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Trust & Will’s Annual Impact Report 2022

As we continue to grow as a company, we want to find ways we can make a positive impact in the world. Check out what we accomplished in 2022.

Cody Barbo

Cody Barbo, @codybarbo

Founder & CEO, Trust & Will

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At Trust & Will, we’re in the business of helping individuals and families protect their legacy. When reflecting on our own legacy, we want to be remembered for making a meaningful impact from the beginning. As we celebrate five years in business, we are proud to see how our impacts and contributions have grown consistently year-over-year. We invite you to review our accomplishments in 2022.

To review the full report, click here.

View our past reports below:

A letter from our CEO

Since the beginning of our journey, Trust & Will has prioritized the publication of its annual report. Now, you may be wondering why a start-up like ours has been dedicated to impact reporting since Day 1.

Our commitment to making a positive impact started during our early days and has only grown over the past five years. Our team is growing, we’re reaching more members, and we’re garnering more awareness from the general public. When people can find out about all the great things we’re doing that don’t directly impact our bottom line, that’s where we really have an opportunity to stand out.

Focusing on impact work has proved to be a monumental benefit to our team. Our people are proud to work at Trust & Will, knowing that there are meaningful things that we do beyond just our day-to-day  roles and responsibilities. Not only does this help with our recruitment, it helps with our culture and retention.

As a father, I want my kids to grow up and know about the good things that this company has accomplished and prioritized from day one. We didn’t wait until we had the spotlight on us to do great things. We started when no one was watching. I think that tells a more powerful, authentic story. That’s the legacy I want to leave. 

If you want to support Trust & Will and its impact efforts, become a member! Your purchases help contribute to the dollars that go to the causes that you’ll learn about in this report.  If you are an entrepreneur who is interested in ESG efforts at startups, I invite you to  review our past annual reports. Time over time, year-over-year, the intentions you set in the beginning will continue to grow and, before you know it, you’ll be doing something even greater. Publishing an annual report is a great way to hold you and your organization accountable to your commitments.

Feel like Trust & Will could do even more to positively impact business and culture? Let us know! Send an email to impact@trustandwill.com. The Impact Committee and I will personally review suggestions and consider incorporating them in our upcoming year.

With that said, I invite you to review our impact initiatives of 2022.

— Cody Barbo, CEO

Trust & Will’s environmental impact

Companies play a direct role in climate change, whether it be through producing consumer goods that eventually become waste, utilizing large volumes of energy required to operate data servers, and everything in between. It is important to us to offset our carbon footprint as much as possible. As a member of Ecologi since 2020, we have been planting trees for every member who creates an estate plan. This initiative directly combats the climate crisis by helping keep global temperature at bay.

Since joining Ecologi, we have:

  • Planted 11,367 trees (up from 6,735 last year)

  • Reduced 1,560.9 tonnes of carbon emissions; which is equivalent to over 600 flights from London to New York!

  • Been a climate-positive workforce for 24 consecutive months

Our contributions have made impacts in larger projects, including:

  • Protecting and restoring forests in Uganda 

  • Providing clean energy through hydropower in Bulgaria, Honduras, and Mexico

  • Protecting old-growth rainforest in Madre de Dios, Peru

This October, we entered a new partnership with Bend to further offset our carbon emissions. Bend enables startup companies to measure and analyze their CO2 emissions data. We’ve connected our banking and transaction information with them to get a real-time time view of our company emissions. This allows us to track our top emissions sources by category and vendor and discover opportunities to reduce emissions, switch to less carbon-intensive suppliers, or purchase carbon removal credits. Once our data is analyzed, we can customize our sustainability profile and share our progress with customers, prospects, employees, and investors.

Trust & Will’s social impact

To work at Trust & Will means to give back; it’s part of our culture. We select initiatives and programs that create positive change in our local communities as well as causes that our employees are passionate about.

Employee donations & matching

We provide a $250 annual charitable contribution match for employees, one of our most popular corporate philanthropy programs. 

