Company: Hollister Inc., Boston, MA
Company Description: Hollister is a leading New England full-service recruiting firm, distinguished by our unwavering commitment to exceptional service and enduring relationships with our clients and candidates.
Nomination Category: Company/Organization Categories
Nomination Sub Category: Community Involvement Program of the Year

Nomination Title: Hollister Inc and Onsite Non Profit Everybody Wins Metro Boston

1. Describe for the judges the activities and accomplishments of the nominated company during the eligibility period (up to 500 words):

In today’s workforce, our clients are finding it increasingly difficult to attract,
motivate and retain top talent. New technology and fast-paced society demands
skill sets of candidates that become outdated as quickly as they are learned. It’s
this cycle that needs to be addressed. For Kip Hollister, the core issues
associated with this problem in workforce development are education and
mentoring. By partnering with local workforce development and education-focused
nonprofit organizations, we are actively engaged in the issues associated with
adapting to this cycle so that we can continue to have a healthy and diverse
workforce in the state of Massachusetts.

One local nonprofit Kip Hollister and the Hollister brand has become fully
intertwined with is Everybody Wins! Metro Boston (EWMB). The mission of this
organization is to reach children while they are young, stimulate their interest in
reading and learning, and encourage them to believe that they, too, can be
successful.

EWMB recognizes that too many children in Massachusetts lack the literacy
skills critical to success in school and establishing a solid foundation for
success in life. The schools they attend lack sufficient funding and often need outside
support to bring these children out of educational failure. While several community
programs seek to address these problems, EWMB’s signature Power Lunch
program is one of the few actually proven to effectively impact students at risk.
This program matches mentors and children for one-on-one reading sessions
weekly – an interaction that few of these children get at home.

In 2006 CEO, Kip Hollister asked EWMB to move onsite at Hollister’s corporate
headquarters in downtown Boston. Her motive: to support the organization’s long-
term growth and to strengthen the internal philanthropic culture of her own
company by bringing the energy of the cause in-house. The move has proven to
stimulate this not-for-profit’s growth by 133% making this the fastest growing
of all EW’s affiliates throughout the country. The message was sent loud and clear that
community is synonymous with the Hollister brand.

Since the move, half of Hollister’s employees have made the commitment to read
to a child weekly at the Dante Alighieri School of East Boston. Each employee,
through their participation in Power Lunch, has learned the significance of
mentoring and its impact. And for the Hollister culture – housing this
not-for-profit has effectively and permanently cemented the brand of Hollister and
its culture with philanthropy and the importance of giving back.

Another key component to EWMB’s significant growth is Hollister’s commitment
to messaging EWMB’s mission to community leaders. This networking is central
to Hollister’s mission and highlights relationship building and philanthropy as an
integral, if not central, theme. These introductions have been incredibly rewarding
to all involved.

Kip Hollister, sits on the EWMB, North Cambridge Catholic and YMCA’s Training,
Inc. Board of Trustees/ Directors. She sponsors several events for EWMB
inparticular including their annual meeting, and their important fundraiser Boston,
Books and Baseball.

2. List the URLs (web addresses) of any online news stories, press releases, or other documents that you would like the judges to see that support your entry. IMPORTANT: List each URL on a separate line, begin each URL with http://, and enclose each URL in square brackets. For example, [http://www.yourcompany.com/pressrelease.html]:

AWARDS
2008 Boston Chamber of Commerce’s Pinnacle Award for Entrepreneurship
2008 Enterprise Woman of the Year
2007 Induction into the Boston Business’ Hall of Fame through Junior
Achievement of Massachusetts
2007 Nonprofit Education Partnership of the Year
2006 Stevie Award for Women in Business

SPONSORSHIPS & AFFILIATIONS
Boston Philanthropy Summit
Boston Business Journal’s Best Places to Work
Junior Achievement’s Boston Business Hall of Fame
Citizen School’s WOW Annual Gala
Greater Boston Ad Club Diversity Network – Hollister Diversity Scholarship Fund
Massachusetts Rehabilitation Commission’s Annual Awards (we have a board
member on staff)
Everybody Wins! Metro Boston’s Fundraiser – Boston, Books, and Baseball
YMCA Training Inc.’s Partnership Breakfast
North Cambridge Catholic’s Annual Gala

RELATED PANELS
SBANE Breakfast Series on Leadership
Greater Boston’s Chamber Breakfast Series – Women With Vision: The
Entrepreneur's Blueprint for Success
Panel Host – Boston Business Journal’s Aligning Your Philanthropy with Your
Business Strategy
Panelist at Babson College’s Forum on Entrepreneurship and Innovation – Shaping
Competitive Advantage-Social Responsibility and the Entrepreneur
Panelist – Leadership Conference of Massachusetts
Panel Host at the Women’s Congress in Boston – Aligning your Philanthropy with
your Business Strategy

LINKS
http://www.prweb.com/releases/Hollister/Staffing/prweb1099484.htm
http://www.everybodywinsmetroboston.org/published%20articles/Hollister%20BBJ%20Award%20article%209.07.pdf

http://www.hollisterstaff.com/news/HollisterCelebrates20Years.asp
http://www.hollisterstaff.com/news/HollisterHostsEWMBAnnualMeeting.asp
http://www.hollisterstaff.com/news/sbane.asp
http://www.hollisterstaff.com/news/womenwithvisionkip.asp
http://www.hollisterstaff.com/news/hollisterbreaksasweat.asp
http://www.hollisterstaff.com/news/kip-hollister-honored-for-achievement-in-entrepreneurship.asp
http://www.hollisterstaff.com/kiprelationshipsfirst.asp
http://www.hollisterstaff.com/news/news-3-12-2007.asp
http://www.hollisterstaff.com/news/news-11-3-2006.asp

3. Provide a brief biography of the person or persons who lead the nominated company (up to 100 words):

Kip Hollister
Founder and CEO
http://www.hollisterstaff.com/index.asp (Kip Webcast)

As CEO and owner of Hollister, Kip Hollister continues to set the long-term
strategic course and steer the daily operations with the passion and commitment
she did 20 years ago when she founded the firm.

Hollister opened the doors in 1988 with the dream of eliminating the
transactional nature of the industry. Her goal was to build a values and
relationship driven organization, while guiding both candidates and clients through the
real challenges associated with the ever evolving job market. In 2008, it is precisely
those values and relationships that have built Hollister Inc. into one of the
premier staffing firms in Massachusetts, focusing on Accounting & Finance,
Administrative, Creative, Human Resources, and Technology careers.

Hollister's focus on innovation and expansion of the firm’s capabilities to remain
competitive and ahead of rivals, speaks directly to her entrepreneurial spirit and
doing whatever is necessary to meet and exceed our clients’ and candidates’
needs.

As a steadfast supporter of business-community partnerships, Kip recognizes
Hollister is only as strong as the community it serves. She serves on the boards of
YMCA, Training Inc. and North Cambridge Catholic High School, Everybody Wins!!
Metro Boston, as well as also being actively involved with City Year and Year Up.

Kip earned her bachelor’s degree in sociology from the Susquehanna University in
1984.