Gen-i people will switch their business attire for overalls and gardening gloves, on Wednesday 12 August, as part of a voluntary project that will transform six South Auckland primary schools by planting fruit orchards and vegetable gardens.

As part of Gen-i’s annual staff kick-off event, Absolute 10 Conference, 600 Gen-i people will work together planting fruit trees, creating vegetable gardens and making other improvements to outdoor areas at the schools, including repainting playground equipment.  The Gen-i DigIT event has been arranged in conjunction with Variety, the Children’s Charity organisation, that is supporting Gen-i’s initiative by coordinating the participation of the schools.

Gen-i’s work at the schools will enhance their visual appeal, while creating edible gardens that will help encourage healthy eating and an appreciation of sustainable food production.  Gen-i is also donating gardening equipment and tools to enable the children to look after the gardens themselves.

Jo Allison, General Manager Marketing and Strategy at Gen-i, says volunteering is a great way for Gen-i people to contribute to the community, and adds that it also has benefits for Gen-i’s staff and culture.

"Volunteering at these South Auckland Schools is a great opportunity for Gen-i people to help make a difference to our local community. With people’s lives getting increasingly busy, it’s often challenging for our people to make the time to volunteer for community work.  We’ve taken advantage of our annual conference to provide an opportunity for staff to take time out and help improve other people’s lives,” she said.

The volunteer work will take place on Wednesday, August 12, between 2.30pm to 5.00pm at the following schools: Bairds Mainfreight Primary School, St John the Evangelist School, Mayfields School, Flat Bush School, Wymondley School and Rongamai School. 

Gen-i’s Absolute 10 Conference is an annual kick-off event where Gen-i people from across New Zealand and Australia get together to acknowledge the past year’s achievements and get an update on the direction of the business for the next fiscal year.

This year, 600 individuals from across Gen-i’s 3,000-strong business are attending the event, which celebrates the achievements of its top sales people and recognises the accomplishments of sales and services people graduating from Gen-i’s Academy. The successes of Gen-i’s technical people, from across all areas of the business, are also acknowledged at the Absolute Technology Awards. 

Gen-i is also donating computer equipment and IT support to each of the schools and Bunnings Warehouse Manukau contributed materials at cost for the project.