Welcome back for a second peek at nominees (in a series of behind-the-scenes previews!) for the 2013 National Philanthropy Day Awards. The official honors will be presented by the Association of Fundraising Professionals at the 26th annual awards luncheon on Friday, Nov. 1 at the Overture Center for the Arts. This week, we’ll introduce a second entry for the Outstanding Business or Corporation (100+ employees) category, though a formal introduction likely isn’t necessary for a business with such a wide reach and well-known branding message as Zimbrick, Inc.
Growing from a single auto dealership purchased in 1965 to 15 entities today with 900 employees, Zimbrick has positioned itself as an industry leader. Founder John Zimbrick has since handed off leadership responsibilities to his son Tom, establishing the company as a family business.
One of the many ways the company contributes to the fabric of its community is through its involvement with United Way of Dane County. In addition to John’s leadership as a campaign chair, the company has contributed $3 million through corporate gifts, special fundraising events, and employee donations since 1996, and it boasts a 90% employee participation rate. To maximize campaign returns, Zimbrick held a contest in 2011 for people who increased their personal level of giving or who were first-time donors to the United Way. The prize was a Mini Cooper. In 2012, a team of 100 employees volunteered for the Day of Caring and were given paid time off to contribute to community needs.
Like his father, Tom Zimbrick has chaired the United Way Campaign, but afterward, he envisioned a different campaign — one that would move the focus from addressing existing problems to favoring agencies that would take a preventive approach. The United Way of Dane County credits him with being the father of the resulting Agenda for Change philosophy that the agency embraced a decade ago, citing his vision and leadership as the two key drivers that reset the very focus of the agency’s mission.
Three years ago, Zimbrick decided to contribute to another systemic change platform — Schools of Hope. Fifteen employees used paid time off each week to tutor students on reading, writing, and math at Aldo Leopold Elementary School. Likewise, Zimbrick pays employees to deliver meals for Independent Living — in Zimbrick-provided vehicles — to low-income people who live alone. This is an ongoing weekly commitment that first began in 2011.
The Zimbrick model is based on the idea of a rising tide. First, the company is focused on business and customers, because if there are no profits, there can be no reinvestment. Then, Zimbrick focuses on employees and the affinities they have, which only encourages their participation and passion for philanthropy. Then, at the corporate level, with the 2% of profits that the business directly funnels back into community giving, decisions are made about quality of life for all members of the community.
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The corporation often reaches beneath the United Way umbrella to impact some of the agencies providing direct community services. Agrace Foundation is one beneficiary. Zimbrick has directly and indirectly, through its influence with other dealerships, raised over $100,000 to help cover the ongoing expenses of hospice care. The company has also supported Second Harvest Food Bank, Middleton Outreach Ministry, the Middleton High School Performing Arts Center, Goodman Pool, Adopt-a-Highway, and the Fitchburg Library, among other organizations.
After John Zimbrick moved his young family from Milwaukee to the Madison area in 1965, he chaired a U-Way campaign his first year in business. It was a sign of things to come. What was harder to predict was the household name he would brand and the philanthropic influence his family would have, generation after generation, in the greater community.
Is Zimbrick, Inc. a guaranteed winner of the Outstanding Business or Corporation Award? No! The competition is stiff! Whether or not it becomes the official award winner on Nov. 1 will remain a mystery until then!
Meanwhile, we’ll share another entrant for the awards program next week, so come back — and look back a week, too, to review the Lipps’ information before picking your favorite nominee! (The judges have actually already voted, and the count is in, but what the heck — it’s fun to play along before the official winners are announced on Nov. 1).
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