What, you ask, is PULSE? The PULSE Volunteer Partnership was set up in 2009 and is the GSK social responsibility programme, in which GSK is committed to changing the world by investing in healthcare and education. The PULSE team, consisting of 3 of us in the UK and 5 people in the US, send up to 100 GSK people\u00a0each year on 3-6 month voluntary assignments with partnered charities and non-governmental organisations. They use their skills, knowledge and experience to make a sustainable difference to the organisation and their local communities. These assignments can be within an employee\u2019s home country, but the majority of them are international. The PULSE slogan is Change Communities, Change Yourself, Change GSK<\/em>. PULSE is a chance to\u00a0create positive and sustainable change within local communities, but also an investment in the\u00a0learning and development of GSK employees. They are encouraged to keep an open-mind, and in many cases, learn how to find solutions to problems that are encountered by their organisation with the minimal resources available.<\/p>\n This article was shared between co-workers, on social media, and around the dinner table with friends and family, showing our pride in the company that we work for. I am very proud to be a part of this small and unique, but extremely driven team that enable employees to take a step away from their jobs at GSK and be closer to some of our end consumers. I believe that PULSE is an example of how GSK is committed to creating and encouraging change. Change for the better \u2013 in helping communities in need, changing employees views and experiences of the world, and in coming back to GSK, employees bring new ideas to implement or differ their approaches to situations (typically doing more with less). This article created a \u2018buzz\u2019 in my team with everyone being proud to have had a helping hand in bringing about change through one of GSK\u2019s Corporate Social Responsibility initiatives, in which our key motivation is about implementing long-lasting and effective change.<\/p>\n For me, I believe that I have found my way into a team that is encouraged and motivated by maximizing GSK\u2019s impact on society for the better. When GSK considers profits, the desire to increase sales and drive growth needs to be balanced with acting in a socially responsible way; a balance which is difficult to strike. I think that GSK does this well, for example the approach to patents in lower-income countries, where they have decided not to protect their products in some developing countries in order for their products to be cheaper and more accessible. I personally see this as an example of being a good corporate citizen, again making me proud to be a part of a company that is not solely focused on profit, but bettering the access to healthcare worldwide.<\/p>\n![\"45\"](\"http:\/\/blogs.kent.ac.uk\/kent-business-matters\/files\/2016\/11\/45.jpg\")
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\nOn entering GSK, I did not have a full understanding of the impact that its activities have on the lives of many around the world. I had a partial understanding of its health-related products, but I did not understand the other activities that the company involves itself in to create a better world and increase the access of healthcare goods and services globally. With the recent release of a Fortune article<\/a> listing GSK as the #1 company Helping to Change the World, this got me thinking about how GSK approaches change and how jobs are affected by change. I am eager to learn more about what GSK does to encourage change and how this affects the lives of communities globally. For employees (myself included), an article like this helps to build a real sense of pride in working for a global company focused on bettering people\u2019s lives.<\/p>\n