Giving Compass' Take:

• According to the  2018 edition of Giving in Numbers, corporate giving has increased by more than 15 percent over the past three years. The author discusses the trends and strategies within corporate giving that accompany this growth. 

• Do we see increases in corporate giving as a result of consumer behavior shifts toward mission-aligned purchases? 

• Read about this new era of corporate social responsibility. 

Top companies are intensifying their efforts to meet key societal needs around the world, according to a pair of reports released this week. Total corporate giving increased by more than 15 percent over the past three years to a record $23.8 billion, according to the 2018 edition of Giving in Numbers.

Produced by CECP: The CEO Force for Good and The Conference Board—and widely considered one of the world’s most robust annual assessments of corporate social investment—Giving in Numbers surveys more than 250 global corporations about their giving efforts.

“The data and trends from this year’s [report] confirm that businesses are standing strong with their social strategies while pursuing ever greater effectiveness,” said Carmen Perez, senior director of data insights for CECP, a coalition of more than 200 of the world’s largest companies with a combined annual revenue exceeding $7 trillion. Key trends observed this year include:

  • Companies are focusing on core programs
  • Disaster relief is on the rise. 
  • Employee engagement drives better results. 
  • Measuring impact is now commonplace. 

As their companies give more, philanthropy is also becoming more important to employees, according to a report released this week by Giving USA Foundation and the Indiana University Lilly Family School of Philanthropy.Specifically, employees increasingly want a choice in how their employers give back—and to whom. They’ve also come to expect options for how they make their gifts, from payroll deductions and online platforms, to skilled volunteer opportunities and matching gifts, the report found.

Key findings with respect to building corporate culture and community include:

  • Employee choice is key.
  • Engaged employees are more generous. 
  • Nonprofits should look to business for volunteers. 

Read the full article about corporate giving by Mary Mazzoni at TriplePundit