The donation and company matching are processed seamlessly through Gusto, our payroll and benefits platform. Because it’s so easy to participate, employees are encouraged to make donations to their favorite causes. Further, when we match our employees’ contributions, Trust & Will also gets to participate in a diverse array of social impact donations made each year.

In 2022, we donated over $4,000 to 10 nonprofits and charities close to our employees’ hearts. 

Company donations & sponsorships

We also strive to support a diverse range of causes and initiatives throughout the year from a company-level perspective. Below is a list of some of the incredible organizations we’ve supported in 2022:

Company donations

In-kind donations of a free estate plan: $28,074 total

Active discounted estate plans

School & laptop donations

Guest speaker series

During the COVID-19 Pandemic, Trust & Will created a monthly virtual guest speaker series open to all employees,  ensuring that professional development did not come to a halt even though we could not be together in person. We invite experts to come and share their wisdom and best practices while also highlighting important topics and issues. 

We have since then transitioned to a remote-first company, and we have continued our monthly guest speaker series. We extend a special thank you to our speakers who have inspired us in our personal and professional journeys.

Highlighted themes and respective speakers included:

  • March: Women’s History

  • April: Financial Literacy

    • Chad Willbur, Vice President of equity management platform Carta 

    • Origin, financial wellness benefits platform

  • May: Mental Health Awareness

  • June: LGBTQIA+ Pride 

  • July

    • Brett Wadford, Director of Development at Center for Heirs’ Property Preservation

    • Brianna Bogan, Director of Legal Services at Center for Heirs’ Property Preservation

  • August: Black-owned Business

  • September & October: Hispanic & Latinx Heritage Month

  • November

    • Phyllis Njoroge, Impostor Syndrome Speaker & Author of “From Fraud to Freedom”

Community engagement

Trust & Will is headquartered in sunny San Diego, California. While we transitioned into a remote-first company and now proudly employ team members from across the country, it’s important to us to remain engaged with our roots - our local San Diego community. 

Here are some examples of how we engaged with the local San Diego business and nonprofit communities in 2022.

San Diego business community engagement

Memberships & sponsorships - Trust & Will is proud to be members and sponsors to the following organizations to support social, community, civic, environmental, educational, diversity, and economic endeavors in the San Diego area and startup community.

San Diego Startup Week 2022 - Several Trust & Will department heads were given the opportunity to share their expertise in the areas of marketing, customer support, and entrepreneurship. We always encourage our talented team members to help educate and support others. 

  • Katie Fellenz, Head of Marketing 

    • Workshop: “Marketing Leaders: Preparing the CMP/VP of Marketing for 2022 and Beyond” 

  • Meg Palazzolo, Head of Member Success 

    • Workshop: “A Founders Guide to Customer Success: How to Do It, Then Build a Team” 

  • Brian Lamb, Chief Strategy Officer 

    • Panel Judge: SD Startup Week Heavyweight Pitch Competition & Tournament

Electronic Signature & Records Association - ESRA advances and accelerates the adoption of digital transactions and related technologies across all verticals, and provides thought leadership, legislative advocacy, education, and events to inspire a trusted digital economy for all.

  • Patrick Hicks, General Counsel

    • Board Member

  • ESRA Annual Conference, Gold Sponsor

Non-profit community engagement

Trust & Will Diversity Equity & Inclusion (DE&I) committee

Trust & Will’s mission is to help every family leave their legacy through affordable, accessible estate planning.  That starts with the people we hire and how we support the development of their unique talents and capabilities. We are committed to prioritizing ways to make our company and industry more inclusive. At Trust & Will, everyone has a seat at the table and space to be their authentic selves because only in a company that is inclusive and diverse can we truly stand in our members’ shoes.

This year, a Diversity, Equity & Inclusion (DEI) committee was formed to continue building our legacy of access and inclusion. The formalized committee currently includes 16 members, representing our team across geographies, demographics, and departments in the organization at all levels. 

