Becoming a Good
Corporate Citizen
Linda Lysakowski ACFRE
One of 100 professionals worldwide
to hold Advanced Certified Fund
Raising Executive designation she
is a graduate of AFP’s Faculty Training Academy and Master Teacher.
A prolific writer Linda has authored
or co-authored over 15 publications. Find all of her publications at:
http://www.lindalysakowski.com/
W
hether your business is a
sole proprietorship, a partnership, an LLC, a C Corporation, or a B Corporation, you can benefit by becoming a good “corporate citizen.”
What does this mean? Supporting your
community, financially, with your time, and
with your talent.
If you are a small business owner, you
might think, “I cannot afford to support my
community’s nonprofits; let the big guys do
that.” Or, “What difference can I make with
a small contribution.” Or, even, “There are
so many nonprofits all asking for my money,
how do I choose the right ones to support?”
One fact that surprises many people,
both nonprofits and business leaders, is
that smaller nonprofits are actually more
generous than large corporations. Fortune
100 companies give approximately 10 percent of their gross profits to charities—all
businesses combined give approximately 13
6
percent of their gross profits.
Why Your Business Should
Support
the
Nonprofit
Community
The nonprofit community is often
called the third sector, because it fills a role
that neither government nor business fills.
Nonprofits provide education, health care,
human services. They support arts and culture, research, and advocacy for those who
cannot advocate for themselves. Without
the third sector, these tasks would fall to the
government, and would be paid for with
taxes from individuals and/or businesses.
So yes, financially, it makes sense to have
a third sector. But there is more to it than
that. The nonprofit community provides
services to make our communities better
places to live and work.
Nonprofits have an economic impact
on our society as well. Though many people are not aware
of it, the nonprofit
community is an
enormous contributor to the American
economy: It provides
5.5 percent of the nation’s entire GDP or
$805 billion worth of
output.
Nonprofits employ nearly fourteen million individuals, or approximately 10 percent of the country’s workforce. In addition,
according to 2010 national data from the
Corporation for National and Community
Service, 62.7 million volunteers contrib-
The Philantrepreneur Journal
uted 8.1 billion hours of service produced
an estimated value of $173 billion. (More
about nonprofit volunteer opportunities in
a future issue)
Where Do Nonprofits Get
the Financial Resources to
Provide These Much Needed
Programs?
Although many people think corporations and foundations provide a lot of support to nonprofits, surprisingly, about 80
percent of all philanthropic dollars in the
United States come from individuals—your
employees, your clients, and you!
The corporate sector typically provides
about 5 percent of philanthropic dollars
given to charities. Could we be doing more?
Yes. But of course, the purpose of business
is to make money for stockholders or owners. No one expects your business to “give
until it hurts.” But being supportive of your
nonprofit community can help your business as well as your community, your customers, and your employees.
How to Choose the Right
Charity to Support
In recent years, we have seen the very
best and, at times, the worst face of philanthropy, making us more aware than ever of
financial abuse, misuse, and fraud on the
part of charities and nonprofit organizations. Many businesses are more reluctant
than ever to donate time, talent, and treasure to the many nonprofit organizations
that truly need and deserve help. It becomes increasingly difficult for donors and