What can the ability of ten obtain? Right here at Cisco, it could — and does — change lives.
With ten days off to volunteer by our Time2Give program, $10,000 in matching donations, and tens of 1000’s staff collaborating, Cisconians are empowered to show Function into motion, yr after yr.
And it’s not simply good for communities; it’s good for enterprise. A three-year longitudinal examine from Cisco’s Folks Intelligence crew discovered that Cisco staff who gave again stayed on the firm longer, had larger bonuses, and acquired extra peer recognition.
“[Volunteerism] is a strategy to actually drive enterprise worth,” shared Cisco Chief Social Influence and Inclusion Officer, Brian Tippens, to Human Sources Director. “It may also be seen as a strong model constructing software, or constructing belief as an moral provider, moral accomplice within the communities the place we stay and work.”
As we shut out fiscal 2025 (July 2024 – July 2025), our folks’s collective influence was felt in communities all over the world. By the numbers:
- 81% of staff participated in neighborhood influence initiatives – for the sixth yr in a row
- 566,166 complete volunteer hours
- $33.4M complete in worker donations and matching presents
In fact, whereas the numbers are spectacular, they don’t present the true story of our influence. So seize your suitcases — we’re taking you all over the world to see how our staff are putting our Function into motion.
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An opportunity connection by a Cisco mentorship program led Josh Forrest to Engineers With out Borders (EWB), a non-profit that helps communities meet fundamental human wants by engineering initiatives.
He discovered a few venture at Wema Youngsters’s Centre in Kenya, an orphanage that serves ~400 college students from pre-Ok to highschool. On account of an inconsistent power grid, the centre was dealing with excessive working prices, variable water and electrical energy entry, and well being considerations. EWB was initially introduced on to assist alleviate a typhoid outbreak, and the necessity for help continued to develop.
Josh, a Technical Consulting Engineer – who simply so occurred to have {an electrical} engineering diploma and a dad with a photo voltaic enterprise – jumped on the probability to present again. Along with 5 volunteers, together with his Cisco mentor and his father, Josh spent two weeks in Kenya. Throughout that point, the crew put in 24 photo voltaic panels that generate 10kW of energy, and an extra 30kW battery financial institution that gives electrical energy by the night time.
“The factor that made the largest influence was seeing the youngsters gentle up when there was water and lightweight at night time with out the concern of it going off,” shared Josh. “Seeing how excited they had been was indescribable.”
Josh has been invited to return once more subsequent yr – serving to to teach the scholars on constructing their very own photo voltaic panel techniques.
📍 San Jose, United States
When Mohit Vaswani, a Cisco Resolution Engineer, and his spouse witnessed homelessness of their area people, they knew they couldn’t sit again whereas others went to sleep hungry. As a substitute, in 2013, his household started taking motion, one peanut butter and jelly sandwich at a time.
“We began making meals in our kitchen and distributing them each week to shelters,” shared Mohit. “We began very small with solely 50 sandwiches … however our program grew as extra family and friends joined.”
Immediately, Mohit distributes roughly 500 – 700+ meals per week to 5 Bay Space shelters and charities by his non-profit group, Lunch Bag Initiative. Donations to Lunch Bag Initiative are actually absolutely matched by Cisco by its Matching Items program, with Mohit and Cisco staff volunteering time by Time2Give — serving to to finish starvation, sandwich by sandwich.
📍 France, Spain, and Portugal Europe
Every year, Cisco staff all over the world lace up their boots — not simply to stroll, however to make a tangible distinction. The custom started in 2022, when greater than 400 Cisconians from 21 international locations walked a portion of the Camino de Santiago, a pilgrimage path community in Europe, elevating over €100,000 for most cancers charities.
Constructing on that momentum, almost 300 colleagues and members of the family from 21 international locations got here collectively this previous June on a “journey for local weather motion,” trekking between France, Spain, and Portugal. 35,000 kilometers had been hiked as staff took significant steps (actually!) for the planet.
Over the course of 5 days (with some mountaineering 10 days), members raised consciousness and funds for NGOs addressing the impacts of local weather change, strengthening their collective dedication to sustainability and international connection. In complete, almost $90,000 USD was raised for 17 charities.
📍 East
In April 2025, 10 Cisco volunteers from three international locations got here collectively for a ten-day volunteer journey to help Palestinian refugees dwelling in 4 refugee camps throughout Lebanon.
Masking over 1,000 kilometers throughout the nation — from Beirut to Saida to Tripoli to Baalbek — the crew’s mission was easy: to deliver pleasure and help to those that have been displaced.
By way of their Time2Give journeys, which have dated again to 2023, the crew has positively impacted 1,500 households, sponsored greater than 250 orphans, skilled 400 college college students, and lots of extra. Their work spanned renovating and bettering clinics to delivering licensed trainings to college students and academics, together with by Cisco Networking Academy.
“After we acknowledge the ability of inclusion and are available along with a standard goal, we will pursue a noble trigger in our lives and for humanity – serving to folks of their deepest hour of want,” shared Mohammed Suwwan, an Account Government based mostly in Germany and a co-organizer of the journey.
📍 Japan, Asia
For Masahiro Takebayashi, a ardour for connectivity began early — on the paths of a mountain hike organized by his college, Sugamo Excessive College in Japan.
However, with no cellphone reception, what occurs if there was medical emergency?
Masahiro noticed a chance — and an answer by networking infrastructure.
“It was by this occasion that I developed an curiosity in wi-fi know-how, which led me to pursue a profession at TAC Wi-fi,” shared Masahiro, right this moment a Technical Consulting Engineer at Cisco.
This previous fiscal yr, he volunteered as an alumnus and entered the mountain two days previous to the occasion, serving to arrange antennas and set up a wi-fi communication community between mountain cabins. He plans to proceed aiding on the trek by Cisco Time2Give.
What’s subsequent in fiscal 2026
Waiting for fiscal 2026, we stay dedicated to our Function – to Energy an Inclusive Future for All – and to supporting our folks as they create a optimistic influence on communities all over the world. Collectively, as staff, prospects, companions, stakeholders, and Cisco staff, we will flip particular person motion into international influence.
Psst – Are you a Cisco worker who desires to become involved? Head to our Neighborhood Influence Portal to begin discovering volunteer alternatives, requesting matching presents, beginning a fundraiser, and extra. And, if in case you have a Time2Give story price sharing, we’d love to listen to it — attain out through communityimpact@cisco.com
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