Philanthropy—Entrepreneurs that give back . . .

Members of the Millennial Generation suffer a bad rap. This cohort, broadly ranged as those born in the late Seventies to the early Oughts, have had hurled at them an array of unflattering characterizations.

Millennials mature too slowly. These so-called Peter Pans are hitting previous generations’ rites of passage later in life. Flying (and remaining away from) parents’ coops: delayed. Marriage: delayed. Career: delayed.

Millennials are entitled. The Trophy Kid tag isn’t a nod to their winningest ways but rather an attack on the expectation that they be awarded simply for showing up.

Millennials extend the aimlessness of Generation X. The Millennial moniker, Generation Y, is the lazy label gluing Millennials to the cohort before them and the pejorative appraisal of that generation’s hazy identity. The Millennials, then, are implicated as directionless meanders, too, but not even original ones.

Cross-generational smack talk is nothing new. As amalgams of adopted, improved, and contrary traits from generations prior, successive generations can appear as ersatz and effigy to outsiders. But, just like generations before them, Millennials subconsciously strive to be upgraded revivals of their parents’ generations. The spawn of Baby Boomers and Generation Xers, Millennials are living, breathing reenactments of what was right and do-overs for what they deemed wrong with their parents. But, what non-Millennials tend to see is how they are different and, hence, wrong. Not how they are different but, perhaps, improved.

So what if Millennials eschew their parents’ paths opting, instead, to take their time in major decisions like settling on a mate or profession. And isn’t entitlement just the misunderstood cousin of self-confidence? Who cares if they want kudos for simply showing up? Woody Allen claimed showing up to be 80% of life! At least this generation is marking themselves present: spurring the first spike in voting, volunteerism, and civic and social activism in recent decades. Even during the Millennials’ gestation as an identifiable collective, generation theorists, William Strauss and Neil Howe, predicted the Millennials’ potential, dubbing them the “next Great Generation.”

Strauss and Howe foretold of what was to come of both Millennials and the era in which they would live. Millennials, like the Greatest Generation, those who fought in World War II and came of age during the Great Depression, were destined to become archetypal “heroes.” According to the predictive patterns of historical cycles, Millennials would come of age during a “crisis” which, specifically, would begin forming around 2005 and usher in an enormous upheaval of the economic, political, and social orders Americans had come to trust. The Millennials, they said, would suffer through the crisis and eventually welcome in a national “high,” a period of time in which the new and improved world order would premier, perhaps through what would become the Millennials’ tendencies to “set high standards, get organized, team up, and do civic deeds.”

Millennials, therefore, are destined to pick up after the mess made before them by enacting the exact opposite of the negative traits which caused the mess: no “over-the-top free agency, social splintering, cultural exhaustion, and civic decay.” Strauss and Howe’s prophesy of a crisis could easily reference the current financial bust beginning in 2007. And the upcoming improved world order? Just maybe we can see its buds now as some Millennials begin to refocus on improving society by marrying the tradition of entrepreneurialism with activism.

TOMS shoe company is one such example. Founded in 2006 by former The Amazing Race contender Blake Mycoskie, TOMS tag-line “one for one” is a reference to the company’s commitment to provide a child in need a pair of shoes for every pair sold. As well, TOMS conducts educational outreach events, organizes college clubs to promote social activism, and sponsors events like “One Day Without Shoes,” a national movement urging people to forego shoes to see how the shoeless souls of the world subsist.

Kiva.org, founded by Jessica Jackley and Matt Flannery, is another example of a trend toward combining business and a social consciousness. By pooling a collective of lenders into an online database, small businesses and students, many in developing countries, are provided access to fair, financial opportunities. To date, well over $100 million in loans have been given with a growing number of success stories.

GOOD, started by Ben Goldhirsh, takes on the typical media platform, and twists it with a touch of altruism. The website, magazine, video portal, and special event conglomerate is entirely dedicated to promoting social causes. The tag-line “for people who give a damn” gives a flavor for how this organization hopes to affect change while building their burgeoning business.

Denver, Colorado’s SAME Cafe, created by Libby and Brad Birky and modeled after the One World Cafe in Salt Lake City, Utah, is doing its part for the world by providing organic, delicious meals in a pay-what-you-can format. SAME, So All May Eat, allows the diner to pay what they can afford, more if they want to contribute for other diners’ meals, or pay for their meal through an hour’s work.

GreenPrint, founded by Hayden Hamilton, is a software company which donates to the greater good of environmental awareness. GreenPrint software sorts through items to be printed, eliminating superfluous text and pictures to save ink and paper. Not only does GreenPrint save the earth, but it also saves companies cash they would otherwise be throwing out the window on resources, an estimated average of $100 per employee saved each year by its users.

