Our Communities | Lam Research 2022 ESG Report
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Our
communities

We use our resources to foster communities that are empowered, inclusive, and resilient.

Lam’s business is about powering semiconductor breakthroughs, and our communities know we don’t stop there. We fund community programs that uplift the places where we operate and live—in line with our Guiding Principle to act with purpose for a better world. Beyond our philanthropic work, we encourage employees to participate in community initiatives on the ground. Lam attracts people who are changemakers and problem solvers at heart—when they see a community in need, they pitch in.

In 2022, our employees worked alongside colleagues and neighbors to pack backpacks, donate textbooks, and plant trees. They held fundraisers and drives to support local causes and took part in Lam’s longtime tradition of delivering joy. As an organization, we launched our new social impact platform, which focuses our community work around three areas that align with our values and strengths. Lam also kicked off our first signature initiative, a three-year collaboration with FIRST Global. We look forward to working with the organization to inspire science and technology leadership and innovation in youth. It’s just one way we’re working with our community partners to power breakthroughs together.

Relevant SDGs

SDG 4: Quality Education SDG 10: Reduced Inequalities SDG 13: Climate Action

View SDG alignment

Community1

Goal Status 2022 progress
Goal: Determine key targets for larger-scale impact aligned to a new strategic focus Status: Achieved 2022 progress:
  • Achieved our goal by launching a new social impact framework with three strategic focus areas to guide our giving and signature program initiatives
Goal: Implement measurement of outcomes for key program and large-scale grants Status: On track 2022 progress:
  • Began developing a reporting process and measurement outcomes
Goal: Increase annual unique participation rate in all employee giving programs from 10% to 30% Status: On track 2022 progress:
  • Increased annual unique employee participation rate from 10% in 2021 to 18% in 2022
Goal: Increase employee volunteer hours by 33% from a 2019 baseline Status: Achieved 2022 progress:
  • Achieved and surpassed our goal with employees completing 21,133 volunteer hours in 2022 for a total increase of 58% from a 2019 baseline2 and set a new goal to achieve 40,000 by end of 2025

2022 highlights

Rolled out Lam’s new Powering Breakthroughs Together social impact platform

Committed $10 million
over three years to FIRST Global

Increased volunteer hours by
65% from 2021, logging 21,133
hours in 2022

Organized 80+
employee-driven events for
our Deliver Joy campaign

  1. Unless stated otherwise, we aim to complete each of our ESG goals by 2025. Data in this chapter are inclusive of Lam Research and Silfex.
  2. Based on data tracked through our community engagement platform.

Powering breakthroughs together

One of Lam’s Guiding Principles is to act with purpose for a better world. In 2022, we introduced our new social impact platform to bring that vision to life. Our new platform, Powering Breakthroughs Together, provides a framework for Lam to make a positive community impact where it matters most. Our strategy is to cultivate meaningful relationships with charitable organizations that share our purpose and vision. In August 2022, we closed our first cycle of grants with applicants supporting each of our focus areas:

Our social impact manifesto

For more than forty years, we’ve defied conventions.
Challenged assumptions.
Pushed the boundaries of technical limitations.
But we know, technology alone doesn’t enable breakthroughs.
People do.
They think big to build better communities.
To create safer, more sustainable systems.
To relentlessly pursue innovation that delivers real impact.
When people are empowered to collectively reimagine tomorrow, we power a better world for generations to come.

Our new Powering Breakthroughs Together platform speaks to what Lam stands for and the type of social impact we want to make. Through it, we’re building meaningful partnerships with organizations that align with Lam’s Guiding Principle to act with purpose for a better world.”

Christie Valdez
director of community relations at Lam

Launching our signature program with FIRST Global

Ready. Set. Carbon capture. That was the objective of the 2022 FIRST Global challenge, held in Geneva, Switzerland. The Olympics-style international robotics competition brought together 1,550 students from 180 countries and 179 teams. Using kits of identical parts, the teams built and programmed robots, working together to complete tasks in a challenge themed around carbon capture.1

Lam provided a $1.33 million donation to support FIRST Global in 2022 and served as the premier sponsor for the challenge. We also engaged 17 employees who volunteered as mentors for the students. During the event, Lam’s chief technology officer announced Lam’s long-term FIRST Global commitment: A donation of $10 million over the next three years, beginning in 2023.

