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NEW YORK, October 17, 2024 /3BL/ - Out of 87% of surveyed companies, almost all reference applying their corporate purpose as they made business decisions outside of social investments, according to Chief Executives for Corporate Purpose®'s (CECP) Giving in NumbersTM: 2024 Edition . While this suggests an integration of corporate purpose into the company's daily operations, 92% of companies also reported that their leadership referenced their purpose as they made social investment decisions such as grantmaking, strategy, and the development of focus areas. Data continues to demonstrate that corporate purpose communicates a comprehensive view of the company's impact and integration across all business operations. And this year's data is more in line with pre-pandemic trends, even as sociopolitical and economic uncertainty has C-Suite leaders asking their teams to do so much more with existing resources.
Median Total Community Investment (TCI) for all companies participating in Giving in Numbers in 2023 was US$22.9 million, which includes direct cash, foundation cash, and non-cash such as product donations or pro bono services. The median TCI increased by 2% between 2021 and 2023 and increased by 5% since 2019.
Median investments in the areas of Community and Economic Development increased by 87% between 2021 and 2023, while Environment increased by 33%. Disaster Relief increased by 6%, while Culture and Arts increased by 5%. Health and Social Services decreased by 2%, Higher Education decreased by 3%, and K-12 decreased by 11%. The biggest decrease was in Civic and Public Affairs, whose median decreased by 38%. This might indicate hesitancy on the part of companies to engage with any programs related to civic duty and public service, which, in the current cultural climate, could be considered political.
CECP's Giving in NumbersTM is the premier industry survey and research, providing standard-setting criteria in a go-to guide that has defined the field and advanced the movement. Over 23 years, CECP has created the largest dataset on trends in the industry, shared by more than 600 multi-billion-dollar companies, representing more than $439 billion in corporate social investments over that time span. The report is embraced by professionals across all sectors globally to understand how corporations invest in society, with topics ranging from cash and in-kind/product, employee volunteerism and giving, and impact measurement. From quick questions to presentations to company teams, boards, and CEOs, CECP is the only business counsel and network dedicated to driving measurable return on purpose, analyzing Giving in Numbers data to provide customized insights to advance strategy and measure the business value.
Additional key findings include:
69% of companies in a matched set had metrics that aligned their business practices with their corporate purpose in 2023, an increase from 65% in 2019.
In 2023, direct cash was the most common funding type, with 94% of companies including it in their TCI. The average percentage of TCI that came from direct cash was 45% and the median dollar amount was US$11.6 million. Direct cash is consistently the most common funding type, as it has the lowest barrier to entry for making community investments.
The median international community investment increased by 46% from 2021 to 2023, while domestic community investments decreased by 11%, indicating a shift toward a more international focus.
Emerging focus areas of community investment that were particularly relevant in 2023 include climate change, which, in 2023, had a median community investment value of US$1.2 million. The other responsive community investment in 2023 was relief to Israel and Palestine, particularly in the wake of the October 7th, 2023 attack.
Companies are also measuring the business value associated with community investments for their brand and customers. In 2023, 44% of companies measured brand value of community investments by leveraging external company-wide brand assessments (67%) and analyzing marketing data (51%). The most important benefit for 43% of companies was to improve their reputation/trust score.
From 2021 to 2023, volunteer program offerings and participation rates saw significant growth. The median number of volunteer hours grew by 75%, and average volunteer participation increased by 8 percentage points, approaching pre-pandemic levels . In 2023, the median employee volunteer participation rate was 23%. Virtual Volunteering remained the most common employee volunteer program offered, with 85% of companies offering it to their domestic employees.
“As the results from Giving in Numbers illustrate, the world's largest companies are capitalizing on corporate purpose not just because it is good for the world, but because it is good for business,” said Daryl Brewster, CEO, Chief Executives for Corporate Purpose.“Focusing and integrating corporate purpose is a smart business approach creating sustainable value for both the company and its employees, suppliers, partners, customers, investors, and the communities where it operates.”
Giving in NumbersTM provides helpful insights to practitioners seeking to find information quickly to benchmark their own programs against their peers', as well as information on trends to provide contextual summaries for anyone looking to understand how and why the field is changing. One such case study highlighted in the report is how, for 20 years, Bank of America has invested in its signature philanthropic program Neighborhood Builders®, which offers nonprofit awardees the opportunity for a $200,000 unrestricted grant and yearlong support for long term success.
Key insights from the Giving in Numbers Survey of 2023 data were released at the CECP Summit in May 2024. CECP-affiliated companies can access custom analysis of the data at no additional cost through CECP's secure online portal or by contacting CECP .
Note to Editors: the report author is available for comment and a more in-depth look at the community investment data collected from 219 of the world's largest companies.
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About Chief Executives for Corporate Purpose (CECP)
Chief Executives for Corporate Purpose® (CECP) is the only business counsel and network dedicated to driving measurable returns on purpose. We promote responsible purpose-driven business as it increases customer loyalty, builds employee engagement, improves brand trust, attracts top talent, connects with strategic investors, and contributes to the bottom line.
More than 200 of the world's leading companies seek to improve their return on purpose through access to CECP's solutions in research and insights, strategy and benchmarking, and convening and communications. With our companies, we harness the power of purpose for business, stakeholders, and society.
For more information, visit .
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