (to be later replaced by the new Cloud Core Policy Controller node).

Ericsson’s dual-mode 5G Core: Container-based cloud-native platform including packet core, unified and data management, policy, signaling controller, and exposure network functions.

Ericsson Cloud Infrastructure deployed in two steps:

Ericsson NFVI for the services’ launch: Cloud infrastructure including Ericsson Cloud Container Distribution (CCD) to support KubernetesEricsson CNIS is the definitive cloud infrastructure solution based on bare metal higher resource utilization and simplified operations.

Ericsson Cloud IP Multimedia Subsystem (IMS): Supporting voice services, initially with EPS fallback and later voice over NR.

Ericsson Orchestrator: To manage the complete lifecycle of Network Services, including design, instantiation, configuration, and upgrades.

CENX service assurance: Provide service topology, inventory, fault, and performance from all disparate systems, correlated into a single view enabling closed loop automation.

Ericsson 5G Radio Access Network (RAN): Antennas, radios, baseband (RAN Compute), and RAN software to enable incredible speeds and mobility.

Ericsson Spectrum Sharing: Software solution for the quick introduction of 5G over a wide area, leveraging 4G spectrum and existing Ericsson Radio System infrastructure.

Ericsson Carrier Aggregation: To extend the coverage of mid-band and high band 5G while enabling faster data speeds and enhanced performance.

The result

Rogers believes that it is only with the power of 5G technology that the boldest new ideas of today – smart cities, fully automated cars, real-time robotics, truly connected homes and much more – will be fully realized.

The main achievements from Rogers core network transformation for cloud-native and 5G SA are:

Deployed first nationwide 5G standalone network in Canada providing high levels of capability and reliability.Expanded Rogers extensive portfolio of services helping them reinforce their position as a driving force in Canada’s digitalization.Provided Rogers with means to empower their enterprise customers to develop new use cases that bring their production efficiency to whole new levels.Will enable developers to build applications that were not possible before, to accelerate technologies that will have a profound impact on the economy and society.

Download full case

United launches first-of-its-kind consumer education campaign focused on driving awareness of the benefit of Sustainable Aviation Fuel (SAF)

Oscar’s five decades of trash experience on full display in original video, digital, social and out-of-home content that shows how garbage can help fuel the future of air travel

United customers can do their part too by tracking the estimated carbon footprint of their flight and contributing to supplement United’s investment in the new UAV Sustainable Flight FundSM when buying a ticket

United has already invested in the future production of more than three billion gallons of SAF – the most of any airline in the world*

CHICAGO, March 2, 2023 /3BL Media/ – United Airlines today named Sesame Street‘s Oscar the Grouch as its first Chief Trash Officer as he and the airline celebrate his love of rubbish. United Airlines’ new, consumer education campaign is designed to promote the expected benefit of using sustainable aviation fuel (SAF) more broadly.

The new campaign – which features Oscar in more than 30 pieces of original video, digital, social and out-of-home content – follows the iconic character’s journey from job listing to c-suite office starring alongside real United employees.

SAF is an alternative to conventional jet fuel that, on a lifecycle basis, reduces greenhouse gas emissions associated with air travel compared to conventional jet fuel alone. SAF is being made from used cooking oil and agricultural waste, and, in the future, could be made from other feedstocks including household trash or forest waste.† To date, United has invested in the future production of over three billion gallons of SAF – the most of any airline in the world.*

Consumers can take action too – in a first among U.S. airlines, United now shows an estimate of each flight’s carbon footprint on a per economy seat passenger basis on its app and website, and travelers have the option to contribute to supplement United’s investment in the UAV Sustainable Flight Fund, a first-of-its-kind investment vehicle designed to support start-ups focused on decarbonizing air travel by accelerating the research, production and technologies associated with SAF.

“United has invested in more sustainable aviation fuel production than any airline in the world, by far,” said United Chief Communications Officer Josh Earnest. “Every airline burns jet fuel to run their business, but no airline will solve climate change on its own. So United has enlisted Oscar to help us educate the traveling public of all ages about SAF and rally them to the cause of fighting climate change. From banana peels to fryer grease, Oscar is uniquely qualified to help us explain why trash could be the treasure that fuels the jets of the future.”

Starting today, people can follow Oscar’s journey as he stars in videos alongside real United employees. The integrated campaign includes interactive social-first elements, colorful spreads in Hemispheres® magazine and a unique film series, all of which were created to simplify a complicated topic in an approachable and entertaining way. Creative highlights include:

Film Series: Across multiple videos, United highlights Oscar’s work in his new role, such as a “BINtro” film showcasing his first day on the job. The film is part of a series that focuses on the importance of SAF. In an additional 90-second film, United Captain Tomica Adams breaks down how things like waste can help fuel air travel.Out of Home: United’s out-of-home content introduces the airline’s new hire in a larger-than-life format. The playful imagery features Oscar in aviation settings – from tarmac to onboard. The photos will pique people’s interest about how trash could one day help us fly toward a lower carbon future.**Digital/Social: Providing surround sound to the campaign, storytelling continues on social channels with bite-size edutainment videos, engaging Instagram Story features, emoji-filled Twitter threads and more to raise awareness of the SAF nitty-gritty. The social campaign will live on owned and paid social and digital channels.

As a part of the collaboration, United Airlines is supporting Sesame Workshop through a donation to the nonprofit educational organization’s Welcome Sesame initiative. Sesame Workshop will also be included in United Airlines’ Miles on a Mission, where travelers will be able to donate miles to help support its global mission to help children grow smarter stronger and kinder.

