Corporate Responsibility
What does Corporate Social Responsibility mean to us?
It means contributing to a community's economic vitality by using locally sourced goods and services, and hiring people who reflect the diversity of the communities in which we operate. It includes contributing millions of pounds to a variety of organisations and efforts each year, while encouraging our employees to involve themselves in the communities that support our business. It also means giving back to the environment, in the best way we can, each and every day.
Enterprise founder Jack Taylor started this company on a simple premise: "Take care of your customers and employees first, and growth and profits will follow." By applying that premise to our business, Enterprise has grown from a seven-car operation to one of the largest car rental companies in the world. Our business approach is studied by CEOs and MBA students alike, and one key fact about Enterprise always comes to light: it's never been JUST about the numbers.
It was by listening to our customers that we built the largest network of locations in the UK & Ireland; we now operate rental branches within 10 miles of 91 percent of the entire population. With that tremendous reach comes a tremendous responsibility: to be thoughtful, accountable corporate citizens.
We're aware of our Corporate Social Responsibility and we genuinely care about the future of everyone else around us. That's why we choose to invest in a wide-range of charities. Since setting up The Enterprise Foundation in 1982, we've raised over £200 million for a number of worthwhile causes. These have included 9/11 victims, the Tsunami relief effort and hurricane Katrina. We've also helped more local charities, such as the BEN Foundation, a benevolent charity for the motor industry and Dress For Success, a London-based charity that provides women from disadvantaged backgrounds with the high-quality business attire and support they need to take their place in the working population, as well Birmingham Children's Hospital and a number of other hospitals around the country.
50 million tree pledge
We believe it's just as important to contribute to the economic growth of the communities that sustain our own existence too. We are dedicated to helping improve the present and future of as many as we can. In our most ambitious project ever to mark our company's 50 Year Anniversary, we've pledged to provide $50 million to the National Arbor Day Foundation for 50 million trees to be planted over the next 50 years. Working with the Enterprise Rent-A-Car Foundation to deliver this programme, we aim to plant one million trees a year in Europe and North America (to find out more about this project, visit http://eracpeople.enterprise.com). As you know, the need for reforestation is great and the positive impact trees have on our world is immense. True, it is not a total solution, but we believe it is an important step in the right direction.
This is a gift fuelled by the passion of nearly 67,000 employees worldwide. We would like people to see it as our way of expressing heartfelt thanks for helping us grow.
The Jack Taylor Founding Values Award
Over the last fifty years, we've based our success on the strong values that
were put in place by our founder Jack Taylor. So we felt it was only right that
we recognised the achievements of any regional group that show an outstanding
commitment to them. That's why we created the Founding Values Award. With a
total sum of $20,000 available per group, the award gives local teams the
chance to advance non profit causes in their local area. Our teams in the West
Midlands, North England and Ireland have all recently benefited, giving them
the chance to work on some great projects in their community.
Read about the Jack Taylor Founding Values Award
To find out what we've been getting up to across the UK and in Ireland, read
on.
Community Involvement
Like all parts of our business, our employees have an active role in the development of our Corporate Social Responsibility. Each regional team gets the opportunity to devise and implement fundraising initiatives for a variety of external organisations. For many, it's the perfect chance to help local charities that are close to their hearts. Here are a few examples of some of the things our employees have achieved.
West Midlands
Last year, our Midlands based team chose to take part in the Action Days - Cares
at Christmas scheme. They worked in partnership with a range of charities to
give Christmas presents to people who would not normally receive them.
The West Midlands decided to focus on a local charity called Redditch Nightstop that helps house underprivileged 16-24 year olds. Employees came up with a range of ingenious ways to raise money, including a 'cash not cards' scheme, where instead of sending Christmas cards to one another, staff donated the money they would have spent on cards to charity. A simple but incredibly effective idea.
The project raised an amazing £680 and was used to buy a range of essential, but often expensive household appliances for these young people. It just goes to show what can be achieved in a short space of time, when everyone gets involved.
London/Southeast
Our employees are always keen to do their bit for the environment and helping
people along the way is an added bonus. After a recent branch refurbishment,
one of our London based teams donated the office furniture to Green Works - a
charity that employs disadvantaged people and passes on office furniture to
community groups, start-up businesses and other charities.
Our London team are also experts in increasing our company profile in a fun, unconventional and productive way. We think their recent involvement in a charity dragon boat race demonstrated this perfectly. The event was watched by thousands of spectators and the team raised over £1500 for St Catherine's Hospice. This lot are a busy bunch. They also took part in a raft race, which raised over £3000 for the Guildford Lions, a trust fund that supports local charities.
Northern England
Katie Webb, a Management Trainee at one of our Leeds branches, has managed to
help keep our team on their toes. Using her powers of persuasion, Kate
encouraged her colleagues to participate in the Leeds half marathon and a
five-a-side football tournament. Those involved managed to raise over £900 for
Phys-Cap - a charity that supports physically disabled children in the
Yorkshire area. Members of our Leeds team also took part in this year's Race
for Life. They ran 5K to raise £150 for breast cancer awareness.
We're also keen to introduce initiatives that recognise the importance of cultural diversity. Our Group Training Manager and Branch Managers from the West Yorkshire area attended a 'Service Delivery to the Islam Community' workshop. This one-day programme of interactive theatre contributed to the ongoing development of a culturally responsive working environment and customer care service.
The benefits of our employees' contribution to our CSR initiatives couldn't be clearer. Not only do we get to help the local community, we also attract employees who want to work together to achieve a common goal. They benefit from a work environment where every day is different and their ideas are valued. Why not join our team and see what a difference you could make?
If you'd like to find out more about some of the initiatives we're involved in, please click on the links below:
www.hti.org.uk
www.studentvolunteering.org
www.dressforsuccess.org
www.ben.org.uk
www.sife.org
