Case Study: DigitalOcean achieves 43% employee giving participation (4× industry average) with Submittable

DigitalOcean drives engagement with an employee referral program

DigitalOcean, the fast-growing cloud services company, wanted to formalize workplace giving and boost employee engagement by aligning its referral program with the company’s community-focused culture. To do this it partnered with Submittable, using Submittable’s employee giving platform and credit‑grant features to integrate charitable incentives into referral payouts and automate grant scheduling and reminders.

Submittable implemented an automated referral incentive where referring employees receive a $3,500 cash bonus and DigitalOcean pays a $1,500 charitable donation via the Submittable platform; employees who add donations are matched and donations of $500+ earn entry into a “Golden Ticket” raffle. The program produced a 43% participation rate—more than four times the industry average—while increasing recurring donations, simplifying administration, and reinforcing DigitalOcean’s community-oriented employer brand.

DigitalOcean

Olivia Melman

Recruiting Operations Program Manager