Give back to the community: 5 ways business leaders can use their influence to be more philanthropic

Part of holding influential positions – whether you own a successful business, have climbed up the corporate ladder or have become a master in your craft – means giving back to the community.

Aside from a desire to make a difference, years of economic disruption have only deepened economic inequality. Indeed, global inequality has gotten worse, with the richest one per cent grabbing nearly two-thirds of the $42 trillion of wealth newly-created since 2020, according to the World Economic Forum.

It is therefore argued that industry leaders have a duty to give back in some form or other.

They are presented with the opportunity to use their platform to make a difference. While there are various creative ways through which business leaders can be more philanthropic, here are five relatively simple ways of getting started:

1) Offer your time to causes

Volunteering one’s time is one of the best means of supporting a cause.

This is especially the case for business leaders, who can utilise the skill set that they have gained through their work experience to have an effect on the performance of those organisations seeking to make a difference in the community.

They need to look for opportunities where they can make use of their qualities to advance the mission of a non-profit or social organisation, even possibly to serve on one of these enterprises’ boards. This is an effective way through which business leaders can use their influence and resources to support causes that they truly care about.

2) Give discounts to employees

A number of businesses tend to provide discounts to employees who give to charitable organisations, a great way through which they can encourage their workers to support causes and make it easier for them to do so as well.

This can take the form of companies opting to match employee donations up to a certain amount per year, or else by giving employees a gift for their generosity, among other means of doing so.

Such initiatives do not only help the causes in question, but they also act as effective ways for companies to both attract and retain talented employees.

3) Provide volunteering time off to employees

Business leaders can also be more philanthropic by allowing employees additional time off to volunteer.

This acts a great way for businesses to support the employees who want to give back and encourages them to do so through means other than just financial support. These initiatives also serve as a way through which business leaders can increase morale and improve recruitment.

This can be done by possibly giving a day off in a week to volunteer at a local food bank or soup kitchen, or else some days of paid leave to support a particular charity.

4) Donate to employees’ favourite causes

It is valuable for business leaders to show that they care about their employees and their interests.

This is also the case when it comes to their philanthropic efforts, as by donating to employees’ favourite charities, business leaders can show them that they value their work and encourage them to continue doing so.

5) Raise awareness for initiatives you care about

Business leaders have the privilege of using their platform to act as role models and bring about greater change within society.

They can choose to advocate for the causes that they care about, or else use their influence to raise awareness about pressing issues and call for change.

This can be done by sharing information about a particular cause on their own social media pages, or else through interviews with news portals to call for action with regards to a certain issue, as well as through various other means.