Employee community engagement is a cornerstone of the Firm’s culture and the foundation of our charitable efforts. Through extensive grantmaking, matching initiatives and coordinated volunteer efforts, the Firm encourages, recognizes and rewards employee generosity.

Our Programs:

Volunteer Incentive Program
To recognize and support employee volunteer efforts, Morgan Stanley’s Foundations offer grants through the Volunteer Incentive Program ("VIP"), one of the most robust ‘dollars for doers’ corporate programs on Wall Street. VIP grants support health, human service and environmental charities where our employees are active and ongoing volunteers. In addition to supporting employees’ efforts, the VIP enables us to reach out to hundreds of local, community-based organizations that may not have access to traditional sources of funding. Since its inception in 1993, the VIP has provided more than $30 million in support to thousands of communities.

Global Volunteer Month
Morgan Stanley’s Global Volunteer Month is our worldwide service initiative that encourages employees to give back to their communities. Held each June, the campaign engages employees in teams and individually on local service projects, serving as a springboard for year-round volunteer engagement. In 2011, over 20,000 employees volunteered on nearly 1,000 projects, contributing over 170,000 hours of service and benefiting over 500 nonprofit organizations.

Employee Giving and Matching
The generous employees of Morgan Stanley give annually through the firm’s employee charitable giving campaigns, which benefit more than 12,000 local charities and the core programs of the Morgan Stanley Foundation. In 2011, employees gave more than $34 million through the campaign. To increase the reach and impact of our employees’ giving, Morgan Stanley offers a unique initiative, called Charitable Spending Accounts. U.S. employees who contribute through the Annual Appeal, our annual employee giving program, are eligible to receive up to $4,000 in corporate funds that they can direct to charities. Unlike traditional ‘matching gifts’ programs, Charitable Spending Accounts offer employees the option of directing corporate dollars towards all U.S. charities, and not only those that they have personally funded. Participating employees may also make as many allocations with their accounts as they would like during each year. Since the program's inception, employees have allocated more than $21 million to nonprofits across the United States.