Benevity

Corporate purpose is driving change on key issues like social and racial justice, climate change, and ESG, plus it plays a pivotal role in creating a sense of belonging and connection, shaping employee attraction and retention, influencing customer preference and loyalty, and driving tangible business outcomes for investors, customers, and employees alike.

Benevity analyzed data and insights from our community of more than 850 clients with 20 million employees and hundreds of millions of customers and what we found was clear: corporate purpose is no longer a nice-to-have – it’s now business critical. As a result, a new breed of for-purpose companies has emerged, and their work offers us the community, trust, hope, and action we sorely need to create a better future for people and the planet.

Listen to the report now to:

• Unpack the major societal and industry shifts from the last year
• Hear the top five trends shaping the future of corporate purpose in 2022
• Gain actionable insights to level-up your programs and companies - no matter where you are in your purpose journey

To read the full report, go to benevity.com/state-of-corporate-purpose-2022

Timestamps of the Report:

0:00 - Purpose is changing the way we do business

2:40 - The Story of 2021: A movement toward sustained impact

5:40 - In times of need, businesses are stepping up

12:25 - At the root of the Great Resignation is the great search for purpose

22:31 - Employee-led action on DEI&B is changing culture from the bottom up and inside out

29:39 - The future of Corporate Philanthropy is Stakeholder Philanthropy

34:32 - ESG is how shareholders understand purpose

37:44 - Purpose-Driven Business is our path to a better tomorrow

As the world changed right in front of our eyes over the last couple of years, we witnessed companies and their people rally together to create the Goodness we so sorely needed. And we see even more proof today of something we’ve long suspected — that corporate purpose is done best when it’s democratized. When voices from every community and every walk of life are included and considered.

Because companies who act with purpose can do things that few other institutions can. They inspire and amplify grassroots movements. They act as catalysts of change and create a sense of connection. They give us hope. They foster a sense of belonging among their employees that helps people feel better about their work. They drive tangible business outcomes for investors, customers and employees alike. And they change the world one person and one company at a time.

To read the full State of Corporate Purpose Report 2022, go to benevity.com/state-of-corporate-purpose-2022

The desire to see purpose in action is not new for employees and consumers, but it’s surely attracted the attention of investors. Environmental, social and governance (ESG) policies and strategies have taken on increasing importance for shareholders and boards. Just look at the marked rise in ESG searches in the last five years.

At the same time, recognition is growing that ESG needs to go beyond reporting, compliance and risk mitigation strategies if it is to live up to its ideals. It has to be engagement-driven and enroll employees, customers and other stakeholders in authentic, meaningful ways that boost impact and trust.

ESG has now proven to be a major value driver on its own — it will only remain so if we stay steadfastly committed to the power of doing well by doing good.

To read the full State of Corporate Purpose Report 2022, go to benevity.com/state-of-corporate-purpose-2022

The future of philanthropy is going to be democratized and will require the engagement of more stakeholders than ever before, including nonprofits, employees, customers, affinity groups, ERGs, community boards and even those who benefit from the efforts of all of the above. Participatory grantmaking is the way of the future. It brings in the voice of more stakeholders to determine funding areas and approaches, identify partner organizations and make lasting change.

To read the full State of Corporate Purpose Report 2022, go to benevity.com/state-of-corporate-purpose-2022

The rise of affinity groups

In 2021, affinity and employee resource groups (ERGs) driven by passionate employees proved to be one of the most powerful ways to foster a more diverse, inclusive workplace and help employees feel a real sense of belonging and purpose at work. A successful group not only gives people space to be themselves, but it can bring new ways of looking at issues, create connections and drive innovation. It can also act as a critical resource for companies looking for insights into experience gaps, employee dissatisfaction and systemic bias or barriers.

To read the full State of Corporate Purpose Report 2022, go to benevity.com/state-of-corporate-purpose-2022

A brave new purpose-driven world: employees urge companies to take action

Whether it’s boomers retiring early, low-wage workers seeking better workplace conditions, the disproportionate burden placed on women to be the primary family caregiver, or people looking for more purpose and autonomy in their lives, there are a number of factors contributing to what is now known as the Great Resignation. While many people associate this trend with the emergence of COVID-19, the truth is it has been growing steadily for a decade.

