Empowering volunteerism

Leveraging our strengths and pooling our efforts can make even a minor act have a massive impact. At DHL Group, we empower our employees to utilize their skills and build long-term collaborations with charitable organizations in their communities.

Imagine a single seed planted in rich soil, seemingly small and insignificant. With time and care, it grows into a tree that provides shade, oxygen, and life. At DHL Group, empowering volunteerism is about planting the seeds of positive change. And by utilizing the skills and passions of our people, we ensure the ground is fertile for meaningful impact.

When we put our skills to good use in our local communities, we not only help to solve problems but also cultivate a spirit of teamwork and belonging. These forces, once unleashed, have the power to grow into something far greater and ignite a collective sense of compassion and community that carries over into the workplace.

Even seemingly minor acts can have a massive impact when we work together to leverage our strengths. With some 600,000 people worldwide, we have a diverse team with a wide range of skills. We can make the greatest impact by bringing them together and channeling their efforts.

Volunteering has a host of benefits. While volunteers give back to society by providing much-needed time and skills, they also broaden their own perspectives and form new bonds. Their experience transcends the task, bringing a renewed sense of purpose and unity back into the workplace.

By empowering our people to volunteer, we recognize and support their commitments while enabling and inspiring new activities.

As a global company with deep roots in our communities, we are uniquely positioned to facilitate volunteer activities on the ground worldwide. We have established a central framework that fosters the spirit of skills-based volunteerism and provides opportunities for employee volunteers to receive financial assistance for their projects.

Get out and GO!

It all starts with creating space for our people to connect and improve lives. We actively encourage employees worldwide to organize or get involved in non-profit projects aimed at protecting the environment, helping humanitarian efforts, improving educational opportunities, and helping small local businesses with cross-border trade. Such activities align with our Group-wide community engagement programs GoGreen, GoHelp, GoTeach, and GoTrade.

Introduced in the Asia Pacific region in 2008 and expanded worldwide in 2011 into a Global Volunteer Day program, fostering the get out & GO! spirit is the central component and primary driver of employee volunteerism across DHL Group. It provides a platform for our teams across the globe to collaborate and volunteer with independent local organizations and charities with an eye toward promoting lasting ties between our employees and the many local non-profits and charities in their communities.

Financial support

Volunteer activities are often hampered right from the start due to a lack of sufficient funds. We established our Improving Lives Fund to provide financial support to employee volunteers initiating projects in cooperation with an independent partner organization. The Fund donates EUR200,000 each year. Employees can apply for up to EUR3,000 for each project.

We award financial support annually to over 100 initiatives worldwide. Selected projects are employee-initiated and demonstrate outstanding quality, sustainability, and commitment. A jury of colleagues representing all divisions and board departments evaluates each application and awards funding.

It's impossible to gauge the impact of hundreds of thousands of annual volunteer work hours. We measure success based on the fact that over 100,000 employees from more than 100 counties volunteer their time and skills annually - and interest in the Improving Lives Fund remains high. We take pride in those results.

The creativity and diversity of projects demonstrate how our people respond to wide-ranging local needs. Whether it's the sheer numbers required to pick up trash on the beach or plant trees in the park - or the experience and expertise necessary to offer career advice to young people or IT training to a non-profit - every activity is a story of community engagement - of connecting people and improving lives.