“This campaign provided a special opportunity to showcase an iconic Sesame Street character, Oscar the Grouch, celebrating what he loves best – trash,” said Jennifer Ahearn, VP, Global Strategic Partnerships & Themed Entertainment, Sesame Workshop. “The amazing collaboration helps United Airlines explain in simpler terms the technology of turning trash into fuel in a fun and engaging manner.”

United will continue to bring this relationship to life for our customers and for the communities we serve, with more to come in the months ahead. For more information, visit united.com/ChiefTrashOfficer and download media assets here.

United’s Commitment to Net Zero Emissions by 2050

United aims to be 100% green by reducing its GHG emissions by 100% by 2050, without relying on traditional carbon offsets. In addition to the UAV Sustainable Flight Fund, United has launched a SAF purchasing program called the Eco-Skies Alliance and established a venture fund – United Airlines Ventures – to identify and invest in companies and technologies that can decarbonize air travel. These strategic investments include carbon capture, hydrogen-electric engines, electric regional aircraft and air taxis.

The Federal Government Recognizes the Value of SAF

The 2022 Inflation Reduction Act includes the largest governmental climate change investments in U.S. history – a new blender’s tax credit specifically for SAF along with other critical incentives for clean energy and carbon capture – that will help spur an increase in SAF infrastructure and supply while lowering costs for SAF consumers.

The U.S. military currently uses nearly five billion gallons of jet fuel annually and the Department of Defense will use a jet fuel blend containing at least 10% SAF by 2028 because of the 2023 National Defense Authorization Act.

And according to the U.S. Department of Energy, the country’s vast feedstock resources are enough to meet the projected SAF demand of the entire U.S. aviation industry.

About United

United’s shared purpose is “Connecting People. Uniting the World.” From our U.S. hubs in Chicago, Denver, Houston, Los Angeles, New York/Newark, San Francisco and Washington, D.C., United operates the most comprehensive global route network among North American carriers. United is bringing back our customers’ favorite destinations and adding new ones on its way to becoming the world’s best airline. For more about how to join the United team, please visit www.united.com/careers and more information about the company is at www.united.com. United Airlines Holdings, Inc., the parent company of United Airlines, Inc., is traded on the Nasdaq under the symbol “UAL”.

Cautionary Statement Regarding Forward-Looking Statements and Other Important Information

This press release contains certain “forward-looking statements” within the meaning of the Private Securities Litigation Reform Act of 1995 relating to, among other things, plans and projections regarding the company’s marketing strategy as well as the company’s ESG goals, targets, commitments, strategies and initiatives and related business and stakeholder impacts. All statements that are not statements of historical facts are, or may be deemed to be, forward-looking statements. Such forward-looking statements are based on historical performance and current expectations, estimates, forecasts and projections about our future financial results, plans, objectives, goals, targets, commitments, strategies and initiatives and involve inherent risks, assumptions and uncertainties, known or unknown, including internal or external factors that could delay, divert or change any of them, that are difficult to predict, may be beyond our control and could cause our future financial results, plans, objectives, goals, targets, commitments, strategies and initiatives to differ materially from those expressed in, or implied by, the statements. These risks, assumptions, uncertainties and other factors include, among others, any failure to meet stated ESG goals, targets, commitments, strategies and initiatives in the time frame expected or at all as a result of many factors, including changing societal, market, competitive, regulatory or stakeholder expectations. No forward-looking statement can be guaranteed. Forward-looking statements in this press release should be evaluated together with the many risks and uncertainties that affect United’s business and market, particularly those identified in the “Management’s Discussion and Analysis of Financial Condition and Results of Operations” and “Risk Factors” sections in United’s Annual Report on Form 10-K for the year ended December 31, 2022, as updated by our subsequent Quarterly Reports on Form 10-Q, Current Reports on Form 8-K and other filings with the Securities and Exchange Commission. Risks and uncertainties related to United’s environmental compliance, climate commitments and climate strategy are further described in Part I, Item 1A. Risk Factors of United’s Annual Report on Form 10-K for the year ended December 31, 2022—”We are subject to many forms of environmental regulation and liability and risks associated with climate change and may incur substantial costs as a result. In addition, failure to achieve or demonstrate progress towards our climate goals may expose us to liability and reputational harm.“

The statements included in this press release are made only as of the date of this press release and except as otherwise required by applicable law or regulation, United Airlines undertakes no obligation to publicly update or revise any statement, whether as a result of new information, future events, changed circumstances or otherwise. In particular, United Airlines reserves the right to change, amend, supplement or abandon some or all of the statements regarding goals, targets, commitments, strategies, initiatives, intentions and other statements from time to time without notice.

In addition, some of our disclosures in this press release are estimates or based on assumptions due to inherent measurement uncertainties. For example, United’s statement that it has already invested in the future production of more than three billion gallons of SAF – the most of any airline in the world is based on publicly announced future purchase agreements for SAF of certain airlines as of the date hereof.

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* Based on publicly announced airline offtake agreements for future purchases of SAF. 
† SAF currently must be blended with conventional jet fuel to meet regulatory requirements for use within the aircraft. 
** The use of SAF in combination with conventional fuel in accordance with current blending requirements results in lower carbon emissions on a lifecycle basis than conventional fuel alone. SAF is less than 0.1% of United’s overall fuel use.