CSR & Philanthropy at Tablecloth

At Tablecloth, we have a campaign called #EverydayESG. Every week, one of us researches a topic inside ESG and presents it to the rest of the team. It's a very nice way of diving into so many ESG themes, while keeping it light and accessible internally and for the rest of the world. On my last turn, I researched CSR and Philanthropy, and I think the findings are more than worth sharing.

Corporate philanthropy and CSR (Corporate Social Responsibility) share many things in common, and their concepts oftentimes overlap. CSR can be seen as an umbrella-term for the integration of legal, ethical, volunteer and philanthropic actions across the company. CSR can go a step further than philanthropy by directly involving the corporation in the causes and in the community. For example, instead of simply putting money into a philanthropy fund, a mining company could also implement employee volunteer cleanup programs to mitigate pollution from the mining site it operates.

Needless to say, not only are these corporate actions important for the health of our society and environment, they make a company more valuable and desirable by both consumers and employees. According to the 2020 Deloitte Millennial survey, Millennials prioritize the sense of purpose around people rather than growth or profit maximization. The Philanthropy Outlook by Marts & Lundy reports that giving by corporate foundations is predicted to increase by 6.3% in 2020 and by 6.6% in 2021. And 40% of consumers today seek purposeful brands and trust in brands to act in the best interest of society according to GlobeScan.

Whether it's through CSR or philanthropic initiatives, companies need to position themselves to stay competitive in the eyes of younger generations – especially when it comes to talent acquisition, retention, and employee engagement. The same trends are reflected in the modern consumer market, where businesses that give back to their communities see more sustainable growth and stronger brand reputations.

With all of that, it's essential to measure a company's commitment and engagement in Philanthropy and CSR. Quinn & Partners provides an interesting Sustainability Impact Report, which gives us a good example of that:

Here is an example of a company which provides a "CSR Score", along a CSR ranking. Beyond public pressure, investors are also increasingly interested in company disclosures around corporate responsibility. A huge benefit to measuring these types of metrics is to be able to demonstrate concrete actions and progress – for both shareholders and stakeholders. "You can't change what you don't measure" - it's a frequent saying here at Tablecloth.

At Tablecloth, we value metrics above all, they both paint the story around how each company impacts the world and encourage decision making based on understanding that impact. As such, CSR and Philanthropy fit perfectly into our scope of work. Our mission is to be your partner in measuring the impacts of your business, and to help you manage towards those impacts as well.

We develop comprehensive tools that collect and analyze data about your company, so you always have a good overview of how it performs on these matters. If you're willing to level up your game on philanthropy and CSR, tracking and increasing the good you do, we are more than happy to provide the right tools and knowledge to do it. It's a solid investment no matter how you look at it – whether it's from an economic standpoint or an ethical one.