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Managing it all while working from home

June 3, 2020/in Culture, Diversity & inclusion all amber, amber c, best practices, home, laura, laura s, members, panel, principal, shared, time, vanguard, virtual, virtual panel, wils, wils members, work, work from home, working, working from home /by Ferris

Managing it all while working from home

In the month of May, the Women’s Initiative for Leadership Success (WILS) crew resource group coordinated two internal webcasts focused on working from home featuring female leaders from across Vanguard. I had the opportunity to facilitate the first virtual panel discussion with Amber Czonstka, Principal of Institutional Large Market Sales, and Laura Symon Browne, Principal of Broker Dealer Strategic Sales, both of whom have worked from home offices for several years. These two fantastic leaders shared their insights and best practices with nearly 1,200 Vanguard crew members from around the globe and talked about how life and work are different now during the pandemic.

While I was nervous to facilitate an event with so many coworkers eager for advice (wifi don’t fail me now!), supporting WILS members is very important to me as a program lead for Vanguard’s retail division. I also know how challenging the shift to work from home has been for many, myself included.

Since mid-March, my husband and I have both been working from home. During the day, we barricade ourselves in our shared workspace – a spare bedroom in the attic. We feel very lucky that we have assistance during the day with our two-year-old daughter and three-year-old son, who get the run of the rest of the house. At first, my children hated us being home without having access to us all day. Now that we have a loose routine, we all look forward to lunch together and I can check in on them throughout the day without triggering a meltdown. I shared with the virtual panel attendees that it has been much harder for me to focus now that life isn’t “compartmentalized” into work and home. As I’m sitting in virtual meetings, I might be thinking about the laundry piling up. As I’m eating dinner with my family, I might be tempted to send a few work emails. The way that I’ve combatted the distraction is by taking a little extra time in the morning to do the house chores worrying me and making really strong to-do lists for the workday so that I know what I need to accomplish before I leave “the attic.”

Amber also talked to the panelists about the importance of “preserving the morning commute” and taking that time to get active or do something for yourself. This really resonated for me. When I begin my day by going for a long walk with the dog, I’m just much more grounded. I also find that I’m more productive if I get out of the sweatpants and put on a blouse and jeans at a minimum. It boosts my confidence, makes me feel like I am dressed for my day, and separates the week from the weekend.

Laura had great advice for those who are trying to maintain and deepen team connection remotely during this very challenging time. She emphasized how critical communication is when working from home, and shared that she supports her teams by encouraging cross-sharing about the frustrations, challenges and concerns everyone is facing.

Laura S. with her work from home companions

Amber C. in her home workspace

Speaking with the panelists personally following the event, here is what they had to share:

Amber C: As I talked with Laura, Danielle, and our WILS members, the power of community became clear – particularly during a time like this. It might feel like we are all facing different challenges, from caring for young children while working, to worrying about family members on the front lines, to professionally advocating for ourselves in a virtual working environment. But there are members of our tribe who are dealing with similar issues. Sharing best practices, ideas, and stories with each other and creating a safe space to be vulnerable makes us all stronger, healthier, and more productive. The WILS network matters now more than ever; we can learn so much from one another.

Laura S.: The opportunity to connect with my female and male colleagues across Vanguard who are facing many of the same issues was special. It’s a reassuring feeling that we have each other’s back during these times, and that we’ll all emerge stronger and more convicted in our passion for investors as a result of this.

I’m looking forward to this two part series expanding in the future as we all support one another during this unprecedented time!
—Danielle C.

Stay tuned for a recap on the second panel focused specifically on parents managing small children and work from the home. It features Theresa Westwood, a department head in Vanguard’s Financial Advisor Services, Tiffany Haley, Principal and Senior Human Resources Business Partner, Rashanda Perryman, Program Officer of Vanguard Community Stewardship, and Liz Waldron, Head of Digital and Marketing in Europe.

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Person on screen is a Vanguard crew member.

