New Web Giving Site RaisedBy.Us Targets Tech Workers

A new online donation platform aims to increase giving in the tech industry by providing a fast and easy mechanism for IT workers to devote a portion of their paycheck to the charity of their choice, writes The New York Times.

RaisedBy.Us, founded by two New York technology executives, has collected $200,000 in pledges to more than 100 charities from some 400 employees at a half-dozen Manhattan tech firms, including Foursquare and Shutterstock. Participation rates at the companies have reached 50 percent, thanks in part to a network of employee “ambassadors” who recruit co-workers to give.

Simon Kirk and Daniel Aranda, new site’s co-founders, hope to expand it to other technology hubs, including San Francisco, where Salesforce.com CEO Marc Benioff is spearheading a campaign to raise $10-million from big tech companies to tackle poverty and other social ills in the Bay Area.