2005 State of Corporate Citizenship Survey Reveals Increasing Role of U.S. Businesses in Communities

WASHINGTON, D.C.—The U.S. Chamber of Commerce's Center for Corporate Citizenship (CCC) and the Center for Corporate Citizenship at Boston College, with the support of The Hitachi Foundation, presented findings today from the second biennial survey of U.S. executives regarding the role of business in society. According to the survey, 81% of business executives say corporate citizenship needs to be a priority and 75% are actively involved in bettering their communities.

"More businesses than ever are recognizing the importance of contributing to their communities," said CCC Executive Director Stephen Jordan. "Corporate citizenship isn't just nice to do, it's important for a company's long-term success."

The State of Corporate Citizenship in the U.S.: Business Perspectives in 2005 describes corporate citizenship attitudes and practices at a cross-section of companies across the country. The survey consisted of 1,189 companies of varying size. A majority of large businesses express commitment and involvement in workforce training (58%); supporting community development (56%); and improving product safety (56%), K-12 education (55%), and community college and higher education (51%).

Large companies also tend to be able to pay special attention to improvements for their own employees and see more opportunities to leverage corporate citizenship to meet employee needs. In addition, 64% of executives surveyed believe that integrating community, social, and ethical concerns into the management of their businesses provides tangible benefits to their bottom line.

"Making a direct link between corporate citizenship and the bottom line is new for business and encouraging for society," said Steve Rochlin, director of research and policy development at The Center for Corporate Citizenship at Boston College.

The Chamber of Commerce is the world's largest business federation representing more than 3 million businesses and organizations of every size, sector, and region.

# # #

05-154