Reduce the effects of social distancing by reinforcing Diversity, Inclusion, and Belonging

As individuals work remotely and adjust to workdays without in-person face time with peers and colleagues, we anticipate that we will all feel the effects of social distancing.

Like you, the Diversity & Inclusion team at Vanguard is experiencing this first hand, and we’ve been asking ourselves:

How can I feel a sense of belonging during this period of social distancing (which can feel very exclusive and disconnected)?
How do I stay connected to my work and my colleagues?

We have 6 suggestions to consider for living the Diversity, Inclusion, and Belonging (DIB) principles with your teams.

1. Establish a positive mindset.

While you are setting the course aligned to your company’s mission and providing parameters for your team, it’s important to amplify a silver lining. You can acknowledge that adjusting to change can be difficult, but remember (and remind your team) that there are many advantages to working remotely.

Studies show that employees who telework report lower stress levels (granted, that may take a while in our current environment) and higher productivity. Promoting your and your colleagues’ health and safety should be top of mind.

2. Enable connections to happen.

The best way to ensure that connections happen between you and your team is to be authentic. Weave personal, relatable themes into your everyday interactions and encourage your team to do so, as well.

Creating belonging for individuals who are working on a partial or fully virtual team requires a leader to enable moments for employees to connect digitally on a personal level. Reserve and devote explicit social time each week for your entire team to gather, check-in, and continue to get to know each other “outside of work.” This ensures that the interpersonal connections that normally occur face-to-face each day will continue to happen in a virtual environment. It is those interpersonal, social connections that will help promote inclusion and minimize feelings of isolation.

Allow each team member to voice his or her feelings. This is important not only for more established team, but also for those who have a new member joining the team or company. A weekly video session can really make a difference. These can be distinct, separate events, or perhaps it can be time devoted during recurring staff meetings. Your team can decide what schedule works best.

3. Champion inclusion and flexibility.

Our current circumstances will most likely impact you and your team(s) differently. Some may have children, elders, or other family and friends who need different levels of attention and support during this time. Asking everyone to be candid about their unique situations can promote empathy among the team.

If possible, provide opportunities for your team to flex their work time as needed, so they can balance their work and life commitments. Depending upon the team’s work, role, and need for collaboration, encourage your team to leverage their diversity to help solve for any concerns. Remember and reinforce that the diversity on your team is an advantage, and share helpful resources when you find them. A few examples for working parents:

How to Work from Home with Kids Around

4. Recognize, recognize, recognize.

Consider how you may need to approach employee recognition differently. Some research suggests that remote workers feel they receive less recognition than non-remote workers. When we interact with our teams in person, we tend to share praise and compliments after meetings and when we pass each other in the halls. Remote workers have fewer chances to receive this kind of informal feedback. Find the opportunities, whether directly or on a team video chat, to recognize a job well done. This can go a long way toward building a sense of belonging, for both an individual and the team.

5. Make sure everyone on your team receives critical information.

Each day, pause to consider who on your team may not have the latest information they may need to do their work. Vanguard is a highly relational organization, and normally, a considerable amount of information exchange happens in person, before or after meetings. What normally occurs in a sidebar conversation in the hallway or at someone’s workstation will now likely occur on the telephone or via video conference. If your company is similar, invite everyone impacted to join by phone or chat so that everyone is given the same opportunity to learn and participate. If this isn’t possible, ensure there is a method to collect information that needs to be shared with everyone afterward.

6. Exercise emotional intelligence.

Consider the Emotional Intelligence (EQ) at play for you and members of your team. Mature emotional intelligence skills will put you and your team(s) at an advantage during this time, as well as when things return to normal. The strongest leaders understand how to help others manage their emotions, and how to use their own emotional awareness to navigate, build, and maintain positive relationships.

If EQ is a new concept to you, or you simply need to refresh your understanding and familiarity with it, spending a few minutes reading an overview of EQ will be helpful in integrating the DIB principles.

