DATA MAKES A DIFFERENCE
Should you have an impact communications budget? How many community partner relationships might each team member manage? Is the cost of your tech reasonable?
These (and many more) strategic questions illustrate the need for data to inform how the management approach that underlies a community investment program, influences how a company makes a difference.
The reality: while size matters, investment dollars, employee hours, and in-kind resources do not lead to impact alone. The management structure that surrounds the community investment strategy is an under-explored, significant, influence on the community & business impact of each company’s community & social investment strategy.
Yes! The LBG Canada audit results in more credible reporting on what a company has invested in the community. Yes! The LBG Canada impact reporting framework enables each company to report on impact. AND! The LBG Canada community exists to inform the how of impact.
DID YOU KNOW?
The Holy Grail in impact reporting is often thought to be the biggest number. For example, this image illustrates, that employees across the LBG Canada community volunteer 1.4 M hours each year.
While true and exciting, the data also illustrates many more meaningful insights. For example, while During Work Hours volunteering generates only 6% of total hours, participation rates are consistently higher. This is a key insight towards achieving the goal of employee engagement.
A second insight flowing from the LBG Canada data, is that a strong Non-Work Hours showing (i.e. those millions of outside-of-work volunteer hours) correlates to the existence of a during-work-hours volunteering program (hello corporate culture!). This is a key insight for companies seeking to have impact in the community by mobilizing employee volunteers.
Access the LBG Canada data set to support your community investment and employee engagement strategies. For more information, let’s connect
ADVANCING THE ‘S’ IN ESG REPORTING
Companies with strong social and community impact reporting processes have an opportunity for the limelight. This opportunity is a result of work being done at the highest regulatory levels, i.e. the International Financial Regulatory Standards Board (IFRS).
As background, ‘the IFRS Foundation is a not-for-profit, public interest organisation established to develop high-quality, understandable, enforceable and globally accepted accounting and sustainability disclosure standards.’
The IFRS expanded from 1 (accounting disclosure) to 2 (sustainability disclosure) standards boards in 2022. At present, aspects of environmental impact disclosure are further advanced than aspects of social impact disclosure. The LBG Canada audit is one piece of the puzzle, and the process that underpins the LBG Canada offers a process that can lead to other aspects of standardized ‘S’ reporting; in social procurement, impact innovation, investment in Indigenous communities, Diversity, Equity & Inclusion initiatives, among others.
Interested in advancing ESG reporting in Canada? Let’s connect! Read our recent paper on this very topic here.
