Building a global social mobility programme, without an in-house giving team

The context

The Giving Department works alongside ICG to support all aspects of its charitable giving programme in the UK and globally. ICG wants to keep growing the programme in scale and geography, with two main focus areas: an Educational Opportunities and Social Mobility Programme, mainly in the UK, targeting key transition points from education to higher education and the world of work; and Million Meals, a global programme tackling the cost-of-living crisis through a portfolio of partners.

The challenge

Build a strong programme of charitable activity without any dedicated giving staff within the firm, drive colleague engagement in one cohesive global programme, and identify high-impact partners, with appropriate due diligence and ongoing engagement through an annual impact reporting cycle.

What we did

We worked with senior leadership, including the Chief People and External Affairs Officer, General Counsel and Global Head of Corporate Affairs, to develop a clear strategy and implementation plan for the global programme. Key activities include:

• Research and landscaping: active outreach and modelling
• Pipeline development: building and managing a broad pipeline of potential partners
• Due diligence: timely and proportionate to the scale and complexity of each grant
• Overseeing a robust and fair application process
• Impact measurement: an annual reporting schedule and drafting of the external report

The impact

ICG's Educational Opportunities and Social Mobility Programme supported 1,762 young people in 2025 alone, exceeding initial expectations.