Welsh said that most organizations she’s encountered while working in the corporate social responsibility space are regionally and non-profit focused. While she cited One Percent for the Planet and Chef’s Best as groups people trust for their donating and rating processes, Welsh wanted to focus on companies who were exemplary in their giving to create a certification process that would resonate with individuals and other businesses.
In addition to being a tool for employee retention and recruitment, 10% Solution was designed as a way for partner companies to create new business to business relationships and create a knowledge base for sharing ideas and problems. Clients are invited to put the 10% Solution certification on their products with the idea that people vote with their conscience and other companies will take note.
The child of a design engineer and a nurse who both served in WWII, Welsh said she was raised in a household that made tithing to their church a priority. While 10% Solution isn’t tied to a specific faith, its name follows the concept of universal principles about giving. Welsh is the youngest of six daughters who lost their mother to ovarian cancer when she was in her 20s, and she said her mother’s example was central to the creation of her company. “Growing up, we were taught that service to others was just the way you live your life,” Welsh said. “This idea resonates strongly with women for that spiritual aspect and the good business sense.”
Welsh, who has a Masters degree in organizational management, worries that some companies are more concerned with promoting themselves in the name of cause marketing than they are with giving. She said that when companies’ net profits are compared with what they could actually afford to give, there is a discrepancy between the philanthropy being done and the lip service companies pay to their good deeds.
Shona Davidson, the president of i2i Interactive, worked with Welsh to execute the idea for 10% Solution online. In addition to quizzes for businesses and individuals to find out how close they are to “living a 10% life,” the site has links to resources including VolunteerMatch and DonorsChoose.org, in addition to Welsh’s recent blog post about recycling and disposing of electronics in a sustainable way.
