SAVE | EMAIL | PRINT | MOST POPULAR |  RSS | | REPRINT
|
Give Back, Get Back - Doing Well By Doing Good
July 02, 2009
By Geraldine Gatehouse
The inspiration for this column was prompted in part by something I read in a recent e-mail from Tes Proos, general manager of destination management company Wedgewood South Africa. She wrote: “As things go, all of us are too familiar with travel arrangements being canceled or postponed. One of the big reasons, of course, is that it is now not politically correct to be seen as extravagant—let alone having a good time. However, that said, why not use a travel program as an opportunity to make a contribution to those who need it most?”
Take for example, the Little Lambs Creche, part of the Wedgewood Reach Out Programme and available to incentive groups. The creche exists as a home for over 150 children whose parents are domestic workers in Hout Bay on the Cape Peninsula. The whole operation runs on a shoestring, and there are unlimited opportunities to make a difference in the lives of underprivileged children. Examples include assistance with the facility’s under-tended vegetable garden, playground construction, and classroom maintenance.
So many programs are just being canceled—many of them 100 percent paid for—with little thought for alternatives and resulting in no benefit to anyone. Where you have a client whose main issue is perception rather than financial, it might be worth considering a proactive approach to avoid a possible cancellation. Take the time to redraft your incentive proposal, building it around a worthwhile community project, and present it to your client. It might also be a good idea to include a draft press release that can explain the company’s decision should it move forward with this new approach.
There is good data to back up why companies would do well to embrace “give back, get back” programs. A study by Boston-based Cone found that 80 percent of Americans have a more positive image of companies that support a cause, and a Deloitte & Touche survey found that nearly 87 percent of employees at companies with corporate social responsibility (CSR) programs feel a strong sense of loyalty. If you decide on the CSR approach, it is worth researching companies that specialize in CSR team-building and community events. With CSR starting to be a popular buzzword, there may be many companies that offer it without having the experience.
CSR event specialist Lucy Eisele of Integrity Incentives, based in Big Lake, MN, started her own company in 2005 to provide incentive planners and their participants the opportunity to combine rewarding their achievements and giving back. She calls it “social capital.” Says Eisele: “Simply put, social capital is another way of saying community giving, strategic philanthropy, or cause marketing. They all have the same meaning, which basically is to give back to those less fortunate, or to responsibly leave something better than the way you found it.”
Eisele has been honored for her work through IMEX and Site, with a Crystal Award, and is currently vice president of CSR and charitable giving for the Minnesota Site Board of Directors.
Impact4Good is another company that’s in the business of helping companies do well by doing good. Also founded in 2005, in East Hanover, NJ, Impact 4 Good aims to "bring community service to the ballroom," according to Executive Director Alan Ranzer. "Community-service-focused team-building is the 'in thing' right now, but this is no passing trend,” he says. “We’re dealing with a financial crisis and major scrutiny on every penny companies spend, and it’s changing the way companies do business.”
In these difficult times, employees are concerned for their futures, and overall morale may be low. Giving them an opportunity to make a difference in the lives of others will significantly give back to them. Ask anyone who has participated in any type of give-back, get-back program, and he or she may tell you that it was a life-changing experience.
Cause-related marketing. Incentive companies might consider taking the time to research the client company to find out more about its commitment to sustainability and CSR. Those areas can be tied into the CSR event you offer to the corporate client. Cause-related marketing—the partnering of a for-profit company with a nonprofit company for the benefit of both—is increasing in popularity and is an additional area of expertise that might work well with the promotion of CSR events.
And as companies start to fully embrace what is called "doing well while doing good," cause-related marketing may becoming the principal way that businesses express their social responsibility.
CSR Byte
If you are looking for a way to increase your commitment to sustainability, a good place to start is with your office supplies and equipment. Dolphin Blue, an online retailer of environmentally responsible office supplies, was founded in 1993 by Tom Kemper. It offers only products that meet its minimum standard of 30 percent post-consumer recycled material—with most being 100 percent. Dolphin Blue’s Green Office Guide is available for free download at its Website.
Kemper has a burning passion to positively influence the sustainability of the world and that means the environment has to come first. He is a wealth of information on a whole range of environmental issues and is an accomplished speaker.
Many people want to support good sustainable practices but are not sure where to start. In looking for office supplies the labeling on some products is unclear, and there is no real assurance that sustainable products are what they claim to be. Dolphin Blue offers paper products with certified sources. One is FSC (Forest Stewardship Council), which certifies that materials used in the making of the paper have been harvested responsibly. Another is Green-e certification for paper produced in paper mills that use wind energy instead of coal. Meanwhile, CFPA (Chlorine Free Paper Association) guarantees that the paper has been made without the use of chlorine. If you are a hotel, a planner, or an incentive house sourcing paper for a CSR event—or for clients interested in being more sustainable—Dolphin Blue would be a good place to start.
Geraldine Gatehouse is an independent planner with a passionate belief in the value and potential global impact of CSRs. She is based in Southern California and is a 2009 board member of the SoCal chapter of Site. Her Web site is www.geraldine-gatehouse.com, and she can be reached at geraldine-g@cox.net.
|
SAVE | EMAIL | PRINT | MOST POPULAR | RSS |
|
|
| Back to Incentive Index |
|
 |
advertisement |
|
|
