It’s a wonderful way to bring something personal into the workplace. We encourage discussions about wellbeing, and this has brought some of those conversations to the surface and broken down barriers.”- Charlotte Mills
For more than a year, FE fundinfo has supported all kinds of charities. They’ve raised money for infant mental health and women’s rights. They’ve supported a shelter for homeless people in Australia and a neonatal unit in a UK hospital. They’ve contributed to a charity fighting food waste in Hong Kong, several mental health organizations, and a research project in Italy studying the positive effects of having animals around children during medical treatments.
One of the dogs in the research study belongs to an FE fundinfo team member, which is how they learned about the charity. In fact, most of the organizations they support have personal ties to team members.
Every month a different one of FE fundinfo’s 16 global locations chooses which charity the whole organization will support through Charity Miles.
“Some of the charities are very personal and close to home,” says Charlotte Mills, Employee Experience and HR Operations Manager. “Which is wonderful, because it brings the charity to life and further incentivizes people to get involved and feel that sense of purpose.”
“That’s the beauty of it,” adds Vanessa Schwab, Global HR Business Partner. “We discover these smaller charities that we would never have heard about if we hadn’t asked our local teams to nominate them. It also gives equal voice to each location, regardless of the number of team members based there.”
One team member presents the charity to the whole company at their town halls. People often share very personal stories about why that charity matters to them, which is bringing the company closer together.
“You remember someone talking about why a particular charity was important to them at a certain time in their life,” says Charlotte. “It’s been quite touching. It’s a wonderful way to bring something personal into the workplace. We encourage discussions about wellbeing, and this has brought some of those conversations to the surface and broken down barriers.”
It brings the company together on a global level, with some team members reaching out to each other after the town hall to share experiences.
FE fundinfo began the program during the first lockdowns.
“We were looking for a way to encourage team members to get active to support wellbeing during the pandemic,” says Vanessa. She found Charity Miles and thought, “What better reason is there to go out for a walk than to do something good at the same time, not only for yourself but also for society?”
They launched the program on World Mental Health Day in October 2020, and so far have had fantastic feedback. As employees have been in and out of lockdowns, they’ve taken advantage of opportunities to go for walks or rides together. The Hong Kong team, for example, cycled together before their Christmas lunch.
Vanessa and Charlotte believe endorsements from CEO Hamish Purdey are contributing to the success of the initiative. They’re delighted to see team members across the organization championing Charity Miles, from graduates to executives, from Technology teams to Data teams, and from Europe to Asia.
We’re thrilled that Charity Miles has helped to bring the FE fundinfo team closer together, especially in support of such wonderful local causes. Congrats to the whole team!