CarGurus’ mission is to help people reach their destination and, since 2023, the company has extended that ethos beyond car buying and selling through its Drive Change program.
The Drive Change program empowers employees, dealers and consumers to create meaningful change in their communities, enhancing CarGurus’ charitable impact by unifying efforts. While CarGurus has a long-standing tradition of giving back, the Drive Change umbrella was introduced in 2023 to bring cohesion and intentionality to the company’s efforts.
According to the CarGurus employees leading the program, Drive Change is the product of deliberate planning and alignment with the core values of CarGurus. Articulating those objectives, criteria and success metrics has helped the team focus on the areas where Drive Change can make the most impact.
“We sat with our executive sponsor, CarGurus General Counsel Javier Zamora, and started with our values," said Director of Product Management and Co-chair of the Charitable Giving Committee Mike Lisavich. “This allowed us to build the model and guidelines that now inform our full approach to where we focus our support. The Drive Change program has brought consistency and structure to our thinking about where, when and how we can make the most impact.”
“The Drive Change program has brought consistency and structure to our thinking around where, when and how we can make the most impact.”
Lisavich is responsible for allocating funds to nonprofit organizations that CarGurus employees nominate to receive support. The program helps CarGurus focus on small to medium-sized organizations with a strong local presence in order to connect deeply with the communities in which employees, dealers and consumers participate.
Senior Program Manager for Diversity, Equity, Inclusion and Belonging and Community Impact Chi Vo echoed this sentiment.
“Drive Change was built to help us make quality decisions about giving. It’s about enabling real, tangible impact,” she said.
Vo, who coordinates the CarGurus Annual Weeks of Service and various giving events throughout the year, added, “I love being able to see the direct impact we have on our community as well as empowering our employees to support causes that they care about most. Giving people different ways to engage ensures they bring their most passionate selves to our programs and events.”
Three Pillars of Drive Change: Employees, Dealers and Consumers
Just like CarGurus’ core business, Drive Change works to serve the interests of employees, dealers and consumers alike.
CarGurus empowers its employees through charitable giving programs, company-supported volunteering and donation matching. Employees are encouraged to nominate nonprofits they are involved with for company grants. This has led to impactful contributions, such as sending kids to grief camps, funding lifesaving NICU equipment, supporting music education and providing adaptive bikes for rehabilitative purposes.
Lisavich emphasized the importance of this approach. “Our grants of $5,000, $10,000 or even $20,000 can exponentially increase what these nonprofits can accomplish. It unlocks another avenue to make a sizable impact above and beyond our employee matching efforts.”
In addition, CarGurus employees volunteered over 930 hours as part of last year’s Weeks of Service. Their efforts — spread across 20 nonprofit partners in the United States, the United Kingdom and Ireland — positively impacted 15,000 people in need.
The Drive Change program also partners with dealers to support causes that are important to them, from small local food banks to major fundraisers for organizations like the Make-A-Wish Foundation. This collaboration maximizes the impact of both the dealers’ and CarGurus' charitable efforts.
“Supporting the causes that are important to dealers is a way to celebrate the relationships we’ve built with our customers, as well as the values we share, while maximizing our collective impact,” Director of National Accounts Jackie Anthony said.
“People may not realize that car dealerships are highly involved in their communities,” she continued. “Many have been in business in the same towns or regions for decades, run by generations of the same family. They genuinely want to give back to the people and places that have supported them for so long and take great pride in their ability to do so.”
“Many car dealerships have been in business in the same towns for decades … they genuinely want to give back to the people and places that have supported them for so long and take great pride in their ability to do so.”
On a corporate level, CarGurus leverages its resources to benefit customers and local communities through educational and environmental initiatives. Whether donating gently used tech equipment to STEM programs or organizing fundraisers like the annual CarGurus Open golf tournament, the company aims to make a meaningful impact that aligns with its values. In 2023, the CarGurus Open raised over $18,000 for organizations that introduce underserved youth to the game of golf and life skills they can learn from being part of the sport.
Measuring Meaningful Impact
While CarGurus is a data-driven company, the impact of Drive Change isn’t solely measured by numbers.
“Drive Change wasn’t built to increase awareness or favorability metrics,” explained Vo. “We focus on making quality decisions about giving so we can make the biggest impact possible.”
However, quarterly reports on contributions, volunteer hours and recipient feedback are still shared in employee communications and investor materials, ensuring transparency and alignment with the program’s goals.
“Our employees feel empowered,” Anthony said. “We help them help others. It’s a great feeling, and helps them appreciate CarGurus even more.”
“Our employees feel empowered. We help them help others. It’s a great feeling, and helps them appreciate CarGurus even more.”
One challenge the Drive Change program faces is the difficult task of saying “no” to worthy causes.
“While Drive Change has made it easier to know which people and organizations to say yes to, saying no is still hard to do. There are some truly amazing organizations out there that have many passionate supporters in our network,” Lisavich said. “But by and large, they understand. Rather than making a small donation to an individual running in a marathon, we’ll give what’s needed to help an organization they nominate buy much-needed equipment, enroll kids in a summer program or feed 10 families for a year. We can deliver an outsized impact for organizations that our own people might not be capable of doing themselves.”
Personal and Professional Growth
For those involved in the Drive Change program, the rewards extend beyond corporate success.
Lisavich reflected on how much he has personally learned through the program. “Being exposed to so many charitable organizations has helped me think more strategically about how I personally support causes important to my family and me.”
Vo also shared the satisfaction of receiving thank you notes from employees and organizations they’ve supported, a testament to the lasting impact of their work.
For those considering similar programs, the advice from CarGurus leaders is clear.
“Look for the intersection of your company values and what matters most to your employees and customers,” said Vo.
“Look for the intersection of your company values and what matters most to your employees and customers.”
Lisavich agreed. “Building a structure around giving will pay dividends long-term,” he said.
The Drive Change program represents more than just corporate social responsibility — it is a testament to CarGurus’ commitment to making a real, lasting impact by empowering its employees, partners and consumers to give back in meaningful ways.
