Volunteering

Goldman Sachs

At Goldman Sachs, staff are encouraged and supported to articipate in community events and volunteering initiatives. The firm has an established global Community TeamWorks (CTW) programme that is the cornerstone of its community outreach. Founded in 1997, this global volunteering initiative gives employees a paid day off from
work to participate in team-based projects, partnering with non-profit organisations.

As the firm explains, “Each year, CTW seeks to offer innovative volunteering opportunities around the world that make a tangible difference in the community and that foster inter- and intra-divisional camaraderie within the firm.” In 2011, key LGB-focused projects in London that were supported include:

- a day spent with the service users of Age UK’s older LGBT project, taking around 30 individuals to Kew on an all-day excursion.

- a morning spent in a CV workshop with young people from The Albert Kennedy Trust to help them develop their CVs. This was followed by an afternoon excursion to London Zoo.

- a day spent transforming the courtyard garden at Terrence Higgins Trust’s Lighthouse site, doing a variety of chores such as pruning, planting, tidying, weeding, bench cleaning and painting to maintain the garden for service users.

These examples of good practice not only demonstrate the organisation’s commitment to tackling sexual orientation equality within the firm, but also across LGB communities in need – while reinforcing the company’s brand values.