Rising giving and record volunteering reflect sustained corporate commitment, but gaps in nonprofit support and AI adoption signal it’s time for a deliberate reset

CALGARY, Alberta, July 09, 2026 (GLOBE NEWSWIRE) -- Benevity, Inc., the leading provider of global corporate purpose software, today released its sixth annual State of Corporate Purpose trends report, finding that corporate giving rose eight points year-over-year and a record 1.87 million employees volunteered nearly 24 million hours in 2025. Both milestones were reached as companies faced unprecedented pressure on their commitment to social purpose in recent history. The report, produced by Benevity Impact Labs–the company’s social innovation lab and research hub–surfaces a defining tension: while purpose survived the pressure test, individual decisions companies made under that pressure had downstream consequences for the nonprofits, communities and causes they serve.

“Simply put, companies can no longer design and execute purpose the way they did just 6 years ago in the face of the pandemic and racial justice movement,” said Sona Khosla, Chief Impact Officer at Benevity. “In the face of ongoing shareholder activism, new political regulations and heightened stakeholder scrutiny, and the rapid proliferation of AI, corporate executives have had to adapt their approach. Today’s corporate purpose is significantly more anchored to business value and goals, more enterprise-wide and more durable. What the data is telling us is that purpose is being redesigned quietly, deliberately, and with far more strategic intent and accountability than ever before. At this moment, it is the job of business leaders to ensure that the pendulum doesn’t swing too far in the other direction, and that the redesign works for everyone, including the nonprofits and the communities they serve."

The State of Corporate Purpose 2026 analyzes survey data from corporate impact leaders across industries, combined with anonymized, aggregated data from the Benevity platform and nonprofit surveys.

Key Findings from the State of Corporate Purpose 2026:

Purpose survived the pressure test, even as it came from every direction: Nearly three-quarters of corporate impact leaders said the political and regulatory environment directly influenced their strategy, with scrutiny coming from executives and boards (47%), employees (41%) and legal and compliance teams (39%). Yet the Benevity community facilitated $2.7 billion in total donations and nearly 24 million volunteer hours in support of 312,000 nonprofits worldwide in 2025 alone. The greatest pressure on corporate purpose in recent history produced its strongest results yet.
CEO support held, but funding shifted: While 94% of CEOs remain internally supportive of corporate purpose programs, nearly two-thirds of companies changed the nonprofits or programs they funded. Companies that say they will increase funding for diverse-led, equity-focused nonprofits fell from 62% (2024) to 36% (2026). International development dropped from 56% to 32%, and crisis response from 58% to 31% over the same period.

Trust is the new business case for corporate purpose: The number one reason companies invest in purpose is corporate reputation and trust. In response, communications and storytelling climbed from the ninth-ranked investment priority in 2024 to the second fastest-growing budget line item in 2026.
The burden on nonprofits is growing: Last year, 70% of companies planned to reduce reporting requirements on nonprofits. Today, only 10% expect to do so. Nearly half of nonprofits absorb the increased workload through unpaid staff overtime, and 49% say corporate donors rarely or never fund the associated effort.
AI adoption is accelerating but appropriate hesitation is holding companies back: 87% of corporate impact leaders believe AI will reduce the burden on nonprofits, yet only 16% say it is a core part of their impact strategy. Key hesitations preventing AI adoption for social impact include concerns about reinforcing funding biases (77%), excluding smaller organizations (75%), and misclassifying nonprofits with sensitive missions (60%).
Volunteering is the new workforce development strategy, but its value for nonprofits is in question: In an AI-driven world, companies are increasingly turning to employee volunteering to build the critical human skills that aren’t taught at a desk. From the report, 96% of large corporate firms list employee engagement as a top reason to invest in volunteering, in part to focus on social connections (57% of companies), seek innovation (50%), build empathy (49%) and grow creativity (47%), all skills that are becoming increasingly important to foster. As volunteering proves its value for corporations, the opportunity now is to ensure it also supports long-term capacity building for nonprofits, especially since only 28% say volunteer groups consistently perform tasks aligned with their most pressing needs.

"The data in this report reflects a sector at an inflection point that needs smarter infrastructure, not just stronger intentions," said Soraya Alexander, CEO of Benevity. "The critical gaps exposed here, in AI adoption, compliance navigation and nonprofit support, demand a more deliberate and intelligent approach to corporate purpose. Our job is to make sure that companies have the AI-native tools, policy controls and due diligence guardrails to move forward with confidence, and that nonprofits are supported, not strained, by what comes next."

To read the full 2026 State of Corporate Purpose report visit: https://benevity.com/state-of-corporate-purpose/2026 or for a full picture of corporate giving in 2025, see the Benevity 2025 Annual Impact Report.

About Benevity
Benevity, a certified B Corporation, is the global leader in enterprise social impact software, enabling employee giving, volunteering, corporate granting, and employee mobilization - backed by intelligent insights and a secure, global infrastructure. The Benevity Enterprise Impact Platform empowers the world’s most purpose-driven companies to seamlessly integrate corporate social responsibility into their core business strategy, driving measurable, scalable, lasting impact. Benevity has supported more than $36 billion to more than 560,000 nonprofit organizations and enabled over 7.7 million changemakers worldwide since 2008, empowering organizations to build trust, engage employees, increase retention and drive innovation. For more information, visit www.benevity.com.

About Benevity Impact Labs
Benevity Impact Labs is a social innovation lab that brings new data, research, and insights to help companies, nonprofits, and individuals accelerate their social impact and inclusion efforts. With unparalleled access to the world's most iconic brands, Benevity Impact Labs combines Benevity's robust data and insights with third-party research to report on the top trends shaping corporate purpose and to provide measurable proof of the value of social impact. For more insights, visit benevity.com/research.

About the State of Corporate Purpose 2026
The State of Corporate Purpose 2026 is produced by Benevity Impact Labs and analyzes global survey responses from over 400 corporate impact leaders across industries, anonymized and aggregated data from the Benevity platform, nonprofit surveys, and third-party research. The full report is available at benevity.com/research.

Contact: press@benevity.com

This item of content is a press release from a third party provider who make no warranties or representations in connection with this content and therefore PA can make no warranties in respect of its use.

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