Corporate Giving Surges - LBG Report
27 November 2013 at 10:25 am
Corporate giving has risen by more than a 25 per cent, with more than $237 million contributed to the Australian community this year following a major dip in 2012, an annual review by the London Benchmarking Group (LBG) has shown.
LBG is the global standard for measuring and benchmarking corporate community investment. More than 1.7 million Australians benefited from LBG member contributions to more than 4,500 community programs.
Education and youth attracted the biggest beneficiaries – more than $63 million in contributions from LBG members across Australia and New Zealand. Contributions included cash, volunteered employee time, in-kind support and management costs.
“This year’s increased investments can be in part attributed to the low benchmark set by a significant decrease in contributions in 2012,” LBG Corporate Community Investment Director Simon Robinson said.
“The total this year is still somewhat shy of the contributions of over $250 million that were made annually from 2009 to 2011.”
The LGB report revealed that globally, Australia and New Zealand’s contributions were significantly less than international counterparts with donations of $420 per employee, compared to the global benchmark of $685.
According to Robinson this was attributed to “a greater importance being placed on the value of community contributions in the predominantly European-based membership of the global group, where drivers to invest are thought to be more powerful and some companies are more advanced in their thinking”.
The report also demonstrated a growing trend towards investment in long-term community initiatives rather than one-off donations. The report showed 56 per cent of all contributions were towards long-term projects, up from 53 per cent in 2012 and 47 per cent in 2011.
“This could indicate that companies in the region are increasingly connecting community programs to business strategy and realising the value in linking the two,” LBG chairperson and Woodside Energy’s Manager of Social Investment, Jo Ferrie, said.
“This is particularly true for Woodside; we recognise the impact a strategic social investment program can have in creating mutual benefits for our business and our host communities.
“By investing for the long-term we can demonstrate a lasting commitment to the wider community.”
LGB’s Australia and New Zealand branch boasts the largest membership of more than 50 companies including NAB, Wesfarmers, Coles, Optus, QANTAS, ANZ, Myer and Woodside Energy.
The next priority for LGB will be the release of the preliminary results of LBG’s Social Impact Measurement Study to be presented by The Centre for Corporate Public Affairs.
The Social Impact Measurement Study was conducted in partnership with The Centre for Corporate Public Affairs and LBG members; Medibank, Woodside Energy, Coles, CSL, Mondel?z International, NAB, NZ Post and Optus.
