BUSINESS NEWS - As the UN prepares to mark 2026 as the International Year of Volunteers for Sustainable Development, South African companies are heading toward a reckoning.
Despite increasing CSI budgets, most corporates are still engaging in “compliance theatre” - spending millions on donations while allocating just 1% of resources to employee volunteering, the element proven to drive real impact.
This imbalance is becoming a business risk. With South Africa facing acute talent-retention challenges, rising competition for skilled workers, and ongoing Environmental, Social and Governance (ESG) compliance pressure, companies that rely on traditional, arm’s-length CSI may find themselves falling behind.
“What most companies get wrong is thinking CSI is about money. It’s not. It’s about commitment,” says Martin Ioannou, Country Manager of XM in South Africa, a multi-regulated global broker trusted by more than 15 million clients.
He explains that with traditional CSI, donations are made, tax deductions are secured, and compliance boxes are ticked. “Corporate Social Participation (CSP), by contrast, demands a meaningful combination of financial resources and employee involvement - especially the latter, which is where organisations see the biggest gains.”
The business case beyond compliance
The data is increasingly clear. Companies that integrate employee volunteering into their CSI strategies deliver stronger business outcomes across retention, recruitment, culture and productivity.
Employees who volunteer are 52% more likely to stay and twice as likely to recommend their employer. At the same time, 71% of job seekers consider a company’s societal impact a critical factor when choosing where to work.
Workplaces that combine giving and volunteering see 75% higher engagement, translating into significant performance benefits, with highly engaged organisations outperforming competitors by 147% in productivity and profitability.
Employees who volunteer also report higher satisfaction with their jobs (79% versus 55%), organisational culture (75% versus 54%) and leadership (71% versus 45%).
What CSP looks like in practice
The shift from CSI to CSP isn’t theoretical. In 2026, XM South Africa is implementing this dual approach through its participation in the Santa Shoebox Project, which has reached more than 1.3 million underprivileged children since 2006.
The structure illustrates the CSP model: XM’s financial contribution funds the SSP Legacy initiative — building Early Childhood Development (ECD) centres, training teachers and installing reading corners. Simultaneously, employees participate in hands-on work, packing personalised shoeboxes, selecting age-appropriate items and writing notes to individual children.
“It’s the difference between funding infrastructure and creating connection,” shares Ioannou. “The ECD centres deliver long-term educational impact. The personalised boxes remind vulnerable children that they’re seen as individuals, not statistics. Neither works as effectively in isolation.”
The approach addresses what he identifies as the core CSI failure: “Companies either write cheques or organise feel-good volunteer days. CSP requires both, as an integrated strategy.”
Four actions for 2026
To move from CSI to true CSP, Ioannou says companies should:
Partner strategically: Find organisations that integrate both funding and volunteering seamlessly.
Offer choice: One-size-fits-all volunteer programmes fail. Different people connect with different causes.
Measure properly: Track engagement quality and transformation, not just hours logged.
Lead visibly: When leadership participates, it signals authentic commitment rather than optics.
“Your money matters. But your time matters more,” concludes Ioannou. “The donation funds the programme. The hours transform it into something that actually changes lives.”
In 2026, the question for South African corporates is no longer whether they’ll be socially responsible, but whether they’ll be socially present.
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