Jason Wingard Senior Contributor
Leadership Strategy I write about organizational strategy, leadership development, and the future of work
In the past several years, it has become apparent that businesses cannot (and should not) focus only on their profits — and must consider the social impact of their decisions, too. The advent of the coronavirus pandemic has accelerated this shift, with businesses across the world finding ways to help: Research from Candid estimates that corporations have accounted for nearly all (81%) of the grant money that has been pledged to the cause thus far.
This is the way it should be. As management professor Aline Gatignon explained in an article on Knowledge@Wharton, companies should not be “waiting out the coronavirus pandemic until they can go back to business as usual” but should rather “be part of the solution, now.”
That said, leaders need not face the crisis alone. “Dealing with this pandemic will… require partnering with nonprofit organizations,” Gatignon wrote. “The nonprofit sector has greater accumulated experience dealing with disasters and humanitarian crises. So, situations that are completely new and unexpected for the private sector are in fact business as usual for many nonprofits.”
While it is always wise to seek the expertise of nonprofit partners when developing corporate impact strategies, the need is even more crucial in today’s rapidly changing environment. Here are three best practices for business leaders who would like to implement successful corporate-nonprofit partnerships.
Think Local
Although the coronavirus is a global issue, corporations can often have the greatest impact by acting locally. In fact, previous research from Columbia University professors Howard W. Buffett and William B. Eimicke found that the most effective public-private partnerships often “integrate stakeholders from across organizations and communities in a given place.” “By employing a place-based strategy, cross-sector partnerships incorporate stakeholders as shareholders of a partnership’s investment,” they wrote in the Harvard Business Review. “Working collaboratively with a sense of permanent community—what we call place-based co-ownership—reinforces important long-term relationships between partners.”
Not only are place-based partnerships highly effective, but they are often greatly needed. As Kayla O’Neill, senior business partnerships associate at GlobalGiving, wrote: “Local nonprofits are vital to the COVID-19 response effort, but they may lack the capacity to fundraise on a global scale. This means local nonprofits receive a much smaller share of charitable donations (a mere 2-3% of overall humanitarian funding).” Since crisis needs “vary widely from community to community,” she urged business leaders to ask area nonprofits how they can help — and to remember that cash often “gives responding organizations the flexibility to purchase the goods and services that their communities need the most.”
During the pandemic, examples of community-based partnerships have abounded, with one noteworthy initiative emerging from Utah. Silicon Slopes, a consortium of Utah-based startups and tech companies, quickly rallied to create a website with local resources and volunteer opportunities, launch the COVID19 Utah Community Response Fund, and most impressively, partner with the state and other agencies to double Utah’s testing capacity. “We all play a role in how we address this issue and how we as a community recover,” said Mark Newman, CEO of Nomi Health. “This is a time when the private sector and the Silicon Slopes community can show its strength to alleviate the strain placed on government and healthcare organizations to lessen the impact of COVID19 on our great state.”
Be Creative & Authentic
The millions of dollars in grants offered up by corporations and their foundations will move the needle most when it comes to combating coronavirus — and, if a company has the resources, cash donations should be their first move. However, creative, brand-aligned partnerships can be a worthwhile complement, and can generate positive PR. Examples include Serta, which partnered with Relief Bed to donate 10,000 mattresses to NYC hospitals, and Unilever, which partnered with Feeding America to donate $8 million worth of its food, hygiene, and home cleaning products to food banks across the country.
When developing these types of creative partnerships, companies should assess what is needed, then find a way to provide it. Disney, for instance, was inspired by nurses who used rain ponchos to “protect their clothing and prolong the use of PPE,” so it donated 150,000 ponchos to the aid organization MedShare, which is distributing them to hospitals. “The COVID-19 pandemic is unlike anything we’ve seen before,” said Charles Redding, MedShare’s CEO. “We have to find ways to pool our resources and work together… We appreciate Disney partnering with us to support hospitals and healthcare workers on the frontlines.”
Importantly, while leaders should not be afraid to think outside the box, they should still ensure their nonprofit initiatives and partnerships are both authentic and thoughtful. “Make sure your response is in line with your values and mission and makes a sincere impact,” wrote cause marketing expert Mollye Rhea. “The worst example of tone deaf marketing I’ve seen so far is a local law firm offering a ‘free webinar’ on updating your will… Work together to find creative, longer term solutions that still get you to your end goal.”
Empower Customers & Employees
Corporations are not alone in their desire to help; customers and employees are seeking ways to make a difference, too. Leaders should, therefore, empower these stakeholders to choose how they would like to contribute to the cause. The aviation company AvAir, for example, gave each of its employees a $500 bonus to spend at small businesses in their local communities. Apple promised to match its employees’ charitable donations at a two-to-one ratio. Little Caesars will soon allow customers to “Pie it Forward” at checkout, thereby donating a pizza to their local police officers, healthcare workers, or firefighters.
“The rapid spread of COVID-19 reminds us how our wellbeing is interconnected, and the flurry of heartwarming responses people have exhibited in the face of this crisis reveals our tremendous willingness and ability to help one another,” said Ryan W. Buell, an associate professor at the Harvard Business School. “Forward-thinking leaders can run better organizations by creating conditions that allow customers to be more helpful.”
Brands x Better has demonstrated an understanding of this concept. It is a brand-new coalition of 30+ e-commerce retailers who have promised to donate at least 2% of direct sales or 10% of total revenue to nonprofits combating coronavirus. In doing so, the organization is not only garnering attention for member businesses — a vital pursuit in the current economic climate — but it is also empowering its customers to help. “By purchasing from companies taking part in our coalition,” noted Brands x Better’s site, “you are not only supporting charities fighting COVID-19, but ensuring employees and suppliers of brands can keep working.”
As Gatignon, the Wharton professor, concluded: “[L]eaders who can pull together and work across the private, nonprofit and public sector to forge collective solutions will ultimately come out ahead. They will benefit when our societies and economies demonstrate greater resilience and bounce back faster, when their external stakeholders take notice and lend support down the line, when their employees take pride in being part of their shared efforts, and when as a result, they develop sustainable and unique business models that are more deeply embedded within society.”
