Reporting from the SF Business Times Corporate Philanthropy Summit & Awards
This morning I attended the 7th annual San Francisco Business Times Corporate Philanthropy Summit & Awards. This event is designed to acknowledge and celebrate the good corporate citizens in the Bay Area who are the most generous or innovative (or both) in the way in which they support the communities in which they operate. According to the SF Business Times, the total amount of giving by the top 70 companies was up again this year. Companies ranked on the list gave $154.9 million to Bay Area nonprofits in 2007, up from $140.3 million in 2006. There was also an increase in the number of companies giving at least 1 percent of their profits to charity.
The first part of the morning was a straight roll call, honoring the Top 70 most generous Bay Area corporate philanthropists and unveiling the rankings of companies who gave the most cash to Bay Area causes (nine county Bay Area). I have included an abridged list of the Top 15 companies below. The complete list is available in the SF Business Times current edition, available for reference use in our library now.
1. AT&T
3. Safeway Inc.
4. PG&E Corp.
6. Intel Corp.
8. Wachovia
11. Citigroup
The next part of the awards presentation was devoted to the "Beyond the Check" awards, which are designed to look beyond the numbers to a company's voluntarism, special programs and innovation. Here is a list of those awards:
-Community Change and Impact in Philanthropy Award: Give Something Back Business Products Inc. for giving more than half of its profits to community groups.
-Education Partner of the Year Award: Merrill Lynch for increasing financial literacy and business savvy among youth.
-Judges Choice for Innovation Award: Adobe Systems for its support of programs that teach young people multimedia skills.
-Health Partner of the Year Award: Kimpton Hotels & Restaurants for its commitment to fighting HIV/AIDS in a number of ways, including fundraising bashes in its hotels.
The second half of the morning was devoted to a fascinating panel discussion designed to give us a glimpse of how company executives balance social responsibility with bottom line concerns, and explain how they make their giving decisions. The panel was made up of: John W. Thompson, Chairman and CEO, Symantec Corporation; Deborah Alvarez-Rodriguez, CEO and President, Goodwill Industries of San Francisco, San Mateo and Marin; and Robert Hanson, President, Levi Strauss Americas. Here are some highlights from that conversation:
-When asked to give an "establishing shot" of their philanthropy:
-Robert Hanson: Spoke in a very inspirational way about the Levi Strauss Company's longtime core value of using philanthropy to effect positive social change. He cited Levi Strauss' early and longtime support of the fight against HIV/AIDS, and how they have a tradition of going where other companies won't go and liking that role of "being the mouse that roars." In recent years this has led them to fund things related to syringe access to reduce the spread of HIV/AIDS through drug related transmission, and hoping to influence other companies to follow their lead.
-John W. Thompson: Illustrated Symantec's giving by highlighting its support of Teach for America. Symantec is very concerned about the achievement gap in low-income communities, and Teach for America helps address that disparity by deploying talented young people around the country to teach in economically disadvantaged communities. As a member of the Silicon Valley corporate community he also echoed what we have heard from other technology companies about the need for workforce development and education to prepare our young people for technical careers and the need to support curriculums that emphasize math and science abilities.
-Deborah Alvarez-Rodriguez: As a representative from Goodwill, the oldest nonprofit social enterprise organization in the Bay Area, she had much to offer about how to cultivate corporate support. Deborah underscored the importance for nonprofits of looking for corporate partners by identifying where there is a synergy of perspectives and approach, and an alignment of values. "How can we create value for ourselves and for the company?" She talked about Goodwill's longtime workforce development programs and its new Trucking Academy, which offers companies and organizations like MUNI/UCSF a pool of prospective candidates to consider for employment as commercial truck drivers. It's a classic "win-win" situation since Goodwill aims to lift people out of poverty wage jobs, and many industries need access to certified drivers.
-When asked about the economy:
-Deborah Alvarez-Rodriguez: She set the scene for the company executives in the room in a very effective manner outlining how nonprofits are facing increased demand for services at a time that public and private support is diminishing. She called it a "perfect storm" that is a harsh reality for many nonprofits and reminded her nonprofit and corporate colleagues in the room alike that what this current state of affairs means is that "now is not the time to retreat."
-Robert Hanson: He reminded us that even in a down economy, they often are still making a profit, so it's premature to pull back even with all of the doom and gloom we hear lately. He also said that Levi's has a reserve fund in place when needed to help them maintain their giving through the lean years. He also cited an interesting example of the "double bottom line" in action with a new Castro location that today, even in a down economy, is very profitable. It is challenging to establish chain stores in SF neighborhoods like the Castro, but they were successful in getting the community to be supportive of it because of Levi's longtime support of LGBT organizations.
-John W. Thompson: He emphasized that Symantec aims to have a set of programs that are sustainable during the ebbs and flows of the marketplace and that the economic realities call for a responsible allocation of resources, this does not mean it's now time to "cut off the spigot" of giving.
Closing remarks:
-Deborah Alvarez-Rodriguez: Reminded us that the divide between nonprofits and for-profits is a false divide and that there is more that unifies us than we sometimes remember, and that we should keep this in mind when identifying potential corporate partners.
-Robert Hanson: Closed with a moving anecdote from the Great Depression that gave an early example of the Levi Strauss Company's principles. While many companies laid off workers during the Depression, Levi Strauss & Co. did not. This kind of practice created a very loyal workforce, and he sees that to this day. Robert emphasized that good corporate citizenship and a commitment to community creates employee morale and boosts loyalty. He credits the company's philanthropy as part of the reason for low turnover at Levi Strauss & Co.
-John W. Thompson: Perhaps wins the most memorable quote of the morning award with: "It sucks to be #28!" In reference to Symantec's ranking on the list of the top 70, underscoring why awards and rankings like this are important in the first place.
