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The Imperial Oil charitable foundation giving money quietly for over eighty years
Sept. 19, 1995; Canadian FundRaiser
By Allan Arlett and Ingrid van Rotterdam
History of giving: Imperial Oil (Imperial) has been quietly giving away money for over eighty years. Long seen as a leader in corporate philanthropy, the company provided significant financial and senior volunteer leadership to help launch IMAGINE. Its then chairman and CEO, Arden Haynes, chaired that effort to persuade companies to give at least 1% of pre-tax income to charity and to encourage employee volunteerism.
Imperial's Foundation was established in 1994 as a vehicle to consolidate giving and make corporate philanthropy an aspect of the company's identity. As Imperial sees it, the benefits of establishing a foundation are almost purely reputational.
There are no plans at this time to build a capital base for the Foundation and grants from interest earned. However, according to its treasurer, Susan Young, Imperial may look at to alternatives to endowing the Foundation, recognizing the negative impact on the charitable sector of fluctuations in corporate giving.
Imperial has been trying to develop a focus to its giving over the last five to six years. 65% of its funding goes to children and youth and programs with an educational focus. In doing this, Imperial believes it is acting on the interests of its customers. The 'enlightened' philanthropic function at Imperial is becoming more connected to the business units and their objectives. The Foundation likes to know the areas of charitable involvement of employees and retailers so that if possible, it can support its thrusts to these interests.
Areas of interest: $4.8 million in grants went to almost 600 charitable organizations in 1994. 30% of this went to education, 34% to health and welfare, 13% to civic causes, 0.19% to organizations involved in public information policy, 1% to sports groups. 8% to cultural organizations, 12% visual and performing arts organizations and 2% to environmental organizations.
Dollar range of grants: Imperial has no formula for size of grants awarded, except in capital campaigns where grants are restricted to 0.25% to 1.0% of the campaign's private sector goal.
Imperial's support is generally through cash donations. Gifts-in-kind and corporate sponsorships play a small role in its total program.
1995 Donation Budget: $6 million.
Imperial has two budgets for its philanthropic/social marketing activities: one, through the Foundation for charitable organizations, and another for non-profit organizations such as amateur sporting teams. This secondary budget, primarily used for activities such as ESSO Medals of Achievement and minor hockey week are managed by the marketing division of Imperial Oil. This unit ties its financial expenditures directly to its product marketing plans in any given year. In any given year, the Foundation contribution budget is about one percent of the company's average pre-tax earning for the previous three years. Imperial is now the third largest Canadian corporate foundation.
Special programs: The Foundation identifies issues it wants to address and then designs and implements national programs to promote activity in those areas. Young looks for new ideas that will set Imperial apart. Current programs include:
Safe Kids Canada: In this three-year-old program involving ESSO retailers, every cent raised at the pump is matched with one cent by the company. This is a national childhood injury-prevention organization of which Imperial is the founding sponsor. The role of Safe Kids Canada is to educate parents and children about the causes and prevention of accidents in the home, in cars, on bikes - wherever children are susceptible to injury.
ESSO Kids Canada: Through this slogan Imperial Oil emphasizes its image and message that as a company they support the organizations that make a difference for children through health, education and sports.
Kids and the Power of Work (KAPOW): This innovative program, piloted last year, is aimed at 'at-risk' high school students. The company works through the Volunteer Centre of Metro Toronto to match young people to charitable organizations. The volunteers work with a charity of their choice in the months of April, May and June, and then stay with the charity in a paid capacity for July and August. Each participant has an Imperial employee monitor. The Foundation is not attaching the name of the Company to the program in the hope that other companies will participate.
Volunteer Involvement Program: This program makes cash grants of up to $1,000 per individual to charities in which employees, retired employees or their spouses are involved. At this time 500-600 people participate nationally.
Like many other companies, Imperial finds that getting employees to volunteer is one of the most challenging aspects of its corporate philanthropy program. Young cites such possible reasons as employees feeling stretched, their privacy being undermined by their employer knowing about their after-hours activities, or whatever their volunteering activity being used in their evaluations.
University Research grants: This program funds research in Canadian universities in areas of interest to the company's petroleum, petrochemical and energy resource development businesses, including engineering, environmental, earth, chemical, physical and computing sciences. Grants also encourage research in the social sciences pertaining to relationships between our businesses and the commercial and social environment in which they operate.
Geographic focus: National
Regional/service station involvement: Local ESSO retailers are involved in the Safe Kids and ESSO Kids programs (see above).
Limitations: The Foundation does not administer grants outside Canada or to the following types of requests:

