The following principles reflect Cerner’s goals for charitable and civic investments. These principles guide how and why our investments are made.
- Health: The strength of a community is directly impacted by the health of its individuals. A healthy population will drive the long term strength of a local economy.
- Education: Today’s world demands an evolved education system that closes the loop between education and industry. Cerner supports innovative learning in science, technology, engineering & math.
- Economy: There is opportunity to strengthen economic development by supporting entrepreneurism, life sciences, innovation and health in our region.
First Hand Foundation
In 1995, Cerner founded the First Hand Foundation to directly fund health-related needs for individual children when insurance and other financial resources have been exhausted. Serving as the primary philanthropic organization supported by Cerner and its associates, company funding (as well as investment income) covers all administrative costs of the foundation. This allows 100 percent of donations from associates and private donors to directly impact the health of a child.
To date, First Hand has impacted more than 146,000 lives in 76 different countries. More than $16 million has been distributed since First Hand’s inception. For more information, please visit the First Hand Foundation website.
Economic Impact
Cerner employs over 10,000 (and growing!) associates in 23 offices around the globe. Approximately 5,400 associates are based in the Kansas City metro, home of Cerner’s World Headquarters. Providing over $400 million in local payroll, Cerner is one of the largest employers in Kansas City. Over 3,300 new Cerner jobs have been created in Kansas City since 2000, leading the area in job creation.
The economic strength of the Kansas City community is paramount to Cerner and led to the decision to bring our annual Cerner Health Conference home to Kansas City in 2007 and every year since. The Cerner Health Conference brings Cerner clients and industry partners from 19 countries to Kansas City to network and discuss key issues in healthcare. In 2010, the Kansas City Convention and Visitors Association estimated the conference had a $4.5 million economic impact to the city.
- Over 2,200 hotel reservations
- 125 restaurant reservations
- 88 meetings or events held outside of the convention center.
Cerner associates are at the core of Cerner’s success and growth as a company. Not only do they provide the strength of Cerner’s intellectual property, they also serve as a microcosm of the broad healthcare system inspiring innovation and invention on each Cerner campus. If it doesn’t work for Cerner associates, it doesn’t work for Cerner. Employees enjoy health benefits from Cerner’s self-insured health plan, which includes access to an onsite health clinic—business concepts that are expanding throughout Kansas City and beyond.