Continue to encourage and facilitate associates’ giving back to their community, and strategically focusing those efforts on organizations that are addressing the needs of underrepresented communities given the current social climate in the United States.

Each September, nearly all of our associates spend the day volunteering in the communities where they live and work, touching the lives of others in an important, impactful way. The pandemic meant that our traditional Community Day had to be reimagined with safety and flexibility in mind. At the same time, Wipfli deepened its commitment to diversity and social justice causes. This led to three specific actions:

1. Wipfli committed $40,000 to the offices in our various markets to support local and regional organizations focused on social justice and community building.
2. We expanded Community Day into Community Month and encouraged associates to choose their day of service with one of the organizations the local market supported with their donation.
3. For associates who don’t have the opportunity to work with one of the organizations we supported with a donation, we created a catalog of opportunities for in-person and virtual volunteering with organizations committed to social justice, community-building or diversity, equity, and inclusion-related causes.

These actions bring together several elements from disparate initiatives to unite under one of Wipfli’s five values: Caring. The local markets empaneled teams of associates to determine their local contributions; associates are being connected to organizations committed to diversity, equity and inclusion or social justice, giving them added perspective of the issues facing the communities we’re supporting; and we’re putting a stake in the ground to create local impact that can broaden the reach of these organizations. Wipfli promotes the hashtag #WipfliGivesBack to highlight activities that deepen our roots in and uplift all our communities.

Antara Chandran