Philanthropy can be defined as the donation of money, goods,
services, time and effort which will help benefit society, with no
material return for the donor.
In recent years we have seen an increase in the number of
businesses reporting on their corporate social responsibility. This
has been on issues such as: helping the local community, greener
practices and charitable donations.
Large Multinational companies are signing up to ethical causes
such as Business in the Community (BITC), in which companies pledge
to give a minimum donation of 0.5% from pre tax profits (70% of
members are from the FTSE 100). Whereas small to medium size
companies are carrying out events which are more inclined to help
with local issues, such as fundraising to save a local
hospital.
Many companies are now branding themselves as "green" or
"eco-friendly", but what does this actually mean?
Having energy efficient light bulbs? recycling? Or more long term
goals like encouraging employees to use public transport, not just
recycling but cutting down on unnecessary use of resources in the
first place. Here at Acumen Business Law we run a paperless
office, and the vast majority of employees use public transport,
walk or cycle to work, does this make us a "green" company?
For consumers, especially from younger generations, the ethical
practices of a company have a large bearing on the choice to
purchase a product or service from them, for example people when
looking for a cheap flight may be more inclined to fly with EasyJet
as the owner Stelios Haji-loannou often has positive publicity as
he flies in economy with the rest of the passengers and has tried
to get away from the "them and us" culture. Whereas the owner of
another "No Frills" airline is often portrayed in a bad light in
the media, and has been commented on by some as one who "would sell
his own mother to make money".
So are businesses focusing on these issues to portray themselves
as ethical companies to gain competitive advantage, or is it an
essential part of future business practices?