September 22, 2023
(press release)
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It only takes one person to make a difference. But what happens when thousands of Eastman employees unite? That’s the question Eastman hoped to answer when it began using MyImpact, an employee engagement platform for organizing global philanthropic and social efforts. MyImpact is an online tool that empowers employees to become more engaged in impactful work like volunteering and development — both personal and professional. The platform lets groups in the company create, launch and measure employee activities. Eastman began piloting MyImpact in 2021 and launched it for the global team in 2022. The top user, Matthias Baete, is a process operator in Ghent, Belgium. The platform has created a way for him to connect with other team members across the globe. “I find that important because the headquarters is based on another continent, and the way of living is a whole lot different than over here in Belgium,” Baete said. “And thanks to MyImpact, I get more information about Eastman and the community, learn how to be better in my job and grow personally.” As of July 2023, there were 9,169 employees (65% of the global workforce) on MyImpact. The company has sponsored 85 volunteer events this year, and employees have volunteered 6,536 hours of their time. More than 150 employees have already made financial contributions of $18,798 (USD) to 16 different sponsored giving activities. These numbers are expected to rise by the end of the year, especially around the holiday season. MyImpact supports Eastman’s corporate social responsibility efforts by empowering team members to engage in activities and causes they’re already passionate about. Featured topics are inclusion and diversity, social impact and sustainability. The platform also highlights short-term campaigns, such as those for United Way or the company’s annual holiday giving. From recycling to donating blood, the platform allows employees to register for volunteer projects and donate to charities. It provides a coordinated effort for the company to inspire, equip and mobilize employee action. Eastman resource groups (ERGs), which were created to support an inclusive work culture and help underrepresented groups grow professionally, also use MyImpact. Employees can join ERGs through MyImpact, register for events, participate in causes and learn more about the groups using the platform. “MyImpact encouraged me to get involved in more ERGs,” said Eric Petschke, alternative methods of supply director in Kingsport. “It helped me grow into new groups by learning more about them and discovering events and other ways I could jump in.” MyImpact includes several features that incentivize and encourage participation on the platform. A leaderboard features the most engaged employees, and users earn points and achievement badges based on their participation on the platform. For Petschke and Baete, this is one of the draws of using MyImpact. “The points and achievements encourage me to compete with other teams and individuals while expanding my horizons at the same time,” Petschke said. “I regularly check for new challenges and maintain the current challenges,” Baete said. “I'm also proud to be the leader of the scoreboard and would like to keep it that way until I retire.” Eastman employees also help further the engagement of MyImpact by inviting their colleagues to join the online community and creating challenges among employees or teams. “When it comes to engagement like this, you have to meet people where they are,” Petschke said. “MyImpact allows me to help encourage others to start digging into new ideas and causes, and then they can choose causes they care most about and how they want to get involved.” After piloting MyImpact in 2021 with ERGs, all Eastman employees were invited to join the platform in 2022. The inaugural year saw over half of our global team members register on the platform, including 1,203 new ERG members. There were 48 volunteer events, and employees contributed 5,921 volunteer hours throughout the year. Employee donations on MyImpact totaled nearly $100,000 (USD) from 459 employees toward 21 company-sponsored activities. This contributed to a total 2022 employee giving of $2,491,138.16 made through other contributions like payroll deductions throughout the year. During the first year, the MyImpact launch team identified an initial barrier: getting employees to use the platform for the first time, especially operations and plant personnel. So that team organized a food truck rally in September that brought 10 trucks to the Kingsport headquarters. More than 2,000 team members registered for MyImpact and signed up for food truck meals through the platform, resulting in one of the largest events organized in 2022.
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