One example of EQ is how you acknowledge and control your own emotional response(s). You have the ability to control strong emotions by not acting on raw feelings or impulse. Instead, consider sitting with uncomfortable feelings and giving yourself time to decide how to alleviate or reduce them. This discipline develops self-confidence, and also allows time to reflect on potential solutions to a situation or problem.

Suppressing an immediate reaction based upon an initial, emotionally charged state helps lead to better decision-making outcomes. As everyone adjusts to our new work environment, you or your team may have periods of unexpected fear, anxiety, uncertainty, or frustration. Understanding how to control emotional responses will be important.

Another example of EQ is your ability to empathize with the individuals on your team, which will go a long way to developing deeper relationships with them. Empathy is the ability to recognize how and why people feel the way they do, and it allows us to anticipate how our actions and behaviors influence others. Empathy skills enhance our relationships, both with each other and ourselves. Ultimately, self-confidence increases, and a sense of belonging grows.

Most importantly, make sure you are hearing from all of the individuals on your team. Sometimes when working virtually, it can be easy for some employees to “hide” and not speak up, and you may have to do more in the way of initiating communication from them. Leverage tools, like going around the virtual room, to ensure you hear from everyone. Call someone’s name if they haven’t spoken up, and if this isn’t appropriate given your team dynamic(s), make sure you follow-up individually with anyone who exhibits this behavior or behavioral preference. If someone is quiet, we caution you not to assume that they are okay and feel connected to the team.

Thank you for devoting time and hard work to bring the Diversity, Inclusion, and Belonging principles to life! We wish you all the best in your journey.

—Rosaleena M. and Chris H.

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Vanguard celebrates MLK and Black History Month through service

In the U.S., crew members celebrate Martin Luther King, Jr.’s life, legacy, and commitment to volunteerism by participating in community projects and activities throughout the winter. As Black History Month comes to an end, we have asked crew in Pennsylvania, North Carolina, and Arizona to reflect and share their personal experiences attending Martin Luther King, Jr. Days of Service events. Here’s what they had to say:

For as long as I can remember, receiving quality education has been a priority in my household. I spent countless hours at my parents’ dining room table working on homework. Even now, my mom regularly tries to convince my 4-year-old son to work on spelling games at the same table. I feel very fortunate to have gotten the opportunity to work with the West Philadelphia Action for Early Learning (AFEL) to help instill this imperative into the children of that community. The organization has two main goals: kindergarten readiness and reading on grade level by the third grade. My colleagues and I were able to support these goals by preparing resource bags for use in classrooms and reading to some of the children from local schools. Beyond the crew that were able to attend, crew from across Vanguard donated over 250 books to help children build their home libraries.

The specific group that supported AFEL is the Vanguard Black Professional Network (VBPN), which is committed to increasing engagement of black crew members and supporting the increased representation of black crew in leadership positions. Having the opportunity to serve with aligned crew in a community that may produce the future of Vanguard leadership was truly a humbling experience.

— Josh C.

VBPN sponsored two MLK Days of Service events in North Carolina at Second Harvest Food Bank of Metrolina and Classroom Central. Second Harvest is responsible for supplying food throughout a 19-county region of North and South Carolina through a network of over 700 emergency pantries, soup kitchens, homeless shelters and programs for low-income children and seniors. Crew members took time out of their Saturday to help inspect and sort donated food items for distribution to those partner agencies. Classroom Central equips students in need by collecting and distributing free school supplies to their teachers. Eleven Vanguard crew members assisted the organization by die cutting shapes and organizing the overflow of school supplies in the warehouse.

— Ebony B. and Sabrina B.

As a North Caroline VBPN site lead, giving back is extremely important to me. It’s such a rewarding and humbling experience. I’ve been with Vanguard for 21 years and our commitment to our community has never wavered. It is an amazing differentiator, and providing Days of Service so crew can work together to help others is so empowering. As we celebrate Dr. Martin Luther King, Jr. and Black History Month, this resonates with me even more. His commitment to service and helping others was powerful and a major driver in the movement. To be able to not only serve, but honor him and his sacrifice, is humbling. To me, this is what our purpose is about; loving and helping others, and extending your hand to pull others up. That is what service is really about.

