Revolutionize CSR by supporting NGOs not only with money but also with skills

Attracting and retaining skilled professionals is a difficult task for any company. In the nonprofit sector, however, the challenge is made even more difficult by budget constraints and salary competition.

According to an international study, more than half of the NGOs surveyed have problems finding qualified staff. The result: Non-profit organizations have a shortage of skilled workers in areas such as finance, law and marketing.

Many charities lack the expertise or resources to develop campaigns that attract attention and move people to action.

This is where companies can step in, provide time and resources to help fill the gaps and support awareness, growth and fundraising.

A supported campaign

The Remember to think pink One example is the campaign developed by Euphoria Telecom in collaboration with the breast cancer support program Reach For Recovery (R4R).

The campaign was fully executed by Euphoria Telecom’s in-house marketing team. This approach not only reduced costs but also enabled a coherent and targeted campaign that stayed true to Euphoria’s brand and values.

By carrying out the campaign work in-house, Euphoria was also able to use funds that would otherwise have gone to an advertising agency to cover Reach for Recovery’s printing and production costs for the campaign materials.

This means the organization was able to run a fully designed campaign without having to dip into its operating budget.

The campaign is based on the use of bright pink (the symbolic colour of breast cancer awareness) post-it notes to remind women to schedule their annual breast screenings. This early detection message in English, isiZulu and isiXhosa is memorable and effective. The post-it notes are placed in shops where women are to serve as a visual reminder to get screened. This is supported by an online and social media campaign with a specially produced information video.

Incentives for non-monetary contributions

Why don’t more companies do this? One reason is that there’s simply no incentive to do so. While donations are tax deductible, the time and resources spent developing and running campaigns are not.

CSR programs should be about much more than just financial incentives, but ensuring that donations of time and expertise are treated similarly to monetary donations could encourage more companies to invest in this way.

Regardless of the incentive mechanism, the goal should be to encourage companies to think beyond simply writing checks.

By leveraging their diverse capabilities, companies have the opportunity to expand their corporate social responsibility initiatives to support the excellent work of nonprofit organizations.

The result is stronger, more effective partnerships that benefit organizations, businesses and, most importantly, the communities they serve.

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