Investing in corporate social responsibility initiatives is a simple but highly effective way to engage employees, improve your organization’s reputation, and ensure your impact on the world is positive. However, as more and more businesses begin incorporating CSR and social impact initiatives into their strategies and operations, the need for tech that manages everything skyrockets. Below, we break down what you need to know to choose a CSR platform that makes managing your programs a breeze.
A CSR platform is a tool for facilitating and managing various CSR initiatives and programs. The term can describe any platform that aims to help teams ingrain environmental, social, and governance (ESG) and philanthropic values into their everyday operations.
CSR platforms empower teams to conduct their programs more efficiently. They also unlock opportunities to engage key stakeholders and report on the impact your CSR efforts have. Investing in the right platform helps you prioritize your organization’s social impact without sacrificing any focus on growth.
The best platforms should be comprehensive and cover everything you need to run a successful program. From employee engagement to donation matching, grant management, and more, you’ll want everything in one place.
The case for CSR initiatives, in general, is clear to many businesses. What may be less obvious is the value of investing in a platform made specifically for CSR and social impact teams. However, while it may come with some costs, a corporate CSR platform has both internal and external benefits.
For one thing, a dedicated platform supports more consistent and higher rates of employee engagement. Employees want to work for companies that help them achieve their personal goals and collaborate with them to solve issues that affect their communities.
A CSR platform increases visibility into what your organization is doing to make a difference, motivating top talent to stick around and inviting new employees to get involved. That increased visibility also enables CSR teams to clearly demonstrate the impact of their undertakings and build more trusting relationships with key stakeholders.
Plus, a purpose-built platform offers scalability and support for automation that you won’t find on traditional tools like spreadsheets.
Without an adequate platform to manage CSR, your teams may find themselves bogged down by excessive admin burden, financial losses, or a lack of resources to dedicate to the causes you believe in.
Once you’ve decided it’s time to introduce a CSR platform to your operations, the next step is to choose the right technology. There are a few key features you’ll want to know about and prioritize as you explore your options. Let’s take a closer look at some of them.
Tech with a low learning curve and user-friendly operations is much easier to sell employees and stakeholders on than complex, convoluted solutions. Accessibility will be crucial if you’re looking for a CSR engagement platform. The easier and more fun your platform is to use, the more your employees will actually use it.
What “user-friendly” means can vary, but in general, it means prioritizing simple workflows and operations. In other words, look for platforms that don’t make you jump through hoops to get to the information you need. If you manage an employee workforce that doesn't sit behind a computer, you'll also want to make sure they can access the platform, since they may not log in to your system as other desked employees would. Platforms that can be accessed with a personal email or via a mobile app will allow you to include your entire workforce.
Choosing a platform with customizable interfaces or dashboards, real-time views of data, and additional features – like a mobile app – that make it simple to track data is ideal. If your platform of choice does offer customization options, be sure that those features are accessible when you need them and aren’t locked behind an additional paywall.
Whether you’re just getting started with CSR initiatives or are a seasoned pro, creating campaigns can be time consuming. Choose a CSR platform that simplifies campaign creation and oversight without creating an undue burden for your staff.
Understandable and efficient campaign management capabilities are an absolute must. Your platform should enable you to:
If you’re going to invest in a CSR platform, it makes sense to choose one that comes with all the bells and whistles. Otherwise, you might end up slowly acquiring more tech needs over time as your programs grow.
There’s no need to juggle a separate CSR donation platform, volunteer platform, grantmaking platform, etc. With a platform like Groundswell, you can centralize management for all of your initiatives, including:
Choose tech that allows you to pay one price to manage all of your work and scale when you're ready.
Regular, detailed reporting on data is key for ensuring your efforts produce the results you’re after. It also legitimizes your CSR programs and helps you demonstrate their value. As a result, it’s important to choose a CSR tool that allows you to not only track key data but also to readily access and interpret it.
Look for platforms that support data analysis at the granular level (for example, individual employee contribution amounts or program participation by location) and at the macro level (overall program participation rates or total funds donated, for instance).
Give extra consideration to platforms that allow you to:
Access to ongoing support and education is huge when it comes to change management and sustainable implementation of your CSR platform. Many software providers ask customers to pay extra for access to “support packages” that promise to help you maximize the benefits you get from your tech. No one wants to be trapped submitting tickets and hoping someone will get back to you. But you don’t necessarily have to pay more to get the most out of the right platform.
Look for software vendors that prioritize customer support and don’t charge extra to help you learn how to use their technology. Pay special attention to platforms that allow employees to also get support or ask questions.
Specific features and traits aren’t the only things that should be on your mind when looking for a social impact platform. Here are some questions to ask yourself as you attempt to sort out the best CSR platforms from those that don’t make the cut:
At the end of the day, the best CSR platform for your team will be the one that meets the most needs and has the fewest downsides.
Groundswell is an enterprise CSR platform that’s dedicated to giving teams of all sizes the resources and tools they need to build programs they’re proud of. Democratizing philanthropy is a key part of our mission, which means you don’t have to pay hefty fees to get access to effective technology.
Our user-friendly interface allows admins and CSR leaders alike to track their progress, send updates, and launch campaigns anywhere, anytime. With our easy and hands-off instant funds disbursement, you can say goodbye to the days of cutting checks and manually matching employee contributions. And with both web and mobile access, your entire workforce can be included in your CSR programs.
Scale your CSR operations or simply support the system you already have in place with the help of Groundswell. Ready to learn more? Book a demo today to see our platform in action
