spent on financial sponsorship in 2021
Acting with solidarity and responsibility
In line with its raison d’être “to encourage the entrepreneurial spirit”, Heppner gives all its employees and agencies the space to engage in societal projects anchored in their reality of life and territory. Also, as a responsible and supportive company, the group encourages initiatives and supports them materially and financially.
Magie à l'Hôpital (Magic in Hospitals): a group mobilisation !
Putting stars in the eyes of hospitalised children with long-term illnesses by organising magic shows or helping them make their dreams come true is the mission of the “Magic in Hospitals” Association, which Heppner has supported for several years. In 2021, Heppner employees are challenging themselves by running for the association with one goal in mind: pay €1 to the association for each kilometre they complete. At the end of November, Heppner had 19,053 km on the clock. The Heppner team in Barcelona mobilised immediately: we have to reach 20,000 km! A nice gesture that Daniel Fernandez, director of the agency in Barcelona comments on:
We saw the opportunity to engage the team for a good cause, an opportunity to share good times together and take action for our health! So, we created a WhatsApp group to share photos and motivate each other, so that everyone could participate at their own level, a few kilometres on foot, or more running. In the end, we were the most engaged team and we even completed 3 extra races at the end of the year to raise the counter. Helping others, accompanying them to be the best version of themselves… and above all setting an example, that’s what we do in Barcelona! We are passionate about our work and we want to contribute positively, by seeking excellence, to the improvement of our territory.
Commitment to solidarity transport
Solidarity transport is a commitment made by Heppner’s agencies in their territories to make the supply chain more responsible.
Carrying school supplies for a back-to-school solidarity:
On the initiative of the Lille branch, a chain of solidarity has been organised with the Agence du Don en Nature association to transport 32 pallets of school supplies from Lille to Lyon for the benefit of 8 associations at the start of the 2021 school year.
Skills sponsorship to help the most disadvantaged with Emmaüs Challenge (Emmaüs Défi):
Depending on the needs, the group’s employees in the regions manage various logistics flows alongside people on the Emmaüs Challenge reintegration programme. In 2021, this took shape with the Banque solidaire de l’équipement – a service that sells unsold household goods at low prices to the most vulnerable people when they move into their homes – or, at Christmas time, with support for Emmaüs Challenge’s Super Christmas operation, for which the teams were mobilised to collect, transport and distribute toys.
40
pallets were transported voluntarily for the benefit of the Emmaüs Challenge in 2021
Second Chance School: Heppner, business ambassador
The Mulhouse branch gave 7 young people under 26 from the Second Chance School enrolled in a “youth solidarity neighbourhood” plan the opportunity to meet its manager, Hakan Yilmaz. The latter talked to them about career opportunities in the transportation world as well as the importance of the company’s position and codes.
Heppner was chosen as “Champion of human capital and territories” by the Choiseul Institute in its ranking of the 150 most dynamic French companies, “the new conquerors of the economy”. This award reflects the group’s strategic ambition to put people and territories at the heart of its development and its raison d’être.
FOCUS : Heppner's Solidarity and Territories initiatives
Because solidarity is at the heart of Heppner’s values, the group launched the “Solidarity and Territoires Initiatives” in spring 2021, in order to contribute to projects initiated by employees and thus give them a decisive boost. Marina Dittberner, who works in collections at the Gronau branch in Germany, learned about the project in March 2021 through an e-mail to employees. 3 months later, after a presentation of her solidarity objective in front of a jury made up of various employees from the group, Marina was the winner of Initiatives 2021, thus benefiting from a financial contribution of €8,000 for her project.
L.E.N.A stands for Lindern (to soothe), Empathie (empathy), Nähe (closeness), Aufemerksamkeit (attention), it is also the name of my daughter who died of cancer at the age of 33 about 4 years ago. The objective of the L.E.N.A. Association is to provide support to patients at the end of their lives and to accompany their caregivers, in order to provide them with the means (material, organisational, administrative…) to remain at home as long as possible. I did everything I could to keep my daughter Lena at home until the end. We often talked about it, she really wanted it to be possible for others too.
When the competition was launched in the spring of 2021 I was ready, I had put my goals in writing. I knew I had won in June.
Heppner sponsor of the University of Strasbourg Foundation
As a local player, Heppner has been supporting the University of Strasbourg Foundation for the last 10 years. A total of €500,000 was paid out. At the centre of a sector that is currently undergoing a technological transformation, the group has mobilised to support the creation of the foundation’s Data Science and Artificial Intelligence (SD&IA) chair, becoming one of the most important contributors. Through this commitment, Heppner intends to encourage the convergence of AI and data, but also to contribute to the development of student skills in the face of this emerging field. With its engagement with this research, the company seeks to foster disruption and the development of new services for customers and consignees.
Chiffres clés
€98,000
Questions about L.E.N.A. association
How did you get involved in the Solidarity and Territories Initiatives and what was your background?
When I read the call for applications, I thought this was the way to turn my idea into reality. I did everything I could to keep Lena at home until the end. We often talked about it, she really wanted it to be possible for others too. I went through some tough times before I joined Heppner in June 2020, but by then I was ready, I had already put my goals in writing. I figured it was now or never and that it could provide me with the funding to get the project started. I immediately filled out the form, a few weeks later I presented my project to the jury, and four days later in June I knew I had won.
How did you react to this victory?
I was speechless… and immediately thought ‘I hope LENA sees this’ !
What is the status of your project today?
The association opened on 1 December 2021, there are 11 members in total, including 6 active members. After many months of administrative procedures to open the association and the bank account, we found and renovated a room with volunteers. The mayor even came to visit us. Now we have equipment (bed, walker, wheelchair …), some volunteers knit cotton breast prostheses for women who have had mastectomies due to cancer. Recently, we have developed a website… it’s coming along! What is certain is that without Heppner we would never have been able to launch this project.
What advice would you give to your colleagues to get started if they have an idea?
I sincerely hope that many of my colleagues will take the chance to do so in the future, and I also wanted to say how worthwhile the other projects that were submitted last year along with mine were
