When Samer Khouli started his business almost a decade ago, he envisioned donating 10 percent of company profits every year to charity.
Since the inception of TargetCW in 2010, it has donated a total of about $2 million. And so far this year, Khouli, CEO of the payroll and staffing company in San Diego, has donated roughly $400,000. While the privately held company declines to share its profits, it did say that it estimates global company sales to be about $420 million this year.
“When I give something, I’m stoked,” Khouli, 48, said. “I want my employees and clients to have that same feeling.”
In October, inspired by Melinda Gates’ pledge to donate $1 billion toward expanding women’s power and influence over the next 10 years, TargetCW announced that it will donate $1 million also toward women’s organizations over the next decade. The first part of this donation will be $10,000 to a women’s group that a client will pick and be approved by TargetCW.
“I’m really ionate about opportunities and equality and providing those things for women,” Khouli said. “We have zero disparity for wages. Their gender should enhance their work and not limit what they do.”
TargetCW isn’t the only one. The donations by ShopCore Properties and Digital Media Solutions, both in San Diego, align with its business model or company values. And their employees are involved with their philanthropic efforts.
ShopCore is committed to reducing childhood hunger in the communities its shopping centers serve by donating each year $1,000 per property it owns. It currently has 60.
Because most of its shopping centers have a grocery component, the cause “makes sense,” said Jim Nakagawa, chief financial officer. “It s our tenants.”
ShopCore strongly encourages its employees to volunteer at least eight hours a year at a local food bank. The company pays them for the time they volunteer.
From 2018 through the end of this year, Digital Media Solutions, which provides marketing software for insurance providers, will have donated $75,000 to nonprofits and scholarships. It’s most notable partner is The Special Olympics San Diego. Other groups include GiGi’s Playhouse, which offers free educational, therapeutic and career development programs to individuals with Down syndrome.
Digital Media Solutions picks “organizations in the San Diego community that align with our company values, primarily continuous improvement and people incubation,” which the company describes as sharing knowledge in hopes that it leads to new ideas, said Laura Donaldson, marketing strategy manager.
She adds that before beginning its partnerships, each organization that Digital Media Solutions donates to comes into the office to talk about its mission and share how Digital Media Solutions will be involved.
More than 70 percent of its employees have volunteered with one or more of the organizations on their own time and some have become part-time coaches for The Special Olympics after seeing the life-changing impact the group had on its athletes and families.
For its workers, TargetCW provides charity perks. About six years ago, it started offering employees two days a year to volunteer and matching 100 percent of the worker’s personal donations. A lot of its employees have given to causes such as Alzheimer’s, Leukemia and other kinds of cancer.
In addition to people with illnesses, TargetCW also donates to medical research, animal rights, underprivileged youth and education.
Some of the reasons why Khouli picked these causes? His dad has Alzheimer’s and many workers have lost someone to an illness. He has a dog, a boxer named Cooper. About half of the in-house employees have pets. And TargetCW helps the youth because they are potentially the leaders of tomorrow.
TargetCW recently created a philanthropic committee composed of Khouli and three employees. It’s not a volunteer position but a formal part of their job descriptions. Those on the committee decide where donations go and reach out to groups that have been given money.
“We don’t want to just write a check,” Khouli said. “We want to make sure the money is going where it’s supposed to and hold them able.”
Hang Nguyen is a freelance writer for the U-T. You can reach her at [email protected].