And the data shows that today’s workers, particularly Millennials and Gen Z, prefer brands that allow them to have a positive impact — whether it’s the brands they support with their buying habits,2 or the places they choose to work3. In other words, they have new criteria for who they do business with, and their prioritization of values hit a tipping point in late 2021. With employee retention and engagement becoming more urgent concerns than ever before, companies are adapting their thinking to prioritize what’s important to their people.

To read the full State of Corporate Purpose Report 2022, go to benevity.com/state-of-corporate-purpose-2022

From defining moments to grassroots investments

In 2021, companies shifted the way they made social investments. In their quest for purpose and a heightened focus on making a meaningful impact on some of society’s most pressing social issues, they showed stakeholders that they could be trusted to do the right thing.

To read the full report, go to benevity.com/state-of-corporate-purpose-2022 

As we looked for ways to make a difference coming out of the painful events of 2020, record-high levels of donations were maintained. Each of us dipped into our wallets to donate just a little bit more than we did before the pandemic struck. We also donated more often, reflecting a desire to positively change society in a more sustained way.

Benevity’s data and insights from our community of more than 850 companies with 20 million employees and hundreds of millions of customers reveal five top trends shaping the future of corporate purpose in 2022:

1. In times of need, businesses are stepping up
2. At the root of the Great Resignation is the Great Search for Purpose
3. Employee-led action on diversity, inclusion and belonging is changing culture
4. The future of corporate philanthropy is stakeholder philanthropy
5. ESG is purpose for shareholders

To read the full report, go to benevity.com/state-of-corporate-purpose-2022

• Learn from the best in purpose-driven business
• Become a top employer, where employees feel empowered by a stronger organizational culture
• Increase the impact of your corporate purpose program
• Gain insights into how companies of all sizes, and with all budgets, can design effective programs

Timestamp of the Guide:

Business leaders know that a strong Environmental, Social and Governance (ESG) profile is key to a company’s financial health and identity — and a thriving CSR program is the not-so-secret ingredient.

ESG is fast becoming the lens through which investors — not to mention consumers, employees and other stakeholders — make decisions about how to spend their money and time.

If you have a Corporate Social Responsibility (CSR) program, you already have the foundation for ESG success. In fact, many of our clients have already discovered that CSR programs are a powerful tool for operationalizing ESG objectives.

Get all the details in this Guide from Benevity. Listen today!

• Why ESG has become a priority for companies that care about their financial health.
  
  
• Why a culture of purpose is the key to a strong ESG profile.
  
  
• How technology can help you create, manage and promote CSR programs, while measuring impact.
  
  
• How some leading companies are leveraging their CSR programs to drive ESG outcomes.

When it comes to disaster relief, time is of the essence. Companies who have a plan in place are able to mobilize their people and act within hours—when it matters most.

While some events are completely unexpected, the unfortunate reality is that disasters — from fires and floods to earthquakes and more — have become yearly occurrences. And to respond effectively and efficiently to these events, as well as to the ongoing global pandemic, preparation will be key.

Having a plan in place allows you to focus your efforts, engage your employees and customers and ultimately do the most good for nonprofits — as quickly as possible.

In this guide, we’ll walk through how to create a corporate disaster relief plan, including:

• Key questions you need to ask to create a plan
• What tools and technology are required to act quickly
• How to leverage your existing budget to amplify your impact

Make sure your company is ready to respond when disaster strikes.

It’s not easy to unite a globally diverse (and dispersed) workforce. If it were, we wouldn’t be in an engagement crisis with 68% of employees in the US, and 87% outside the US, saying they’re disengaged.  

How do you buck this disheartening trend? Many of our Fortune 1000 clients are using their corporate giving and volunteering programs to unite their people globally (and locally!) and connect them to their companies, their communities and the world.

See how they’re doing it, what they’ve learned along the way and how you can do the same with these 7 tips.