Trust & Will’s governance impact

This year’s impact report is centered around the theme: legacy. When thinking about Trust & Will’s legacy, we want to be known as a workplace where team members feel empowered to do their best work while making an impact. We also want to be remembered as a company that made many positive impacts itself.

This means taking actions that are aligned with our mission and vision. Here’s what we did in the area of governance this year:

Updates to internal company policies & guidelines

In 2022, Trust & Will was among the highest-scoring businesses on Inc. Magazine’s Best Workplaces. We were also named one of San Diego Business Journal’s Best Places to Work. We pride ourselves on our family-first work environment. This also means that the kaizen (a Japanese business term meaning continuous improvement) never stops. To continue curating the most supportive company culture possible, we are always looking to improve and update our policies and guidelines. 

Below are some of the internal company policies that were updated in 2022:

Anti-harassment policy & company training

We’ve adopted anti-harassment training through Ethena for all employees for a more inclusive and engaging experience. In addition we’ve updated our anti-harassment policy and reporting procedures that creates the space for employees to do their best work, free from harassment or retaliation. 

Compassionate leave policy

We believe employees should have access to paid, protected time off for pivotal life events that may fall outside of traditional leave types like parental or medical leaves. We believe it is important to empower our employees to make important life and care decisions privately and free from judgment or pressure so we’ve crafted a policy that allows them to take the time off they need. 

Voluntary activism policy

Through our time off policy, team members are encouraged to take time off to volunteer in a variety of different formats, whether in their community, virtually, or through activism. 

Other exciting governance initiatives 

Adoption of eWills

We have engaged with a legislative specialist to focus our efforts in bringing legislative changes regarding eWills to make it easier for all adults to create a Will. See our 2021 Annual Impact Report to learn further about our support for the adoption of eWills.

Compliance

We are proud to announce that we have achieved SOC2 Type II and HIPAA compliance statuses. Affirming best-in-class privacy and data security for our users remains a top priority. 

Web accessibility

Trust & Will is committed to enabling every American to create a customized plan to fit their needs, life, and legacy. This includes making our website as accessible as possible to everyone regardless of technology, ability, or impairments. Read our new Web Accessibility statement here.

B Corporation application

Last year we announced our push to become a certified B Corporation. B Corps are certified to balance profit and purpose and “meet the highest standards of verified social and environmental performance, public transparency, and legal accountability.”

We are proud to say that we have been actively reporting all of our activities. We can confirm that we are in the evaluation process and hope to become B-Corp certified in early 2023. Stay tuned!

A glimpse into tomorrow: 2023

Starting and building a business is hard work, especially when you’re faced with historical hurdles such as a global pandemic during your formative years. It’s been a tumultuous year for the tech industry and still we’ve remained dedicated to giving back and empowering our employees. 

I am proud of the long way we have come. Not only have we adapted to every hurdle thrown our way, we’ve worked to turn those hurdles into opportunities. 

Can’t work in the office? Become a remote-first company that attracts talent from across the nation. Can’t schedule professional development training? Create a virtual speaker series that enables us to invite transformational speakers from across the globe. Pandemic making it difficult for Americans to create estate plans? Rally the call to modernize archaic legislation and systems to make them more accessible.

No matter what is happening, one thing that never changes is our commitment to making a difference. When reviewing our 2022 initiatives, there were so many things to be proud of. One of  the things that stood out to me most was our response to educators, healthcare workers, and the military. We have many team members who have friends or family who are directly benefiting from our donated and discounted Wills. There is also our Diversity, Equity & Inclusion (DE&I) Committee that was started by our People Operations team. This is our first employee-driven initiative and I am most proud when things are coming directly from our employees. 

