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Giving to worthy causes has a real feel-good factor about it, but when times are hard, the average family budget often doesn't stretch to helping out others. Savvy employers have latched onto corporate philanthropy as an opportunity for engaging more closely with stakeholders, many with huge impact, both within their organizations and in the outside world.
The recent Sustainable Brands conference in London showcased a highly successful example from the Hewlett Packard Company Foundation, working in partnership with Kiva, a leading global microfinance nonprofit organization.
Ann Ewasechko, HP's Global Manager, Economic Progress, introduced Matter to a Million, a five-year campaign launched in February 2014 with the ambitious goal of helping one million entrepreneurs across the globe achieve their dreams. In keeping with the vision of HP's founders - "make a contribution, not an empire and a fortune" - Matter to a Million sets out to make a real difference, not only in entrepreneurs' local communities, but also in the hearts and minds of HP employees everywhere.
Building on the success of HP's long-running Make it Matter campaign - itself the subject of a recent Big Brand Theory article by SMT's Andrew Hutchinson - the HP Foundation gave every HP employee a $25 credit to lend to an entrepreneur via Kiva's microlending platform. I talked to Karen Little, Kiva's Director of Development, about the role that Kiva plays in campaigns like Matter to a Million and asked her to explain how it works.
"Kiva's mission is to connect people through lending to alleviate poverty," she told me. "We work with a range of institutions, including NGOs, social enterprises and schools, to locate borrowers anywhere in the world and to administer loans. These 'Field Partners' work at local level, in communities where a 25-dollar loan can change lives. We then partner with organizations that want to empower employees, customers or any other stakeholder group to make a difference.
"Members of a lending team have access to the Kiva dashboard, where they can read about potential borrowers; each person then chooses the entrepreneur she wants to support. Matter to a Million has 122,000 HP employees registered as lenders; they either make individual loans of $25 or contribute to larger amounts as part of a group of lenders. In each case, the purpose of the loan is clearly mapped out, together with an agreed repayment schedule. Lenders receive regular email updates whenever a repayment is received as well as news about campaign success stories."
As Ewasechko confirmed at Sustainable Brands, the program "had very strong leadership support; it flowed from Meg [Whitman, HP's CEO], and HP's Chief Marketing & Communications Officer Henry Gomez was absolutely behind it. Reaction was immediate; we heard stories of employees sitting down with their children and other family members to decide which entrepreneurs to support. Because of its global scale, everybody found someone to connect to, and it's been a huge, huge success."
Uptake exceeded HP's most optimistic forecasts; within six weeks of program launch, more than 25 percent of all HP employees had made a loan. "HP wanted an audacious goal, and favored 10% uptake in the first six weeks," Little told me. "I didn't think we'd come close to it, and I advised strongly to go for five; when they confirmed 10 percent, I thought 'This is not a good idea.' Then, after the staggering response, we kept having to raise the bar; nine months in, we're at 50 percent."
How has the program influenced employee engagement? Exposing people directly to entrepreneurs' stories played a major part, according to Ewasechko. "Storytelling is embedded in the framework of the project," she told delegates, "and the conversation between the employee and the entrepreneur is continuous; it doesn't end with the loan. As loans are repaid, people receive emails that keep them up to date, which maintains the excitement."
There's no doubt that lenders are sharing their enthusiasm with their networks, both via social media and word-of-mouth. Little highlighted feedback from a U.K.-based HP employee:
"Before making my choice [of entrepreneur], I sat with my children going over all the different cases. My children are so proud that I work for HP and will be going into school to 'brag' that Mummy's company helps people all over the world!"
"Every Kiva dashboard has sharing buttons," she continued, "and we encourage lenders to share details of their individual activity as well as telling their social circles whenever the project hits a milestone. Currently, HP employees have lent a total of just under six million dollars, and we expect plenty of buzz once we achieve that figure.
"Participating organizations typically report increased employee engagement, and HP is no exception. Although it's still early days, its most recent Annual Employee Survey showed that employees who are lenders have higher engagement scores [than non-lenders]. This is in line with both Kiva's and HP's expectations.
"Microlending campaigns like Matter to a Million offer true win-win-win outcomes - not only do entrepreneurs benefit directly, employees enjoy the chance to make a genuine difference, while organizations stand to increase engagement significantly. Additionally, most maintain the value of their loan funds as loans are repaid. Many of our consumer-facing partners extend their programs to customers as well as employees, and some include both groups - a great example being TripAdvisor."
Microlending ticks all the boxes for forward-thinking organizations with sufficient cash to ring-fence for the purpose. With close to 10 years' experience in microfinance, Kiva now sets the pace and is a recognized source of best practice in the sector. Maybe it's time your brand discovered just how much good $25 can do in the hands of an enthusiastic, engaged employee?
Image Credits:
Matter to a Million by HP Next
Kiva HP Dashboard by Kiva
We reached out to HP to obtain further insight from Ann Ewasechko and requested an interview with her; HP declined to participate.
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Social Marketing