Corporate Culture of Giving Back with Kevin Wilson of Dominion Payroll

Show Notes:

Today Christine chats with Kevin Wilson, Director of Community Engagement at Dominion Payroll, about the impact a company can have just by including a specialized position focused solely on giving back. Founder and CEO of Dominion Payroll, David Gallagher, always included community involvement in his entrepreneurial vision, but Kevin explains how his role provided the lens to focus that work and make it part of the company’s corporate culture. 

Kevin discusses the strategies he has used to encourage employees to make an impact in their communities without impacting their paychecks. He also shares the challenges he has faced in his charitable work during the pandemic, his optimism moving forward, and the professional benefits a position like his can bring in terms of long-term client and employee satisfaction. Kevin shares the most touching story of someone he has helped through his role at Dominion Payroll, and tells Christine which charitable causes he’ll be working with next.

For more information, and other episodes on companies and entrepreneurs who give back, please visit www.TheGiveBackModel.com. That’s where you can also let Christine know about companies you’ve found that give back. Thanks for listening!

Episode Highlights:

Kevin’s role at Dominion Payroll and the decision to create a position focused solely on giving back

His strategies for encouraging employees to get involved with their communities as much as possible

Sixteen hours of community Paid Time Off (PTO)

Half-day of volunteer engagement every quarter, as well as a volunteer collection drive

Incorporating community involvement into the corporate culture of Dominion Payroll

Working with the Gallagher Foundation to reduce the stigma of teenage mental health issues

Consistently supporting other nonprofit organizations through annual races and events

The challenges he has faced during the pandemic – continuing to support charities while keeping employees safe

Professional benefits of giving back in terms of client and employee satisfaction

What’s next for Kevin and Dominion Payroll

Quotes:

 “In that middle market, there are not a lot of companies that invest in this, so I think that it's a unique space that I feel pretty privileged to occupy.”

“As we were growing, there was a real need to sort of fill the space, because it is core to who we are culturally, and we think that that we can make a pretty compelling business case for it.”

“We don't want to do it in a way that comes off as green washing or lip service to this type of work. We really do want to have an impact.”

“One of the first things that I did when I joined the company - I wanted to remove as much friction between employees and being able to give back as possible. So the first thing that I implemented was that all of our full-time employees get sixteen hours of community PTO (Paid Time Off).

“That is really important because I want people to feel comfortable making an impact, but I don't want to impact their paycheck.”

“I think that the real success is that, like I said, we don't define it on an individual event basis. It's like, How can we build this culture, how do we incorporate this into the fabric of who we are and what we're doing?”

“The benefit of sending our dollars, and our visibility, and that consistent support, is so critical.”

“The pandemic was disproportionately affecting lower wage earners, people of color. And there are families that, frankly, they had empty cupboards - and that is an image that is immediately accessible to everybody… So at that time, it was like, that's number one. Let's just make sure that our community is fed and then we can go from there.”

“The biggest challenge over the course of the last year is the fact that I would proactively reach out to some non-profits, and they’d say, Thanks so much. Keep us in mind. Maybe in six months, maybe a year, we can do a volunteer thing, but right now we can't run the risk of having in-person stuff. That's a bitter pill to swallow when you have a really active culture that is used to giving back on a regular basis.”

“As we look ahead, I really feel like the sky’s the limit. There's so much eagerness to get out there and to, as you said, give back.”

 “There is a huge benefit to this sort of work that I think should really be highlighted when you're talking to the more accountant-minded executives and saying, Yeah, you should have a C. S. R. person, you should have a community person, because the benefits are so huge in terms of attracting clients. People want to work with good companies. Clients stick around longer. And the same thing goes for employees. Folks want to work in places where they can bring their whole self, and they feel like their values align with the place that they work.”

“I can feel your excitement. I'm absolutely rooting on everything you're going to be doing - the planting of trees, the running teams, all of the organizations that you've mentioned… Dominion Payroll is so lucky to have you. As you guys grow, and become more successful, and take on more, it just means that you can do that much more for the community and you can give that much more back.” 

Links:

The Give Back Model website www.TheGiveBackModel.com

Follow The Give Back Model on Instagram @thegivebackmodel

Dominion Payroll website www.DominionPayroll.com