The 2022 FIRST Global challenge included:

1,550 students
directly impacted

179 teams
representing 180 countries,
including a team of refugees

65+ solutions developed
to capture and store carbon as part of
the challenge’s technology experience

39% female participation
including an all-girls team

$1.33M donation from Lam
followed by a commitment of $10M over three years,
starting in 2023

FIRST Global enables transformative learning on a world stage... The competition is an important opportunity to showcase and foster the critical thinking required to address the challenges facing our industry and, more broadly, society.”

Rick Gottscho
executive vice president, strategic advisor to the CEO, and former chief technology officer at Lam

  1. First Global, “2022 Theme: Capture and storage of carbon dioxide.” https://first.global/archive/fgc-2022/

Transformative learning

Curiosity and inspired learning are key to powering breakthroughs, so we invest in the ongoing foundational elements that lead to continuous discoveries and innovations. This includes making investments in programs that are:

  • Pushing the boundaries of traditional approaches to education, with an aim to introduce new ways of learning, foster new discoveries, shift mindsets, and empower growth
  • Inspiring the next generation of innovators to solve the world’s most pressing problems through engineering and/or technology
  • Equipping people with the knowledge and skillsets needed to succeed in the innovation workforce of the future

Transformative Learning Initiatives in 2022

FIRST Global

“What if every child had the tools they needed to solve problems in their own communities?” That’s the question posed by FIRST Global, a nonprofit working to inspire science and technology leadership and innovation in young people from all nations through robotics. In 2022, Lam donated $1.33 million to the organization and announced an additional $10 million donation, to be distributed over the next three years.

East Oakland Youth Development Center (EOYDC)

California’s EOYDC is on a mission to develop the social and leadership capacities of youth and young adults. The center works to prepare local youth for future employment, higher education, and leadership opportunities.1 Lam bolstered EOYDC’s programs with a $300,000 donation to foster education equity for 1,000 Black and Latinx low-income youth.

Kids and Future Foundation Hello Coding Camp

The vision of the Kids and Future Foundation is to see a world where every youth can realize their dreams of a better, brighter future.2 Lam’s South Korea site partnered with the foundation to support 117 students’ participation in the Hello Coding Camp afterschool program.

Family Giving Tree and Hawks View Elementary

For six years, the Women in Leadership at Lam ERG has collaborated with the Family Giving Tree in California for its annual backpack drive. In 2022, more than 70 employees supported the effort, bringing in the help of family members and friends to fill and deliver 1,500 backpacks for Bay Area students. Inspired by the drive at our headquarters, a product manager at Lam rallied 22 employees in Oregon to deliver 250 backpacks filled with school supplies to Hawks View Elementary school students.

Other activities included:

U.S.
  • Supporting Springfield High School’s STEM Learning Academy program in Ohio (via Silfex), which provides students with STEM experiences and supplies
  • Serving as the title sponsor for the Silicon Valley Leadership Group Foundation’s Heart & Soles run, whose objective is to promote Silicon Valley student success through increased physical activity and access to healthy foods
Asia
  • Supporting the National Science and Technology Museum’s coding and robotics programs for elementary and junior high school students from remote and disadvantaged areas in Taiwan
  • Donating textbooks to university students majoring in engineering in South Korea to encourage their STEM learning journey
  1. EOYDC, “Building character to build community.” https://eoydc.org/
  2. Give2Asia “Kids and future foundation.” https://give2asia.org/kidsandfuture/

Lam received the Silicon Valley Business Journal’s 2022 Community Impact Award, which recognizes businesses and nonprofits making a positive impact in Silicon Valley.

