Corporate Philanthropy

Give the Brief Introduction of corporate philanthropy

Corporate philanthropy refers to the act of donating to a particular charity or foundation, whose target is to fight against a social evil and provide applicable solutions. These donations can be monetary as well as in-kind contribution. Moreover, the term philanthropy may be identified as “love for humankind.” Thus, in today’s corporate world, philanthropy refers to the offering of donations without any personal benefit. As time went on, this concept evolved from just a donation-based activity to a deeper framework. One of the greatest ways that philanthropy is seen in a corporate setting is through matching gift programs. Matching gift programs refer to evaluating how much the employees of an organization are contributing and consequently doubling or tripling the amount that has been acknowledged. For instance, Apple has donated over fifty million dollars to both charities and non-profit organizations ever since Tim Cook has assumed the reigns of the organization.

When did the corporate philanthropy has been started and whom? 

The method of corporate philanthropy has been adopted by well-known business men including Andrew Carnegie. He at times challenged affluent individuals to extend their support when it came to social causes. Thus, following in the footsteps of Andrew Carnegie, John D. Rockefeller donated more than half a billion dollars to a social cause. Moreover, in the year 1914, a well-recognized banker, hailing from Cleveland, was successful in establishing the Cleveland Foundation. This organization was identified to be a trustee of the Cleveland Trust Company. The aim of this organization was to encourage the community to donate rather than depending on only one affluent source for donation. This may be recognized as the primary community foundation that worked towards a social cause. However, it was not until the 1940s that businessmen or stakeholders were fully capable of extending their support to charities.

What was the need of this corporate philanthropy? 

In the modern, contemporary times, corporate philanthropy is to aid the different individuals in a community and also to extend support to many essential causes. The greatest need of corporate philanthropy is to benefit a whole community. When a company agrees to lend financial aid or support, it is understood that the various local organizations would also benefit from the various supplies and programs that are offered. These numerous organizations would otherwise be totally unfunded. Moreover, the volunteering time also provides organizations with the manpower that they otherwise would not be entitled to. Thus, these philanthropic efforts are successful in strengthening the community as a total. Also, gaining popularity as a philanthropic company provides an organization with a competent edge. Thus, job seekers who can identify that volunteerism or financial donation is an essential aspect of the company’s culture would consider greatly to be a part of the company.

What is the uses of these corporate philanthropy?

There are various uses of corporate philanthropy. Firstly, this type of philanthropy is successful in greatly increasing employee engagement and consequently their productivity. It has been deciphered by many researches that more than seventy eight percent of employees want to be a part of those companies who offer some kind of social assistance to the community. Moreover, philanthropy aids to structure relationships amongst the administration of a business and their potential clients. Thus, it aids to support a particular brand. Moreover, in the present times, responsible and corporate citizens aim to do business with those who share similar beliefs and value systems. Hence, even though corporate philanthropy usually indicates to monetary donations, volunteering is also a major part of corporate philanthropy.

What is the Criticism of corporate philanthropy? 

There are some major criticisms related to corporate philanthropy. Firstly, it is identified that charitable assistance should majorly emphasize on giving to the poor. Rather, the donations today are going to various other causes. For instance, it is said that the dollar that was spent on forming a park or a music school may have been rather spent on a more critical issue such as blindness of an impoverished individual. Moreover, critics of this concept state that charity has now become an ‘artifact’ rather than a necessity. Other critics opine that corporate philanthropy is just a small drop in the bucket. Even though many organizations are earning a great deal of profits, they are only donating a small amount which is deemed to be insufficient for the community.

What is the related topic and concept of corporate philanthropy? 

A major concept that is related to that of corporate philanthropy is corporate social responsibility. Corporate social responsibility refers to the involvement of an organization’s business models and also its business practices. It is different from corporate philanthropy because it directly involves the corporation in the community and causes. Even though corporate social philanthropy is not a necessity, it is highly encouraged for large-scale corporations to adopt this practice. However, faltering to engage in corporate social responsibility would lead to an organization being viewed negatively. Even though corporate social responsibility is considered to be an internal matter for organizations, any negative influences on the environment or community should be severely addressed and dealt with properly.