Blue Cross and Blue Shield of Louisiana Partners with Taproot Foundation to Launch Online Volunteering Platform

BATON ROUGE, July 8, 2020 /3BL Media/—Blue Cross and Blue Shield of Louisiana is partnering with Taproot Foundation, a leader in pro bono volunteer service, to launch the state’s first dedicated platform for virtual pro bono volunteering. Through this platform, Louisiana’s nonprofits can connect with individual volunteers who have business expertise in areas where they are seeking assistance.

Using the online platform Taproot Plus, business professionals across Louisiana can lend their time and talents in support of nonprofits operating in the communities where they live and work—or anywhere in the state.

Nonprofits can request either one-hour consulting sessions with volunteers, or propose projects that request specific tasks that pro bono volunteers can fulfill. For example, a nonprofit in need of a human resources specialist to help update its HR policies can list the project online in a marketplace. Volunteers interested in serving would apply for the role. Then, the nonprofit can interview and ultimately choose a volunteer to work with over 2-10 weeks.

The new platform is free to use, and nonprofits can easily post projects in the areas of finance, marketing and communications, graphic design, technology, HR and more on Taproot Plus. Taproot Foundation’s dedicated staff are available to assist nonprofits to use their state-of-the-art digital platform in finding qualified volunteers to help.

“We are proud to support Blue Cross and Blue Shield of Louisiana in providing equitable access to essential pro bono services for nonprofits across the state of Louisiana,” said Taproot Foundation’s President & CEO, Lindsay Firestone Gruber. “The Taproot Plus platform builds on the foundation of our organization’s model, matching dedicated, skilled volunteers with nonprofits to help strengthen their organizations, one pro bono project at a time. Now more than ever, nonprofits are being called upon to serve our communities, and we know that access to the right type of support—whether it’s HR, finance, technology or others—can make the difference in helping an organization deliver its critical mission.”

This expansion builds on Blue Cross and Blue Shield of Louisiana’s efforts to promote pro bono volunteering over the past few years, according to Michael Tipton, president of the Blue Cross Foundation and head of Community Relations.

“We’ve seen this kind of volunteering build vital connections and relationships between nonprofits and volunteers. It’s a way of giving time that has a meaningful and lasting impact, while also strengthening the nonprofit sector overall. We know it’s very effective—Taproot’s survey of nonprofit professionals shows that 95% report pro bono service improved their organization’s effectiveness,” he said.

To learn more about registering as a nonprofit or volunteer, visit https://louisiana.taprootplus.org/

See more information about how Taproot Plus is helping nonprofits find and work with pro bono volunteers in this video.

About Blue Cross and Blue Shield of Louisiana

Blue Cross and Blue Shield of Louisiana is committed to our mission to improve the health and lives of Louisianians. Founded in New Orleans in 1934, we are a tax-paying nonprofit health insurer with offices in every major region to serve our customers. We were recognized in 2019 as an honoree of The Civic 50, named by Points of Light as one of the 50 most community-minded companies in the United States.

Blue Cross and Blue Shield of Louisiana is an independent licensee of the Blue Cross and Blue Shield Association. We are a private mutual company, owned by our policyholders, with an independent Louisiana Board of Directors and no shareholders. We invite all Louisianians to visit our website at www.bcbsla.com or talk to us on social media.

About the Taproot Foundation

Taproot Foundation, a U.S. based nonprofit, connects nonprofits and social change organizations with passionate, skilled volunteers who share their expertise pro bono. Taproot is creating a world where organizations dedicated to social change have full access—through pro bono service—to the marketing, strategy, HR, and IT resources they need to be most effective. Since 2001, Taproot’s skilled volunteers have served over 7,500 social change organizations providing more than 1.7 million hours of work worth over $204 million in value. Taproot has offices in New York City, Chicago, San Francisco, and Los Angeles, and co-founded a network of global pro bono providers in over 30 countries around the world. www.taprootfoundation.org  @taprootfound