Ulster Bank: Engaging staff and customers through ATM Giving to Charity

Year:

2013ulster-bank

 

Company Description:
Ulster Bank Group is one of Ireland’s largest banks and a subsidiary of RBS group. Across the Republic of Ireland and Northern Ireland, Ulster Bank Group employs 5,800 staff and delivers a range of financial services to over 1.9 million customers through its branch, telephone and online channels.

 

Business Issue:
In 2012 Ulster Bank developed a facility for our customers to donate to charity via any of our 1,100 ATM machines island-wide.  Customers can donate from €1 to €250 to 14 well-known charities (8 in Republic of Ireland and 6 in Northern Ireland).  The charities were selected based on research to represent the causes closest to the hearts of Irish people:  children’s welfare, cancer research, hospice care, disability support, homelessness, poverty, serious illness and third world aid.  We wanted an initiative to raise awareness of ATM Giving with our customers and at the same time bring our people together as ‘one team’ behind a common cause of raising funds for our ATM Giving charity partners.

 

Solution Applied:

The resulting initiative was One Week in June , an all-island fundraising campaign which harnessed the energy and passion of our staff and the goodwill of our customers to fundraise during any week in June for our 14 charity partners.  Ulster Bank showed its strong support for our partner charities by matching donations up to a value of €250,000.  We involved each of our partner charities in the planning of the campaign and the collaborative approach helped to harness the combined fundraising experience of all the charities and synchronise our communications approach and joint timelines.

Our CEO sponsored the campaign, encouraging all our people to get involved.  He launched the One Week in June microsite – a one-stop-shop for staff to learn about the work of the charities, get fundraising ideas, upload stories and photos, record fundraising hours and activity and transfer funds to the relevant charity accounts.  This built excitement and buy-in before launch.  Momentum built quickly and widespread fundraising activities get underway across the bank, covering all parts of the country with involvement of virtually every staff member.  It was the most exciting – and the biggest – internal promotion campaign ever undertaken by Ulster Bank.

Externally, the promotion of One Week in June was activated across PR, in-branch, ATM and media advertising, Facebook and Twitter.  With the combined activities of our staff, and the generosity of customers, One Week in June raised a total of over €500,000 including Ulster Bank matching funding.

Find out more at: http://group.ulsterbank.com/about-us/corporate-sustainability/supporting-our-communities/one-week-in-june.ashx

 

Company Benefits:

  • Raised customer awareness of ATM Giving as a unique and convenient donation facility.
  • Re-invigorated our community culture, engaged and energised our staff around a common theme.
  • Refreshed and sharpened Ulster Bank’s brand as a values-led, responsible business and a great banking partner to prospective new clients in the Not for Profit sector.
  • Help to position our brand in a credible and authentic way, amplifying our community ethos.

 

Stakeholder Benefits:

  • Significant support of over €500,000 for our 14 charity partners to help them achieve their goals.
  • ATM Giving is a convenient new channel to receive Ulster Bank customer donations without incurring any collection or marketing costs.

 

Challenges:
Orientating 5,800 staff, located  across almost 300 separate locations island-wide, to make sure all were focused and united in working together for one common purpose – our 14 ATM Giving Charities.

 

Tip:
Encourage business leaders to champion the Staff Charity Fund – it helps to attract new donors.

 

Departments Involved:

Bank-wide initiative

 

Solution Champion: 

Pauline McKiernan, Sustainability & Community Affairs Manager.  Email: pauline.mckiernan@ulsterbank.com