The Benefits of Benevolence

by Mark S. Fulton

You’ve heard that time is money. That handy saying reminds us to assign a value to the time we give to activities in our lives. Wasted time is squandered riches.

The older I get, the more I realize that the amounts of time and money I have available to me have switched proportions. When I was young, I believed I had all of the time in the world to fritter away on frivolity. Likewise, I was painfully aware that I had no money.

Today, with more than half my life behind me, I realize that my time remaining on planet earth is waning and that my bank account is growing sufficiently to provide me with an acceptable level of security and comfort. Because time is more valuable to me now, I’m much more circumspect about the things I give it to.

Feeling an increasing obligation to do more meaningful things with my time, I’ve recently become involved in two charitable causes: Habitat for Humanity and the Multiple Sclerosis Society. My assignment for Habitat is to serve on the organizing committee for the second annual Wendy Walk, a fundraiser named for Wendy Larry, the head coach of Old Dominion University’s women’s basketball team, which will take place on Saturday, October 6.

One of the committee’s responsibilities is to line up corporate participation in the event. Businesses large and small are being asked to lend financial support and/or field a team of intrepid walkers, who will tread a grueling five-kilometer course on the campus of ODU. Walk proceeds will help Habitat for Humanity continue in its mission to build homes for low-income families.

Here’s a question that occurred to me when I accepted this responsibility: Why should businesses support charities? I give my time and money to organizations that help hurting people because it gives me personal gratification and in some small way tips the cosmic scales a little toward the side of goodness. But businesses are inanimate entities that don’t possess emotions and have no conscience to appease. Or do they?

Corporate giving enhances esteem in the eyes of employees, customers, investors and the general public. Employees of companies that support charitable causes have one more reason to take pride in their employer. In an age when employee morale has become a vital workplace consideration, businesses that get behind worthy outreaches also contribute to their own internal esprit de corps. People like working for companies that demonstrate compassion.

Likewise, surveys have demonstrated that more than 60 percent of consumers, given equal price and quality, would switch to a brand that supports a good cause. Two thirds of us have more trust in companies that support causes that matter to us. Greater credibility typically translates into higher profitability.

Corporate philanthropy and shareholder financial interests are linked in another way. Corporate benevolence is an excellent way to build brand awareness in the marketplace, which contributes directly to a larger customer base and a healthier bottom line.

Cause branding is the term given to a relationship between a charity and a corporate entity through which the corporation becomes closely identified in the public’s mind with a charitable cause. Lee Iacocca, the former chairman of Chrysler, is often given credit for being the originator of cause branding. In 1983 Iacocca served as the chief fundraiser for the restoration of the Statue of Liberty. He put together a deal with American Express that resulted in the company giving a donation toward rescuing the landmark for every credit card transaction. The plan was lauded as a turning point in public and private partnerships.

Cause branding is not without its critics, however. Some say that too many organizations treat charity sponsorship as just another form of advertising. They suggest that good neighbor gestures done purely for the payoff of good public relations and fatter profits creates an ethical conflict. Is the company taking advantage of human suffering or social problems just to make a buck? Companies that chooses to contribute to a charity should carefully consider the motives behind their generosity.

In addition to outright monetary donations, there are other ways a business can give. Contributions of in-kind goods and services can help a charity in a direct and tangible way to accomplish its mission. Employee volunteers can provide much needed “sweat equity” for projects that need hands to go with the hearts. Internships are another way for companies to donate workers to an organization.

When considering which cause to get behind, businesses large and small should take care to check out a charity’s credentials. The BBB Giving Alliance, a 501(c)(3)charitable organization affiliated with the Council of Better Business Bureaus, provides a web site (www.give.org) that has lots of helpful information and advise on the subject.

The BBB Wise Giving Alliance collects and distributes information on hundreds of nonprofit organizations that solicit donations nationally or have national or international program services. It routinely asks such organizations for information about their programs, governance, fund raising practices and finances when the charities have been the subject of inquiries.

Regardless of whether your charitable inclinations gravitate toward marathons, bikeathons, walkathons or thonathons (the ultimate fundraiser), finding a worthy cause to give to makes good business sense.

Copyright 2001 © Mark S. Fulton