Erich Sollman provides a few tips on how a company might foster a philanthropic culture in the workplace.

1. Fostering
Workplace
Philanthropy
ERICH SOLLMAN

2. Corporate social responsibility programs
benefit both philanthropic organizations
and the companies that give.
According to statistics provided by Project ROI, CSR programs have
been found to reduce employee turnover by 50%, improve employee
engagement by 7.5%, and boost revenue by as much as 20%. These
message these findings send is clear: Philanthropy-based programs help
companies boost performance and engage employees.
These programs take considerable time and effort to implement;
however, small-scale philanthropy efforts at work can still go a long
way to improve employee morale and help the greater community.

3. Pick a Cause
Selecting a company cause can be difficult
– after all, we all support different
organizations and hold different charities
or missions above others. However,
departments or teams may be able to avoid
confusion by asking employees to make
suggestions and holding a vote to pick a
single cause to support. If the company as
a whole wants to support a cause, those at
its helm should consider the business’s
mission statement and ask: What are our
values? Which charitable cause aligns best
with our interests?

4. Think Local
Once you have a cause in mind, find a
local charity to connect with. Volunteers
like to understand and value the cause
they support, and be able to see an
organization’s positive impact firsthand.
Think, would you rather support an
organization halfway across the world, or
one making a difference in your own
community?

5. Be Social
Employees may not want to volunteer as
individuals, but they will step up as part of
a team. Rather than simply asking for
donations, workers should make
volunteering a fun social activity by
forming philanthropic “teams” and
signing up for community events together.

6. Our days are busy. But if we make
the effort to integrate philanthropy
into our daily priorities, we may be
able to spark positive change for
both our communities and our
companies.

7. Thank
You!