Delivering benefit to the community and to the business
Ernst & Young has successfully demonstrated the difference that it is making in the community and to the business. The firm’s impressive community engagement strategy, which clearly aligns to the wider businesses, focuses on the issues of education and entrepreneurship to support the firm’s strategic aim to be the most globalised, integrated professional services organisation in mindset, actions and structure. Ernst & Young harnesses their employees’ energy, skills and experience to achieve this. Over the course of the three years Ernst & Young has held the CommunityMark, the company has delivered significant benefit to communities around these themes, whilst supporting the business is this aim. For example:
- The firm has delivered an additional 1,800 volunteers since 2007 through its commitment to engaging 25% of employees and increase the number of hours volunteer to over 30,000. Generating this additional resource has enabled Ernst & Young to develop additional partnerships with other organisations such as the Bright Ideas Trust and the Private Equity Foundation (PEF). At the same time, 75% of employees who volunteered felt that the experience had a positive impact on their relationship, communication and influencing or teaming skills and 84% said that their experience had a positive or significant positive impact on their pride in Ernst & Young.
- Ernst & Young has developed its internal management systems to improve monitoring and reporting on progress with community engagement activities. Stronger measurement and reporting of community engagement activities has strengthened the firm’s business case for community engagement, enabling the firm to expand the size of the community engagement team and therefore increase the support provided to community organisations.
Working in partnership
Ernst & Young has developed long-term and sustainable partnerships with community organisations, supported by employees engaged in the firm’s community engagement programmes. Ernst & Young can demonstrate their partners expertise in dealing with the social issue the firm is seeking to impact on, and how the relationship is supportive to both the community organisation and the business. For example, Ernst & Young has developed a relationship with PEF. PEF’s mission is to reduce the number of people not in education, employment or training (NEET) by employing a unique model based on the private equity value chain. PEF’s board is overseen by leading private equity individuals. PEF identifies charities that are in need of support and engages with them on their strategy, management and infrastructure, enabling the charity to leverage efficiencies and work more effectively. After only four years, PEF has changed 40,000 young people’s lives and raised over £13 million of social causes. Ernst & Young has provided support to PEF in the form of pro bono work. The firm is committed to providing £100,000 worth of pro bono work each year. In 2010-11, the company provided over £1 million worth of pro bono by helping charities to improve efficiencies and demonstrate the monetary value of their work.
For more information on Ernst & Young LLP’s approach to community engagement, please visit http://www.ey.com/uk/corporateresponsibility
