KPMG corporate citizenship report

Helping make a better world

Focus on: Youth and Education

Through a number of programs, including two exciting new sponsorships, KPMG deepens its philanthropic focus on youth and education.

Reviving Baseball in Inner Cities™

Last year KPMG became presenting corporate sponsor of the Major League Baseball® Reviving Baseball in Inner Cities™ (RBI™) youth outreach program. The program's goals include increasing participation in baseball and softball, encouraging academic achievement, promoting the inclusion of minorities in the mainstream of the game, developing self-esteem, and encouraging community citizenship. To date more than 900 partners and employees have stepped up to the plate as volunteers in RBI activities across the United States, both on and off the field. KPMG professionals have served as coaches, scorekeepers, field maintenance workers, and site managers. In addition, KPMG is applying skills-based volunteering by helping create local governance for RBI chapters as well as providing academic and mentoring help to youngsters involved in RBI. KPMG is excited and proud to support the many aspects of this creative program, including the formation of RBI's first-ever National Advisory Board and the recently-developed "RBI for RBI Scholarship Fund" for deserving inner city youth.

KPMG's Family for Literacy

KPMG's Family for Literacy is our newest firmwide community involvement program. Teaming with First Book, a national non-profit organization, we are committed to bringing the gift of literacy to children from low-income families. Our goal is straightforward: to put new books into the homes of boys and girls throughout the United States. This initiative addresses a serious need, given that the majority of children from low-income families have virtually no books in their homes or classrooms. Family for Literacy is open to KPMG employees and partners, and their family members as well as KPMG alumni. Plans are underway for participants to organize volunteers to help fund the purchase of books, distribute them, and conduct reading programs in schools. In our first year, we expect to deliver more than 200,000 new books to children from low-income homes.

Students in Free Enterprise

KPMG's focus on youth and education also includes initiatives such as its sponsorship of Students in Free Enterprise (SIFE). The purpose of SIFE is to help students develop business leadership skills. KPMG's involvement began in 1996 and we are proud that our sponsorship has helped the program go global. SIFE not only helps students build skills, it encourages them to create economic opportunities for others. SIFE urges students to promote five business elements: market economics, success skills, entrepreneurship, financial literacy and business ethics. Today, more than 38,000 college students at more than 1,500 universities in 48 countries around the world participate in SIFE.

Earlier this year, KPMG appointed Shaun Kelly, Vice-Chair – Tax to be the firm's new leader for our U.S. involvement with SIFE. Kelly also has been elected to serve as a member of SIFE's executive committee. At the same time, we announced that Lord Michael Hastings, KPMG's Global Head of Citizenship and Diversity, will be KPMG's leader for our international involvement with SIFE, and will serve as a member of SIFE's International Oversight Committee.

KPMG's work with SIFE has produced many benefits. Most important, the program helps thousands of less fortunate individuals and communities around the world. And, SIFE has become a source of talent for KPMG — at least 40 KPMG people in the U.S. are SIFE alumni, while many more have joined KPMG member firms worldwide.

Back to top