How business can help itself by helping others
We all win when companies give, Bruce Macdonald says.
Looking ahead to the new year, there’s no question Canada’s social purpose sector — charities, non-profits and social enterprises — face more than their fair share of challenges.
Powerful demographic and economic shifts increasingly threaten the ability of charities and non-profit to serve communities and individuals in need. Demand for charitable services is rising fast, but the revenue streams needed to deliver these essential services are dwindling.
In terms of giving and volunteering, Canadians are among the most caring people in the world. This generosity has sustained our sector for generations. But giving rates have been in decline since the mid-1990s. Our aging population, persistently high personal debt levels and sluggish projected economic growth mean this trend will almost certainly continue.
Imagine Canada’s chief economist for the charitable and non-profit sector is forecasting that, within a decade, social purpose organizations will need $25 billion more than they have today to meet spiralling demand. Where this money is going to come from is fundamental to maintaining Canada’s long-term quality of life.
There is, however, some much-needed good news on the horizon. Spurred by today’s fiercely competitive labour market, Canada’s private sector is in the process of fashioning a national renaissance in generosity. As more companies understand the business benefits of giving, we expect to see an increased number of corporate donations. Business leaders are right to believe that a deep and meaningful commitment to community helps them attract, retain and motivate top talent.
Imagine Canada commissioned a national survey of private sector employees to better understand the value they place on community investment by their employers. What we found should make business leaders sit up and take notice.
Employees who believe their company is strongly committed to community are 1.5 times
Commitment to community is the future of business.
more likely to stay; nearly twice as likely to be highly satisfied; 2.5 times more likely to recommend their company to job seekers, and three times as likely to strongly agree their company has a purpose they share.
About one-quarter of those surveyed even said they would take a pay cut to work for a company more involved in supporting the community.
This study, entitled Profit, Purpose and Talent: Trends in and Motivations in Corporate Giving and Volunteering, included an examination of 65 leading Canadian corporations in community investment. Together, these companies invested nearly $592 million in communities over the past year.
The research identified best practices for gaining business benefits from community investment. The most important of these is the breadth of the commitment itself. To inspire employees, corporate community investment must be authentic, highly organized and longterm. Dabbling in donations won’t deliver the desired results. In other words, giving back must be embedded in a corporation’s DNA.
One essential characteristic of highly motivational commitments to community is, of course, giving employees wide access to workplace giving opportunities. When employers provide their people with access to workplace fundraising campaigns in combination with donation-matching and payroll deductions, the result is startlingly high rates of employee participation.
Seventy-nine per cent of employees with access to these workplace giving initiatives reported making donations. This compares to a giving rate of 47 per cent among employees with no access to workplace giving programs.
Given the fact talent, which is the lifeblood of business success, is more mobile than ever before, the conversion of workforces into highly motivated, socially committed groups is unlikely to slow down anytime soon. In many respects, commitment to community is the future of business as they transition to the new economy.
For the social purpose sector, and for the millions of Canadians reliant on the essential services provided by charities and non-profit, this accelerating business trend is wonderful news.
My advice to business looking for an edge in the talent war: Help yourself by helping others. Macdonald is president and CEO of Imagine Canada, which works to strengthen charities, promote corporate giving, and support the charitable sector.