Matchmaking at GSK: Highly Skilled Employees Begin Long-Term PULSE Volunteer Assignments with Nonprofit Partners

July 7, 2014 /3BL Media/ - GSK [LSE/NYSE: GSK] today announced that nearly100 GSK employees from 30 countries have begun long-term assignments (up to six months) with 38 nonprofit and non-governmental organizations (NGOs) in 33 countries for this year’s PULSE Volunteer Partnership. GSK employees are working full-time with partner organizations, sharing their skills, expertise and knowledge to help address global healthcare challenges.

“We serve as a matchmaker for GSK and the nonprofit sector – connecting the skills of our high-performing employees with the pressing needs of NGOs. Our PULSE Volunteer Partnership changes lives, not only for people in under-served communities around the world, but also for our employees who then change the culture of our company by bringing outside perspectives in and helping us to stay in step with society,”  said Dr. Ahsiya Posner Mencin, Director, PULSE Volunteer Partnership, GSK. Listen to Ahsiya talk about PULSE with Realized Worth.

Since its launch in 2009, the PULSE Volunteer Partnership has enabled 486 employees from across 54 different countries to work with 92 nonprofits in 60 countries. Employees help build capacity and make a sustainable impact for the organizations and the communities they serve. At the same time, after working on the frontlines of healthcare – often in under-resourced communities – employees return to GSK with a renewed sense of purpose and commitment. Returned volunteers help fuel innovation through fresh ideas and new ways of thinking from their PULSE assignments.

This year, GSK employees are embarking on a wide range of assignments globally. For example,18 GSK employees will support the GSK-Save the Children global partnership, which aims to help save the lives of one million children over five years, through assignments in 11 Save the Children country offices across the US, UK, Latin America, Asia Pacific. Direct Relief, which hosted a diverse group of employees last year, was again matched with several GSK employees who will provide strategic guidance in getting vaccines and medicines to patients in need. PULSE has also sent its first employee to work with IBM’s Corporate Service Corp to jointly deliver programmatic improvements to Amref Health, Africa’s Clinical and Diagnostics Program in East Africa.

In 2013, surveys conducted with our partners indicated 83% of NGOs are doing something differently even six months or longer after the PULSE volunteers have left. For instance, Steve Pessagno’s PULSE assignment to analyze collaboration models for Alex’s Lemonade Stand Foundation (ALSF) led to the creation of a new alliance group, Coalition Against Childhood Cancer (CAC2), which provides a unified voice for families and children living with pediatric cancer. Steve continues to volunteer his expertise and time to the childhood cancer community, including serving as Treasurer for CAC2.

To hear the experiences of #GSKVolunteers who have participated in PULSE, watch this video.

About GSK – GSK is one of the world’s leading research-based pharmaceutical and healthcare companies – is committed to improving the quality of human life by enabling people to do more, feel better and live longer.  For further information go to us.gsk.com, follow us on twitter.com/GSKUS, or visit our blog(www.morethanmedicine.us.gsk.com/blog/). 

About PULSE – By giving of our greatest resource – our people – GSK aims to contribute real and lasting value to our partners and the communities they serve. For this reason, ensuring that PULSE Volunteers’ work is sustainable for the partner organization is a key focus of the program and is deeply embedded in how our employees design and deliver their assignments. Since its launch in 2009, PULSE Volunteer Partnership has empowered 486 employees from across 54 different countries to work with 92 nonprofits in 60 countries.     

Click here for more information about the program’s impact. PULSE photos are available on Flickr.

Media enquiries:

Jennifer Armstrong
+1 215 751 5664
Jennifer.L.Armstrong@gsk.com