According to McKinsey & Company, CEOs are spending 50% of their time on ESG topics.* As a result, purpose professionals are rapidly increasing their literacy and sophistication in this area. While the high ground for the “E” may already have been claimed, top spot for the “S” is still up for grabs. So, it’ll be up to the progressive and bold brands that are authentically committing to Social to define the playbook in 2021. Over time, this will lead to more companies adopting best practices.

Culture and brand are two sides of the same coin, and consumers expect just as much as employees do when it comes to exhibiting authentic corporate purpose.

The stats are in and every year the desire for greater purpose and action from CEOs and their companies is higher. For example, the latest data from Edelman shows that 86% of people agree that CEOs must speak out on societal challenges. And according to a Porter Novelli study, a whopping 88% of consumers say they would buy a product from a purpose- driven brand and 66% would switch from a product they typically buy to a new product from a purpose-driven brand. When consumers think a brand has a strong purpose, they are 4.1 times more likely to trust the company, according to Zeno’s 2020 Strength of Purpose study. And when that trust is broken, IBM research shows one-third of consumers say they will no longer purchase that brand. So, in 2020, it wasn’t surprising to see companies turning their attention to how they can invigorate their customer experiences to drive positive engagement and sentiment outcomes with consumers.

In 2020, the nonprofit sector was thrown into a crisis of its own as the economic fallout of COVID-19 meant more people relied on it's services. At the same time, the fundraising and volunteering events they relied on had to be cancelled. Many nonprofits worried that support might grind to a halt and they’d have to close their doors, further exacerbating the effect of the pandemic on vulnerable communities. Meanwhile, organizations on the front lines of COVID 19 needed more flexibility to move fast in a rapidly changing environment. The pivot to work from home, the switch to virtual volunteering and online fundraising, and the need to break through the noise in a particularly event-driven time were just some of the challenges nonprofits experienced last year.

Companies had to adapt in the ways they supported non-profits and many jumped into action immediately, shifting their corporate granting strategies to become more multifaceted and less restrictive.

The ways people do good in their everyday lives have been changing for years, but CSR hadn’t necessarily caught up — until 2020. Actions like recycling or signing a human rights petition are the norm for individuals in their personal lives. But for companies, offering opportunities beyond the traditional confines of volunteering and giving had been reserved for the few that were cutting edge.

COVID-19 illuminated a need to change and adapt, and over the past year we’ve seen companies lean into a broader definition of what it means to do good. In a time when people craved connection to their co-workers, communities and something bigger than themselves, and engaging employees became inexorably challenging, companies quickly pivoted their strategies to meet their people where they were.

Post-2020, a broader approach to impact is becoming table stakes.

Traditional, top-down corporate philanthropy has been largely replaced with a more authentic and empowered approach in recent years. And, we were already beginning to see a notable rise in people-powered movements prior to 2020. But the recent crises and events sparked unprecedented grassroots action and 2020 became the year fueled by the power of the individual — backed by their employers and the brands they buy from — to create impact from the bottom up.

In a year of isolation and uncertainty, when people craved connection, meaning and efficacy, companies met people where they were. They provided the means and impetus to be okay with not being okay, to take action, to feel part of something bigger than themselves and their own challenges, and to gain a personal sense of purpose and impact.

You will find dozens of reports about the failure of business to live up to people’s expectations when it comes to corporate purpose, but this isn’t one of those reports.

In terms of advances like minimum wage increases, environmental sustainability and diversity in the workforce, there is certainly a lot of work still to be done. Companies have had years to make meaningful changes on these issues, and the 2019 Business Roundtable saw 181 CEOs make commitments on them to all stakeholders, ushering in a new era of stakeholder capitalism.

But look closely and you’ll see that corporate purpose is very much taking shape, and taking hold, where all great movements do — with a groundswell propelled by the people. Companies are listening to their employees, customers, investors and community organizations who are defining what stakeholder capitalism looks like by selectively choosing who to work for, buy from, invest in and partner with. On all counts, they are going with brands that walk the talk: those who take authentic, transparent, measurable action on the critical issues of our times and don’t just make statements about them.