Corporate Impact at Guardian
Doing the right thing since day one
Guardian has thrived for more than 160 years on the premise that when we help others succeed, we succeed. Our Corporate Impact efforts are guided by this commitment and aligned with our purpose to inspire well-being®.
"Guardian's focus on Corporate Impact is aligned with our rich legacy of doing what's right for colleagues, consumers, and communities by inspiring well-being.”
Oral health meets self-esteem
We help our community’s most vulnerable residents restore their confidence and their smiles by providing access to the dental care they need
Many adults cannot afford dental care, especially within our most vulnerable communities. There’s a mental and physical connection to oral health: Poor oral health can lead to lower self-esteem and social anxiety.1 Guardian’s efforts to champion overall well being led us to our long-standing partnership with the Dental Lifeline Network (DLN), which provides access to care for people in need, helping to restore their pride, become pain free, and smile confidently.
Making our voices heard
Our commitment in action
Inspiring financial wellness for the next generation
To help achieve economic empowerment through financial security, Guardian has partnered with EVERFI® to launch Minding Your Money: Skills for LifeTM, an innovative, financial well-being curriculum focused on high school students in schools across the US. Guardian colleagues also serve as volunteers in the schools to supplement the curriculum with their real-life experience. Minding Your Money will aim to reach 40,000 students by the end of the 2024-2025 school year.
An integrated approach
Our Corporate Impact strategy seeks to harness company resources and seamlessly collaborate across various functions. We partner to encourage community engagement and philanthropy, advance equity and inclusion, foster environmental sustainability, champion ethical business practices, and effectively integrate and manage climate-related risk.
These various functions collaborate seamlessly to engage our colleagues and optimize our use of resources:
Fostering connections
Community engagement & philanthropy
We foster inclusive and meaningful connections for colleagues through community engagement and drive positive social impact via signature philanthropic initiatives.
Guardian encourages a culture of inclusive service, such as community engagement activities, disaster relief efforts, sustainability, and Guardian for Good, which offers a matching gifts and volunteer rewards program.
Protecting our planet
Environmental sustainability
Moving toward a greener work life
We're committed to evolving and optimizing our use of resources. We've made progress on a number of projects to conserve resources, reduce waste, and protect the environment at our facilities, three of which are LEED Gold offices.2
Notable highlights:
We onboarded a new vendor platform to better track our greenhouse gas (GHG) emissions data.
In support of our climate risk efforts, we performed our annual sustainability assessment of select company suppliers.
We continued recycling efforts at our offices, including programs for battery and electronic waste recycling, and we introduced filtered water bottle stations to minimize plastic waste.
Our Green Office Move & Decommissioning program diverted 47 tons of material from landfills around the country. Since the program inception in 2022, Guardian has diverted 98.6% of materials from landfills.
Accelerating our work
Equity & Inclusion
We work to integrate equity and inclusion across everything we do — both inside and outside our company including our behaviors, processes, procedures, and products. We aim to provide an environment for our colleagues where everyone feels seen, heard, supported, inspired, valued, and empowered to succeed and provide opportunities for inclusive connections through our colleague-led groups including Employee Resource Groups. We aim to ensure our products and services are inclusive for our customers and that we encourage expansive service in our communities.
A shared responsibility
Ethical business practices
Guardian colleagues have a shared responsibility to act in an ethical way. We live our values to protect our clients, our reputation, and each other. That means every choice, big or small, has an impact on the integrity and performance of our company.
Speak Up, a campaign that is focused on creating a safe environment, encourages colleagues to question things that don't feel right, and reporting issues are encouraged and welcomed. Our third-party hotline, EthicsPoint, allows colleagues to anonymously report ethical and compliance-related matters. Doing what's right for each other and our clients starts by feeling safe enough to courageously speak up.
Forging financial integrity
Legal & Regulatory
Our legal professionals work closely with our business partners by facilitating solutions, protecting the legal and financial integrity of Guardian, and promoting compliance with applicable laws and regulations. Our Government and Regulatory Affairs teams work with elected officials, policymakers, and regulators on the wide range of issues that impact our business and customers.
Informed decisions
Risk management
Risk management drives our investment decisions. Guardian has policies and processes that incorporate risk factors, such as environmental risks, into our investment decision-making process. We strive for superior risk-adjusted returns, and remain committed to responsible and transformative investing wherever possible.
Guardian is also committed to safeguarding our customers' data. Our systems have procedural, technical and physical safeguards to help protect sensitive information.
1 An Ounce of Prevention: The link between preventive dental care and better oral health and overall wellness, Guardian's 12th Annual Workplace benefits Study, 2023
2 Guardian is rightsizing its office space to match a hybrid workforce and their needs in 16 locations in the US and India, and to maintain a presence in key markets. Guardian reduced our physical footprint by 47% in Holmdel, NJ, and 11% in Bethlehem, PA; it continues to be responsible for 100% of the base utility consumption in both locations. Guardian will continue to monitor and optimize our use of resources in our office locations, where available.