One Project, One Community at a Time

Community Relations is essentially a company’s involvement with the community in order to build acceptance and trust. Corporations accomplish this by not only writing a check or providing in-kind donations, but also contributing their time and energy to a community project. GE has an outstanding record of community relations. GE Volunteers are improving their communities by donating their time and money in community-based projects.

The Man of Steel
GE’s Volunteers Foundation provides over 1 million hours of community service a year. They call it volunteerism. This Foundation is made up of GE employees and retirees, who share a common goal of improving the communities in which they live and work by donating their time and money to community-based projects. There are more than 150 GE volunteer councils located in over 41 countries; each responsible for addressing serious social issues facing their communities. From providing the Bell Gardens Public Library of Los Angeles with a $10,000 grant, to funding two food banks in California and Florida GE has gone above and beyond supporting its community.

The GE Volunteers organization is the driving force behind all of GE’s community relations, including volunteer activities around the world. According to GE’s website, their aim is to focus their imagination and expertise in the areas of education, the environment, and community development to those most in need. To achieve their goals, GE celebrates ‘Global Community Days’ in which employees coordinate efforts company-wide to address urgent projects around the world. It appears that GE lives discretely amongst us humans, but thrives on the opportunity to save the world. Folks, it looks like we have a modern day Clark Kent here.

Video on GE Global Community Day

Planet PaintFest

Planet PaintFest is a global GE Volunteers Event in which more than 15,000 employee volunteers help paint over 350 color-coded murals that are donated to healthcare-related facilities. In partnership with The Foundation for Hospital Art, GE is able to “brighten up and improve the physical environment for the users of hospitals and other nonprofit organizations by providing unique, eye-catching artwork for those organizations.” When GE employees aren’t working, they’re putting their Van Gogh skills to the test by making the world a better place.

People Helping People
I was very fond of GE’s values towards community relations and their motto “one project, one community at a time.” This shows their determination to finish what they start and put their best effort forth. On their website, GE provides different case studies which give readers like me an opportunity to see the improvement GE has made in communities across the country. One specific case study that stuck out in my mind was Hurricane Katrina. Hurricane Katrina devastated areas of our country, killing many Americans and leaving others without basic necessities such as food, clothing and even homes. After her mom was hospitalized due to the disaster, GE employee Kay Erwin and her sister stayed behind at the disaster site to assist with communications, food preparation and water distribution. From a corporation stand point, the GE Volunteers Foundation established the Disaster Relief Fund to enable GE people to help their colleagues who are affected by natural disasters. GE provided $464,000 in 61 relief grants to affected GE employees, in direct relief such as housing and essentials. This case study was heart-melting. It is obvious, that GE has allocated time and thought into establishing community relations.

No One Likes a Penny Pincher
When it comes to asking for donations, GE is far from shy. Conveniently located on GE’s website is a link that you can click to make a donation towards the GE Volunteer Foundation. What I found most intriguing about this link was that those wishing to contribute to the foundation had options; the typical the cash donation or the donation of one’s assets such as a life insurance policy! What would drive a person to relinquish a life insurance policy? Last year GE earned $18 billion dollars; $19 billion in cash flow and $172 billion backlog in infrastructure products and services. What are they doing with this money? By donating to the GE Volunteers Foundation, you are insured that your donation will be dispersed in the form of grants to recipients sponsored by GE volunteers. However, over the last eight years the foundation has only provided approximately $750,000 to service projects, a fraction of what they make a year. In 2006, CEO Jeffery Immelt made over 8 million dollars alone. As a stockholder you want me to consider donating my life insurance policy? Ha

Happy Halloween!! GEewhiz