Goldman Sachs Thinks Globally and Acts Locally
by Zoe Cruz (New York City)
46 offices. 25,000 people. 146,800 hours. 780 nonprofit community partners. 1,761 projects. In 2008, Goldman Sachs Community TeamWorks program marked its 11th year of doing well by doing good work.
Established in 1997, Goldman Sachs signature volunteer program, Community TeamWorks (CTW), follows in this mold. CTW is a global initiative that allows top Goldman Sachs employees to take one day off each year to volunteer for a local charity as a member of the company’s team. “Our people bring to their volunteer service the same qualities that they bring to their work at the firm: excellence, dedication, teamwork and an appreciation of both the big picture and the importance of the individual.”
Goldman Sachs also provides an extended service opportunity for their top performers. According to the company’s website, the Public Service Program is another GS global initiative that “allows GS top performers to take one year of paid leave to work as a Fellow with a public service or charitable organization that is aligned with the firm’s corporate engagement initiatives.” Not only does this provide the non-profit with someone who can help them make necessary changes; it allows the Goldman Sachs employee to develop leadership skills in a non-corporate environment.
Through the Public Service program, Goldman Sachs employees have worked with a diverse group of organizations benefiting the elderly, homeless, youth and the environment including, but not limited to: the Cara Program; the Millennium Challenge Corporation; Marie Curie Cancer Care; The Fund for Public Schools; The Ayala Foundation; and the International Bridges to Justice. Goldman Sachs’ website says “We understand that the personal enrichment people get from their involvement with nonprofit organizations is high, although difficult to quantify. Volunteering provides our people with important professional development opportunities that will enhance their leadership and teambuilding skills. This is certainly what we call a “win-win” situation.”
The Goldman Sachs group proudly boasts a great record of community service initiatives. Through their charitable services group, they’ve established a number of programs to help non-profit organizations and individuals in need. They are among the corporations who have agreed to the terms of the UN Global Compact.
According to that organization’s website, “The UN Global Compact is a strategic policy initiative for businesses that are committed to aligning their operations and strategies with ten universally accepted principles in the areas of human rights, labour, environment and anti-corruption. By doing so, business, as a primary agent driving globalization, can help ensure that markets, commerce, technology and finance advance in ways that benefit economies and societies everywhere.”
Any company, regardless of its size, can do something to benefit their community or the world at large. Goldman Sachs is at the leading edge of corporate social responsibility programs, and encourages its peer corporations to align their operations and strategies to participate in the Global Compact.
