Michael Porter live in SA

Porter will be presenting a cutting-edge programme covering corporate strategy and CSR initiatives.

According to Porter, public companies have a responsibility to shareholders, and ‘‘doing the right thing'' is no longer a sufficient rationale for corporate giving or a sufficient guide to how corporations can truly benefit society. Demonstrating the business value of investing in the community will increase corporate giving, not diminish it.

Increasingly, philanthropy is used as a form of public relations or advertising, promoting a company's image through high-profile sponsorships. But there is a more truly strategic way to think about philanthropy, he says.

Improve competitive context

Porter, who is head of Harvard Business School's Institute for Strategy and Competitiveness, believes that corporations can use their charitable efforts to improve their competitive context – the quality of the business environment in the locations where they operate.

He says: “Using philanthropy to enhance competitive context aligns social and economic goals and improves a company's long-term business prospects. It enables a company to give money but also leverage its capabilities and relationships in support of charitable causes.

“By aligning charity and strategy, corporations don't only give money – they donate distinctive capabilities. And that can result in greater social good even as it strengthens a company's competitive edge.”

Porter admits that taking this new approach requires fundamental changes in the way companies approach their contribution programmes.

“Adopting a context-focused approach requires a far more disciplined approach than is prevalent today. But it can make a company's philanthropic activities far more effective.

“There are many different needs in our society and many different types of donors and institutions seeking to address them, including individuals, foundations, and government. Where can corporations use their giving most effectively to tackle social problems and achieve broad social impact?”

The answer

The answer, he says, is in areas related to their businesses where they have expertise, contacts, and skilled employees who allow them to add value beyond the money.

“Unfortunately, corporations cannot solve every social problem. However, many companies are directly addressing those people in greatest need. Cisco's network training academy, for example, works with the UN to serve populations in 24 of the world's poorest countries.

“One of the most distinctive contributions of corporate philanthropy is to boost employment opportunities and create the conditions for healthy local and national economies. Here corporate philanthropy offers a more sustainable answer to the plight of the homeless man or hungry child, not just more charity.”