Over the past year, many companies have been reflecting on how they can more intentionally integrate diversity, equity and inclusion (DEI) into their giving and community engagement. While corporate grant programs primarily target the underserved, they often fail to acknowledge the systemic inequalities inherent in how grantees are selected and funded. This session will explore how corporate giving professionals can build equity and inclusion into their grantmaking programs and partnerships by explicitly supporting diverse populations, eliminating common barriers within the grantmaking process, and championing equity within giving priorities.

Attendees will hear directly from corporate citizenship consultants at Changing Our World, a social impact consulting firm, who have been working with companies across a range of industries to evolve their giving programs to more proactively and measurably advance DEI. They will share their findings on core challenges to advancing DEI in philanthropy, as well as best practices and a clear framework for how to think through applying a DEI lens to your own giving programs.

• An understanding of the issues and barriers that exist when it comes to advancing DEI within corporate grantmaking programs.
• Ideas and examples on how to set goals, measure projects, and involve employees in DEI-aligned giving.
• Emerging DEI trends in the corporate giving landscape, and examples of companies who are doing various aspects of this well.

About Mandy
As a leader in Changing Our World’s Corporate Social Engagement practice, Mandy specializes in helping companies design, implement, and evaluate strategic CSR, community involvement and philanthropy programs that drive business results and social impact. Over the past year in particular, Mandy has advised a number of corporate clients on formalizing and more intentionally integration diversity, equity and inclusion into their community engagement programs. Her work spans an array of industries with clients including TD Ameritrade, Union Pacific Railroad, ConAgra Foods, Medtronic Foundation, Philips Foundation, and Walmart.

About Leah
Leah has worked across a broad range of industries, helping them examine their current strategies and execute best-in-class corporate citizenship programs. She has experience integrating diversity, equity, and inclusion (DEI) into citizenship and grantmaking programs, helping clients like TD Ameritrade identify and partner with organizations fighting for racial justice, and enhance their existing citizenship initiatives through a DEI lens. Leah is a leader of Changing Our World’s internal DEI committee, working to ensure equitable and inclusive practices across the areas of recruitment, hiring, retention, and learning.  

In curating this year’s bbcon sessions for corporations, we felt it was important that the sessions reflected the shifts we are seeing in the corporate social responsibility landscape due to events that have occurred over the past 16+ months. bbcon gives us the chance to elevate important conversations and we are excited about what you’ll see in our Corporations track this year.