organizations without charitable status
individual applicants or stand-alone research
political parties or candidate, religious organizations, private schools, pre-schools or elementary schools, service clubs or fraternal organizations, advocacy or lobby groups, commercial third-party fund raising
feasibility studies
conferences or congresses
endowments or matching grants
telephone solicitations
local chapters of national organizations already receiving Imperial Foundation support
operating budgets of institutions such as universities and hospitals
private clubs funded through membership fees
United Way member organizations (Imperial is a strong supporter of the United Way across the country)
long-term pledges to capital campaigns
Application procedure: There is no application form, except for the University Research Grants and Volunteer Involvement Programs. Requests should be mailed to the Foundation office. To apply for funding provide:

contact person, title and phone number
Revenue Canada charitable registration number
organization purpose, background and history
description of programs and services
highlights of past programs and successes
relationships to similar organizations
most recent audited financial statement
explanation of significant financial items
officers and members of governing boards, their business and other affiliations
type of funding requested, the total dollar objective and the expected donation
what time period does the request cover
to which segment of the community is the request directed
expected sources of funds
program objectives that are clearly stated and measurable
opportunities for publicity or recognition of a contribution and guidelines for recognizing contributions.
Imperial hopes that charitable organizations receiving Imperial support will find ways to publicly acknowledge that support. At a minimum this would include recognition in the organization's annual report. On the other hand, the company is sensitive to the appropriate use of charitable funds and prefers recognition programs that do not require the expenditure of additional funds.
Young provided additional insights into what increases an applicant's attractiveness to Imperial:

The applicant should demonstrate its understanding of the company, beyond a reading of the guidelines to an appreciation of what the company is about and why the company might be interested in the work of the applying organization.
Note if there is a potential a role for an Imperial employee or retired employee.
Be thoughtful, logical and demonstrate good management and fiscal responsibility. Present an understanding caring and respectful attitude.
Is the proposal creative? Does it challenge? Is it sustaining?
The Foundation is increasing its efforts to get an applicant to determine its criteria for success for the project and how it will measure this success; and to explain how it is evaluating its activities on an ongoing basis.
Granting Policies and Procedures:
The Foundation has two main giving tracks: budgeted and non budgeted items. Budgeted items include the United Way money set aside to respond to organizations the company has been involved with for a number of years. In these areas, aside from setting policy, the Board is not actively involved in grant decision making, although the CEO may offer a view. The Board studies and decides on each non-budgeted request over $25,000.
Young and her staff of two received over 10,000 requests last year and in 1995 the volume will likely grow by a third. Although Young and her staff are accessible by phone -- five lines, including a toll free number, are dedicated to Imperial's charitable work -- it is increasingly difficult to meet with applicants.
Deadline Dates: None
Officers and Directors: Pierre Des Marais II; Dick Currie, Bruce Buchanan, Barbara Hejduk, John Zych, Muriel Kovitz, Doug Baldwin, Bill Macdonald, Susan Young.
Staff: Susan Young and a staff of two, Petra Tamme and Lorri Swinson.
Fiscal year end: December 31
Availability of annual report: The Foundation publishes an annual report, a booklet describing the contributions policy, and separate booklets for the Volunteer Involvement and University Research Grants programs.
The Imperial Oil Charitable Foundation can be reached at Imperial Oil Limited, 111 St. Clair Avenue West, Toronto, Ontario, M5W 1K3; Telephone: 1-800-668-ESSO; Facsimile: (416)968-4272.
Allan Arlett and Ingrid Van Rotterdam are the principals in The Arlett van Rotterdam Partnership, Toronto ON, providing a variety of customized services and counsel for the philanthropic sector.