Trends Take Center Stage in the 10th Anniversary Giving in Numbers: 2015 Edition

Benchmarking Report Sets the Standard for Societal Engagement Programs at Leading Companies

News provided by

Sep 22, 2015, 10:00 ET

NEW YORK, Sept. 22, 2015 /PRNewswire/ -- Giving in Numbers: 2015 Edition, produced by CECP in association with The Conference Board, is the leading report for companies strategically focused on their community investment. As it has annually for 10 years, Giving in Numbers provides a benchmark, through key data provided by 271 respondent companies, on corporate giving and employee engagement. This year's edition found 56% of companies increasing total giving, as well as growth in five key indicators, between 2012 and 2014, proving that this work is essential to company operations. The Trends Summary, a new report section, highlights the prominent features of corporate societal investment, most notably its stability and strength at the majority of the world's largest companies. Since the survey data's initial release in June 2015, Giving in Numbers has been featured in a variety of adaptations, national venues, and publications:

Giving in Numbers Brief 2015 [infographic]
Five Indicators Show Growth in Purpose at World's Largest Companies [press release], June 2, 2015. Including Fast Facts from the Giving in Numbers Survey.
2015 CECP Summit: Engage, May 19-20, 2015
- 2015 CECP Summit: Making the Business Case: Trends in Corporate Societal Investment [video], Speaker: Carmen Perez, Director, Evaluation and Data Insights
- 2015 CECP Summit: Making the Business Case: Evolution of Employee Engagement [video], Speaker: Jinny Jeong, Evaluation and Data Insights Associate
Making the Business Case: Trends in Corporate Societal Investment [webinar], July 30, 2015
How Do Companies Give to Charity?, The Wall Street Journal [infographic], June 25, 2015
Ten Years After Katrina: The Evolution of Corporate Response to Disasters [blog], August 21, 2015
Early Giving in Numbers Findings Show Corporate Giving Becoming More Embedded at Companies, Giving Thoughts [blog], June 10, 2015

"We are excited to celebrate the 10th year of gathering, reporting, and analyzing this information, a vital resource to advance corporate societal engagement," stated Daryl Brewster, CEO, CECP: The CEO Force for Good. "Giving in Numbers provides an overview of how leading companies are being a "force for good" in society and sparks questions from reporters and companies each week to dig deeper into the numbers about trends and strategy."

"Robust corporate social responsibility and sustainability strategies underpin the way in which the most successful and most admired companies structure their operations, and engage with their employees and customers," said Jonathan Spector, CEO, The Conference Board. "It's no surprise that the data in this year's Giving in Numbers report shows a practice that is getting smarter at delivering value to business and society, and, as a result, a practice that is increasingly vital to everyday operations."

Giving in Numbers includes sections on:

Trends Summary. Companies that measured outcomes and/or impact of their work reported an 18% jump in giving.
Context: The State of the Industry. The business case for giving is aligned with research on purpose-driven, long-term performance.
Core Business Connection. Education is the most popular cause area across all companies. The company-wide day of service was voted the most successful volunteer program. Companies typically allocate 21% of total giving to international recipients.
Trends in Action (company examples): Focus Area and Volunteer Participation
Results: Pursuit of Return on Investment. A vast majority of companies are measuring social results and this number is on the rise.
Operations: Team Size, Budget Source, Foundations
Appendices: Benchmarking tools, Benchmarking Tables showing Industry Medians and Top Quartiles, Respondent Profile and Listing, Calculations and Definitions

Giving in Numbers is based on a survey of:

271 multi-billion dollar companies; list of companies can be found on cecp.co
- Aggregate 2014 revenues (all companies): US$8.3 trillion
- Median 2014 revenue (represents one company): US$16 billion
- 67 of the top 100 companies in the Fortune 500 participated
- All 10 sectors represented: Communications, Consumer Staples, Consumer Discretionary, Energy, Financials, Health Care, Industrials, Materials, Technology, and Utilities
- All data were company-reported via an online 30 question survey

See CECP's Press Page for additional coverage of Giving in Numbers.

CECP is grateful to Newman's Own Foundation, Travelers, and PricewaterhouseCoopers LLP for their support in making Giving in Numbers possible.

Custom analysis of the data is available to CECP-affiliated companies at no additional cost; these companies can access data through CECP's secure online portal or by calling CECP.

Giving in Numbers Survey respondents that are also members of The Conference Board Contributions Councils I and II, and the Global Social Investing Council, have access to proprietary benchmarking data drawn from the member companies taking part in the survey. Members can access this data by contacting The Conference Board (mailto:[email protected]).

ABOUT CECP: THE CEO FORCE FOR GOOD

CECP is a coalition of CEOs united in the belief that societal improvement is an essential measure of business performance. Founded in 1999 by Paul Newman and other business leaders, CECP has grown to a movement of 150 CEOs of the world's largest companies across all industries. Revenues of engaged companies sum to $7 trillion annually. A nonprofit organization, CECP offers participating companies one-on-one consultation, networking events, exclusive data, media support and case studies on corporate engagement. For more information, visit http://cecp.co.

ABOUT THE CONFERENCE BOARD

The Conference Board is a global, independent business membership and research association working in the public interest. Our mission is unique: To provide the world's leading organizations with the practical knowledge they need to improve their performance and better serve society. The Conference Board is a non-advocacy, not-for-profit entity holding 501 (c) (3) tax-exempt status in the United States. www.conference-board.org

SOURCE The Conference Board