Strategic Partnerships in Philanthropy. Interview with Andrea Foschi, Gruppo L'Impronta - Italy

ANDREA FOSCHI - Strategic Marketing and Fundraising Leader

We believe the voices of experienced nonprofit leaders are essential in shaping the future of corporate-philanthropic collaboration. This interview with Andrea Foschi reflects over two decades of applied knowledge in communication, social planning, and strategic fundraising. His insights offer a grounded perspective on how nonprofits and businesses can build partnerships that transcend short-term goals and generate real, measurable impact.

As part of our series on Strategic Philanthropy, this conversation offers a practical roadmap for values-based partnerships.

Q: Do you feel that your partners are communicating their CSR strategies clearly and transparently enough for you to be able to support them? What would you improve?

Andrea Foschi:

The willingness and ability to communicate varies from partner to partner. Personally, I believe companies should use all available tools and invest in promoting the activities carried out in partnership with nonprofits. I’ve worked with companies that leverage their social channels—especially LinkedIn—to raise awareness among employees and the broader public about CSR topics, while others follow short-sighted internal policies that avoid communication altogether.

When I find fertile ground, I offer my expertise for joint press office activities. This enables the company to showcase and elevate its commitment to social responsibility—a commitment that can serve as a model and be replicated by others.

Q: Do businesses typically provide you with enough insight into their goals for you to be able to tailor either your proposals or opportunities to collaborate?

Andrea Foschi:

The communication of goals is often not detailed enough. Companies typically limit themselves to expressing a desire to implement specific, short-term CSR initiatives without sharing a broader, long-term vision. However, there are exceptions—particularly when a company has a well-structured CSR framework, often supported by a dedicated foundation operating in the third sector. In these cases, both dialogue and the quality of shared information tend to be much richer.

Q: What are the main drivers of an effective collaboration with a business partner for you, and what is your biggest challenge in working with them?

Andrea Foschi:

One of the key parameters for the Italian Third Sector is the credibility of the organization. The Third Sector refers to a broad group of non-profit organizations—such as associations, foundations, social cooperatives, and voluntary groups—that operate for the public good and social interest, outside of the state and the market.

Mutual trust becomes the determining factor in establishing a partnership that lasts over the years. Trust is built on the clarity of objectives, the results of social programs or projects, and the measurable impact these have on beneficiaries or the broader community.

In recent years, collaboration has also been based on quality—quality of proposals and services that the non-profit organization can continuously guarantee to the corporate partner. Often, the biggest challenge is helping companies understand that Third Sector entities can become reliable and high-quality social providers, thus meeting the company’s needs in a way that departs from the traditional philanthropic approach.

Q: Do you find it easy to establish long-term collaborations with partners? What are the most significant blockers you’re facing?

Andrea Foschi:

Long-term collaboration is not always easy, but it is certainly achievable. Many companies, in an effort to satisfy multiple partners, pursue fragmented actions across different regions and on various topics—often resulting in limited impact. One key factor in ensuring continuity from the Third Sector's side is the ability to communicate a strategic vision to the company—one grounded in multi-year projects that generate measurable social impact for communities or specific population groups.

This approach fosters synergy and strengthens the partnership year after year. In my experience, direct, ‘hands-on’ involvement—such as visiting beneficiaries and the social infrastructure developed by the nonprofit together with the company—is the most powerful way to raise awareness and build lasting, meaningful partnerships.

Q: Are you able to engage the broader community as effectively and quickly as you’d need to? How can businesses help?

Andrea Foschi:

Companies can support by sharing analysis, data, best practices, and local insights from the territories in which they operate. They can amplify social impact by engaging their employees and raising awareness internally—through both general and skills-based volunteering initiatives.

Additionally, companies can provide funding that improves both the quality and scale of the social initiatives led by nonprofit organizations in the community. They can also foster knowledge-sharing among nonprofit actors, creating synergies that enhance territorial impact. Finally, companies can take an active role in advocacy—lobbying for nonprofit causes in partnership with their Third Sector allies and stakeholders.

Q: What does a valuable, strategic partnership look like for you?

Andrea Foschi:

It is a partnership grounded in shared values—neither opportunistic nor trend-driven, and far removed from the risks of greenwashing or social-washing. It stems from the company’s awareness that in a deteriorating social and environmental context, even pure business and profitability have no real prospects and are ultimately destined to decline or disappear.

About the Author:

Andrea Foschi, after graduating in Economics, began working with non-profit organizations over 20 years ago. He has specialized in communication and fundraising across several Italian NGOs. For the last five years, he has contributed to the L'Impronta Group, focusing on social planning and corporate relations. He is also a board member of the social cooperative inTEC and consultant for Metasociale, a social enterprise developing Welfare Intelligence—a digital platform that provides social data analytics for nonprofit and public institutions. Foschi also collaborates with national magazines in the field of travel photojournalism. 

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