Organ donation centers across the country have seen a big spike in their numbers of volunteers lately. Why? Because Facebook made it easy.

Recently, Facebook partnered with the nonprofit group Donate Life America to start a new initiative that allows users to add their organ donor status to their profiles. And it goes one step further, by connecting interested parties to local registries to sign up online.

With 900 million members, this has the potential to be one of the largest volunteer organ donation campaigns ever. Mark Zuckerberg, Facebook founder, said he was inspired by natural disasters like the March 2011 Japanese earthquake and tsunami, as well as by the social network’s ability to connect people.

He also credited his girlfriend, who is studying to become a pediatrician. Her experiences with sick children, many saved by organ donations, moved Zuckerberg to work with Donate Life America, a national organization for local groups that are working to increase the number of registered donors.

The organization says that nearly 114,000 people currently need lifesaving organ transplants. According to the U.S. Department of Health, more than 7,000 people die each year, awaiting them. In addition, thousands more need corneal transplants to restore their sight and help them live normal lives.

Only 43% of U.S. adults have signed up to be organ donors. People often think it’s a good idea, but never quite get around to taking the next step. But every day, millions of Facebook users log in and update their status. Updating their organ donation status has become just as easy. Plus, it opens people to the conversation about organ donation. And as any non-profit organization knows, awareness is half the battle when you’re looking for donors.

Giving back to the community is a goal of many companies. While the reasons for doing so may vary, the fact is that philanthropy can have significant benefits that ripple throughout the organization.

First, contributing to a livable community can lead to a stronger workforce. When quality of life is high, so is the caliber of people who choose to move to or stay in a community. Eventually, that can come back to favor businesses, as they have a quality pool of employees to choose from at hiring time.

Second, surveys and studies show that employees want to work for businesses that give back to the community.

Third, the community tends to show higher regard and levels of trust for companies that are involved in their communities and support causes they care about. According to a survey by Cone, Inc., 87% of consumers will switch brands or retailers in favor of one that supports a good cause, when price and quality are the same.

So how can the average business become more charity-minded? Following these three simple steps can take any firm from the idea stage to achieving true philanthropy.

1. Establish a plan. Decide what types of charities to support, or detail the actual non-profits that will be on the receiving end of your efforts. Research charities in your community that align with your company’s objectives. Ask employees for their input so they feel a sense of ownership in the process. When requests come from organizations outside your strict parameters, it’s easier to say “no.”
2. Establish a giving budget. Set an annual budget that your company can comfortably handle. Determine whether it will consist of cash donations, volunteer hours, in-kind gifts, or a combination of these three. Find out if employees are interested and willing to donate their time to volunteering, and offer them the time off to do so.
3. Manage philanthropy like any other department. Stick to your budget. Say no to requests that don’t match your objectives. Work your plan and build relationships that boost your company’s reputation in the community.

Then, sit back and enjoy the benefits that come with being a philanthropic company!

Today, employees are often looking for meaningful work. Younger people, especially, want to make a difference in their lives and are more likely to expect to find purpose in their employment.

In fact, a Wall Street Journal survey in 2006 reported that 70 percent of young people “want to work for a company that cares about how it affects or contributes to society.” Further, 64 percent responded, “their employer’s social and environmental activities inspire loyalty.”

So one can make the case that employees who volunteer are good for the community and for their company. Here are several ways to integrate public service into your company.

• Pay employees to volunteer. It doesn’t have to be an every-week thing, but consider giving employees paid time to serve others in the community. A half day’s work at the food bank or VA hospital brings meaning and a sense of accomplishment to your employee, while doing a great deal of good for people who need help. Employees often return refreshed and inspired—ready to work hard and perhaps appreciate their jobs a little more!
• If you can’t spare any employees during work hours, offer perks or financial rewards to those who volunteer on their own time. A $50 gift card to a local grocery store or restaurant, an offer to buy lunch for a week, or just letting volunteers leave a half-hour early for a week are inexpensive ways to reward community service.
• If you can spare half your employees and run a skeleton crew once or twice a year, organize a half-staff work party. Contact an environmental group to see what outdoor projects a group of your size could help with. Or call the senior center to see if they need any painting or repair work done. Give them half your staff one day, and the other half the next. Consecutive days are not necessary, if that’s too disruptive. Do it on alternating Wednesdays—or whatever your least-busy day is.

Helping employees form stronger bonds with the community and with your company is one big advantage of implementing an employee volunteer program. Try it out and see if you don’t get more than you give!

