Innovation Through Philanthropy - Silicon Valley Community ...

Robert houser
When Silicon Valley is booming, the region’s nonprofit
organizations benefit. But when the boom ends, so does
much of the largesse. Fortunately, not everyone turns
off the philanthropic tap so abruptly.
Dan Warmenhoven, chief executive officer of
NetApp since October 1994 and chairman of its board
since March 2008, has overseen the storage company’s
transition from startup to upstanding corporate citizen.
Recently ranked first on Fortune magazine’s list of 100
Best Companies to Work For, NetApp has earned a
reputation as a caring member of every community
in which it has offices. Employees around the globe
discover charitable groups and nonprofits that fit with
their individual passions. NetApp supports their
philanthropic efforts with cash, donated equipment
and a unique program that lets employees spend up to
40 hours of paid company time each year volunteering
for the nonprofit or school of their choice.
NetApp employees in Silicon Valley have forged
close relationships with the Second Harvest Food
Bank of Santa Clara and San Mateo Counties, the
American Heart Association and the American Cancer
Society. Simultaneously, Warmenhoven has served
on numerous Silicon Valley nonprofit and charitable
boards and operates the Warmenhoven Family Trust to
provide more direct cash contributions to charity.
Warmenhoven met recently with Silicon Valley
Community Foundation CEO and President Emmett
D. Carson and ONE contributor Janet Rae-Dupree at
NetApp’s headquarters in Sunnyvale.
Tell us about the role of corporate philanthropy
in shaping NetApp’s philosophy.
Early on, we identified five constituents in our
corporate values statement whom we serve: employees,
shareholders, customers, business partners and the
communities in which we are located. We believe that
we should be involved in the communities in which we
have a presence. We would like the people in each of
these communities to feel that we’re a good neighbor,
that we contribute to the community and that they
want us to be there.
Why did NetApp make philanthropy such a
critical part of its corporate philosophy
There was a book published around the time NetApp
went public called Built to Last [by James C. Collins
and Jerry I. Porras]. After we went public, the
executive team agreed that we were on the brink of a
great opportunity. We wanted to build a really great
company. Our goal became: When Built to Last Version 2
is written, we want to be a featured company.
In addition, for whatever reason, we recruited a
group of people who were particularly involved in
the community. This included our executive team,
who individually are very philanthropic in their
personal lives.
How do you decide where to focus your efforts
This is not like the old days, where George Eastman
decided how to donate the Kodak wealth. We let our
employees drive the company’s focus. We believe that
our employees should choose how they want to get
involved in the community, and the company backs
them. Typically, there is a high degree of employee
participation in the organization before there are a lot
of funds from NetApp going to the nonprofit.
What type of philanthropy are you doing
We’ve done a lot in three areas: cash, equipment and
volunteer time. Our total contributions last year were
just under $2.5 million. About half of that was in cash.
The second component, which gets overlooked, is
equipment. A lot of nonprofits have fairly antiquated IT
systems, and we can really make a difference. Last year
we donated almost $800,000 in NetApp systems and
software. When our customers upgrade, we take their
systems back and donate them to nonprofits, schools
and universities. It’s a great program because the
nonprofit is getting needed systems and software, we
are supporting organizations that are important to our
employees and we are reusing equipment that still has
a useful life and market value.
The third component is one we pioneered: the
volunteer time-off program. An employee can take up to
40 hours per year, with full pay and benefits, to volunteer
at the nonprofit or school of their choice. Employees love
it. This is a terrific win-win-win. The employees feel like
they’ve got time to get involved at their kids’ school or at
any other nonprofit in the community and that NetApp is
supporting them. You see NetApp volunteers everywhere
you go. We don’t lose anything in terms of employee
productivity, either. Our employees are professionals.
They’re goal-oriented. They get their jobs done.
What are the challenges to continuing
philanthropy through the downturn
It comes back to the value system. Anything we give
comes off the earnings line. You can argue that we’re
taking away from shareholders at a time when we’re
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