May 9, 2008 | Read Time: 1 minute
While corporations award billions of philanthropic dollars each year, they need to do more to truly aid the world, says Marc Benioff, the chief executive officer of Salesforce.com, a software company.
“It’s a large amount, but the world’s problems go beyond what funding can fix. Too many corporate philanthropic efforts occur in isolation, with little relationship to their community, employees, or corporate missions,” he writes on The Huffington Post.
If businesses harness all their assets — workers, expertise, money, and products — for good causes, it could mean the “end of philanthropy,” he says.
“Together, companies can unite so that communities don’t have to wait for the generous gifts of the very wealthy. Together, we can create a model that is simple, sustainable, and successful. We call it “the power of us” and there’s room, reason, and benefits, for everyone,” he writes.
As an example, he writes, Salesforce.com follows the so-called 1/1/1 approach — pledging 1 percent of its shares to a foundation, donating 1 percent of its product to charities, and committing 1 percent of its employees’ work hours to volunteer service.
What do you think? Is a better approach to corporate giving needed? What do you think of the way Salesforce.com gives?
