A Business Case for Business Community Partnerships
SME's are following the lead of big business and forming strategic alliances and partnerships with the local community. Corporate community involvement is recognised as facilitating corporate image enhancement, brand recognition and brand reputation. Community activities also provide opportunity for creative and powerful marketing and public relations programs and may give access to media and markets inaccessible through regular business practices.
Some benefits of business community partnerships include;
- opening up new business opportunities when the community directly or indirectly refer customers who are impressed by the initiative chosen to support your business
- exposing you and your staff to processes and / or skills that if implemented could improve your business operations
- opportunity to stretch and develop your staff in a way that would not be possible within your business
- attracting and retaining good staff. Many businesses are seeking to be recognised as "employers of choice". A proactive engagement with the broader community ensures staff (and potential staff) view the business as a socially responsible organisation that they would be proud to work for.
But there is a need to be honest with yourself and ask: "What can my business realistically offer without being overburdened?" Ask what skills, capabilities and benefits your business has and could be used to develop a successful community - business partnership?
A true community partnership is one which works towards the common good as well as community benefit and one where both parties agree on a project over a period of time to achieve outcomes beneficial to both parties and to the wider community.
Evaluate what you, your staff and your business want from a partnership with a community group. Look at what sort of community group you would be best suited to develop a partnership with and ensure their values and outlook are in harmony with your business. Partnerships work best when either the business and community group come from a complementary sector or you and your staff have a genuine belief in the philosophy of the community organisation.
Ways to be involved;
- Volunteering--Whether it be regular or one-off opportunities for individual staff, groups of staff or even every staff member in the business for a working bee or a large project
- Business as a collection point - A business can offer to collect money or goods for a community group either on a temporary or ongoing basis. There is potential for increased patronage of the business when people make deliveries for the community group and the community group can raise money and collect goods without having to provide the infrastructure or storage space.
- In-kind support - This can be particularly suitable for small-to-medium enterprises because it does not involve a cash outlay. Businesses can donate goods, services or resources to a community group.
- Pro bono or discounted services and products - This is often associated with legal and accounting firms offering review of contracts or conducting the annual financial audit to meet funding body reporting requirements.
- Providing work experience opportunities - This can be for school, TAFE or university students studying a particular course, people with disabilities, people re-entering the workforce or even teachers needing "industry currency".
- Scholarships and awards - business can offer scholarships in partnership with community groups such as local Rotary or Lions clubs or sponsor an award at a local school or TAFE college.
- Donations - These can be one-off from the business or an employee-business "workplace giving" scheme where the business matches $ for $ the amount raised or donated by the staff.
Businesses are essentially groups of people, most of whom have values and care for the wider community. A partnership can help you and your employees feel that the effort they put in at work every day is contributing to the greater good.
For more information or assistance about business community partnership contact your Local Community Partnerships.
Stephen Frost, Managing Director - BREED Local Community PartnershipGWP Magazine Issue #27, Nov-Dec 2009
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