— Kenya H.

I am a helper by nature and have enjoyed volunteering for many organizations and causes since childhood. I recently had the opportunity to coordinate an MLK Days of Service volunteer event on behalf of VBPN at Feed My Starving Children (FMSC). FMSC is a non-profit organization that assists in providing rice, soy, dried vegetables, and vitamins and minerals to needy children locally and internationally. Through donations and the efforts of volunteers, FMSC is able to ensure the food is packaged and expedited to hungry kids. On the day of our volunteer event, I was immediately impressed with the FMSC staff. We were warmly greeted and provided with instructions to prepare us for the day.

I appreciated that the FMSC staff emphasized a hygienic environment to ensure the children were not exposed to germs, and we watched a video that included detailed instructions for each food prep station. The staff kept the event light by teaching us fun chants to say when each prep station was able to completely fill a box with food packages. The staff shared with the volunteers that it costs $88.00 to feed one needy child, ALL year! As a parent of two teenagers, that resonated with me. On average, it costs my family more than $88.00 per week in meals. During our volunteer session, we were able to fill 192 boxes with food packages, which will feed 113 children in Thailand and provide 41,472 meals!

When I volunteer, I feel that I benefit from the experience in so many ways. I get to share in the experience with fellow crew and members in our community that also volunteer their time. Volunteering helps me appreciate how fortunate we are and reminds me that by simply providing our time, we are making an impact. A thank you note I once received after donating my time included an impactful quote that sums up my volunteer journey:

“Help one another. There’s no time like the present
and no present like your time.” —James Durst

— Veronica A.

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Vanguard shines as a top employer

In recent months, Vanguard has been recognized across multiple communities as an employer of choice. In this blog, the Diversity and Inclusion team is excited to highlight accolades that Vanguard is proud to have received.

College students praise Vanguard’s summer internship program

Vanguard is ranked No. 4 for 2020 Best Financial Services Internships among 40 companies in the industry, and Vanguard is ranked No. 40 for Best Overall Internship among 135 participating companies representing all industries. This contest is sponsored annually by Vault.com, and results are based solely upon feedback from the undergraduate students that participated in our 2019 summer internship program.

The scoring and final ranking is based upon several aspects of the summer internship program:

Career development.
Full-time employment prospects.
Compensation & benefits.
Diversity.
The interview process.
Overall quality of life.

Maintaining a perfect score on the Human Rights Campaign’s 2020 Corporate Equality Index Survey

This is the fifth consecutive year that Vanguard has been recognized in the 2020 Corporate Equality Index report. Published annually, the survey evaluates a company’s corporate policies, practices, and benefits with respect to LGBTQ+ employees. It’s the global standard for benchmarking corporate policies and practices for awareness and inclusion in the workplace.

The 2020 survey is divided into three key criteria areas of focus:

Nondiscrimination and inclusion policies across business entities.
Equitable benefits for LGBTQ+ workers and their families.
Support of an inclusive culture and corporate social responsibility.

Chief Diversity Officer Crystal Hardie Langston shared, “At Vanguard, we believe our culture of inclusion is essential for each of us to fully thrive in our careers and provide superior value to our clients and communities. It’s a business imperative for Vanguard’s success in the future, and that’s why we are committed to providing a trusting, supportive environment in which all crew members worldwide feel a sense of belonging.”

Continuing to climb in IT

Vanguard rose to number three among large organizations (5,000 or more U.S. employees) in Computerworld’s 2019 survey of the Best Places to Work in IT, up from number nine last year and number ten in 2017.

The rankings are based on both employer and employee surveys. About half of the scoring was based on crew member responses, and the other half was based on a survey of several HR areas: career development, retention, benefits, diversity, and training.

“This is an incredible endorsement for our organization, for Vanguard, and for our clients,” said John Marcante, managing director for IT. “This recognition is a reflection of all the crew at Vanguard who work daily to make this place a special community.”

