Eight Companies with Best-in-Class Employee Matching Gift Programs

By Adam Weinger

Did you know that over 65 percent of Fortune 500 companies offer employee matching gift programs? Past articles covered the business case for corporate philanthropy as well as the four most common forms of employee giving programs but it's clear that creating or expanding an employee matching gift program is one of the most effective ways for a company to allocate its corporate philanthropy dollars.

Here are eight companies that offer best in class employee matching gift programs.

 

1. General Electric In 1954, the GE Foundation created the Corporate Alumni Program, the first corporate gift-matching program. Today, the GE Foundation matches over $35 million annually to all 501(c)(3) organizations and accredited educational institutions (including K-12).

 

Highlight: GE created the model for corporate employee matching gift programs.

2. Soros Management Fund Soros Management Fund offers the most generous limits on corporate matching gift programs. The company’s 3:1 match for employees and 2:1 match for partners is a strong incentive for employees to give back to their communities.

Highlight: The company matches up to $300K in annual donations per employee. This is by far the largest limit for any corporation.

3. BP BP offers practically every type of employee giving program and allows the general public to track which organizations are receiving donations in real time. The company offers a standard 1:1 match on all donations made by employees.

Highlight: The company also provides a 100 percent match on all money raised by employees for charity runs, walks, etc.

4. The Ford Foundation The Ford Foundation is a private foundation which was originally funded by the Ford family. It has since sold off its Ford holdings and is no longer affiliated with the Ford Company. With over $10 billion dollars in assets, it is one of the most influential foundations in the world.

 

Highlight: A 3:1 match on all donations made by employees quadruples an employee’s donation to any nonprofit.

5. State Street Corporation State Street also offers nearly every type of employee giving program. The company matches donations made to almost all nonprofits.

Highlight: State Street matches the fundraising efforts of its employees up to $1,000 annually.

6. ExxonMobil ExxonMobil donated over $278 million to charities in 2011 making it one of the largest corporate donors.

Highlight: A 3:1 match on donations to educational institutions (1:1 match to all other organizations) contributed to the company dedicating over $120 million to education in 2011.

7. Carmax Carmax matches donations to nearly every nonprofit. The company also offers a very generous volunteer grant program in addition to their 1:1 match on all donations.

Highlight: Carmax matches donations made by an employee’s dependents until they turn 26.

8. Johnson and Johnson Johnson and Johnson matches donations to nearly every nonprofit. Each of the company’s 120,000 employees plus all retirees are eligible to request up to $10,000 annually in matching gift funds.

Highlight: A 2:1 matching ratio for current employees and a 1:1 rate for all retirees.

Want to learn more? If you want to further pursue starting up or expanding an employee matching gift program, check out the employer resources which Double the Donation has created to get you started.

If you’re a nonprofit, learn more about some of the largest corporations which offer matching gift programs.

Readers: Do you work for a company with an outstanding corporate employee matching gift program?

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[Image credit: Double the Donation]

Adam Weinger is the founder of Double the Donation, a company focused on helping nonprofits increase the amount of money they raise from corporate matching gift and volunteer grant programs. Follow Double the Donation on Twitter.