June 1st marks the 5th anniversary of GENBAND’s Annual Global Day of Service.  This is the day our employees from around the world spend the day volunteering at local charities and non-profit organizations of their choice, as part of our Corporate Social Responsibility efforts.  In addition to volunteering at well-known global organizations such as the Ronald McDonald House, United Way and the Salvation Army, GENBAND employees also participate in volunteer activities at local charities such as the Ottawa Food Bank, the Galway Hospice, the Peace Ranch in Toronto, the Andrew Food Bank in Taiwan and the Teresa de Calcuta Soup Kitchen in Spain to name a few.

Our Global Day of Service or as many of our employees like to refer to it, “GENBAND Day”, is our chance to give to back to the communities in which we live, work and love - and for me, one of the proudest days of the year to be representing GENBAND.

Five years ago, following a historic acquisition, GENBAND executives made June 1st a global company holiday. GENBAND employees subsequently recommended transforming the holiday into a global day of community service and it is really amazing to see how GENBAND Day has evolved and grown.  Since its inception, GENBAND employees have dedicated more than 40,000 hours to community service.   

Not only are all of our employees in virtually every office that GENBAND operates globally participating in volunteer activities, but in many cases they are leveraging their skills to bring technology to organizations who may not otherwise have the opportunity to experience it.

For example, this year employees in our Hong Kong office are working with the Society for the Relief of Disabled Children to embed real-time communications capabilities in SRDC’s web site, using our Kandy communications platform-as-a-service.  In addition to adding real-time communications capabilities to the website, GENBAND Hong Kong employees are also donating funds to support SRDC.

For several years now, GENBAND volunteers from our Raleigh, North Carolina office have spent the day at Teaming for Technology (T4T) refurbishing computers for low income families and organizations. T4T is dedicated to narrowing the achievement gap by bridging the digital divide.  To support its mission, T4T provides refurbished computers to schools, education supporting nonprofits and their students. Refurbished computers are also are provided to United Way partner agencies to help increase their operating efficiency, deliver their services more effectively, and enhance their ability to leverage funds and other resources. 

Although a good portion of our volunteer activities take place during our Global Day of Service, it is not the only time our teams spend giving back to their communities. In fact, in 2014 our team members from around the world dedicated more than 13,000 hours to community service. Our employees’ year-round spirit of generosity, volunteerism and altruism is what sets GENBAND apart from most organizations and again I could not be more proud to be a part of a company in which “giving back” is part of its culture. 

I plan to spend my Global Day of Service volunteering at the Dallas Zoo helping to repaint areas of the zoo, assisting in bamboo removal and general clean-up activities. I will be joined by our Chief Marketing Officer Patrick Joggerst who will be participating for the first time, as a recent addition to our leadership team. GENBAND Chairman and Chief Executive Officer David Walsh will join our Toronto team members in volunteering at The Peace Ranch in Toronto, which provides supportive housing and rehabilitative programs for adults with serious mental illnesses.

I think I speak for the rest of the leadership team and the entire GENBAND global employee base around the world when I say I can’t wait to participate in what is truly going to be an awesome day! 

Feel free to follow the GENBAND team on Twitter and Facebook for updates on our Global Day of Service activities and join the conversation using the hashtag #GBDay15.

Check out this short fun video, which highlights last year’s volunteer activities!