From Patgonia to Salesforce and Microsoft to AirBnB, many companies have incorporated Corporate Social Responsibility (CSR) into the very centre of their business values, and it’s not hard to see why, as CSR has been found to increase a business’ market value by up to 6%, as well as seeing many employee, customer, investor benefits.

However, CSR solutions can vary vastly, including corporate donations, payroll, employee and matched giving, volunteering programmes and operational optimisation. Yet companies have only scratched the surface when it comes to unlocking the full potential and business benefits of engaging their employees in these initiatives. Research shows that CSR initiatives contribute to substantially higher levels of employee engagement and satisfaction by fulfilling a central need among employees — finding purpose through work.

10 key advantages of combining employee engagement with CSR

1. Improved brand reputation. It’s simple, by engaging your employees in making a positive impact in the world, helps employees feel closer to the company and its purpose, driving loyalty and improved brand advocacy.
2. Increased productivity. Businesses have reported a 13% increase in productivity, when their people are engaged in their CSR efforts, demonstrating a high level of care and conscientiousness in their duties, which increases productivity.
3. Higher retention. Employees engaged in activating a company’s purpose and CSR efforts are 50% less likely to leave. They have a greater sense of loyalty to the company and feel as though they are valuable members of the team.
4. Improved company culture. CSR initiatives also foster a culture of team building by increasing the level of trust and communication among an organisation’s employees.
5. A unified workforce. Where employees are engaged in driving positive change within the community they can unite behind a common goal and purpose, bringing your people closer together.
6. Greater connectivity. Engagement in CSR initiatives allows the business and it’s people to demonstrate their purpose, passions and interests leading to more meaningful connections and relationships between your people, your business and your community.
7. Improved business results. Companies who engage their employees in CSR achieve earnings-per-share growth that is more than 4x greater than their competitors, while those in the top quartile of engagement realise 21% higher profitability.
8. Lower absenteeism. Engaged employees show up for work more often. They are invested in the company and care about its success. Therefore, they want to be there to contribute and help advance the organisation’s mission.
9. Improved Employee Expression. CSR has shown to have the most substantial impact on employees when it allows them to show their whole selves at work. This means having the ability to express their other interests outside of work, including family, community, and personal passions.
10. A fulfilled and thriving workforce. Where employees are engaged in their company’s giving efforts, they are more likely to feel closer to realising their own personal purpose, making them happier, more productive and fulfilled in the workplace.

Measuring, tracking and reporting impact

Where this then becomes really exciting for any organisation is where they are able to tangibly track, measure and report on the holistic impact across overall employee engagement, satisfaction levels (and over time workforce retention and talent traction), as well as being able to clearly demonstrate and showcase the overarching social impact made to their community and the world.

How to bring your employee engagement and CSR programmes together

Many companies will already have varying levels of existing CSR and employee engagement initiatives and programmes in place and in many cases they are spread across different areas of the business. At Force for Good we help navigate and support companies wherever they are in their giving and employee engagement journey’s, and provide them with a custom solution designed for their needs. Our modular app and management and analytics portal, helps connect and engage employees by their passions and fuels them with purpose, by further activating CSR initiatives to drive measurable business success.

We’re always happy to chat about employee engagement and motivation, as well as share tips on running an effective engagement and CSR initiatives, so don’t hesitate to get in touch with our team today.