Opinion: Why the Twin Cities Have a Strong Culture of Corporate Giving

Joe Nocera of The New York Times wonders why corporations in Minneapolis seem to have a particular propensity for philanthropic giving. Together with Bill King, the head of the Minnesota Council on Foundations, Mr. Nocera takes a “philanthropic tour” of the Twin Cities to find out what makes the area ripe for a corporate culture of giving.

Most recently, Mr. King referenced the corporate response to the collapse of the Interstate 35W bridge last August. “When it fell, there was an immediate response from corporations,” Mr. King said. “And a fund for victims was set up by the Minneapolis and St. Paul Foundations.”

But stretching back further, a deeper history of giving exists. Mr. Nocera cites a quote from John D. Rockefeller III who said in a speech to the Minneapolis Chamber of Commerce in the 1970s that he had heard so much about “the public spirit of its business community” that he “had to come to the Emerald City myself to see if it really exists.” Minneapolis and St. Paul have a large number of foundations that were started by the founders or top executives of companies such as 3M and Target, the latter of which gave away nearly $160 million last year alone.

While Mr. Nocera says that although “you hear all kinds of theories” for why the corporate culture of giving exists in Minneapolis, he believes it is most likely the early work of the creator of what is called the Five Percent Club, Kenneth N. Dayton, who ran once the Dayton Corporation, now known as Target. The club began the mid-1970s and a number of Minneapolis-St. Paul corporations agreed to set aside 5 percent of their pretax income for philanthropy.

Peter C. Hutchinson, who ran the Dayton Foundation for many years, said, “It comes from the concept of tithing, which is something he totally believed in,” and explained that the company’s efforts and Mr. Dayton’s club worked to institutionalize philanthropy in the area. Eventually, Mr. Dayton allowed companies that wanted to donate 2 percent to join as well.

Today Nate Garvis, the vice president for government affairs at Target, says that executives in the area are expected to join nonprofit boards and serve in the communities. Mr. Rothschild, the former General Mills executive, says that at many companies a portion of an executive’s bonus was based on community involvement.

“As the companies have gotten more national in scope, their philanthropy has become more national. And in truth, much of it has become more aligned with business goals,” Mr. Nocera writes. But one should “applaud corporate generosity, no matter what the rationale.”

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