Nearly a quarter of companies expect to increase their funding for the arts in the next 12 months, and only seven percent expect to decrease arts funding. Companies can use the arts to improve the economy and quality of life in communities and to foster creativity in their workforce. Partnerships with arts organizations provide interesting opportunities for companies to engage employees, promote diversity, and drive innovation.

Employees who participate in nonprofit board service change the way they work by becoming more cognizant of the value of diversity and inclusion. Having experience on boards, these employees typically listen more carefully to different views, create more inclusive teams or committees, and make more inclusive hiring decisions. Companies should promote nonprofit board service as a way to develop more inclusive leaders.

By pledging to increase Wells Fargo’s 2019 charitable contributions to 2 percent of after-tax profits, CEO Tim Sloan has set a high bar for community giving. In 2018, the company upped its giving to $400 million, a 40 percent increase over 2017, spurred somewhat by the announced tax reform. Wells Fargo is still an outlier: the top 25 percent of companies contribute a median of $55.3 million, according to Giving in Numbers, published by CECP in association with The Conference Board.

More than 70 percent of Americans believe the arts unify our communities regardless of age, race, and ethnicity and that the arts help them understand other cultures better, indicating the importance of the sector to individuals and the companies that employ them. Overwhelmingly, people also believe that the arts are a part of a well-rounded education. Companies looking to create meaningful social impact for their communities need to be working with the arts in a variety of ways.

Nearly half of Americans believe CEOs can influence the government, although that doesn't necessarily mean the country thinks CEOs should speak out about social issues. Americans are split on whether company leaders should try to use their influence in the public domain, but doing so could benefit the business, since nearly half of the country would be more likely to purchase from a company whose CEO has taken a stance on an issue that they agree with.

Build your community disaster-response strategy around your company’s core competencies. Your company has already developed strengths and knowledge in a specific area. Support a disaster-response strategy that aligns with that expertise to potentially save lives or lighten the burden of a disaster. Case in point: Airbnb is offering free lodging to people fleeing Hurricane Florence in the Carolinas.

Early and enduring investment by companies is critical to reconstruction and redevelopment of areas hit by disaster. Thirteen years after Hurricane Katrina struck, communities, nonprofits, and companies can now draw on the lessons of long-term engagement in disaster response. For example, collaboration and knowledge sharing are important to developing a comprehensive long-term response to redevelopment.

Following a volatile year in which threats to federal funding for the arts dissipated, businesses have shown a steadfast commitment to contributing financial and in-kind resources to support the sector. This is one of the key findings from the forthcoming Business Contributions to the Arts report, published by The Conference Board and Americans for the Arts. Join us on October 10 to hear more from the report and examples in practice from Charity Boutte, head of multicultural marketing at Aetna.

PPG is a global supplier of paints, coatings and specialty materials. Its signature community program, Colorful Communities, is a ten-year commitment to bring the company’s paint and brushes, passion, and colorful commitment to the entire PPG footprint. In this Q&A, Bryan Iams, PPG vice president of corporate communications, marketing, and government and community affairs, discusses the company’s highly focused approach to corporate philanthropy.