Report: Businesses Continue to Boost Social Impact Budgets

Benevity Inc. released its fifth annual State of Corporate Purpose Report during the Benevity Live! conference in Palm Springs, California. The report shows that while corporate social responsibility (CSR) has become significantly more complex and cross-functional, it continues to be a measurable strategic contributor to business success and resilience.

The 2025 report reflects a defining moment for corporate purpose, with nearly two-thirds of companies having significantly shifted their corporate purpose strategies in the past year, tapping into new opportunities and increasing budgets while responding to rising scrutiny and regulatory shifts.

"This year’s data reveals a deep tension in the corporate purpose space – one where CSR leaders are clear on the business value of their investments but are struggling with how to execute it to its maximum potential in a charged environment,” said Sona Khosla, Chief Impact Officer of Benevity and Head of Benevity Impact Labs. "CEOs have a vital role to play in maintaining corporate trust and building business resilience by sustaining investment in purpose or risk declining revenue and loyalty from increasingly discontented employees and customers."

For the fifth consecutive year, the State of Corporate Purpose study was conducted by Benevity Impact Labs, a social innovation lab and research hub. The annual survey included more than 500 corporate impact leaders from around the globe. The data shows that corporate social impact is maturing as it becomes an enterprise-wide endeavor, but remains a critical strategy for building business and employee resilience.

• 92% of leaders say they are investing in social impact programs because it’s good for business;
• 88% say their impact strategy is future-proofing their business when it comes to talent acquisition and retention, customers and regulatory requirements; and
• 91% say they are making sure their programs support their corporate strategy & values.

According to the 2025 Benevity State of Corporate Purpose Report, as external pressures and complexities increase in the CSR and social impact space, several key trends are at work and expected to influence and shape corporate purpose perspectives, strategies and implementations in 2025.

• Corporate caution heightens business risk. Companies that scale back their communications and public commitments to social and environmental impact risk eroding trust among both employees and consumers, negatively impacting their brand and bottom line. While 52% of leaders say their CEOs will be less vocal this year, more than three-quarters (76%) acknowledge they expect employee activism. Balancing that potential gap is a corporate risk factor that is being managed across departments, from impact professionals to communications, HR and legal teams.

“Leaders across the board are adjusting the way they talk about corporate impact. They are still doing the work but are adapting their narratives to meet the moment and working more cross-functionally to do so,” said Khosla. “In 2025, corporate communications will be a key partner for CSR teams. Two-thirds expect to engage with corporate communications teams more and 30% expect to do so a lot more.”

• Volunteering builds business resilience. Volunteering continues to be a core component of purpose programs, but is changing shape to drive even greater business value. The 2025 Benevity study reveals that 94% of companies say volunteering helps build a resilient business and prior Benevity research shows open-choice volunteering demonstrably increases participation.

“More than 23 million volunteer hours were tracked across the Benevity Enterprise Impact Platform in 2024,” said Candace Worley, Chief Product Officer for Benevity. “Volunteering is emerging as a critical component of building more resilient companies and cultures as we continue to experience the increasing pace of both technological and workplace change.”

• Employee resource groups are a source of trust. The study shows a continued commitment to building inclusive cultures with investments in employee resource groups (ERGs). Earlier Benevity studies have quantified that these groups bring significant value to companies by strengthening the employer value proposition and building employee trust. 92% of CSR leaders say that ERGs are viewed positively by leadership and the report also shows that those groups are evolving to become a trusted source of information within an organization (87%).

“In an era of distrust and polarization, these numbers represent a real opportunity for companies to lean into ERGs as a powerful and authentic way to sustain inclusion efforts amidst a changing regulatory and legal environment and strengthen business resilience," said Khosla.

• Evolving grant programs and AI influence. The 2025 Benevity study shows shifts in focus and implementation of grantmaking, reflecting moves to strengthen the nonprofit sector. More than half (51%) of companies are expecting increased granting budgets this year and within the last year grants made to Community Improvement and Nonprofit Capacity Building jumped from ninth to fourth position. At the same time, CSR teams are leaning into AI-driven efficiencies to streamline administrative tasks, with 64% and 62% of respondents noting that CSR teams are using AI for grant application summaries and reviews respectively.

“As everyone works through the opportunities that responsible AI can offer, our State of Corporate Purpose study found that 82% of companies believe nonprofits require more corporate support to bridge the AI gap,” commented Ian Goldsmith, Chief AI Officer for Benevity. “As corporations advance their AI capabilities, they have a unique opportunity to offer technical expertise, fund AI-driven tools and provide skill-sharing with nonprofit partners.”

Insights for navigating the current environment and trends in the 2025 State of Corporate Purpose Report included: driving efficiency and measurement into core CSR programs, strengthening internal and external narratives around CSR to more clearly connect purpose to company values, maintaining employee choice in giving and volunteering and investing in more holistic direct support for nonprofits and communities infrastructure needs.

This week at Benevity Live!, further insights offered by Khosla, other Benevity executives and impact practitioners from around the world focused on the challenges and opportunities for CSR and social impact today – and how purpose is connected to business success.

The full 2025 Benevity State of Corporate Purpose Report may be found here.

The preceding press release was provided by a company unaffiliated with NonProfit PRO. The views expressed within may not directly reflect the thoughts or opinions of the staff of NonProfit PRO.

Source: Benevity