Microsoft is a big, global enterprise with tens of thousands of employees. The company encourages them to develop their passion and creativity through volunteer efforts, and has several programs in place to support these efforts.

1. Microsoft matches employees’ donations dollar for dollar when they give to charity. But they take it a step further: they also match volunteer time, and value it at $17 per hour. Through the Volunteer Time Matching program, for every hour an employee gives, Microsoft gives the organization $17, up to $12,000 per employee per year.
2. Time-matching programs encourage employees to volunteer for causes they support—whether it’s an environmental initiative, civic improvement or health and human services organization.
3. Microsoft focuses on its community partners, including United Way, HandsOn Network and the Boys & Girls Clubs of America, mobilizing employees to support these organizations though the Microsoft Unlimited Potential program.
4. Employees are also encouraged to step up to leadership roles by volunteering to serve on nonprofit boards and to provide business and tehnology consulting at no cost to organizations that help their communities.
5. Disaster relief is another Microsoft focus, and during times of crisis, employees give both their expertise and their financial resources.

The results:

• In 2010, 35,000 Microsoft employees made charitable contributions
• 4,000 employees volunteered 350,000 hours
• Microsoft employees, through contributing money and volunteering their time, gave a total of $96 million to 16,000 nonprofits in 2010
• The top three recipients were the United Way of King County, WA, World Vision International and the Seattle Children’s Hospital Foundation
• Microsoft employees are the largest group of donors for Children’s Hospital
• The company organized hundreds of fundraisers, including a 5K run that raised $130,000, a national poker tournament that raised $260,000 and an online auction that brought in $500,000.

As long as Microsoft continues to be profitable, charities in Washington State and around the world will continue to benefit from the company’s generosity and that of its employees.

Disney means fun, laughter and childhood memories for millions of people around the world. Did you know it also means 1 million pledges by kids to take care of the planet? And an extra 3 million trees being planted in Brazil’s rainforest?

Walt Disney himself frequently visited children in hospitals and funneled resources to organizations that help children in need. Since then, the company has had a tradition of supporting the arts, as well, including developing artists, and encouraging the arts among youth and communities.

A truly global presence, the Disney company has employees in 42 countries and resorts on three continents. Employees are encouraged to volunteer through Disney’s VoluntEARS program.

In 2008, Disney employees raised funds and headed up projects around the world. In North America alone., there were over 1,900 projects, totaling over 440,000 volunteer hours given. In addition, employees raised $1.5 million. Worldwide, nearly 500,000 volunteer hours and $1.7 million were raised.

To help employees become vital VoluntEARS, Disney supports efforts with a paid staff that organizes and manages volunteer projects. Since the inception of the VoluntEARS program 26 years ago, more than 5 million hours of service have been donated.

Other ways Disney supports staff volunteer efforts is by providing financial support for charities where employees give their time. In addition, volunteer events are used as team-building exercises and they have an annual awards program that recognizes outstanding employee volunteer service.

To celebrate the VoluntEARS program’s 25th anniversary, the entire company came together to demonstrate the power of volunteerism. In one month alone, more than 25,000 volunteers participated in 650 projects in 37 countries. Now that’s, a big impact for a better world through volunteerism!

Here are a few ways Disney employees have made the world better:

1. In 2008, the Disney Tri-Team, a triathlon team, raised $240,000 for Children’s Hospital Los Angeles. Since its inception seven year ago, the team has raised more than $1 million for various charities.
2. The Disney VoluntEARS Community Fund raises money for local charities through employee donations. Disney covers the administrative costs so 100% of donations are invested in the community.
3. In 2008, the VoluntEARS program received an Excellence in Workplace Volunteer Program award from the Points of Light/Hands On Network.
4. Disney also received a Visionary Partner Award for work in renovating elementary school libraries and encouraging family reading from The Wonder of Reading.

It looks like Walt’s desire to provide meaningful service to communities worldwide is alive and well today through the Walt Disney Company’s corporate volunteer program !

Tom’s of Maine is a natural care products company that was started back in 1970, by a couple who wanted to simplify their lives. Unable to find the unprocessed foods and pure personal care products they desired, the decided to make their own. Their simple philosophy was that their products would not harm the environment.

Now part of Colgate-Palmolive, Tom’s of Maine still practices the business acumen that made them successful—listening to customers’ needs and coming back with natural, sustainable solutions.

Tom’s of Maine also works with its customers to fund deserving nonprofit organizations (NPOs). This year, they are inviting NPOs to nominate their community programs for a chance to share in a $100,000 Community Action Fund award. To involve more of the community, nonprofits can rally their supporters to vote for them.

