In the wake of the pandemic, with many charities struggling to make ends meet due to rising costs and increased demand for services, philanthropy is more important than ever. In parallel, many businesses are looking at more innovative ways to increase their social impact as part of their ESG agenda. In this article, we share our “top tips” on how businesses can achieve impact through corporate philanthropy.
The starting point is to think about objectives
Historically, corporate giving has often been driven by personal interests, for example ‘give as you earn’ schemes where the choice of recipient charity is up to employees. Whilst these schemes have their place, for businesses wanting to increase the impact of their corporate philanthropy, it is important to begin by considering and clarifying the objectives.
Questions to consider include: what social issues the business is looking to address and why? What impact the business wants to achieve? How will success be measured? Only once there is a clear set of objectives is it possible to strategically plan activities. Businesses should approach corporate philanthropy in the same way as any business project or initiative.
It is important to also consider wider business plans
Whilst corporate philanthropy is driven by a desire to make a difference, it is helpful to consider how the objectives of any corporate philanthropy plans fit in with the wider plans for the business, in particular any ESG strategy. For example, if a business is hoping to achieve ‘B Corp’ status as a key strategic goal, it should look at how its corporate philanthropy will contribute to that aim. The more aligned a business’s philanthropy is with its business plan, the more likely it will succeed.
Think about leveraging assets
Philanthropy is not just about giving money away. Businesses that make the biggest impact with their corporate philanthropy have thought creatively about how to make use of their assets for social good. Many businesses have intellectual property that could be harnessed or repurposed, or they look at ways to donate time, office space, or other resources. There are also several great examples of businesses that have taken “waste” products and used them for charitable impact. For example, a business in the food industry donating “end of day” unsold food to homeless charities.
The benefits of a business network
Most businesses have useful relationships that can be incredibly helpful with upscaling and boosting the profile of corporate philanthropy. There are often great opportunities to collaborate and work in partnership with other businesses to pool resources and make a greater impact than would be possible in isolation. When putting together a corporate philanthropy strategy, it is important to think creatively about how to make the most of a business network to enhance impact.
Be clear about the time horizon
There are a variety of different approaches to corporate philanthropy, with more and more innovative and creative initiatives evolving as businesses increasingly focus on ESG. As part of any strategy, it is important to consider whether the aim is to make long-term changes to the way the business operates (for example, a policy decision to use charity suppliers for certain services), or whether the goal is to engage in short-term initiatives and remain ‘agile’ and responsive to changes in social and economic circumstances and need. This makes a big difference to how to measure success and how quickly a business might expect to see an impact. So, it is important to factor this into any plan.
Take advice early!
There are a number of legal requirements and potential tax implications that arise in relation to collaborative partnerships between businesses and charities, and there are a variety of ways to achieve philanthropic objectives. Some businesses set up corporate foundations through which to channel their philanthropy, and this is involves complex charity law considerations. Involving professional advisers at an early stage in planning helps to avoid these pitfalls and keep initiatives on track.
For more information about how to set up corporate philanthropy campaigns, visit https://www.birketts.co.uk/service/philanthropy/.
