Giving Compass' Take:

•  Greg Baldwin, writing for VolunteerMatch, explains the intricacies of what he calls the "engagement gap," a problem that occurs when corporate volunteer programs have to align goals the business, employee volunteers, and the surrounding community. 

• What are the ways to address the engagement gap that include all three stakeholders? 

• Read more about how to make business goals become social goals. 

In 2002, a ground-breaking article, The Competitive Advantage of Corporate Philanthropy, appeared in the Harvard Business Review. In it, Michael Porter and Mark Kramer challenged the prevailing argument at the time that philanthropy and business were inherently contradictory. Instead, they made the point, which has shaped a generation of business leaders, that companies can, and should, “…systematically apply their distinctive strengths to maximize the social and economic value created by their philanthropy.”

For over a decade now, smart companies have been innovating and evolving to align their giving practices with their business goals.

Companies are no longer asking whether they should align their strengths with the needs of the community, but how to do it effectively, affordably and at scale.

But as anyone who’s worked in the corporate social responsibility (CSR) space knows, this is generally easier said than done — particularly when it comes to corporate volunteering.

The problem is that successful corporate volunteer experiences must effectively align with the interests of the business, the employees, and the community — and that’s hard to do. Unfortunately, these problems are the norm. Most companies struggle to find practical solutions that effectively close what we at VolunteerMatch have come to call the Engagement Gap.

Read the full article about corporate community engagement by Greg Baldwin at VolunteerMatch.