Workplace giving opportunities during crisis

By Una O. Osili, Ph.D. and Afshan Paarlberg, JD

The COVID-19 pandemic, economic shocks, and social justice protests have significantly shaped individual and institutional giving behaviors. With #GivingTuesday and end-of-year giving approaching, it’s important that corporations reflect upon philanthropic trends emerging from the last 18+ months.

In partnership with Salesforce.org, our team from the Indiana University Lilly Family School of Philanthropy at IUPUI conducted a study to understand the effects of COVID-19 on individual and corporate giving.

The insights from this report can help corporations demonstrate their ongoing commitment to their communities and employees. These lessons can also strengthen and support corporate engagement with employees and nonprofits.

Here are three key lessons from the study that corporations can use to incorporate in end-of-year giving and beyond:

1. Align corporate giving priorities with causes supported by employees and community needs. During the COVID-19 pandemic, Americans and corporations gave generously. Despite the economic shocks, Americans maintained their commitment to their charitable priorities, especially toward human services organizations.

Year-end giving remained high in the first year of the pandemic. In fact, December 2020 giving was higher than usual. Donors to COVID-related causes indicated higher levels of overall trust. In comparison to other donor types, corporations gave considerably more to health and international causes.

Moving forward, corporations can examine the gaps between their corporate giving priorities and those of their employees—as well as the needs of the community. It’s important for companies to consider that today’s workforce comprises people from more diverse backgrounds and a wide range of interests, ages, and cohorts.

There is now more complexity for corporations to navigate in offering workplace giving and volunteering options for their employees, and individual employees may have different preferences. In this more heterogeneous and nuanced work environment, corporations can maintain flexibility and demonstrate a willingness to support the holistic wellbeing of employees, which are actions that might also support employee engagement.

2. Adapt to the realities of changing workplaces and assess effectiveness. Corporations should not assume the preferences of employees, but instead survey their preferences to enable more informed decision making. For example, do employees working virtually want to connect in person for team building and volunteering? Or, are virtual volunteer opportunities preferred? Do nonprofits, corporations, and individual employees have capacity for virtual volunteering?

As corporations adapt to the changing, evolving nature of the workplace, they should also consider a range of flexible giving options that meet their employees’ preferences. In today’s shifting landscape, corporations can seek to understand the preferences of their employees and their communities and incorporate more flexible, inclusive practices and approaches to giving.

Giving Tuesday and year-end giving provide opportunities for corporations to track, measure, and assess the strengths and limitations of their overall virtual and in-person workplace giving and volunteering programs. COVID-19 and the changing socioeconomic landscape should be incorporated into these conversations.

3. Consider how technology can help enhance corporate, employee, and community purposes. During COVID-19, technology became a lifeline for both individuals and organizations but also posed barriers for households that lack access to high-speed internet. To virtually engage with clients, patrons, and supporters, nonprofits moved events online and diversified their giving channels. They also demonstrated innovation and creativity to stay connected with their donors and clients.

Similarly, corporations can leverage digital tools for social good and impact. They can design new modes and techniques for employee engagement, data collection, and data visualization. They can initiate social media campaigns in support of causes valued by employees. Corporations can also support nonprofit partners by resharing or amplifying their existing fundraising campaigns.

Corporations might also mitigate the digital divide for nonprofits that have struggled to keep pace with technology. Here, corporations can build capacity and digital presence for nonprofits through technical or funding support. They can also support nonprofits in meeting the needs of clients with identified gaps in digital accessibility.

Una O. Osili, Ph.D., is the associate dean for research and international programs at the Lilly Family School of Philanthropy and Afshan Paarlberg, JD is a visiting assistant professor for the Muslim Philanthropy Initiative at the Lilly Family School of Philanthropy.

This article originally appeared on the Salesforce.org blog.