Leading Corporations Gained Competitive Advantage through Societal Engagement Programs
June 3, 2016 | The Conference BoardEstimated reading time: 2 minutes
In the most complete annual analysis of corporate societal engagement, CECP, in association with The Conference Board, found in their annual Giving in Numbers survey that companies actively changed the structure of their business to capitalize on the clear-cut competitive advantage of societal investment. Companies in the survey expanded six business-boosting strategies:
- Investors: Companies shared information on societal commitments as an indicator of business strength; 56% of companies reported environmental, social, and governance (ESG) information to investors or the company’s investor relations department.
- Employees: Employee volunteer participation rate with their company’s community efforts continued to rise to 33% in 2015 from 28% in 2013. Further, when those who led volunteer efforts reported to the External/Public/Corporate Affairs department, the rate was highest at 39%.
- Elevation of the Role: As companies saw the bottom-line benefits from community involvement efforts, giving teams expanded. Full-time giving team employees rose 3% from 2013 to 2015, while total number of employees dropped 2%, demonstrating resiliency of giving teams.
- Measurement: Measuring outcomes became a more widespread practice. Demonstrating impact and transparency is critical for companies, and as such 87% of companies measured social outcomes and/or impacts of at least one grant in 2015, up from 79% in 2013. Most commonly, they focus outcomes measurement on strategic programs.
- Impact Investing: Companies that took part in impact investing more deeply supported community programs; median total giving for companies active with impact investing contributed more--$25.7 million--compared to those not active—$15 million.
- Trust: Companies saw building trust with consumers and other stakeholders as a goal of their societal engagement programs; 55% of companies used increased trust as a benchmark of success for their investments in the community.
CECP releases each year the Giving in Numbers Brief infographic to convey significant survey findings.
Additional results show that giving remained stable for companies in aggregate: Median total giving slightly increased in 2015 when compared to 2013 (1%). Within that stability, some industries saw increases: the consumer staples industry increased its median total giving not only in absolute terms but also as a proportion of revenues and pre-tax profits.During the 2016 survey period, CECP heard from a record 272 multi-billion dollar companies with aggregate revenues of USD$7.5 trillion and total spending on corporate societal engagement of USD$24.5 billion.
“Results from Giving in Numbers act as a barometer for what it will take for companies to be industry-leaders in the coming decades,” stated Daryl Brewster, CEO, CECP, a coalition of 150 CEOs who are a force for good. “Companies at the forefront of the movement to create a better world through business are seeing the advantages of community engagement. We applaud these companies and encourage them to further integrate societal improvement as an essential measure of business value.”
“CECP’s data is showing that corporate societal engagement has moved from business case to business imperative, with companies and shareholders recognizing the impact community investments have on financial performance,” said Carmen Perez, Director, Evaluation and Data Insights, CECP. “Through our survey results, we can gauge that companies are seeing the results of their commitments resonate through all parts of the business: greater volunteer participation, increased interest from new stakeholders, and an indicator of financial performance.”
“The latest findings from the Giving in Numbers survey support other evidence from The Conference Board that investors are paying attention to the ways in which companies contribute to society,” said Jonathan Spector, CEO, The Conference Board. “For example, our Proxy Voting Analytics research has found that shareholder resolutions on social and environmental policy have risen to unprecedented levels in recent years. Pressing questions are being asked of companies and they’re increasingly in a position to respond confidently.”
Suggested Items
The Right Approach: I Hear the Train A Comin'
04/25/2024 | Steve Williams -- Column: The Right ApproachTraining is often an afterthought in many organizations, and the longer a company has been in business, the more this seems to apply. Over the past couple of decades, it has been amazing to observe that the biggest offenders of this are the companies that overuse the sound bite, “Our most important assets are our people.” When you dig into the process and peel back the onion, their commitment to training is not commensurate with that statement.
Record Numbers of Exhibitors to Showcase Products and Services at EWPTE 2024
04/25/2024 | IPCWHMA/IPC announces that 215 exhibitors spanning over 50,000 nsf of exhibit space will introduce new product technologies, innovations and demonstrations of the electrical wire harness, wire, coil winding and cable processing industries’ newest advancements at Electrical Wire Processing Technology Expo (EWPTE) to be held at Baird Center May 14-16, 2024, in Milwaukee, Wis. This marks the largest number of exhibiting companies in the event’s history. More than 3,000 attendees are expected to attend this year’s event.
Fujitsu, METRON Collaborate to Drive ESG Success
04/24/2024 | JCN NewswireFujitsu Limited and METRON SAS, a French cleantech company specializing in energy management solutions for industrial decarbonization, today announced a strategic initiative to contribute to the realization of carbon neutrality in the manufacturing industry.
GlobalFoundries Commits to Achieving Net Zero Emissions and Carbon-Neutral Power by 2050
04/23/2024 | GlobalFoundriesGlobalFoundries (GF) is furthering its commitment to sustainable operations and fighting climate change with the announcement of two new long-term goals to achieve net-zero greenhouse gas (GHG) emissions and 100% carbon-neutral power by 2050.
NEC Strengthens Commitment to Space Industry with Investment in Seraphim Space Venture Fund II
04/22/2024 | JCN NewswireNEC Corporation announced a strategic investment in "Seraphim Space Venture Fund II," a pioneering venture capital fund specializing in the space industry and operated by Seraphim Space, the most prolific investor globally in this domain.