AccruentCARES Kicks Off With a Week of Employee Volunteering

By Kristina Smith, Human Resources Administrator

From dog walking to landscaping to delivering meals, more than 200 Accruent employees logged service hours on June 1-5 during the inaugural accruentCARES Community Volunteer Week.

This week kicked off the accruentCARES program, which includes corporate sponsorship, charitable giving and hosting volunteer events throughout the year.

To find organizations to partner with around our Austin, TX headquarters and satellite offices, we looked specifically for 501(c)(3) non-profit organizations that tie in with our core values.

Results Orientation - Winning Attitude - Drive to Excellence - Respect - Integrity - Hard Work

We found 20 great organizations, including seven of which some of our employees already volunteer for regularly. The organizations we partner with touch a variety of causes, from education, to taking care of the environment, and feeding the homeless and poverty-stricken. Here’s a snapshot of the week:

George Boone, Consultant – Learning and Development at Accruent, led a group of 33 volunteers at Capital Area Food Bank in Austin, TX last Wednesday.

“We went through a 15-minute orientation on how to inspect the products and properly sort, box, and place them on a pallet ready to feed families,” Boone said. “After about two hours of sorting, we were able to package up 5,220 points of food, which is equal to 4,350 meals to help Austin families in need! A lot of us talked about getting together again, and possibly doing a quarterly trip down to the food bank to help those in need.”

In Calgary, ON, a group of employees helped sort 5 large bins of clothing donations for the homeless population served by the Mustard Seed shelter. They also learned more about the services the organization provides to the inner city.

“Something that stood out for me was their mandate to actually be more than a shelter and listen to the people they serve, so as to get them transitioned back to a job and into a normal life off the street,” said Mike Olson, Senior Technical Analyst at Expesite, an Accruent company. “There is one volunteer whose job it is just to talk to the homeless in Calgary, and listen to their stories. One client told her that she was the first person he had a real conversation with in three or four years!”

In Columbus, OH, volunteers donned aprons and served lunch at Community Kitchen. The kitchen’s vision is a day in their community “when hunger is not a barrier for people to lead productive lives and reach their fullest potential.”

The Burnaby, British Columbia team spent their time in the Greater Vancouver Food Bank sorting food donations and packing them by type onto pallets for distribution to those in need. The GVFB provides assistance to over 28,000 people each week through their 15 food depots and over 100 community agencies located in the Vancouver, Burnaby, New Westminster and North Vancouver areas.

Our contact at the food bank made the statement, “With less than 30 staff working at the Food Bank, approximately 70 percent of food donations are processed by our amazing volunteers. We get up to 500 volunteers sorting food each month and having the team [from Accruent] joining us was fantastic.”

Employees expressed a mutual sentiment.

“I enjoyed the work and appreciated the opportunity to support the Food Bank,” said Ian Tingly, Architectural Assessor.

The Vaughan, Ontario team collected dry and canned food for the Vaughan Food Bank, and distributed it to very happy staff members, from what you can see here! Peter (pictured) manages the food distribution for the Bank in the Vaughan area, and will be sending our pallets to those in need in the community’s K—12 schools. Our employee Team Captain, Tomo Mishimagi, was happy to report that the office decided to keep a food bin at the Vaughan office permanently to maintain an ongoing delivery for the Vaughan Food Bank.

In addition, each of the employees in that office were encouraged to submit a statement on “Why I Care” as part of the Volunteer Week. A few of the employee statements can be found below:

“I have been a recipient of good deeds and blessings from others, and to thank them, I should do the same for others. To see that we have shared our blessings, we would also experience the inner joy that no material things can give.”
- Jess Mascardo, Associate Facilitiates Consultant

“It has been said that it takes a village to raise a child. We at Accruent are part of that village. We care and that is why we volunteer.”
- Art Williams, Facilities Consultant

We will continue hosting accruentCARES Volunteer Week annually, as well as sponsor various ongoing events like Habitat for Humanity builds and working with local schools. Our program allows employees to take up to two days each year to volunteer with an organization that they are passionate about, either in their own effort or in groups. In addition, accruentCARES will match donations for employees who are participating in a charitable event or who are raising money on their own.

We want to support activities that enhance and serve the communities in which we live and work. At the same time, we recognize that participating in volunteer activities enrich the lives of our employees. Our definition of community is not just local community, but may encompass the global community.

Learn more about the organizations we served as a company:

Austin Animal Center
Austin Pets Alive!
Austin Partners in Education
Capital Area Food Bank
Caritas Meals for the Homeless
Community First! Village
Community Kitchen
Greater Vancouver Food Bank
Habitat for Humanity
Keep Austin Beautiful
Meals on Wheels
Mustard Seed
Vaughan Food Bank