Amazon visits food bank to help streamline operations to better serve community

Leaders from Amazon’s San Bernardino and Moreno Valley fulfillment centers delivered something unique to Feeding America of Riverside and San Bernardino Counties on Mar. 14. Instead of the iconic brown boxes with a smile, Amazon visited the food bank to deliver insights and expertise on streamlining operations to maximize resources and improve overall efficiencies for the nonprofit.

In October of 2017, Amazon donated $20,000 to Feeding America of San Bernardino and Riverside Counties, which helped provide more than 180,000 meals to families in need. This event is a continuation of that partnership.

“The word used to describe today’s exercise to help identify waste and streamline processes is kaizen, and it means change for the better,” said Sumegha Mahankali, general manager at Amazon’s ONT2 fulfillment center. “We’ve recently started holding these kaizens in our communities so that we can donate not just money or products, but also our skills and expertise to help local food banks and other organizations better serve families in need.”

More than 30 Amazon associates from throughout the San Bernardino and Riverside area also volunteered at Feeding America, sorting and supporting multiple areas of the operation.

“We are incredibly grateful for this partnership with Amazon. To collaborate with them today, and having their volunteer associates join us for a Kaizen event, is a wonderful opportunity,” said Stuart I.R. Haniff, MHA, chief philanthropy officer for Feeding America of Riverside and San Bernardino Counties.  “We too embrace continual change and improvement as a way to alleviate hunger throughout the Inland Empire.”