Corporate Giving

In our ongoing attempt to navigate the challenges that impact our sector, there’s no question that change is the only constant. Daily news reports dwell on economic issues, the volatile Euro zone, ongoing unease about global markets and aging, shrinking donor bases.

With all this “bad news”, one could easily be pessimistic about the Canadian charitable landscape. And yet, amidst this doom and gloom are some glimmers of hope. Statistics Canada reports that Canadians made charitable donations of almost $8.3 billion in 2010 – a healthy 6.5 per cent increase over 2009. And, while the ongoing economic volatility undeniably casts a certain degree of uncertainty over corporate Canada, many Canadian companies remained profitable throughout 2011. And, perhaps most importantly, their commitment to support the charitable sector remains strong.

This commitment came through loud and clear at a series of KCI-facilitated roundtables with leading companies from across the country. Wanting to better understand how corporate Canada is now making giving decisions, KCI invited a number of community relations professionals to share their thoughts and insights about a wide variety of topics. And in this issue, we give you a “seat at the boardroom table” by providing details about what corporate donors are looking for in their relationships with their charitable partners.