Here at CXR we are very intentional about community because we believe that the values of a community reach far beyond any meeting or webinar or benchmark report. Our Talent Acquisition Community and our new Talent Management Community come with a robust set of resources but we know that the strongest resource of all is in the people and their contributions.
We are constantly exploring new ways to help our community connect and engage. (It’s one of the reasons we brought on a new Community Managing Director.) Earlier this year, during one of those discussions, we began wondering if we could also connect to the communities in which we are hosting meetings. While we certainly connect with our members all year long, we felt that there was an opportunity for all of our attending members to come together and make a difference for a few hours.
“CXR Cares” was born
We now bring our members together the morning before each meeting starts to work in service. “The CXR Cares event that I attended at the food pantry in Park City, Utah, was excellent on a few different levels. First off, it is always great to help do something positive for the communities that we visit. It was really interesting getting to work alongside the folks that are so passionate about it,” says Jim Battaglia from Merakey. “We were able to learn a little about the logistics and behind the scenes of what it takes to run a successful food pantry. The amount of meals they are able to provide weekly is astounding. Also, many times in our travels, it consists of airplanes, hotels and offices and we never get to dive into the cities and towns we are visiting. This was a great way to get to know a little about the community that we were visiting. I would recommend the experience to anyone and will participate in any CXR Cares event in the future!”
So far we’ve led a workshop for college students around interview skills, resumé writing and job search; we’ve stocked shelves in food pantries; prepped and cooked meals for those in need – and we’re just getting started!
We’re helping others which is certainly worth the time all on its own. Perhaps the best benefit, however, is getting to know our members on a different level. “Since this was my first CXR conference, I wanted to participate in the community service event to meet those attending the event before the conference began. It was great to meet the CXR team in advance of the conference and to “talk shop” with industry experts,” comments Brad Riley from Verizon. “We’re all so busy balancing home and work life that CXR should continue to offer community service events because it shows the impact that a few can make on an entire community. I left the community service event really appreciating CXR for setting this up for us.”
The CXR Talent Community is comprised of some amazing people with diverse backgrounds. Bringing them together to work in service ties them more closely to each other and when a community grows closer on different levels, it grows stronger. CXR Cares may have started as an initiative to help those in need and give back to different service organizations but it’s ended up as something far larger. And isn’t that what community is all about?
[CXR Chat: What recruiting leaders take away from a CXR Meeting]
