Combining cash contributions with employee volunteers

In 2008 we announced a new program, focused on our home state of Connecticut, which will complement our $5.1 million in local grants with human capital: UTC employees. We will be harnessing the skills behind our financial and corporate responsibility performance to assist community non-profit organizations. The "Building Community Excellence" program will match UTC employee expertise with the needs of non-profit organizations in Greater Hartford.

UTC employees, using talents they’ve developed on the job, are now working with non-profits on projects to increase operating efficiencies and performance. Our internal operating system, Achieving Competitive Excellence (ACE), will be the underpinning for these efforts. ACE helps identify customer needs and significantly improve performance while eliminating waste.

• Projects launched in 2008 at the Mark Twain House, CT Public Television and Hartford Stage are designed to generate significant operating improvements in 2009. 
• We completed a project for the Hartford Marathon Foundation which involved reducing the environmental footprint of its largest annual race. The race became one of the first sporting events in the country to be assessed and awarded a Gold rating from the Council for Responsible Sport.
• A project launched with the South Arsenal Neighborhood Development (SAND) is working with our green building engineers and design experts at the United Technologies Research Center to create zero net energy affordable housing in Hartford’s North end.  These homes are designed to consume no more energy than they produce and ground breaking on the first home is scheduled for spring 2009.  

"Building Community Excellence" started in Hartford, but we hope to replicate its success in other communities over time.