These are unprecedented times, full of anxiety and uncertainty. Because of COVID-19, businesses are closed, families and individuals are sheltering in place, thousands are getting sick and too many have died. We are scared. But there is hope, as individuals, communities and companies around the world are coming together; unified to fight this disease and support one another.
While the news skews toward the negative – bigotry, the hording of supplies, fights over toilet paper and other inconsiderate acts – we have witnessed incredible acts of kindness and generosity. So many of us are stepping up to help our neighbors, donate food and provisions, check on a senior citizen, salute our valiant healthcare workers or join the healthcare frontline as a volunteer. We are celebrating acts of kindness and support, large and small, with appreciation and thanks. We are seeing companies of all sizes rising to the challenge in this time of need.
Some are helping supply hospitals, while others, such as painting contractors, have handed over their protective masks and gloves to help medical personnel stay safe. Restaurants are providing free meals to children and others in need. Large companies, including Ingram Micro, are amending their paid sick leave and vacation policies to help staff and hourly workers adjust to school closures and other new needs. Adobe is offering free distance learning for schools to help our children continue their studies and Cisco is pledging $225 million to assist with the global response to COVID-19. Airbnb is providing free housing for 100,000 healthcare responders around the world, and Comcast, Charter, AT&T, Verizon and others have signed a pledge to keep customers connected for the next 60 days. These are just a few examples of how thousands of companies are putting purpose-driven leadership into action, while facing extraordinary operational and financial challenges of their own.
Businesses are putting their values, tenets and social responsibility beliefs into action. They are making decisions that ignore simple, short-term bottom-line impacts; ones that are bigger than the products and services they offer and shareholders they serve. These actions reflect the true core of their respective missions and are important not only to the company and its employees, but its customers and often the world at large.
Corporate citizens are stepping up in a big way and I believe this will continue even after we have collectively won this battle. Because of this unique, shared experience, businesses’ future acts will be driven by a greater sense of moral and social responsibility. This pandemic is having an impact on everyone; but people are also the key, as the only way we will get through this is together. And, because individuals and businesses are responding with acts of kindness now, our world will enjoy a great benefit for many years to come.