Tech companies are viewed as good employers in Ukraine. They offer competitive salaries, interesting work in the development of innovative technologies, and most run a socially responsible business.
At least that’s what many of those inside the industry say.
But there’s good reason to believe them. While big “old economy” corporations might rely on the power of their brands, vast infrastructure and worldwide networks, IT companies — no matter where they are based — rely primarily on the brainpower of their workers. So it’s simply good business to look after them.
“IT companies are focused on human capital, as this is their main asset,” Aleksandra Alkhimovych, the deputy managing director of Ukrainian tech company Luxoft Ukraine, told the Kyiv Post. That’s why the tech business mainly focuses on people, the local and wider community, talent development and the strengthening of human capital, she said.
And this is where corporate social responsibility, or CSR, comes into play.
CSR means different things to different companies — it can be the provision of equal conditions for all employees, creating comfortable conditions for work, the provision of recreational services, implementing recycling and environmental protection policies, and much more.
While relatively new to Ukraine, CSR is gaining some traction in society. This can be seen from the blooming of a range of social initiatives in the country, according to Alkhimovych.
“The fact that modern Ukraine has switched to the path of transforming into a strong, independent and democratic state has given birth to a wide range of socially important initiatives,” Alkhimovych said.
Making a difference
In the main, tech companies’ CSR initiatives concern creating good conditions for their employees and the communities around them.
Luxoft Ukraine, for example, actively promotes a healthy working environment and the overall well-being of their employees. Maintaining a good work-life balance can help “enhance personal development and improve productivity at work,” Alkhimovych says.
The company encourages employee participation in charity marathons and blood donation drives.
Meanwhile, Ukrainian software developer MacPaw’s CSR initiatives are mainly educational projects. Its employees give lectures at Kyiv Polytechnic Institute, and organize various educational competitions for students.
“We help young professionals develop their potential,” says Oleksandr Kosovan, the founder and CEO of MacPaw. “We don’t know what the result will be, but even if we influence just one person, inspiring them to some future accomplishments, it’s already been worth it.”
Ukrainian IT company Sigma Software also runs educational projects, donating money to the Ukrainian Catholic University to help pay for scholarships for undergraduates, Sigma Software CEO Valery Krasovsky told the Kyiv Post. In addition, Sigma has contributed to society by developing the Lviv and Odesa local government websites, he said.
“For IT companies, CSR can include activities aimed at creating a new society, investment in education, support for universities, changing the way tech professionals are being trained in Ukraine, and running charitable initiatives,” Krasovsky said.
This is exactly what we do, the executive said.
“We believe that businesses should not only consume, but also give. Such a long-term investment… will work for the benefit of all Ukrainians in the future.”
Honest taxpayers
Most mid-sized and large tech companies in Ukraine now have CSR departments up and running, and that includes the country’s second biggest cellphone operator, Vodafone Ukraine.
Its CSR department’s main responsibility is to take care of the company’s own employees, according to Vodafone Ukraine’s Victoria Ruban, the company’s PR director.
“We make sure that the jobs are steady, salaries and bonuses are decent and ‘white,’ and that employees have comfortable work conditions and chances to boost their careers.”
Paying taxes honestly in Ukraine counts, too, she says. The operator says it does not use any of the “notorious” schemes in Ukraine to evade taxes.
“We pay properly, and in full,” Ruban told the Kyiv Post.
Ruban said Vodafone’s concept of CSR includes only working with companies that don’t breach any laws, and that have “not been caught working with their clients dishonestly.”
Employees of Sigma Software fight with pillows in the company’s Lviv office in March. Sigma Software CEO Valeriy Krasovskiy says tech companies tend to be much more active in corporate social responsibility than traditional firms. (Sigma Software)
Not just PR
All the same, there are still critics of company CSR initiatives — those who see such company activities as simply a fancy form of public relations.
Alkhimovych of Luxoft-Ukraine disagrees, saying this is mostly not the case in the Ukrainian IT sector, where more and more companies are focusing on contributing to society over the long term.
And according to Vodafone’s Ruban, good PR can be an outcome of a good CSR project — becoming a welcome side effect rather than the goal of the initiative itself.
“Good PR comes from projects that really do help others,” she says.
For example, Vodafone has created a set of tourist routes in various Ukrainian cities, placing QR codes near popular sights. People scan the codes with their smartphones for links to information about the sight, as well as further directions for their tour around the city.
“Today, big business understands that it has a responsibility not only for its own wellbeing, but also that it should contribute to positive socio-economic changes in society,” Ruban said.
“Social initiatives are investments in the future. They help the long-term development of a company by creating a reputation and enhancing loyalty.”
Do people care?
Vodafone’s Ruban believes the public appreciates such efforts, even if they are made primarily for the long-term benefit of the company itself.
According to a study carried out for Vodafone by recruitment company HeadHunter, 14 percent of job seekers consider the ethics and social responsibility of a business when deciding where to apply for a job. About 37 percent are concerned with chances for career development, and 32 percent want to work entirely legally, with no off-the-book payments, and the company to operate transparently and within the law.
“These figures show that how responsibly a business conducts itself is one of the criteria that directly affects job-seekers’ choice of a place of work,” Ruban said.
Kosovan of MacPaw, however, is not so sure.
“Honestly, I don’t think that CSR affects the decisions of job seekers,” he said. “It does, however, definitely affect the productivity and loyalty of people who are already employed.”
More effort
Sigma Software CEO Valeriy Krasovskiy says tech companies tend to be much more proactive than traditional firms.
“I note the more active position of IT companies in terms of reforming the current legislation, in close cooperation with professional associations,” Krasovsky said. “Also, IT companies do a lot for the development of IT education and community growth.”
MacPaw’s Kosovan agrees: “In IT, people are more conscientious. They exchange experience with their foreign colleagues more often, and are open to change.”
But CSR policies are ultimately a reflection of corporate culture and the philosophy of management, and the IT sector is not necessarily more progressive in this than other sectors, said Oleksiy Yatsyuk, the head of social projects and CSR at delivery company Nova Poshta.
“CSR is most often a reflection of the personal vision and values of the owners of the company, their business development philosophy — regardless of the industry,” Yatsyuk told the Kyiv Post.
The Kyiv Post’s IT coverage is sponsored by Ciklum. The content is independent of the donors.
