Gliffy Contributes Pledge 1% Funding To Spur Innovation In Work To Prevent Homelessness In San Francisco

Today San Francisco-based software company Gliffy and the City of San Francisco’s Department of Homelessness and Supportive Housing (HSH) announced a new step in reducing homelessness in San Francisco.    The announcement focuses on a new and innovative approach: Problem Solving.

The new Problem Solving approach is supported by a $400,000 gift from Gliffy.   Gliffy Founder and Chairman of the Board Chris Kohlhardt; Jeff Kositsky, Director of the San Francisco Department of Homelessness & Supportive Housing; and SF Mayor Mark Farrell announced the Problem Solving approach today at an event held at Compass Family Services, a non-profit that helps San Francisco families find their way from homelessness to economic self-sufficiency.  

Gliffy’s gift stems from the company’s desire to make a positive impact in the community and its participation in the Pledge 1% movement, which encourages companies to give back 1% of their profit in equity, profit, volunteer time or product.   

“As Gliffy has learned, Pledge 1% can provide an effective and easy model for those companies who may not have a philanthropic program in place but would like to give back,” said Kohlhardt.   “Joining Pledge 1% early in a company’s trajectory can ensure giving is a part of a company’s DNA,” he said.

The mid-sized company, which has 39 employees, hired a philanthropic advisor to help guide them on options that could have the maximum direct effect on a challenging issue in San Francisco.  A partnership with HSH began soon after.

While relatively new to San Francisco, Problem Solving has been used in other communities with tangible results.  Problem Solving is designed to be brief, one-time interventions that enable people to help themselves. In some cases, this will mean flexible grants to remove barriers to housing, such as help with car repairs, unpaid utility bills or rental assistance for those starting a new job.  The goal is to empower people with creative solutions to avoid entering shelters or sleeping outside.

In addition to Gliffy’s grant to HSH, Gliffy staff will support HSH staff with technical assistance activating their engineering and marketing expertise towards HSH’s new Strategic Framework and goals.

“There are many opportunities to give back to the community.  Gliffy has been motivated by the work of the talented team at HSH and their partner agencies, but more importantly Gliffy staff has rallied to do something for their fellow San Franciscans.  This shovel ready project is starting and there are hundreds behind it that could use support from the business community,“ said Kohlhardt.

Gliffy started its philanthropic program in 2014 with the funding from the Gliffy Charitable Fund and the commitment to set aside 5% of profits for philanthropic giving.  Gliffy’s 39 team members would help the company direct gifts each quarter to non-profit organizations that meant something to them. Gliffy subsequently joined Pledge 1%.

Gliffy hopes to inspire other companies to think bigger about their philanthropic programs or to consider establishing a philanthropic program if they do not already have one.

“At Gliffy we haven’t forgotten about our business goals or objectives, but we are working to expand our place in the community and do our part to give back,” said Kohlhardt.  “We hope to inspire other smaller companies to incorporate a philanthropy program into their work. We are eager to help. Contact me at pledge-advice@gliffy.com,” he said.

###

With over 5 million users, Gliffy has been the leading visual communication tool since 2005. Gliffy has a freestanding, online diagramming offering as well as dedicated apps for Atlassian’s Jira and Confluence. With diagram types ranging from UML, AWS, and ERD to flowcharts and wireframes, Gliffy is used by software engineers, product managers, designers, marketers and business people alike. Gliffy is trusted by over 10k companies, including Airbus, Nasa, Cisco, Audi and Visa to name a few. Gliffy—give your ideas shape.

Read more about the partnership with the City’s Department of Homelessness and Supportive Housing and Gliffy here:

Op-Ed with Department of Homelessness and Supportive Housing

More details on Gliffy’s Charitable Fund

About Gliffy

With over 5 million users, Gliffy has been the leading visual communication tool since 2005. Gliffy has a freestanding, online diagramming offering as well as dedicated apps for Atlassian’s Jira and Confluence. With diagram types ranging from UML, AWS, and ERD to flowcharts and wireframes, Gliffy is used by software engineers, product managers, designers, marketers and business people alike. Gliffy is trusted by over 10k companies, including Airbus, Nasa, Cisco, Audi and Visa to name a few. Gliffy—give your ideas shape.