CAF Australia tell us how to get the most from Payroll Giving. (c) CAF Australia 2009

1. Creating successful payroll giving programs
TEN SIMPLE
WAYS TO
BOOST YOUR
PAYROLL GIVING
PROGRAM
PERFORMANCE

2. TIPS FOR SETTING UP A
PAYROLL GIVING PROGRAM
Engage senior leadership Set up a system for processing
support for the program donations with your payroll team.
Most payroll software packages
Allocate internal resources have built in payroll giving
to coordinate program processing facilities
development and launch
Decide whether your business
Talk to a payroll giving will match employee donations
program provider
Engage employees via a launch
Decide your giving strategy: event and internal communication,
donate to a selection of charity and invite them to sign up
partners, offer employees the
opportunity to select any charity Communicate regularly, to keep
of their choice, or combine the employees informed about the
two approaches impact of their donations
For further information on setting up programs, and reporting requirements,
visit ato.gov.au and type the words ‘workplace giving’ into the search field

3. We recently surveyed businesses with payroll giving programs
WHAT THE RESEARCH TELLS US:
TEN SIMPLE WAYS TO BOOST YOUR PAYROLL
GIVING PROGRAM PERFORMANCE
ONE Real life, personal stories are more likely
to motivate people than just information
FOUR
Create an ambassador on how much money has been raised. Engage senior leaders
network for the program
Each communication should guide staff Ask your CEO to refer to the
Enlist a group of key supporters as to how they can become involved, program in regular updates, to
to promote the program inside for example by directing them to a sign include an endorsement in
the business. up form or to the relevant location on induction packs and to introduce
the intranet. sessions with charity speakers.
Ideally this should be one person per
site, or per charity, if your business has Communicate regularly to senior
selected charity partners. The most
successful charity ambassadors are
THREE leadership about the payroll
giving program’s business
volunteers whose work in the role is
Keep the program visible and community benefits.
recognised by senior management across the business
as important.
A program that is top–of–mind is
FIVE
Charity ambassadors need to be given more likely to generate interest Demonstrate business
structure and guidance, but are most and participation. support for employee
effective when given scope to develop donations
Only 50% of businesses surveyed said
local initiatives to motivate employees.
that all their employees had access If your business matches employee
A network of charity ambassadors to a computer, so use a variety of donations, communicate to employees
means the business has a team methods to communicate, remembering the additional impact this has on the
focused on the giving program that email and intranet are not always supported charities.
which can spread the passion. accessible for all staff.
If your business cannot provide ongoing
Include information about the program matching, consider matching for limited
TWO in staff inductions, put up posters in
public areas such as in kitchens/tea
periods (eg at bonus time / for month
of July / at start of a new financial
Communicate to staff rooms and also use direct means of year) or providing in–kind support of
regularly connecting with staff such as pigeon goods or services to charity partners.
holes or payslips. Communicate the value of this support
Distribute information frequently (at least
to employees.
once a quarter) to all employees about
the payroll giving program and how the
money being raised by staff and the
business is making a difference.

4. 1/3 10%
One in ten businesses
One in three businesses had a
had a participation rate
participation rate of less than
of twenty five percent
five percent*
or more
29%
Of programs managers identified
limited time and resources as
the main barrier to success
* The Giving Business report 2009

5. 58% 71%
Of program managers Of program managers
spend five percent identified visibility of the
or less of their time on the program internally as a
payroll giving program key success factor
SIX When employees are involved in
other community initiatives such as
NINE
Make sign–up as volunteering or fundraising events, use Celebrate and recognise
easy as possible the opportunity to promote the payroll the support of your donors
giving program.
Tailored online solutions are increasingly While privacy concerns may prevent
popular and provide a simple and Send out follow up emails to public recognition of individual
immediate way for employees to sign participants within 48 hours of the donors, it is important that donors
up. Businesses for which tailored online event to invite them to sign up. are appreciated and recognised for
solutions are impractical can use other the contribution they are making.
methods to make sign–up simple, This may be in the form of a
for example, by creating automated EIGHT personalised letter from the CEO or
buttons that allow employees to sign Get the message right charity partner thanking them for their
up just by clicking using widely available support, along with stories about the
office software packages. Think carefully about the messages you difference they are making, or a small
want to convey to employees. If you are token of appreciation from the business
Include paper forms in induction packs. able to easily communicate separately at the end of the year.
Make sure staff members can sign up to donors and non donors, do so. For
on the spot on occasions when they those who are already donating, focus
are likely to feel motivated (such as on the difference their contributions are TEN
at charity talks, volunteering sessions making, with tangible, personal stories. Celebrate and recognise
etc). Consider making laptops available
in public areas during charity week or Existing donors who have been
the support of your
at charity expos so staff can sign up donating for some time are often ambassadors
immediately online. amenable to the idea of increasing their
Ambassadors who have excelled in
donation – don’t be afraid to ask.
their efforts to support and promote
SEVEN To recruit new donors, explain the the program should be acknowledged
and rewarded, particularly since
Tie payroll giving in with leveraged, cost effective nature of
payroll giving, but especially emphasise many will be performing this role in
other community programs the powerful potential of lots of people their own time.
Employees are most likely to be contributing small amounts on a
A ‘champion of the year’ award,
receptive when they have just been regular basis.
as voted by peers or management
engaged with charity partners and and/or a celebration dinner event
Tone is important: the focus should be
have just experienced first hand the hosted by the CEO or a senior manager
on explaining rather than selling, and
impact these organisations make in shows the business’ support and
particularly not hard selling.
the community. gratitude and reinforces the
importance of these positions.

6. For further information about The Giving Business report,
please go to www.csi.edu.au
If you would like to set up a payroll giving program, please contact:
The Australian Charities Fund – www.australiancharitiesfund.org.au, Pip Murphy / Stephanie Hughes ph (02) 9024 8630
Charities Aid Foundation (CAF) – www.cafaustralia.org.au, Kevin Sullivan ph (02) 9929 9633
United Way – www.unitedway.org.au, Doug Taylor ph (02) 9995 4222
A more detailed analysis of the data reported here will be posted on www.csi.edu.au later in 2009.
The Australian Charities Fund PricewaterhouseCoopers
is an Australian founded and led not is the world’s largest professional services firm with a
– for– profit organisation whose mission is long–term commitment to supporting the sustainability of
to facilitate unprecedented levels of giving. the communities in which it operates. Its giving program is
It partners with businesses and community regarded as one of the strongest in Australia.
organisations to drive community impact via
engaged employee giving. United Way Sydney improves lives by
mobilizing the caring power of communities
Charities Aid Foundation (CAF) around the world to advance the
is an international not–for–profit common good. Operating in 46 countries
organisation providing the knowledge, worldwide and 10 communities in Australia, United Way
infrastructure, back–office administration and ongoing invests donations and volunteer time in community impact
management of services for charitable activities including initiatives with resources raised from Corporate Community
Workplace Payroll Giving Programs, Matched Giving Involvement programs (CCI) that include Workplace Giving,
Programs, Foundations / Prescribed Private Funds and Corporate Connect volunteering, and Seeing is Believing
Grant Management. education programs
The Centre for Social Impact a partnership
between business schools of the University of
New South Wales, the University of Melbourne This report would not have been possible without the support of:
and Swinburne University of Technology, brings
together Australia’s not–for–profit, philanthropic,
business and government sectors in a
collaborative effort to help build passionate, high
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