Chart Westcott, Co-Founder & COO, on Philanthropy

Philanthropy is the act of caring for humanity. The term philanthropy can mean so many different things, but it specifically comes down to your passion for giving and your love for humanity and how you choose to give back. There are a large number of rich and famous business leaders that have either created or donated to philanthropic endeavors, which almost makes you think it’s only for the wealthy. This couldn’t be further from the truth. Anyone can become a philanthropist based on their love for others and humanity as a whole.

When you are a business leader, it’s essential to create philanthropic outlets for yourself and your employees. Businesses who give back to their community and partner with nonprofits can be heavily sought out by potential customers. Many people will do their business with a company who, on top of making profits, donates a portion of their time and money to an organization. Thankfully, if you want to get yourself and your business involved in more philanthropic efforts, there are many ways to do so.

As previously mentioned, whether you donate your time or money, there are different ways to be seen as a philanthropic business and business leader within your community. Donating a sustaining gift to an organization is a great way to get involved in the community. Many companies will give large gifts to nonprofits and different organizations, but depending on the size of your company, you may not always have the means to donate all money up front. Giving a certain amount of money each year, but having the opportunity to pay it monthly can open up doors for your business to donate more without going broke. Nonprofits will welcome this type of gift because they rely so heavily on the sponsorships and donations of people and businesses on a rolling basis.

Another great way to get involved in philanthropic efforts of your community is by taking an interest in community foundations. These foundations are put in place so businesses can donate money at any amount, which goes to yearly grants and earnings from pooled donations that are given to charity. This serves as a first step into the philanthropy world for businesses just starting out and not knowing which organizations to contribute to.

Overall, being a business leader, you must take into account the importance of your leadership role within your community. Philanthropic efforts not only help the organizations in your community but your business as well. Make that point to start getting yourself and your business involved in ways that financially and responsibly make sense for your business.

Chart Westcott is the co-founder and Chief Operating Officer of Ikarian Capital, LLC, a long/short equity biotech focused hedge fund that launched in January 2016. Chart graduated from Vanderbilt University with a BA in History and from Southern Methodist University Dedman School of Law, where he concentrated on corporate transactions and tax law. This article was originally published at ChartWestcott.net on January 20, 2019.