Emerging Leaders at Bayer Answer Call to Hunger for None
By Kevin Moore, Global Operational Excellence Manager, Bayer Crop Science Division and National Co-lead, Emerging Leaders Network, Bayer
There is no denying this year has been a struggle for everybody. From the novel coronavirus to the economic pressures from the pandemic and tragic examples of social injustice, 2020 is a year we won’t forget. It’s been a year of challenges but also a year of learning and opportunities for growth.
More than ever our country and our company need to come together, and I think 2020 has given us more than enough reasons to do so. People need help. If we wish to live up to Bayer’s vision of “Health for All, Hunger for None,” then we need to come together to tackle a number of challenges — and we do.
Everyone has a group they go to when the going gets tough. Family, friends, managers and, for a lot of us, support networks we’ve built within Bayer. For Abby Brentzel and myself, one of those networks is Emerging Leaders Network (ELN). We co-lead this Bayer Business Resource Group (BRG) with its powerful mission: accelerating emerging leaders to their future by connecting smart and motivated people, developing skills that matter and providing opportunities to volunteer in our community through the lens of Bayer’s LIFE values.
The Emerging Leaders Network is a Business Resource Group (BRG) at Bayer. Business Resources Groups (BRGs) are a vital part of Bayer’s Inclusion and Diversity strategy. BRGs are voluntary, company sponsored and employee led groups who work together to promote inclusion within Bayer and provide a multicultural lens to Bayer’s engagement of our customers and the communities in which we have operations.
From learning opportunities to social events to community service opportunities, ELN provides an outlet for those who want to better themselves, learn above and beyond their job, spend quality time with colleagues or support others. And we also provide valuable insights back to the business, sharing perspectives and building understanding of what’s important to our communities.
As national co-leads of ELN, Abby and I try to live each day following this mission. Which is why when Arianna Demos, Co-lead of Bayer’s St. Louis Community Engagement Team, and her team brought forward an opportunity to give back to the local community earlier this year, we jumped at the opportunity.
“We quickly realized the severity of the COVID-19 situation and brainstormed ideas to help our community in such an uncertain environment,” said Arianna. “Both ELN and broader Bayer have partnered with Operation Food Search in the past, and we came across their Emergency Response 2020 campaign to support ongoing challenges with food access — a virtual food drive that allowed for people to truly make a positive impact without leaving the safety of their homes during lockdown.”
What happened next showed the power of doing the right thing. We shared the initiative with our Whippany, NJ chapter and immediately, Tristan Breeze, Finance Chair for the Whippany team, began to consider how he could create a similar impact in their community.
“I was inspired by what my St. Louis colleagues were doing with Operation Food Search,” said Tristan. “I had worked with the Food Bank for New York City years ago and remembered it being a great partnership. Since New York City and Whippany are so close and with this area being the epicenter at the time, it seemed fitting to choose the area hardest hit by the pandemic.”
As I said earlier, people have a group they go to when the going gets tough. For individuals who have been hit hard by unforeseen circumstances, Operation Food Search and The Food Bank for New York City are groups that provide this much needed help.
From there, we spread the word by sharing the opportunity to help with our Executive Sponsors (Vice President of Quality, U.S., Karin Ann Payne and SVP, Chief Financial Officer U.S., Kelly Gast) and promoting the initiatives in our ELN communications, on social media (internal and external), and engaged family/friends. In under a month, the team raised $59,000 between the two combined charities! To make that more tangible, every dollar raised in St. Louis was equal to $10 of food and nutritional services; every dollar in New York City was equal to five meals.
After hearing of the great success in Whippany and St. Louis, the Pittsburgh ELN chapter was inspired to make a difference in their community as well. Together, the Pittsburgh sites raised $30,000 for the Greater Pittsburgh Community Food Bank where every dollar is equal to five meals.
As we reflect on the last six months, our role has become clearer than ever. As fortunate people with jobs, the ability to work from home and other amazing benefits Bayer offers, we need to look to our less fortunate friends and neighbors and take action to help achieve the Bayer vision of “Health for All, Hunger for None.” Anyone can be impacted by circumstances and each of us can offer support. As national co-leads of ELN, Abby and I couldn’t be prouder of the ELN team and the way they came together to answer that call.
