LBG Canada Newsletter - March 2010

Valuing a Community Investment Portfolio

Despite it being almost 16 years since three questions launched the LBG framework, community investment professionals are still being asked:

• Are we effective as we invest in community?
• Are we choosing the right partners?
• What value are we creating - in the community and for our business?

In an ideal world, the answers to these questions would be at our finger tips, but for many companies this is not yet the case.

Most companies struggle to answer these three key questions because they narrow their measurement focus too quickly on individual projects. The reality of diverse community, business and stakeholder needs means that no one investment or initiative can satisfy every need. An approach to assess effectiveness and overall value must begin with an examination of the whole portfolio.

With a portfolio-focused view, companies ask themselves the following questions:

• Is our portfolio living up to expectations?
• Does the break-down between commercial, social and philanthropically-motivated investments reflect our corporate culture, stated commitments and employee expectations?
• Is our budget the right amount to meet expectations to create community & business value?
• Do we have the right balance of investment across each focus area?
• Are we clear on which areas are of the most interest to our stakeholders?

These questions are the foundation of effective performance measurement. The answers to these questions flow from the LBG Canada Annual Benchmarking Process.

After an analysis of the portfolio, individual projects and cross-cutting strategies (i.e. employee volunteering) can be examined in detail, from the perspective of a project's opportunity to contribute to the strength of the whole.

Setting your 2010 LBG Canada Goals

Over the past few months, every LBG Canada community investment team has been encouraged to choose and state their goals for involvement in 2010. Goals range from improving communications on key projects, to deepening knowledge about how to use the LBG Canada benchmarking data to inform decision-making and improve the overall performance value of the portfolio. Some LBG Canada companies are completely re-designing their approach to performance measurement. Others seek to engage senior management more effectively via more strategic communication messages and performance results.

Have your goals been set for 2010? Have you set aside some time to outline your goals with SiMPACT and discussed how we can support you? It is never too late. Putting goals down on paper is the first step towards ensuring they are achieved.

LBG Canada on 3BL Media Sustainability, CSR & CI Hotlist

SiMPACT Strategy Group has signed on with 3BL Media, a specialist media outlet connected to sustainability, CSR and community investment media outlets across North America and around the globe. 3BL offers coordinated links to journalists, professionals, academics, CSR digests and news outlets using a variety of social networking tools to assist in getting the message out.

Watch this space! We expect some news action around the 2010 LBG Canada Annual Meeting and benchmarking results soon.

LBG Canada GrantStream Module nears Completion

LBG Canada companies got a sneak peak at the new LBG Canada GrantStream module during two live-demonstrations held in December and January. The module has now been tested by the CI group at Enbridge and is almost ready for wider distribution.

For more information about the module, please contact Matthew Fawcett at .

Articles of Interest

Measurement is more than a good thing to do - it's the right thing - Boston College Blog

Research from Best Employers in Canada Study Builds Business Case for Investment in Corporate Social Responsibility - CBSR & Hewitt Associates

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