Groundswell stands on its core value of service. We were founded on a vision and mission of building community power through the lens of service. At Groundswell, we believe that service is a privilege, not a chore. It's one of the things we take pride in — putting people first and keeping them at the center of our community solar projects.
At its core, excellent service is what we strive to offer and build within our stakeholders, partners, and team members. As Groundswell's culture keeper and Human Resource lead, I've pondered how and what we can do as an organization to continue serving and creating a culture that promotes growth, equality, peace of mind, and joy as we fight for energy justice.
The word "value" is commonly associated with an item's worth. In personal reflection, it can be referred to as a person's principles or standards of what is important to them. Valuing people and service should be at the center of every organization. Our investment into people determines whether they choose to stay in our organization for one to five years or move on to a place where they see, feel, and know their value. I believe — like many other successful organizations that promote value — that when we invest in our team members, we will receive a return on that investment.
Teamwork and collaboration are two of my strongest beliefs. Within those two beliefs comes the ability to understand the strengths, desires, and goals of the people you work with every day. During these unrivaled times in which people are socially distanced, detached, and don't have the capacity to meet up and physically spend time with others, it's essential to proactively find ways to engage and serve their basic needs.
I am, however, grateful that Groundswell chooses to be intentional about prioritizing service. We continue to push the envelope to meet the needs of those we serve outside our organization while building, fostering, and cultivating the tools to birth servitude within our organization, which will fuel future growth in service for years to come!
Keep serving with joy,
Kristal