Polaris has always been dedicated to being a good steward and acting as an ethical and inclusive community member, and wanted to create a more formal framework to align and amplify these efforts.

In 2019 Polaris established Geared for Good, a formalized framework that focuses our efforts toward elevating industries, communities and quality of life for everyone and everything within our corporate ecosystem. In conjunction with this, Polaris also established its Corporate Responsibility Committee (CRC), an internal working group made up of senior-level management, which advises on and advances matters of significance related to corporate social responsibility, sustainability and reputation. One pillar of our Geared for Good structure emphasizes that supporting our local communities through corporate giving and volunteering is a vital part of our culture. Polaris employees are encouraged to donate their time and resources through corporate matching of charitable giving and paid time off for volunteering. Developing our people is another of Geared for Good’s core tenets, which has encouraged the creation and expansion of programs such as our Women Leaders in Powersports initiative, which has grown fourfold since its inception, and our Functional Development initiative, which recruits a deliberately diverse selection of college graduates and develops their capabilities through an intensive series of leadership rotations. Geared for Good coordinates and advances our efforts to be a force for positive change.

Under the auspices of Geared for Good, Polaris has donated $1.8M to the Greater Twin Cities United Way, and responded to the death of George Floyd by donating a total of $250k to three Minnesota-based nonprofits focused on promoting equality and supporting economic development, particularly with under-represented business owners, as well as aiding in the rebuilding and reopening of small businesses impacted by the recent events. Polaris also donated $250,000 to the University of Minnesota’s College of Science and Engineering to support STEM outreach to underserved youth. In 2020, as a part of our ongoing efforts to create a workplace of awareness and understanding, we created an internal program called R.I.D.E. Together: Respect. Inclusion. Diversity. Equity. We believe that together, we can continue to build a diverse and inclusive workplace. Through R.I.D.E. Together, we look to continually foster our corporate culture of inclusion and understanding, including rolling out unconscious bias training to all directors and above at Polaris in 2020, and continued to roll out to managers in 2021. Our recruiting team has been spearheading some major initiatives to broaden the scope of our candidate pipeline and create a more diverse candidate pool, including engagement and recruitment efforts in partnership with the National Black MBA Association (NBMBAA) and the Society of Women Engineers (SWE) conferences.

Jessica Rogers

Polaris donates $1 million to University of Minnesota to support STEM education programs