By Vickie Sam Paget
Employers who want to inspire their workforce are now looking beyond just dollars and cents to show their appreciation. Today’s business strategy is taking on a whole new philanthropic approach.
“The profitability of philanthropy is productivity,” said Michael Samson, president of Inspire Canada. The Vancouver-based company provides team-development programs that allow employees to sharpen their professional skills while assisting the community.
“The majority of today’s workforce needs more than a paycheque to feel valued,” Samson added. “To get the best people and the best from your people, businesses are recognizing that philanthropy is a core component to creating greater productivity.
“They are also recognizing that their clients expect them to be good corporate citizens,” he said. “Given these trends, corporate philanthropy is moving from ad-hoc funding to becoming a core component of business strategy.”
Being a good corporate citizen can also have a more direct positive effect on the bottom line, according to communications agency Cone, which specializes in cause branding, 80% of consumers would switch to a brand that supports a cause when the price and quality are equal.
That could explain why Samson said businesses that ignore philanthropy leave a key piece of “building competitive value” on the table.
“Research has concluded that good companies outperform those that do not get involved,” he explained.
“Strategy-driven philanthropy significantly increases productivity and competitiveness for the company. The four key business benefits are: strategy enrichment, human-resource management, culture building and business generation.”
Corporate philanthropy is resulting in unique opportunities for businesses and charitable organizations.
Just ask Elain Evans, director of annual giving at the University of British Columbia. When asked how she’s involved with philanthropy, she laughed and responded: “I live it!”
Evans stated living in Canada, which she considers to be the best country in the world, allows win-win solutions for charitable giving.
“Companies in such societies have the opportunity to set a precedent through philanthropy, to actually contribute toward building a society that supports their business,” she said.
“I help to raise millions of dollars for scholarships each year. The businesses that help get to hire the people who receive those scholarships. The middle ground is where we are all interconnected.”
For Sheryl Williamson, director of operations at ES3 Insurance Services, philanthropy is a passion – and an escape from the golf course.
“It’s commonplace in this industry that there is always another golf tournament going on!” Williamson laughed. “That’s great, but they are always decided upon by the suits in the back room. That didn’t have any meaning for our team at ES3, so we engaged Michael at Inspire Canada.”
As a result, ES3 has committed 1.5% of its profit and one half-day per person per month of volunteering time to JustWork, an organization that provides employment for those who are marginalized from society.
“We’re in a long-term win-win relationship,” added Williamson. “It’s good for us personally and it’s good for the community. It’s really brought our team together and we now recognize that we all have very different skill sets. It’s helped us to understand and appreciate each other.”
This supports Samson’s theory that the effects of corporate philanthropy are not only social, they’re emotional too: “In the process of assisting non-profits to address societal concerns, businesses feel valued because they are contributing to improving the world.”
Evans agrees: “I look outside my window here at UBC and I can see the brain research labs,” she said. “I know that I’m not going to be able to cure cancer, but I can play an important role as a donor.
“Philanthropy at its best is personal. If it has heart, the public will see that. And when you see a charity achieve results, the payback is a fantastic feeling.”
According to Samson, if philanthropy is part of your business strategy – and not just an “add on” – it can also improve a company’s reputation with the public.
“This process is about creating a high-performance partnership between a company and a non-profit organization that is more than giving and receiving money; it is about mobilizing and combining multiple resources and capabilities to generate benefits for both partners and real value for society.”