Resilient communities

We support programs to strengthen relationships, technology, preparedness, and recovery plans that enable communities to succeed in the face of adversity. This includes making investments in programs that are:

  • Implementing disaster preparedness and recovery plans that strengthen communities
  • Engaging and connecting with community members to support the adoption, maintenance, and evolution of preparedness, recovery, and relief efforts
  • Helping rebuild communities impacted by natural disasters or adverse conditions
  • Curbing climate change and mitigating its impact

Members of our LESC
ERG engaged in year-round
sustainability efforts in the
U.S., Asia, and Europe.
Learn how they’re
supporting community
resilience across the globe

2022 initiatives for resilient communities

One Tree Planted

One dollar. One tree. One planet. That’s the idea behind One Tree Planted, a nonprofit organization focused on reforestation. Through a $100,000 donation, Lam supported the organization’s efforts in Europe to restore forests, create habitat for biodiversity, and make a positive social impact around the world.1

United Way Bengaluru

The Lam Foundation supports United Way Bengaluru’s efforts in India to restore a local school. Based on the school’s design and location, it has been subject to annual flooding and fallen into disrepair. Lam pledged $600,000 over the next three years to support the resiliency project, with additional funds provided by Lam’s India site.

Tse-Xin Organic Agriculture Foundation (TOAF)

Based in Taiwan, TOAF works to restore the environment while improving people’s livelihoods and well-being. The Lam Foundation provided a grant to help TOAF establish coastal forests to prevent coastal erosion. In addition, 39 Lam employees volunteered alongside family members to plant 1,000 trees along the island.

GlobalGiving’s Carinthia Storm Response Campaign

In August, a series of storms near our site in Villach, Austria, caused widespread damage and destruction. In response, 47 Lam employees raised over $8,000, including the company match, to help communities in the area rebuild, with additional relief funding provided by the Lam Foundation. Both donations went to GlobalGiving’s Caritas Carinthia project, providing food, medical, and financial support.

Other activities included:

U.S.
  • Donating over $4,000 raised by 66 employees, including Lam’s company match to support communities impacted by hurricanes Ian and Fiona
ASIA
  • Celebrating Lam Japan’s 30th anniversary through donations to three nonprofits selected based on a vote by regional employees
  • Collaborating with the National Nature Trust in support of habitat preservation, restoration projects, and endangered species protection projects in South Korea

Lam Research is a company that acts on both a global and local scale. Eighty-five percent of our Lam Villach employees live in Carinthia, so I see it as our duty to support the local area and its charitable organizations. It makes me proud whenever we can share our company’s successes with those less fortunate.”

Walter Lerch
managing director, business operations at Lam Villach

  1. One Tree Planted, “About us.” https://onetreeplanted.org/pages/about-us

Inclusive societies

Successful societies are inclusive societies. We invest in initiatives to facilitate equitable access and opportunities to help communities reach their full potential. This includes making investments in programs that are:

  • Eliminating barriers that prevent vulnerable, marginalized, and/or disadvantaged groups from fully participating in social institutions (after-school programs, education systems, workplaces, etc.)
  • Leveling the playing field for underserved and underrepresented communities’ long-term economic and physical well-being
  • Driving systemic change to break the cycle of inequities and/or designing new systems, processes, and procedures with inclusion in mind

Inclusive societies initiatives in 2022

International Rescue Committee

In response to the humanitarian crisis in Ukraine, the Lam Foundation provided a $100,000 donation to the International Rescue Committee to uplift those who have been impacted and displaced during the war. Lam’s employees also rallied behind the people of Ukraine, with 327 employees donating a total of $60,000, including the company match, to support the country’s refugees.

United Negro College Fund (UNCF)

UNCF envisions a nation where all Americans have equal access to a college education that prepares them for rich intellectual lives, competitive and fulfilling careers, engaged citizenship, and service to our nation.1 Lam is proud to have partnered with this organization over the last several years in support of multiple activities. For the second year in 2022, Lam provided $100,000 to UNCF to fund 20 scholarships to historically Black colleges and universities (HBCUs).

Sankalp Student Needs Program

Through the efforts of Sankalp, the corporate social responsibility (CSR) team at Lam India, more than 400 economically disadvantaged students from three local schools were provided with essentials, such as classwork supplies, textbooks, school clothing items, and nutritional snack kits to help mitigate barriers to obtaining an equitable education. This project was one of many that Sankalp supported through local Lam India CSR-dedicated funding, which totaled more than $80,000 in 2022.