Looking into 2023, I am excited at the things beginning to take shape. One of the first things I hope to accomplish includes receiving our B-Corp certification. Following this, we hope to become a Delaware Public Benefit Corporation. Continuing to improve the way in which we measure our public impact is also at the top of the agenda. We will always look for improved ways to meaningfully measure how we impact different communities in our country. As important as it is to build a profitable company, we never want to lose sight of meeting the needs of every individual who needs a Will. Making meaningful gains in closing the racial-wealth gap through our estate plan offerings continues to be a core part of our mission.

I invite you to follow along in our journey.  

From our family to yours, 

Cody Barbo

2021 annual impact report recap

2021 was an interesting year. We came out of 2020 thinking that it was one of the strangest, most surprising years of our lives. But we soon realized that we were in for yet another unprecedented year.

One aspect of our legacy is paving the way for the estate planning industry and what it could look like in the future. In the past, estate planning was expensive and inaccessible. As a mission-driven company, Trust & Will prides itself on providing education, removing barriers, and creating access (in terms of technology and affordability) for any American who wants to create an Estate Plan. Below is a recap of our environmental, social and governance impact.

Trust & Will’s 2021 environmental impact 

For businesses, one of the critical ways to enact positive change in our environment is to reduce our own carbon footprint. Through our partnership with Ecologi, we’ve made strides towards becoming a climate-positive workforce. Since joining the program, we’ve:

  • Planted 6,735 trees

  • Reduced 890 tonnes of carbon emissions; which is equivalent to 2,208,313 miles driven in a car

  • Been a climate-positive workforce for 19 consecutive months 

Our contributions have made impacts in larger projects, including:

  • Protecting and restoring forests in Papua New Guinea 

  • Providing clean energy through hydropower in Kanugu, Uganda 

  • Preserving 186,219 hectares of the Brazilian rainforest

Trust & Will’s 2021 social impact 

Below is a list of some of the incredible organizations we’ve supported in 2021:

In addition to our ongoing commitments to these organizations, we also contribute regularly to the following nonprofit organizations:

Trust & Will’s 2021 governance impact 

We pride ourselves on creating a workplace where our team members feel empowered to do their best work while also making a difference in their communities. For example, Trust & Will employees receive paid time off to perform civic duties, such as voting and jury duty.  

In conjunction with Pledge 1%, we offer all employees four days (32 hours) of paid volunteer time off per year. We highly encourage employees to volunteer at least one day (8 hours) per quarter. This can be done individually, as a team event, or company-wide. 

We can contribute nearly 2,000 hours a year to multiple causes and nonprofits from our team alone:

  • 32 hours a year per employee

  • 1,800 hours a year annually

To view the full 2021 report, click here.

2020 annual impact report recap 

2020 was an unprecedented year for everyone, but here at Trust & Will, we continued moving forward in our mission to help as many Americans as possible put a plan in place for their families, futures, and legacies. Below is a recap of our environmental, social and governance impact. 

Trust & Will’s 2020 environmental impact 

In 2020, Trust & Will took several steps to have a climate positive impact. First, we became a member of Ecologi, a company focused on offsetting our carbon footprint with a climate positive workforce. In 2020, Trust & Will: 

  • Planted 1694 trees

  • Reduced 234.62 tonnes of carbon emissions 

  • Saved 704 meters of sea ice 

We also made the switch to using FSC certified sustainable paper for all of our estate planning documents and packaging. 

Trust & Will’s 2020 social impact 

In 2020, we worked hard to create a culture focused on doing good. We took on several projects that we believe made a positive impact and committed to several initiatives: 

  • Frontline Heroes Initiative 

  • Founders Pledge

  • Fintech Equality Coalition 

  • Founders for Change 

  • Invest in Parents 

  • Other Nonprofit contributions 

Trust & Will’s 2020 governance impact 

In 2020, we were committed to creating a safer workplace where employees could feel inspired to do their best work and make a difference. 

We gave employees election day off as a paid holiday and encouraged them to register to vote, vote, and volunteer (if willing). 

We also became members of 1% Pledge, an organization that allows companies to give 1% of their equity, profit, time or product to help nonprofits and other charities.

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