“As corporate citizens, it’s our responsibility to ensure we’re creating a community that’s healthy, progressive, supporting people and moving forward. Our purpose is helping clients thrive and communities prosper — and many, many of our employees have that mindset around giving back. RBC has very strong values and we’ve had a very long and strong relationship with United Way. We actually have internal stories about how we have benefited from the services United Way supports. And when I look at our employee giving campaign here locally, I’m proud to say we’ve increased our participation by 10% this year, which shows the culture we’ve cultivated. Our employees are going out and giving not only in dollars but in their time, and it’s so rewarding to see that and to be part of the support network that’s happening. It makes you a better person and a better employee.

“But how do we challenge other corporations to step up? Working together with a multi-corporation focus is critical to establish a vibrant community. The awareness piece is very important. Everyone has their cause, and they’re all worthwhile. But when you look at an organization like the United Way — it’s professionally managed, they understand where the need is — that goes a long way. We are very fortunate in Waterloo Region where there are new jobs being created, new companies coming, growth, development, infrastructure spending. But the need continues to grow and we can’t close our eyes to that need as much as we are a prosperous and wealthy region. I think collaboration is key.”