Vanguard embraces veterans

Vanguard was also recognized as a Top Veteran-Friendly Company in 2019 by U.S. Veterans Magazine (USVM). The magazine’s annual list evaluates a company’s policies, practices, and career recruitment efforts with respect to veterans. Its mission includes finding employment and other opportunities for transitioning service members, disabled veterans, spouses of veterans, and veteran business owners.

USVM selected about 200 names after polling hundreds of companies, including many on the Fortune 1000.

This year’s evaluation recognized excellence in three focus areas:

Sponsorship of veteran career events.
Career opportunities.
Success in seeking, hiring, and/or retaining veteran candidates.

“Together we work to establish a strong crew network of service-minded military veterans and friends,” said Sean Gardner, senior manager in Global Risk & Security and a member of the VetsConnect leadership team. “Our objective is to enrich the sense of community for crew with past military service and all others interested by providing engaging ways to connect, assisting new veteran crew to Vanguard, and reflecting the esprit de corps of our military heritage.”

Most admired in Arizona

Vanguard was among 50 chosen as one of Arizona’s 2019 Most Admired Companies by AZ Business Magazine and BestCompaniesAZ for the fifth straight year.

The selection was based on Scottsdale crew’s demonstrated distinction and excellence in multiple fields: client experience, innovation, leadership, social responsibility, and workplace culture.

“This is a significant accomplishment for Vanguard,” said Deborah Akinsipe, HR site lead for Arizona. “We could not have achieved this milestone without the commitment of our crew. Their dedication to client service and unwavering support to our local community are just some of the reasons we received this award.”

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(Left to right) John Ameriks, Jean Lu, and Tim Buckley discuss Future of Work

The Future of Work

January 15, 2020/in Advice from crew, Diversity & inclusion, Our mission all buckley, co-executive of leap, diversity, expertise, future, future of work, group, ideas, inclusion, institutional investor, institutional investor group, investor group, jean, jean lu, leap, lu, tasks, tim, tim buckley, vanguard /by ldoyle

Leadership and Engagement for Asian Professionals banner art

The Future of Work

There are many anticipated advances that will change the way that we do business. Speculation and ideas about what will shape the future of investing can bring fear or excitement to the industry. Vanguard’s Crew Resource Group, Leadership and Engagement for Asian Professionals (LEAP), held a Q&A session with Vanguard’s CEO, Tim Buckley, and a Principal of the Institutional Investor Group, Jean Lu, on how cultural and technological differences make an impact on ongoing and future ways of working, both at Vanguard and within the industry.

(Left to right) John Ameriks, Jean Lu, and Tim Buckley discuss Future of Work

In the opening remarks, Jean Lu reminded everyone that approaching cultural differences can be an opportunity to challenge the status quo. Although difficult, addressing the uncomfortable aspect can provide a new perspective to everyday operations.

As one of the department heads of the Institutional Investor Group and a co-executive of LEAP, Jean discussed her experiences receiving difficult questions about diversity and shared that when we speak up, we become advocates for diversity and bring value and new ideas to light. She referenced a quote from Verna Myers, Vice President of Inclusion Strategy at Netflix, who noted, “Diversity is being invited to the party; inclusion is being asked to dance,” to highlight the importance of what we can do to increase diversity, inclusion, and intersectionality in the workplace. Jean later added, “Diversity matters because embracing different cultures give us a competitive edge. It’s my fiduciary duty to share my perspective, even if it’s uncomfortable.”

Tim Buckley also made it clear that diversity plays an integral part in the future of Vanguard. Tim elaborated, “If we listen to each other, we can learn from each other and build on ideas.” As an example of this type of collaboration, he described how Vanguard’s economics team brings together regional expertise from Europe, Australia, Hong Kong, and the U.S. to ensure our research and analysis presents a global picture of the trends investors need to know about.

