Employee Philanthropy and Volunteerism
Last year marked another record year for employee philanthropy and volunteerism. NI encourages employees to engage in community activities they care about and donate their time, talent, and resources to organizations dedicated to their passions. Globally, these efforts are supported and implemented by various members of NI branch office staff, who are aware of the local community needs and how they should respond. Around the world, NI employees use their innovative spirit to drive progress on community issues.
NI Employee Philanthropy and Volunteerism Efforts Around the World
Employee Philanthropy
National Instruments is proud of the individual impact employees make with their personal philanthropy. In 2011, NI employees donated a record of $1 million USD to their communities through various giving outlets and tools, which is a 28 percent increase over 2010.
NI held its 16th annual NI GIVES campaign, an internal giving campaign for US employees to make donations through a variety of channels, including payroll deduction, check, or credit and debit card payments, so they can easily donate to the charities of their choice. Employee donations through NI GIVES totaled more than $773,000 USD with an average of $608 USD given per donor. In addition to the NI GIVES campaign, employee donations throughout the year exceeded $157,000 USD.
US employees also can request that NI match a donation given to a qualified nonprofit organization of up to $1,000 USD per year, increasing the impact of the employee’s contribution to the community.1 In 2011, total employee donations through the matching gifts program exceeded $220,000 USD, bringing the total donations for all employee donations to more than $1.1 million USD.
1After acquiring the operating assets of Measurement Computing Corporation, NI preserved the existing matching gift policy for that site and continues to match employee donations of up to $2,000 USD per year.
Employee Philanthropy (USD)
| Year | 2007 | 2008 | 2009 | 2010 | 2011 |
| Fall Giving Campaign | $495,500 | $510,000 | $549,407 | $699,612 | $958,954 |
| Matching Gifts | $120,923 | $180,142 | $166,189 | $221,619 | $220,768 |
| Total Donations | $616,423 | $690,142 | $715,596 | $921,231 | $1,179,722 |
Several NI offices around the world also have fundraising campaigns to help facilitate employee giving. One example is the NI United Kingdom and Ireland offices, where NI matches an employee’s donation of up to £500 per year.
Global Giving for Disaster Relief in Japan
NI provides an avenue for employees to donate to the causes they are passionate about, but often the employees drive philanthropic efforts. NI employees not only get involved with initiatives that benefit the communities in which they live, but they often extend their compassion to individuals outside their region.
When a catastrophic earthquake and its resulting tsunami hit Japan in March 2011, NI employees around the world responded with a collective donation totaling $30,000 USD to the American Red Cross Japanese Relief & International Relief Fund. To support its employees and help those in need, NI matched the $30,000 USD employee donation and made an additional $100,000 USD corporate donation to the Red Cross.
Employee Volunteerism
Last year marked another record year for employee volunteerism at National Instruments headquarters. More than 663 volunteers reported 13,605 hours of service to various nonprofit organizations, representing a 16 percent increase in volunteer hours.
NI branch offices around the world also implemented their own employee volunteerism programs. For its 10th anniversary celebration, NI Hungary launched the Be a Volunteer campaign. More than 40 opportunities were organized for employees, and they cumulatively volunteered more than 250 hours during the two-month campaign. NI India hosted its Impact Day in May, where a group of NI India Cares volunteers spent a workday visiting the five orphanages the company supports and delivering presents and surprises for the children. In December, the NI Costa Rica office volunteered with Aprender Haciendo and donated early education gifts to children in rural areas of San Jose, Costa Rica, where the office is located.
Spring Volunteer Campaign
In 2011, the fourth annual Spring Volunteer Campaign at NI headquarters helped educate employees about ways to connect with local nonprofit organizations. During the three-week campaign, more than 25 volunteer opportunities were available to NI employees. The campaign attracted 342 NI volunteers who gave more than 2,403 hours of service back to the community through multiple projects hosted by several area nonprofits including the following:
- Creating meals for families staying at the Ronald McDonald House
- Participating in a Habitat for Humanity deconstruction
- Sorting and distributing food for the Capital Area Food Bank
- Cleaning up creeks and other public spaces for Keep Austin Beautiful
Employee Philanthropy
Devchandar Mohan
R&D Group Manager,
NI India
Dev, an R&D group manager at NI India, has volunteered at a children’s home for 14 years. Every Saturday, he works with children on a variety of disciplines to help them become more well rounded in their studies. In addition, Dev works closely with NI India Cares, an employee-driven initiative that aims to improve the quality of life and education for orphaned children.“NI India Cares goes that extra mile beyond merely providing monetary assistance to deserving students. It also gives us the opportunity to meet, interact, and mentor the children from homes that we support. This leaves more of a lasting influence, bond, and sense of belonging for both the volunteer and the child.”