As a Road Warrior based in Orlando, USA, I often travel Monday through Thursday – returning home only for the weekend. But even with my mobile lifestyle, I’ve had countless opportunities through IBM to contribute my time and expertise to my community. Since joining IBM two years ago, I’ve engaged in several projects that have provided outlets for
my desire to serve.
The author with her protégé Tamara, a fourth-grader in Orlando.
I had the pleasure of joining IBM during the year of our centennial year, and participated in our Centennial Celebration of Service. On that day, more than 300,000 IBM volunteers in 122 countries organized more than 5,000 projects through which we contributed more than 3.2 million hours of service. And after that day, IBMers continued to give – donating nearly
1 million additional hours of service around the world.
Here in Orlando, I participated in an event with the Boys & Girls Clubs of Central Florida.
I live in downtown Orlando, and had seen first hand how one street transitions from luxury condominiums to homeless shelters in a stretch of less than two miles. I knew that my city could use my help.
It can be difficult sometimes for traveling consultants to establish a sense of community with our co-workers because we are away for most of the week. But through the IBM Centennial Celebration of Service, I was able to join my colleagues to volunteer in an elementary school mentoring program (through which I met my awesome fourth-grade protégé Tamara!), donate my time to the Give Kids the World Village for terminally ill children, and lead IBM Orlando’s Employee Charitable Contribution Campaign (ECCC) –
for which we achieved 99 percent participation.
Our team also participated in our first Downtown Orlando IOA Corporate 5K run, the funds from which benefit local sports programs for children. Even though many of my consultant colleagues and I spend almost all of our time traveling and working remotely, we’ve still been able to contribute our time and skills through IBM’s citizenship programs.
The author (center) with IBM’s After-Hours Gaming League team.
Another great example is the chance I had to help jump start the first-ever IBM eSports Group! eSports stands for electronic sports, and group members get together virtually for video game competitions. Our eSports team participated in the After Hours Gaming League along with teams from many of our technology industry competitors. The eSports community allows mobile and remote employees around the world to get together after work and on the weekends to foster a sense of community, network with colleagues and with employees at other companies, and play for the goal of benefitting a non-profit that receives a donation if their team wins. It’s a terrific – and fun – way to help others.
I am proud to be part of a company that supports so many unique opportunities for service!
Kathy Pham is a Business Analytics and Optimization Senior Consultant with
IBM Global Business Services.
Related Resources:
Corporate Responsibility Must Be Integral to Corporate Culture
Applying Technology and Expertise to Global Societal Problems
Skills-Based Volunteering Builds Personal and Professional Relationships