Chapter 1: Introduction
The past decade has seen rapid changes in the scope and nature of corporate community investment in Australia. These reflect in part changes taking place in other countries, but also thoughtful discussion and innovation in Australia’s business, government and non-profit sectors. Reasons for this are explored in more detail in subsequent chapters, but include:
- rising community expectations that companies will make a wider contribution to community wellbeing (especially in younger generations and including employees);
- the corporate response to a poor image or lack of trust in the community, which can affect its legitimacy and overall capacity to perform;
- growth in sophistication and a shift in attitude in much of the not-for-profit sector to support deeper partnerships for mutual benefit;
- increased interdependence between business and communities requiring closer relationships in the mutual interest; and
- a more sophisticated approach by many companies to bring these issues into core business.
Prime Minister Howard’s initiative to establishing the Prime Minister’s Community Business Partnership has built attention to the issues. The Partnership has supported research, promoted best practice and recommended government policies to facilitate community support for the not-for-profit sector.
The changes have contributed to, and drawn upon, the professionalism of a new breed of specialist executives within public affairs departments of companies. Their collaborative pursuit of international best practice in this area, including through programs of the Centre for Corporate Public Affairs, is also supporting the shift of corporate community involvement into the mainstream of company management.
While management education has given inadequate attention to corporate community investment, a start has been made to give visibility to these issues and transfer knowledge in academic institutions including Deakin University’s Corporate Citizenship Research and Monash University’s Australian Centre for Corporate Social Responsibility.
This study is intended, inter alia, to update a major report undertaken in 1999–2000 by the Centre for Corporate Public Affairs in conjunction with the Business Council of Australia, for the Prime Minister’s Community Business Partnership. That report Corporate Community Involvement; Establishing a Business Case (www.accpa.com.au) was influential in the business, government and not-for-profit sectors. It explained the rationale for business involvement, illustrated innovative thinking and showcased new approaches to business– community partnerships and other relationships. The report noted that a journey had begun from traditional notions of corporate philanthropy towards a more strategic approach within a long-run business case requirement, and with new approaches to community engagement. This current report demonstrates that while companies are at many different stages, the 1999–2000 trends have continued and are deepening. Companies are increasingly moving community investment from the periphery to become an integrated, core activity.
This study should be valuable to business, the community and government. During the research a number of companies acknowledged they were lagging in their approach to community investment and looked forward to seeing the approach more advanced companies were taking to assist them in their planning.
A better understanding of how companies make decisions about community investment will enable the community sector to acquire and leverage corporate resources more effectively and sustainably. And an improved understanding of the dynamics of business–community relations on the part of all parties should help governments build social capital and contribute to their community development agendas.
As with the previous study, a reference group was nominated by the three parties, to provide input and a sounding board to the research.
The reference group held discussions on issues in the study, reviewed and commented on drafting, and assisted with recommendations. The reference group is:
- Mr Fergus Ryan, Company Director (Convenor);
- Mr Rob Hunt, Managing Director, Bendigo Bank;
- Dr David Morgan, Chief Executive Officer, Westpac Banking Corporation;
- Ms Elaine Henry OAM, Chief Executive Officer, The Smith Family;
- Professor John Seybolt, Dean, Melbourne Business School;
- Mr Greig Gailey, Chief Executive Officer, Zinifex Limited;
- Mr Tony D’Aloisio, former Managing Director and CEO, Australian Stock Exchange; and
- Ms Jane Hemstritch, Managing Director — Asia Pacific, Accenture.
Four reference group members were from the Community Business Partnership’s CSR subcommittee; five were members of the Business Council of Australia (at the time of appointment); Professor Seybolt is a leading academic with an interest in this area; and Tony D’Aloisio is a former managing partner of a senior law firm, former company CEO, and now a senior business regulator.
Geoff Allen and Anne Irvine led the research with support from Wayne Burns and Coral Kee from the Centre for Corporate Public Affairs. Mark Triffitt, Director, Strategic Communications, Business Council of Australia provided valuable ideas and support.
The study was conducted in the second half of 2006. Following literature research and building on the extensive consulting and other experience of the research team, a survey was developed to seek information from the corporate sector in Australia.
Brent Taylor at Values Bank Research provided professional support for the online survey. The target field was the top 150 Australian publicly listed companies, overseas listed companies with equivalent scale of operations in Australia, and a small number of government business enterprises. Eighty-two surveys were returned representing a 35% response rate.1
Half-day workshops were held in Sydney, Melbourne and Perth, involving fiftyseven public affairs or community relations executives from fifty-one companies, to explore issues and corporate experience. In addition, around thirty interviews were conducted with CEOs (and in some cases company chairmen), mainly from Business Council of Australia companies. These interviews assessed top management philosophy, perspectives, and their understanding of the broad societal issues. In all, 110 companies contributed to the study. Reports and case studies of company initiatives and activities were sought throughout this process to illustrate current approaches.
The Centre for Corporate Public Affairs and the Business Council of Australia are grateful to the staff and members of the Prime Minister’s Community Business Partnership for their enthusiastic support, and for the opportunity to undertake this important study.
- Detailed Survey Information
In a report of this nature it has not been possible to present all the potential findings embedded in the survey responses such as data cut by industry sector or scale of business. This may be of interest, for example, to academics working in the field. Confidentiality commitments to respondents has prevented the presentation of raw data in the report on our website, and will impose some constraints, but more detailed information can be made available on application to the Centre for Corporate Public Affairs.