One trend our economists have an eye on is how technology will impact the future of work. With the rise of automation and artificial intelligence, Tim reminded the room of the distinction between tasks and jobs. Many rote, repetitive tasks can be automated, which means that jobs will rely more on human creativity and problem solving. At Vanguard, we’ll need both technical expertise and what our researchers call “uniquely human tasks” to serve clients well. Jean added that the “. . . need for tech acumen and expertise will only increase. Our ability to go deep is important.”

LEAP holds events throughout the year to participate in meaningful and impactful conversations. John Marcante, co-executive of LEAP, shared that LEAP impacts the workplace by “providing a network of support, development, and empowerment,” and urges that we “Get involved. Dig deep. Ask hard questions. It takes courage. That’s what leaders are made of. It’s about talking about intersectionality.”

—Bridget K.

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Vanguard invests in you

In this blog, we sit down with Kelly M. and Elisha V., two crew members who serve different areas of the Vanguard business and received a professional development opportunity through one of our employee resource groups. Kelly is a Senior Research Associate in our Fixed Income Group, where she analyzes municipal bonds and works with the trading and portfolio management teams. Elisha is an IT Delivery Manager within our 401(k) Institutional Systems division, where she leads IT teams across our Pennsylvania and North Carolina offices. This is their story:

When thinking about where you want to launch or continue your career, you can be assured that at Vanguard, an emphasis is placed on professional development. Combined, we have been at Vanguard for nearly twenty years. During our tenure, we have both received support in various ways to help further advance our skill set. There is one development opportunity that we pursued, however, that stands out from all the rest. Through the Women’s Initiative for Leadership Success (WILS), one of our five Crew Resource Groups, we applied and were selected to participate in an advanced leadership development program for women. In addition to collaborating with female talent from across the enterprise and having a dedicated leadership coach consultant, the program presented us with several frameworks and tools that prepared us to handle a number of scenarios that we could potentially face throughout our careers. Examples include shaping the way we make decisions, preparing and executing courageous conversations with crew, reframing the dialogue of our inner critic, and recognizing unconscious biases.

The experience couldn’t have come at a better time in our professions. Elisha had just started a new managerial position and Kelly, who had always been an individual contributor, aspired to obtain a formal leadership role. Although we support different business areas in unique fields, we are both women within male-dominated industries. We were both successful within our careers at this point and were excited to learn ways in which we could enhance our skills and achieve professional goals going forward. We also quickly realized during the program that what got us here would not get us there, with there being where we envisioned our careers going and how we saw ourselves reaching our full potential. This specific program changed our perspectives on what that means and gave us the resources to clearly define who we are and what we stand for.

Identifying the direction we wanted to steer our careers, in addition to using learnings centered on how to plan and execute courageous conversations, continue to stand out as key takeaways from the program. We had the chance to practice these exchanges, and the more we practiced, the more we realized how impactful it was when developing others. Moreover, taking on courageous conversations is so imperative to improving a challenging situation, and we are now better equipped to handle them. Lastly, we received helpful reminders that something as simple as making the invisible, visible, can be a powerful mind shift that will lead you to a more successful outcome.

The advanced leadership development program for women has provided us with more than either of us expected. We are more prepared and confident in navigating our careers for having taken part in this initiative. Again, this is just one example of the many development opportunities offered at Vanguard.

More about the authors:

Kelly joined Vanguard directly out of college in 2007 and has been working in the Investment Management Group for the past three years. Kelly graduated from Northern Arizona University with a Bachelor of Science in Business Administration.

Elisha has been at Vanguard since 2012. She launched her career as a developer and shortly after moved into a technical lead role. Following these experiences, she transitioned to a project management position that gave her the opportunity to be a technical relationship manager for a large 401(k) client and now as a delivery manager, supporting cross-divisional capabilities and relationships for Vanguard Advice for Institutional. Prior to joining Vanguard, Elisha worked at various startups and financial companies also within the engineering and technology capacity for four years.

