Give Like You Mean It: BODIES & BOTS #21

“Where were you yesterday?” the sourpuss HR lady asked me loudly. Or, maybe it just seemed loud. After all, I was a senior executive, and I found the question a bit intrusive.

“I took a day off to volunteer as Principal for a Day,” I replied.

Said HR sourpuss was pissed off that it was not the company’s “approved charity.”

Fast forward to the early 2000s.

I was officially out of the corporate world and free to pick my own causes.

Serving on the board of Yonkers Partners in Education (YPIE) in its early stages was a life-altering experience, and I’m still involved with the non-profit 10+ years later as a career advisor. I love working with students and training the other mentors on how to incorporate AI into the job search process without losing graduates’ voices and souls.

I’ve served on two other boards since then and done a fair amount of volunteer work. I have friends and family who work in the non-profit world. I’ve bought tickets to galas and helped non-profits up their digital marketing game.

First, some stats and facts about the world of “charity” (philanthropy, non-profit organizations, and series B companies):

2,500 years of giving and raising money for causes is harder than ever. 

But digital media and private companies being formed with philanthropy in mind have changed everything. The rubber chicken gala is not the only game in town.

So if you’re going to give this year, give like you mean it. Here are five ways to get into (or deepen) your involvement in the non-profit ecosystem.

• Start with what fires you up, then vet the organization. Once you’ve picked, pull their Form 990 (free on the IRS site) or check Charity Navigator. Look at the program-to-overhead ratio. If they won’t show you their numbers, give somewhere else.
• Offer the work you do for a living. Marketing, accounting, legal, HR, tech. A morning of your expertise replaces what they’d pay a consultant thousands for.
• Make introductions. Connect a nonprofit leader to one person in your network: a potential donor, a vendor, a board candidate, a journalist.
• Spend where it counts. B Corps are for-profit companies independently certified for social, environmental, and worker standards. Patagonia, Allbirds, Warby Parker, and Ben & Jerry’s are ones you’d recognize. When you’re already going to buy something, buy from one of them. Many local businesses are involved in causes that impact your community.
• Go deep with one, not wide with many. Join a finance committee. Chair a fundraising event. Sit on an advisory board. Nonprofits need real labor from real experts, not warm bodies at the gala. Short on time? Start with a simple project or a local volunteer activity.

May was about HELP. Self, agency, mental, and now this. The throughline: nobody is coming to save you, and nobody is coming to save them. We help each other, or nobody gets helped.

P.S. For more about how technology is changing the non-profit ecosystem, head over here.

P.P.S. Need to buy “stuff?” Here are some companies that have a charitable component

• Greyston Bakery (@greystonbakery): brownies and blondies (including the ones in Ben & Jerry’s). Open Hiring® model: no resumes, no interviews, no background checks.
• Bombas (@bombas): socks, underwear, basics. One item donated for every one sold.
• Warby Parker (@warbyparker): glasses and sunglasses. One pair distributed for every pair purchased.
• Tony’s Chocolonely (@tonyschocolonely): chocolate bars. A public campaign to end child labor in cocoa.
• Newman’s Own (@newmansown): pasta sauce, dressing, popcorn. 100% of profits to charity.
• Who Gives a Crap (@whogivesacrap): toilet paper and paper goods. 50% of profits fund global sanitation.
• Lemonade (@lemonade_inc): renter’s, home, pet, and life insurance. Customers pick where leftover premiums go.
• Caraway (@carawayhome): non-toxic ceramic cookware. Partners with No Kid Hungry to fund meals.
• Tentree (@tentree): apparel and basics. Plants 10 trees per item with a tracking code.
• Pela (@pelacase): phone cases, AirPods cases, watch bands. Compostable, plant-based, B Corp.