1. Collective Giving and its role in Australian Philanthropy
James Boyd and Lee Partridge
A Report Commissioned by the Prime Minister’s Community
Business Partnership
July 2017

2. Introduction
Research project commissioned in June 2016 by the Department of Social Services to assist the work of the Prime Minister’s Community Business Partnership.
The Prime Minister’s Community Business Partnership brings together leaders from the business and community sectors to promote philanthropic giving and investment in Australia. The Partnership is chaired by the Prime Minister, with the Minister for Social Services as Deputy Chair.

3. Definition Donors pool their resources
Collectively decide how and where to distribute funds
Educational and/or community building element
Donor-initiated
Giving group in place of giving circle

4. Impact100 Pensacola

5. Impact100 Pensacola

6. Members influenced to…
give more
give more strategically
give more broadly, particularly to women and ethnic and minority groups
be highly engaged in the community
be more knowledgeable about philanthropy, non-profits, and the community

7. Methods & research questions
What are the characteristics of existing giving groups in Australia?
How do giving groups differ, compare and relate to other forms of philanthropy in Australia?
What are the lessons learnt from establishing giving groups in Australia?
What might be the future of giving groups in Australia?

8. Stakeholders Groups Founders of giving groups (17)
Members of giving groups (donors) (237)
Host organisations/community foundations (7)
Charities that received funding from giving groups (24)

9. Characteristics Volunteer-based Mission to grow philanthropy
“100%” funds raised distributed in grantmaking activities
Larger groups typically provide tax-deductiblity to donors
Smaller groups often forego tax-deductibility

10. Member demographics

11. 54% 64% 80% 17% Member demographics
Highly educated with post graduate qualifications
Pre-tax household income > $125,000
Living comfortably on present income
Getting by on current income
64%
80%
17%

12. Giving group relationships
Business
Giving Group
Charity
Donor
Host
organisation

13. Differences, comparison & relationships
How do giving groups differ, compare and relate to other forms of philanthropy in Australia?
Differences, comparison & relationships
Aims and mission
Operational differences
The impact of giving groups
- The donor experiences
- The charity experience

14. The impact of giving groups
How do giving groups differ, compare and relate to other forms of philanthropy in Australia?
The impact of giving groups
The real benefit of a giving circle is the role it plays in raising awareness of the participants about their community or the issue area, the systemic issues and in supporting and enabling them to become much more thoughtful donors, much bigger
donors personally and
to engage with the issue
in all sorts of ways.
(Ruth Jones,
former CEO SVP (USA))

15. Learning and awareness raising
The impact of giving groups:
The donor experience
67%
developed a greater awareness of the needs of [their] community
learnt more about evaluation and assessment of charitable programs or organisations
developed or solidified a longer term commitment to giving and volunteering
learned more about the charitable sector and how charitable organisations operate
74%
66%
65%

16. Philanthropic behavior: treasure
The impact of giving groups:
The donor experience
70%
Increase in the amount of money they gave
to charities
Increased consideration of the effectiveness
of the organisations they supported
Unchanged number of organisations they gave to
Increased number of organisations they
gave to
59%
52%
37%

17. Philanthropic behaviour: time and talent
The impact of giving groups:
The donor experience
63%
Unchanged amount of time volunteered each year
Unchanged amount of probono support offered
Unchanged involvement in fundraising efforts in support of charities
Unchanged involvement in changing government policies
65%
70%
65%

18. The charity experience
The impact of giving groups:
The charity experience
The grant-making process
Unexpected benefits in the form of incidental capacity building
A better experience
- more engaged and supported
- enhanced credibility
- valuable networking
- leveraging capacity of original contact

19. The charity experience: more engaged
The impact of giving groups:
The charity experience
It felt like they really cared in what we were up to. That was really nice and I haven’t experienced that with any other funding body. I always thought it was a bit crazy that you can apply for these [other] grants and then win them and nobody’s ever seen your office, or what you’re actually up to, you know?
(Charity representative)

20. The charity experience: enhanced credibility
The impact of giving groups:
The charity experience
I think since winning Impact100 and then we had The Funding Network pitch shortly afterwards, there was momentum. It was almost like other organisations bought into us or felt they could support us because all the due diligence had been done.
(Charity founder)

21. Lessons learnt Volunteer-nature Champion/enabler
What are the lessons learn from establishing giving groups in Australia?
Lessons learnt
Volunteer-nature
Champion/enabler
Philanthropic literacy
Charitable organisations and tax laws
Closed-shop
Capacity building of the sector
Growth & sustainability

22. The future of giving groups
What might be the future of giving groups in Australia?
The future of giving groups
Growth likely to be in-line with international trends, with the potential to have significant multiple impacts:
Growing philanthropy
Capacity building the community sector
Dependent on:
Growing community awareness
Increasing diversity and geographical reach
Overcoming hurdles

23. Social Innovation – Big Society
“So no, we are not going to solve our problems with bigger government. We are going to solve our problems with a stronger society. Stronger families. Stronger communities. A stronger country. All by rebuilding responsibility”
(David Cameron, 2009).