Taking the best from their Generation X and Baby Boomer parents and throwing in some new ideals, Millennials are poised to be our heroes in the proposed upcoming new order. Making it through to this side of those Greedy Eighties but still wilting in the manure of its excess, most would be be content with a little more social consciousness and goodness. But only time will tell if coupling it with business really is good business.
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Neither human nor goodness necessarily comes to mind when referencing Hollywood, but, immediately, celebrities swooped in to help. Within two weeks, a star-studded fundraising telethon had been concocted and brought to full fruition, raising over $50 million in Haiti aid. Shakira and Sting were crooning. George Clooney and Brad Pitt prompted swooning. Julia Roberts and Reese Witherspoon were on the phones, collecting donations. To maximize fundraising efforts, a commemorative album full of telethon tracks was swiftly put together.

The Hollywood elite were sure speedy, but they weren’t the first show of American heart. The U.S. Government can still prove itself a great bastion of hope and help. Within a week, we had sent 100,000 of our troops into the state of disarray to provide a government presence in a nation void of one, security amidst calamity, and distributors of aid to the Haitians’ basic, but very threatened, needs of thirst, hunger, and health. As one Haiti resident, Énide Edoword, declared,“It is not ideal to have a foreign army here, but look at the situation.” Haiti’s already iffy government had vanished completely in the midst of the disaster and without the U.S. presence, there would have been no collective leadership at all.

But, as always, it is not the titanic enterprises that create the greatest impact. The cumulative little guy effort has been chipping away at the chaos, too. Somewhere between Uncle Sam and unctuous celebrities lie the collective kindness of humanity. The everyday, average Americans who have the skills and heart to lend a hand. In a little over two weeks, private U.S. donors had already contributed $560 million to the cause. Considering the current precarious economy, such an outpour of private monetary aid is heartwarming.

Yet, monetary and military aid aside, in a disaster of this magnitude, what Haiti needs now and in the long run is good old-fashioned, roll-up-your-sleeves people power. But for the average American who is a little tied up with the whole working for a living thing which already interferes with her tending to the own messes in her own life, how can she provide that help? And how well is Corporate America getting along with the Caring America that wants to help?

According to Cone, a cause marketing and strategy organization, being a good business is, well, good business. Employees want to work for companies with a cause. That is, companies which are known contributors to social causes. Companies which inspire employees to be better people. Companies which provide employees with ready opportunities to enact their desire to do good. According to a 2008 study conducted by Cone, 76% of employees feel it is important that their employers provide paid time off to volunteer. Lucky for Haiti, businesses big and small are doing just that and more to provide much needed assistance.

Many U.S. corporations have outstanding outreach programs established, but, in light of the Haiti disaster, additional assistance efforts were implemented. Verizon, with one of the largest employee volunteer programs in the nation, has brought in more than 5 million hours of community service since 2000. But in establishing the Haiti Relief Connection Center in Miami to assist Haitian-Americans in reaching family members and friends in Haiti, the organization found a way to immediately utilize its resources and people power to help. Microsoft, another known leader in social aid, regularly matches employee monetary philanthropic contributions. But, in addition, the organization donates $17 for every employee volunteer hour and has a firm history of philanthropic aid. In fact, within 32 hours, Microsoft’s Global Strategic Accounts team, along with Iceland’s Urban Search and Rescue Team, was the first show of international rescue. UPS, as well, encourages employee volunteerism during natural disasters. The company has a ready humanitarian relief team whose members are trained in “skill-based volunteering” while still earning their regular pay.

While these and other organizations have established an outstanding culture of encouragement in employee volunteerism, more is and should be expected to come. Organizations with paid time-off for international aid. Benefit packages that include weeks off for volunteer excursions. Scholarships for employees with the skills to help in natural disasters, and training programs for those who aim to learn those skills. Again: it is good business to be a good business and, if kindness and charity is not enough incentive, business leaders should remember those words.

Kudos to those organizations that have employee encouragement policies in place already. And further kudos to those companies who follow that lead and, affected by the heart-wrenching chaos of the Haiti disaster, incorporate new or improved employee volunteer encouragement policies. Workplace organizations have not only the financial ability but the people power to provide consistent local and worldwide help. Not just in times of immediate and obvious tragedy is volunteerism a boon to all. Humankind can always use a helping hand and helping hands, in the form of individuals and corporations alike, are what make humankind kind.