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Making a difference across multiple regions

Vanguard believes that being a global leader also means being a local leader. Through volunteer Investment Committees, The Vanguard Group Foundation is making grants in the regions around the world that we call home. The Vanguard Gives Back Hometown Grants Program is charged with funding pressing, local human services needs and working with nonprofit partners that contribute to the vibrancy of the community. The program is fueled by crew volunteers who commit two years of service dedicated to learning about the nonprofit sector, philanthropy, and the local community landscape.

In this blog, we asked three Vanguard leaders to write about their experiences in serving as site leads for the Hometown Grants Program. The combined efforts of these leaders and their teams have placed $2.3 million into local organizations over their two-year commitment. Here is what Amanda M. from Arizona, Ed F. from North Carolina, and Steve H. from Pennsylvania, had to say:

Vanguard has long had a culture around community that you are no stranger to, what drew you into this particular opportunity with Hometown Grants?

Ed: Hometown Grants enabled me to take my passion for impacting our local community to a much deeper, grass-roots level. Having previously been involved in Vanguard Gives Back initiatives in Charlotte, including leading our workplace giving campaign and our volunteer efforts, Hometown Grants provided an opportunity to start-up a hyper-local focused program from scratch, which is pretty cool. While we were provided with some loose guardrails and guidelines, we were also given a significant amount of autonomy to figure out the best strategy that would have meaningful impact in the Charlotte community.

Steve: In 2012, I had the honor of serving as the lead for the crew fall charitable giving campaign. Not only did that experience tap into my longstanding passion for service, it opened my eyes to the incredible impact Vanguard can have in the community. I was very excited about the Hometown Grants program because it was yet another way to harness the energy and passion of Vanguard crew to make a meaningful difference in our communities, but I was also intrigued by the entrepreneurial nature of this new venture.

What skills have you developed through your participation in this initiative and how have you applied these skills both inside and outside of the office?

Amanda: Debating which organization to fund can be a sensitive and emotional topic. My peers and I all have preferences on which charitable cause is the most important and those often differ from the priorities of others. Plus, when you find so many organizations doing great work, it can be hard to reduce the list to a manageable few. Learning how to listen with empathy and understanding was critical to ensure each team member was heard and team health remained strong. Outside of work, it has given me a platform to talk to my kids about philanthropy. Now, when we debrief our day at the dinner table, I am talking to them about organizations I went to visit or work that is being done in the community. It’s been rewarding to talk to them about the importance of giving back and about some of the neat initiatives that are happening in our neighborhood.

Ed: Most importantly, I gained a deeper understanding of the Charlotte community and the critical issues our city is facing. Upward mobility remains a challenge even as Charlotte continues to have one of the highest rates of highly educated new residents moving to our city. I have met and learned from some very influential non-profit partners who provide critical services in our community often with few resources or limited budgets. I am looking forward to continuing my work post-Hometown Grants, whether it be through volunteerism or board involvement. Hometown Grants also enabled me to hone my leadership and finance skills as we have conducted research, reviewed non-profit financials and tax-filings, and conducted on-site visits to select the non-profit agencies we partner with.

What has been the biggest takeaway in serving as a site lead for the program?

Amanda: There is always a need for more work to be done in the community than there are hours in the day to support or dollars to fund. It is not hard to find an important cause that will improve our community. The hard part is prioritizing which organizations to focus on. It took a lot of time to research, really get to know these teams and the impact they are trying to make. Then ultimately determining where we could have the biggest impact. And there is no “right” answer. It is only part science, the rest is art.

Steve: In the past two years, the work of the Hometown Grants team exposed us to countless organizations that are making an incredible difference in communities. There are so many worthy, effective, innovative charitable organizations out there doing great work, we could have funded many more groups than we were able to. But I believe our team did a tremendous job of honing in on the key organizations that both had amazing impact and could best benefit from the dollars we had. The most rewarding parts of the job were when we heard the profound gratitude from these groups for our contributions, and the excitement they expressed about how they were going to put the money to work. You feel the very tangible benefit of all the hard work the committee put in.

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