Preface

It would be unfortunate if Corporate Social Investing were to be categorized as just a business book. It is meant to be much more than that. It is a resource that can be used to improve the lives of millions of people by creating new and powerful connections between the private sector and thousands upon thousands of nonprofit organizations. Caught between the pages of this book is a plan that, if unleashed, could pour at least another $3 billion a year into causes and organizations that could uplift the quality of life not just in the United States but in other parts of the world as well.

Like the mythical genie in the bottle, the plan proposed in Corporate Social Investing isn’t worth much unless someone releases it into the business and social mainstream. That “someone” could be any person who

Works for a profit-making business

Is an employee, board member, or active volunteer of a non-religious nonprofit organization

Owns stock in a publicly traded corporation

Is a faculty member or student in an undergraduate or graduate business school

Every money-making corporation and all nonprofit organizations that raise (or hope to raise) money from the private sector stand to benefit from the ideas presented in this book. However, not all business and nonprofit decision makers are going to pay close attention to Corporate Social Investing without some encouragement. Anyone who thinks the principles outlined in the following chapters make sense can free the genie by passing this book along to the “right” individual—possibly with a buck slip similar to one of those that follow:

Corporate employees (especially those who are also board members or active volunteers of nonprofit organizations)—in a memo to senior management: “Corporate social investing appears to be a plan that could have a positive impact on our bottom line and on employee morale as well. Is there anything that we as employees (particularly those of us who are involved with nonprofit causes) can do to help bring corporate social investing to our company?”

Nonprofit board members or volunteers—in a note to the executive director of a nonprofit organization: “I know how difficult it has been to raise corporate contributions. This notion of corporate social investing gives us a new way of partnering with companies. How can we take advantage of this opportunity?”

Shareholders—in a letter to a corporate CEO: “As a shareholder concerned about the continued success of our business, I am enclosing a copy of Corporate Social Investing. The prescription in this book should enable us to be profitable and socially responsible at the same time.”

Business school faculty members—in an e-mail to the dean: “Students want to prepare themselves for business careers, but many are also looking for ways to make a difference in society. Corporate Social Investing addresses both these interests.”

This book’s mission is convey to any of these audiences a few reasonable, attainable standards that should make life in the corporate and nonprofit worlds a lot easier. In working to carry out that mission, Corporate Social Investing

Tells a company specifically how much it should consider spending (at a minimum) each year for programs/activities involving nonprofit organizations

Explains what a business should expect back in return for making these payments

Gives shareholders a means of holding companies accountable for their nonprofit investments

Arms nonprofit and public organizations with new ideas for attracting more corporate support

In addition, this book does something else: it erases the term corporate philanthropy from the private sector vocabulary. That term has always been something of an oxymoron. Now it’s gone. In its place is a description of a new process that is at the core of this book: corporate social investing

Much of the book is a how-to-do-it manual that explains in detail what businesses can do to convert corporate philanthropy into a corporate social investing strategy that they can use to open markets, recruit employees, improve customer relations, and solve any number of business problems. Through a plan that any company has the capacity to implement, corporate philanthropy can be transformed into a resource that turns nonprofits from supplicants to potent business allies.

This book comes with two important disclaimers.

First, the concept of corporate social investing isn’t new. There are businesses—not a lot of them, but some—that have adopted many of the principles described in this book. These companies may not use corporate social investing as the label to describe what they are doing. Strategic giving. Focused philanthropy. These are other terms sometimes applied to management practices that equate to social investing (or at least to segments of the plan).

Second, many of the component parts of the corporate social investment model have been “stolen” from companies where they have shown themselves to be effective. They have been plucked from businesses that have discovered savvy ways of coupling their interests with nonprofit programs and activities. Some corporations have been churning out these inventive relationships for a long time.

Please don’t be misled—these disclaimers should not be interpreted to mean that corporate social investing has become a widespread phenomenon throughout the business world. Quite the contrary. Most corporations have yet to discover its benefits. An even smaller percentage of nonprofit organizations knows much about the concept. Getting businesses and nonprofits to rally around corporate social investing in a big way is the driving force behind this book.

The management plan proposed in Corporate Social Investing comes from my twenty years of working with business executives charged with administering corporate philanthropy and social responsibility programs. Having been responsible either directly or indirectly for over $1 billion in private sector gifts and grants, I have celebrated many successful alliances between businesses and nonprofit organizations. I have also mourned a good many disappointments and failures. The ten-step plan for corporate social investing that is presented in this book is a product of those experiences—a product that is a reflection of practical, achievable ideas and an avoidance of the pitfalls that abound in the corporate social responsibility field.

The strategies described in the upcoming pages are offered as a universal reference point for all businesses, but there is plenty of room for modification and fine-tuning. Corporate social investing (as will be noted in a later chapter) is a “one-size-fits-all” concept. Nevertheless, many businesses will want to go beyond the minimum standards of the plan and others will be inclined to “customize” its elements. Regardless of how it is ultimately configured, corporate social investing will be a success if it leads to a vigorous and more mutually beneficial union between business and society.

CURT WEEDEN
June 1998