Since the U.S. Supreme Court’s 2023 decision to overturn affirmative action in higher education, headlines about companies scaling back—or even eliminating—their diversity, equity, and inclusion (DEI) programs have become almost daily occurrences. Faced with lawsuits and political pressure, some high-profile brands have pulled back. These stories have fueled a misleading narrative: that corporate America is abandoning a decades-long commitment to being good corporate citizens and actively supporting the communities they serve and our broader society.
But that’s not the whole picture.
First, let’s clear something up: DEI and corporate social responsibility (CSR) are not the same. The two often work together—especially when it comes to employee volunteering, nonprofit partnerships, and community programs. DEI is generally focused inward—on things like hiring practices, leadership development, vendor relationships, and workplace culture. CSR is more outward-looking. It’s about how companies show up in the world: supporting local communities, investing in education or sustainability, and building partnerships that align with organizational values and business goals. Today, that may range from donating and distributing supplies for relief efforts for a community impacted by a natural disaster to providing wi-fi hotspots to low-income kids without internet access so they can do their homework. And when critics label everything as “woke capitalism,” they completely miss the real work—and real impact—happening behind the scenes.
Companies aren’t engaging in socially responsible work just to look good. They are doing it because it drives real business results. Strategic corporate social impact programs build brand trust, attract talent, strengthen the communities’ companies depend on, and—yes—contribute to the bottom line. In a 2011 Harvard Business Review piece, Michael Porter and Mark Kramer referred to it as “shared…