10.1177/0007650303253289BUSINESS & SOCIETY / June 2003Saiia et al. / PHILANTHROPY AS STRATEGY Philanthropy as Strategy When Corporate Charity “Begins at Home”

Scholars and practitioners alike indicate a movement in corporate philanthropy to-ward “strategic ” giving, for example, giving that improves the firm’s strategic po-sition (ultimately the “bottom line”) while it benefits the recipient of the philan-thropic act. Although the existence of this trend is widely accepted, it is represented in the literature most often by anecdotal evidence. This article pres-ents the findings of a survey of corporate giving managers of U.S. firms that have had an established giving program of at least 5 years, with annual giving totaling at least $200,000 each year. The data show that corporate giving managers believe their firms are becoming increasingly strategic in their philanthropic activities. The findings also indicate that institutional-, firm-, and individual-level influences combine to precipitate strategic philanthropy. These findings lend support to the belief that the nature of corporate philanthropy is evolving to fit a more competi-tive marketplace