In March 2020, CECP sent out a Pulse Survey focused on understanding what actions corporations were taking in response to the impact of the Covid-19 crisis. Results indicated that most companies had both enacted their disaster relief strategy and taken other actions outside of that strategy.
Examples of these actions included indefinite suspension of volunteer events, developing new programmes specifically aimed at helping small business weather the crisis, and engaging local non-profit organisations to assess local community needs, prioritising prevention and protection.
An early April survey revealed that 45% of companies predicted an increase in their social investment budgets in response to the Covid-19 crisis. Another 37% of companies reported that their budgets would remain the same, albeit repurposed for a Covid-19 response. At the beginning of May 2020, 64% of companies predicted their social investment budget would remain the same, 18% predicted their budgets would increase, and another 18% predicted a decrease.
CECP also tracked the unique efforts made by companies in response to Covid-19, with 84% of companies reporting that they took action ‘outside of the box’. Some 21% of companies reported forgoing revenue to support community initiatives while 47% redeployed their staff in areas such as volunteering and other society-focused interventions. Many others donated goods and services normally held as their own inventory or sold to customers including PPE and pro bono technology services.