This year, Tom’s of Maine is taking the program a step further—and getting volunteers involved, too! Partnering with VolunteerMatch, the online volunteer recruiting and sign-up website, nonprofits can describe their volunteer needs when applying for the Community Action Fund awards.

Through July 2, any qualifying nonprofit with a budget under $2 million can apply online at www.50statesforgood.com. Nonprofits are encouraged to explain how they will use volunteers to benefit their communities. The 50 States For Good program is designed to make it easier for people to find out what charity organizations in their communities need help. Connecting with others and spreading the word about the chance for funding and volunteers is also part of the fun.

40 finalist organizations (in honor of Tom’s of Maine’s 40th anniversary) will have their project and volunteer request showcased on the company’s website. Then in August and early September, voting begins. Five programs will each receive $20,000, to be announced in October.

Tom’s of Maine has always donated 10% of its profits to its community and offers employees paid time off to volunteer in their local communities—up to 12 days per year!

For more information, visit www.50statesforgood.com.

Alcoa Foundation exists to serve the global company’s communities. Founded in 1952, its mission is to invest in residents’ quality of life.  In 2008, Alcoa and the Alcoa Foundation gave over $50.6 million to communities in 35 countries, while the company’s employees volunteered over 705,000 hours to community service projects.

Here are a few ways Alcoa improves lives all over the world:

The Foundation is committed to improving opportunities for women and girls. In the US, Alcoa works with Girls Inc., Boys and Girls Clubs, Girl Scouts and Big Brothers and Big Sisters. The goal is to empower young women to reach their full potential through programs in health, science, math, technology, economic and financial programs, and leadership skills.

In Europe, Africa, and Asia, Alcoa Foundation continues this goal with vocational training and skills-building workshops, gender and equity training for teachers of young girls, encouraging female engineering students to continue in their fields, and providing basic health care services.

Climate Change: Alcoa Foundation has provided $22 million in grants to build awareness and inform public policy. The Foundation partners with community organizations and funds outreach programs that address sustainability, energy use, water management, and development.

Month of Service: The Alcoa Volunteers program encourages every employee to help make the world a better place. And they do: each October, Alcoa dedicates time for employees to perform community service. In the past three years, nearly 53,000 employees volunteered in over 2100 events in 36 countries. Activities range from planting trees, to serving meals, to repairing community facilities and helping students in local schools.

Disaster Relief: Alcoa donated hundreds of thousands of dollars to the Red Cross in China after last May’s earthquake. They encourage employees to give, and make it easy to do so on their website.

Alcoa and the Alcoa Foundation does good all around the globe, from Australian volunteers building and providing kids with wheelchairs, to helping community programs train and employ at-risk youth in the United States.

Alcoa helps build bridges, both physical and metaphorical, in virtually every country in the world, and its impact on those communities is huge.

Here’s an impressive statistic: since 1946, Target has been giving 5% of its income through community grants and programs that support education, the arts, social services, and volunteerism. Target’s giving totals $3 million per week—both to local community and national organizations.

Because of the company’s belief that the arts bring communities together, celebrate cultural diversity, and help people see a perspective that may differ from their own,
Target supports arts activities, music festivals, and concerts all across the country. Thousands of children and adults who might not otherwise have access to museums and theaters take advantage of free or reduced admission days, sponsored by Target.

Education is a high priority for Target’s giving programs—because it’s a high priority for the company’s customers (which Target calls “guests”). TO that end, Target seeks programs that combine art with education, such as those bringing arts into schools or that make it affordable for youth and families to experience cultural activities like symphony performances, artists’ workshops, and theater.

Target’s education initiatives put the focus on teachers, classrooms and early childhood reading. Take Charge of Education® and Target Field Trip Grants are national school fundraising programs that awarded more than $18 million to schools across the country since January of this year. Take Charge of Education provided $14.7 million in undesignated funds—so they can be used for whatever school need most. Target Field Trip Grants give 440,000 students the chance to learn outside the classroom—in places as unique as convalescent homes.

Target also sends volunteers to revamp school libraries, filling them with new furniture, shelves, computers and books. Additionally, Target’s 1,700 stores grant $500 book awards to schools in their communities. From cash grants to reading and writing contests, Target places a high priority on getting kids to read early and often!

Target’s belief in strong communities has led to a commitment to fund programs that strengthen the families that every community is made of. Target has chosen three core areas for support—family violence prevention, disaster preparedness, and relief and safeness—and provides badly-needed cash to The Salvation Army, American Red Cross, and the United Way.

