At CIT Group, building stronger communities in the areas where we operate is a top priority for us. That is why we launched CIT Cares Month in June 2017. CIT Cares Month is a month-long company-wide giving back movement to mobilize our employees, foster collaboration, and create an enriching volunteer experience.
The program is an important pillar in our overall corporate citizenship strategy.
CIT Group believes that if the community prospers, we all prosper. This idea is a fundamental part of our business model. As a 109-year-old company with more than 4,400 employees nationwide, we continue to dedicate our time and resources to help the middle market and small businesses flourish – and this year nearly 40% of our employees participated, volunteering over 7,625 hours!
Through CIT Cares, we align our company's core values to focus on engaging within the communities we serve, fostering relationships with nonprofits, and cultivating a culture of giving back. Giving back is not an afterthought but rather a cornerstone for progress.
CIT Cares Month offered a variety of opportunities for our team to get involved. Our efforts extended throughout the nation at our 13 locations, which allowed us to make a direct impact on those around us. "No time" should not be a reason to not volunteer, and to help this, our employees can use up to 8 hours of paid volunteer time off (VTO) during the month to support a non-profit organization.
We also launched a photo contest that featured a new theme each week throughout the month. Sporting the CIT Cares shirts, our employees took photos during the volunteer event. The themes were: funniest group photo, best photo bomb, spells out CIT, and before and after group photos.
Our employees leveraged their expertise and ideas to support projects and causes that are most needed within their local communities. Our tangible efforts impacted people's lives through prepping and serving hot meals, building homes, cleaning parks, donating school supplies, planting fruits and vegetables, and teaching financial literacy to youth.
The organizations that we supported shared their gratitude for our volunteers on social media. City Rescue Mission in Jacksonville, Florida tweeted: "Thank you @CITgroup Jacksonville for donating over 43,000 pounds of food to City Rescue Mission today!"
CIT Cares Month launched in June 2017 to contribute to local communities across the US. Here is what we accomplished this past month:
Highlights:
With the success of our pilot CIT Cares Month this year, we hope to extend our endeavors for years to come.
