The Most CharitableFortune 500Companies

Amanda Starbuck

Recently, the Chronicle of Philanthropy has compiled acomprehensive list of Fortune 500 companies that havedonated the most amount of funds to charities and variousphilanthropic causes last year.

Goldman, the fourth biggest corporate donor of 2015, is alsoguiding the market with regard to economic growth.According to a report conducted by the Chronicle ofPhilanthropy, the corporate giant gave $276.4 million in cashin 2015. This donated amount is 10% more than was the firmhad given the previous year.

To compare, in 2014, the California based biotechcompany named Gilead Sciences gave the most monetarycontributions. According to various reports, GileadSciences had contributed over $446.7 million to a plethoraof causes. The other companies in the top five were notindustry specific, with brands ranging from retail tointernational petroleum corporations. Within the top five in2014 consisted of companies such as Walmart totaling$301 million, totaling $281.2 million, and ExxonMobil with$268 million.

Similar to Goldman Sachs, various other Fortune 500corporations have reported that philanthropy and socialresponsibility programs helped their business expand andflourish in various internal areas. Specifically, these areasinclude employee satisfaction, increasing overallcustomer loyalty, and reducing issues or problems thatcould potentially become liabilities. The prime example ofthis particular success story is Walmart.

Walmart’s CEO, Douglas McMillon has guided the creationof the company’s charitable arm, the Walmart Foundation.The Walmart Foundation has unveiled a $100 millionpledge to make retail jobs more attractive industry-wide byincreasing wages and generating more flexible schedulesfor their employees across the board.

“We want to accelerate mobility of frontline retail workersnot only within Walmart but in retail as a whole, and reallyelevate the role that retail can play in workforce in Americaand more broadly,” says Kathleen McLaughlin, who servesas both chief sustainability officer and president of theWalmart Foundation.

While some individuals may prefer to donate time or fundsfrom an altruistic standpoint, it is still important to note thatcorporate giving as a percentage of pre-tax profits is slowlydeclining.

Check out the full list of The 20 Most Generous Companiesof the Fortune 500 to see more about the non-profits andcharities that benefited from $3.5 billion in donations lastyear.