Oleg Krot: 8 steps for companies who want to help overcome COVID-19


In just a week WePlay! Esports has organized Dota 2 international charity tournament and raised $180,000 for a coronavirus vaccine. And at the same time, the company purchased ventilators for three hospitals in Ukrainian cities. In Medium blog the managing partner of TECHIIA holding shares experience and provides 8 tips for organizing effective corporate social responsibility.

Oleg Krot, alongside with his partner Yuriy Lazebnikov, has long been involved in charity in the field of childhood cancer control. But they didn't do it publicly until they realized they could set an example for other entrepreneurs.

Oleg Krot and Yuriy Lazebnikov

Oleg Krot and Yuriy Lazebnikov, the managing partners of TECHIIA holding

When the coronavirus hit Ukraine, we had no doubt that we should create a charity marathon. WePlay! ESports Company is the best platform for this. At the time of quarantine, interest in computer games grew, and on our platform, we gathered over 160,000 players and spectators who could donate to the WeSave! Charity Play online tournament
writes Oleg Krot

The tournament, which was attended by 24 famous teams from around the world, was set up in one week. The amount of money raised, which consisted of the prize pool and donations, exceeded $188,000 and was channeled into two funds - CEPI (The Coalition for Epidemic Preparedness Innovations) and Global Giving. Apart from this, the purchase of ventilators was financed in order to send them to hospitals of Kropyvnytskyi, Khmelnytskyi, and Kyiv. These hospitals were selected together with the IT Association and the #AntiVirus project.

WeSave! Charity Play

The experience gained during these events was presented by Oleg Krot in 8 steps, which can be useful to any socially responsible company:

  1. Focus your project on a specific region. Look for contacts from heads of communities and clarify any needs.
  2. Engage in volunteer projects and encourage donations from outside.
  3. Pay attention to long-term projects that will be useful throughout the pandemic and even longer.
  4. Be Realistic. Purchase equipment for hospitals that can properly use it and have qualified personnel.
  5. Think about the value and effectiveness of what you fund.
  6. Look for specific unique needs that you can cover. Don't spread your forces on everything at once.
  7. Stick to the plan you believe in. It was our belief that the surgeons of the hospitals where the equipment was sent would cope with it and that eSports fans would support our initiative.
  8. Share your projects, share experiences, and inspire others.

Read the full post on Medium.

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