At 3M we seek to observe, understand and solve. What we believe is simple: We are people committed to helping other people. Every day we help tackle problems, big and small, in pursuit of our vision to improve every life.

Improving Lives through Innovation and Action

3M Impact in a Day: a nonprofit hackathon for social good

January 23, 2020

3M invited local nonprofits to workshop with employees on different facets of their organizations, including human resources, IT, marketing and finance. 22 nonprofits participated, and 3M invested $55,000 in their causes.

Business colleagues collaborating on solving a problem.

3M hosted a hackathon for social good called 3M Impact in a Day. More than 20 nonprofit organizations from across the Twin Cities came to 3M Center to collaborate with 3Mers in half-day hackathon workshops to explore solutions for pressing business challenges.

By participating, the nonprofits received pro bono consultation on opportunities to increase operational efficiency and generate cost savings, enabling them to expand their reach and impact on community issues ranging from education to poverty to sustainability. In addition, 3Mgives, the social investment arm of 3M, will provide a $2,500 grant to each organization — a community investment totaling $55,000 — to help implement the solutions identified during the hackathon.

Each day of the week focused on a different job function — human resources, manufacturing and supply chain, IT, marketing and communications, and finance. Together, the nonprofits and 3Mers took on challenges such as streamlining operations for community-based nutrition programming, creating a multiyear cost analysis to evaluate the sustainability of a social venture program and developing an interactive education platform for remote teachers and students.

“3M Impact in a Day provided an opportunity for employees to tackle pressing issues like education, STEM, the circular economy and the environment by putting their skill sets, knowledge and experiences to work in partnership with a nonprofit,” said Felipe Lara-Angeli, Vice President of Learning, Engagement and Inclusion, 3M Human Resources. “It was a great development opportunity for 3Mers and at the same time added value to our communities.”

3M Impact in a Day by the numbers

5 hackathons based on job function
22 Twin Cities nonprofit organizations
127 3M employee participants
$55,000 invested in the local community

Supporting our communities through skills-based service

3Mgives created 3M Impact — a set of skills-based volunteer service programs — to empower 3Mers to use their business expertise to make a difference in our communities while also developing as leaders and problem-solvers. Conducted with program partner PYXERA Global, the 3M Impact programs include:

3M Impact Global — Our flagship program that sends 3Mers from around the world to an international location to share their skills with organizations focused on social and environmental issues.

3M Impact Local — This program enables 3Mers to work with organizations dedicated to enacting positive change in their own community.

3M Impact in a Day — Held for the first time at 3M Center in March 2019, these half-day service hackathons connect 3Mers with community nonprofits seeking functional expertise.