How Wells Fargo puts corporate, employee values into action

Editor's note: Krista Van Tassel will be conducting a workshop on “Using Strategic Philanthropy to Promote Employee Engagement” at the旧金山GreenBiz论坛.

One hot Saturday in April 2012, in California’s Central Valley farm country, I found myself on a rooftop installing a solar electric system for a family of agricultural workers. My fellow installers were bankers from two Wells Fargo branches in the Fresno area.

Farm country? Solar? Bankers?

That same month, Wells Fargo released a set of环保承诺- 到2020年实现 - 包括降低公司对环境的影响，过渡到绿色经济的融资，并鼓励更强大和更可持续发展的社区。我们的一个社区和慈善事业的承诺的受益者是GRID替代，总部位于加州的非营利组织，它安装太阳能电力系统为低收入家庭。这是它的客户，马丁内斯家族的一员，我们已经到了音调。

许多大公司花费了大量的时间查找和整理相应的企业志愿者活动。最有效的参与计划，是那些既激发了大量的团队成员，并展示了公司的价值观和优先事项更广泛的受众。

With more than 265,000 team members serving one in three households in the United States, Wells Fargo is focused on leading positive change through an integrated approach to sustainability that starts with its team members. Through ourGreen Team Program，我们的员工采取发现他们讲的项目领先。富国银行绿色团队成员首先向我们介绍了GRID替代于2005年，以类似的方式在威斯康星州密尔沃基市。我们的绿色团队，铸就与不断成长的动力合作，在本地非营利集中在城市可持续农业和青少年教育。我们的普吉特海湾绿色团队与西雅图大学在其社区农业和食品银行的倡议。

自2005年以来富国银行员工一直志愿与GRID替代品，让屋顶上学习新技能，用自己的队友建立更稳固的工作关系，并参与他们的社区。多年来志愿者已包括行政主任，高级执行副总裁帕特·卡拉汉和执行副总裁大卫·韦伯。富国银行也提供了网格的赠款最初的$ 600,000支持其太阳能安装程序和劳动力发展的努力。在2012年9月，富国银行宣布了一项为期五年，$ 2万的承诺，以帮助该组织利用其国家示范。

The expansion was kicked off with installations for 12 low-income families in a Habitat for Humanity development outside of Denver with help from more than 30 local Wells Fargo employee volunteers. Abdelati and Malika Moumen were one of the families that received a solar electric system. Immigrants from Morocco, they have made huge personal sacrifices to help their three children succeed in the United States. Their daughter, Fatimah, a business student at University of Colorado, Denver, spoke during the launch event about the value of opportunity and the impact the modest savings from their system will have on their lives and their community. For the Wells Fargo volunteers, who got to work on the roof with Fatimah and her brother, Zackaria, the experience was tremendously rewarding.

Often, as with GRID Alternatives, the most popular and effective employee-initiated projects become integrated into our wider employee engagement program. With GRID Alternatives, we were easily able to plug into the nonprofit's existing volunteer model to expand both our Green Teams and environmental volunteer opportunities across California. GRID projects are some of the most popular volunteer events that our teams host, and we leverage the organization’s annual Solarthon blitz-build events throughout California to launch new Green Teams, or use them as an opportunity to help existing Green Teams with recruitment.

是什么让这个模式成功的地方在于网格主机为我们的志愿者可预见的程序。这是不容易管理的大型志愿者的机会，但GRID做到这一点相当不错的一天提供一个标准的时间表和事件前培训，使每个人都到达准备时间和预期开始工作，工作结束。作为企业志愿者合作伙伴，我们对此表示赞赏方法，因为它很容易让我们推动这项工作，我们忙碌的绿色团队的领导者。

But good volunteer opportunities are also about what the employees take away from a day of volunteering. I have been on seven GRID Alternatives installations now, and what makes the experience stand out for me is always the people.

On that sweltering day in Fresno, we got to meet and work alongside Floricel Martinez and her partner, Arturo. Floricel came to the U.S. from Oaxaca, Mexico, nine years ago. She and Arturo, both seasonal farmworkers, are raising two sons, ages 5 and 9, on wages from cherry and grape picking. In between jobs it was often hard to pay their electricity bills, which averaged $210 a month. They had built their home together from the ground up through a self-help housing organization, and when it came time to put on solar, they were ready to roll up their sleeves.

Watching the family turn on the system for the first time at the end of the day was a thrill for the whole team. We could see on their faces what our own sweat and our company’s investment was doing for them. We also got to work that day with a young man whose experience volunteering with GRID had recently landed him a steady job with Real Goods Solar. This was community and environmental sustainability in action. We do a lot of cleanup-type events as well, but when you have that direct contact with the people you are helping, those are always the kinds of projects that keep people engaged.

“Communities rely on the involvement and support of those who live and work within them,” said Melanie Tillotson, a Wells Fargo team member (Sacramento Green Team leader) who recently volunteered on a GRID Alternatives project in Chico, Calif. “What GRID is doing in our communities transcends sustainability and cost savings for low-income families. They are providing an opportunity for individuals to make connections, learn new skills and contribute to the legacy we leave behind for our children.”

网格模型确实有助于使绿色能源，它的好处的理念，低收入社区的生活我们的团队成员，而我们的投资和工作，电网实时富国银行的企业价值观演示。2012年GRID替代太阳能安装培训了超过3000名志愿者和求职者，并在加利福尼亚州和科罗拉多州的1200多名低收入家庭安装了太阳能，为他们节省超过30年的约2000万$ 35 - 钱，帮助他们生活得更实惠的他们的家园，并为他们的孩子。

大公司有很多机会通过员工参与投资，分享他们的资源。他们在那里大规模成功是他们按照他们的员工率先发现具有意义，既为员工和公司的战略重点项目。