LBG Canada is a network of companies seeking to maximize the impact of community investment for employees, society and the business. These companies understand the importance of volunteering:

Creating a successful employee volunteering program is a process that requires recognizing a company’s individual context and circumstance to ensure the program fits its employee’s unique needs. 

Surveys taken by the London Benchmarking Group (LBG) Canada, indicate the following regarding employee volunteer programs: (1) 11 out of 36 companies have “no clear internal understanding of the value of employee volunteering”, (2) 13 out of 36 companies “lack of staffing resources to manage the program effectively”, and (3) 12 out of 36 companies have a strategy that is “unclear”.

Trends indicate that companies with community investment programs are interested in partnering with community based organizations and institutions. By working with community partners, companies are able to directly benefit communities, while also strengthening relationships with their customers and employees.

One key challenge currently being faced many companies working in community investment is communicating the value of community investment—both internally and externally. A barrier to effective communications is typically due to lack of understanding. In some cases, a lack of understanding occurs when community investment, marketing, and sponsorship overlap. While an integrated model has the potential for successful collaboration around community investment priorities, it is important that each area of activity be clearly distinguished from the other.