Learn more about
how we’re collaborating
with universities to
support I&D in STEM

Stand Against Hate Fundraising Campaign

Bias- and hate-motivated crimes are a threat to our communities. After a deadly shooting targeting LGBTQ+ individuals in Colorado Springs, Colorado, 24 Lam employees donated $6,500, including the company match, to a community response campaign, with the funds split among several organizations supporting services for LGBTQ+ youth and mass casualty crime victims.

Singapore Children’s Society

Established in 1952, the Singapore Children’s Society protects and nurtures children and youth of all races and religions. We provided grant support for youth services, anti-bullying campaigns, and the organization’s annual “Walk for Children.” Lam’s team in the region also supported the organization by donating school supplies to local students.

Other activities included:

U.S.
  • Working with Girls Inc. of the Pacific Northwest to support their STEM-focused Eureka! program, a five-year skills and knowledge development program for girls in underserved communities
  • Continuing our relationship with the Hispanic Foundation of Silicon Valley to support the Latinos in Technology scholarship initiative
  1. UNCF, “Our mission.” https://uncf.org/our-mission

Celebrating our legacy of delivering joy

One of Lam’s enduring traditions is our annual campaign to Deliver Joy, which engages employees to support communities where they live and work around the world. In 2022, employees across 18 countries organized 82 volunteer events, contributing over 10,000 volunteer hours and raising $1.3 million in community donations alongside the Lam Foundation.

On GivingTuesday, many employees took advantage of our two-for-one corporate match. Others chose to volunteer at local food banks or participate in activities through their ERGs. For example, Lam Malaysia teamed up with the Women’s Center for Change to support initiatives that empower women and children. Employees donated pre-loved items and volunteered for a sale to raise funds for the organization.

Other Asia-based employees assembled care packages to support approximately 450 teenagers experiencing homelessness, and, in Japan, employees gathered and delivered clothes to local foster children. Meanwhile, Lam China employees participated in a donation drive to provide remote, underprivileged students in the Sichuan and Yunnan provinces with recess equipment and books.

Finally, in North America and Europe, our teams mobilized for a range of donation drives and community support activities. This included facilitating a toy drive benefiting Toys for Tots in the U.S.

Turning employees’ passion into action

At Lam, we believe wholeheartedly in our employees’ potential to reimagine tomorrow. We encourage them to engage with their local communities to activate positive change. By providing opportunities for community involvement, we also give our company a competitive edge. Our teams work best when they feel inspired, and our community programs attract new employees who are passionate about this work.

Employees can track their volunteer hours and make charitable contributions through our community engagement platform. Lam provides monetary matching gifts, matching dollars for employee volunteer time, and resources for our teams to mobilize and volunteer. We are also growing our Lam Cares ambassador program, which enables employees to champion community involvement for their teams, departments, and regions.

In 2022, employees showed depth of impact through recurring donations, weekly volunteerism, and activities facilitated by our ERGs. Our partnership with Rise Against Hunger is just one example, in which we held meal-packing events with groups of 100-150 employees.

Creating a service-oriented culture at Silfex, a Lam subsidiary

In 2022, Silfex employees at our Eaton and Springfield, Ohio, sites found creative ways to uplift and serve their local communities. Examples include:

  • Celebrating National Pet Month by organizing pet adoptions and running a pet supply drive to support local shelters
  • Supporting Pink Ribbon Girls to promote breast cancer awareness
  • Packing boxes of goods for the Second Harvest Food Bank during Thanksgiving (and achieving an all-time box-packing record)
  • Volunteering with Preble County Christmas for Kids to sponsor nearly 200 wish lists for local kids

2022 community giving by the numbers

2,153
organizations supported in 2022

1,331
employees volunteered a total of 21,133 hours

18%
employee participation rate through our community engagement platform

300%+
increase in new-hire engagement throughout 2022

10 employee-led ERG events supported, generating 475 volunteer hours

$6.6M donated by the Lam Foundation

$1.2M provided by the Lam Foundation to match employee donations $1.4M raised through employee donations

$135K
raised by employees for disaster and crisis relief

$1.3M donated by the Lam Foundation and employees for Deliver Joy 10K+ volunteer hours completed by employees in 18 countries for Deliver Joy