Use of corporate giving seen trailing its value

July 25, 2008

Eighty-four percent of 700 top executives questioned said they recognize consumers' increased expectations of social responsibility on the part of business, says a report by the Committee Encouraging Corporate Philanthropy, using research by McKinsey & Co.

While three-quarters said they believed corporate philanthropy was an effective way to meet rising expectations, the report says, only 11 percent of participating companies were found to be truly efficient in their philanthropy in terms of business and social impact.

The study says successful corporate philanthropy achieves good while addressing stakeholder interests, building new market knowledge and areas for innovation, and not only a company's reputation.

"We've entered an exciting new realm for corporate philanthropy," Charles Moore, executive director of the Committee Encouraging Corporate Philanthropy, says in a statement.

"Enlightened CEOs now recognize an opportunity to not only address elevated stakeholder expectations," he says, "but, through strategic efforts, extend into frontier territory using philanthropy to kick-start business innovations."

• Email this page