Another way Target supports families in need is through providing apartments free of charge to families of children facing major health challenges. Just this week, a 10-year celebration will be held at Target House, a housing facility for families of patients at St. Jude Children’s Research Hospital in Memphis. Celebrities such as Shaun White, Scott Hamilton, and Amy Grant will help former and current Target House residents celebrate in style. Families are allowed to stay as long as they need, with some residing in Target House for as long as three years.

The list of Target’s volunteer and community giving goes on. Team members have volunteered literally millions of hours to programs in their communities. The company provides opportunities to team members at each stage of their employment. Delivering food to the needy, responding to disasters, and helping renovate school libraries are just three examples of the thousands of ways Target’s employees work in their towns and cities.

Target embraces service to its communities as a core reason for being in business. Through cash grants, volunteer hours, and innovative programs, the company helps improve the lives of millions of kids and adults across America.

The Home Depot Foundation was created in 2002. It is dedicated to building healthy homes that families can afford to own. The Foundation encourages home developers to use durable, sustainable materials, to make sure the homes are energy and water efficient, and have good indoor air quality.

Since it was founded, The Home Depot Foundation has granted $120 million to nonprofit organizations—and has supported the development of more than 65,000 affordable, healthy homes.

Last year, The Home Depot Foundation partnered with Habitat for Humanity International in an initiative called Partners in Sustainable Living. Through this initiative, thirty Habitat affiliates built more than 260 green homes—meeting Energy Star or other green building standards.

The pilot program proved that the upfront costs of building to green standards, about $2,000 extra for the pilot program houses, will be recouped through energy bill savings. Reports on the new homes show energy savings of between 15 and 30 percent already!

It makes sense that an organization that builds affordable housing for those in need would also want the homes’ energy bills to be as low as possible—it’s better for the homeowners and for the planet.

This week, The Home Depot Foundation and Habitat for Humanity International announced that the Partners in Sustainable Living initiative will be expanded nationally. More than 120 Habitat affiliates in 45 states have been selected to participate this year. $30 million in funding and resources over five years will help build 5,000 homes that meet Energy Star or other recognized green standards.

The affiliates will be granted $3,000 for each home built to Energy Star standards, and up to $5,000 for each home built to a higher green standard. By the end of 2010, nearly 1,500 sustainable homes will be built.

According to Kelly Caffarelli, president of the Foundation, “The Home Depot Foundation believes green building techniques are not a luxury—they aren’t exotic or expensive.” By helping more people live in green homes, The Home Depot Foundation is demonstrating a commitment to the communities in which they do business and to the environment we all share.

Best Buy is committed to its employees, its communities, and the environment. The company is one of corporate America’s biggest donors to charity. Through cash, merchandise and time donations, the corporation and its employees give back to America’s youth in a big way.

Best Buy donates up to 1.5% of its pretax earnings to dozens of national organizations through the Best Buy Children’s Foundation. Their focus is on social programs that help children, plus disaster relief, scholarship programs, and services that strengthen communities. Examples include Boys and Girls Clubs of America’s Tech Club, MOUSE (Making Opportunities for Upgrading Schools & Education), and Toys for Teens (in conjunction with the US Marine Corps’ Toys for Tots program).

@15 is a special segment within Best Buy Children’s Foundation, designed to empower youth. Through @15, teenagers advocate for and advise about the programs that will receive funds. It’s a wonderful learning opportunity for the teens, and ensures that the programs kids really care about are supported.

@15 Best Buy Scholarships have been helping fund higher education for needy students since 1999. This year, 1,000 students will be rewarded for their academic achievements, volunteer efforts, and work experience. Since its inception, the @15 Scholarship Program has seen awards totaling nearly $13 million to more than 10,000 students.

The Community Grants Program is administered by Best Buy employee groups through the Best Buy’s Children’s Foundation. The employees select non profit organizations (NPOs) that they would like to support. Their guidelines? The NPO must provide services and programs that provide opportunities to young teens related to education, leadership skills, life skills, or relationship development.

This year, the Best Buy Children’s Foundation will give away $1 million through the Community Grants Program!

And, each Best Buy store is individually empowered to support its local community non-profits. Stores can donate Best Buy gift cards to help NPOs with their fundraising efforts, as long as they are located within 50 miles of a Best Buy store and the funds go to support schools, libraries, educational, or after-school programs for youth.

Best Buy’s Teach Awards help schools bring more technology to students with gift card donations. Since 2004, the awards total over $17 million to over 6,000 schools nationwide.

At Best Buy, giving back to their communities is central to the way they do business. And the company’s level of giving is very impressive!