How growing reporting requirements are putting more burden on nonprofits

The data below draws from the Benevity Spring 2026 Nonprofit Perspectives Survey and the State of Corporate Purpose 2026 research. The full 2026 State of Corporate Purpose report is available July 9. Mark your calendars.

Corporate reputation and trust is the number one motivator for investing in purpose programs — 91% of companies say so. It’s clear the pressure to tell a compelling, data-backed narrative about that investment has never been greater.

So it makes sense that impact leaders are doubling down on reporting. In fact, 59% of companies plan to do more return-on-investment (ROI) quantification in the next 12 to 24 months. And when it comes to emerging reporting practices, storytelling is climbing the list of areas with growing budgets — jumping from ninth in 2024 to second this year.

But the cost of meeting the demands of increased storytelling are being absorbed by the organizations least equipped to do so — nonprofits, with nearly half reporting that their donors rarely or never fund the associated effort.
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What the storytelling surge is costing nonprofits

Since the start of 2025, 42% of nonprofits have seen increased demand for custom impact reporting with specific data requirements, and 44% have seen higher volumes of requests for custom impact stories. For organizations already operating on thin margins, this is a meaningful shift in workload — and nearly half of nonprofits report that their donors rarely or never fund the associated effort.

So, how are they managing? Quietly, and mostly through their people. 48% handle increased requests by having staff work unpaid overtime. A third are reallocating people away from their core programs, the actual work the nonprofit exists to do, just to keep up with corporate data demands.

What’s worth noting is where that reporting focus is directed. The impact reporting gaining the most traction are those tied to internal outcomes: what purpose programs do for employees, stronger internal communications, and the link between program activity to business results.

Less prioritized is the reporting that reflects what’s happening on the community side of the partnership. Gathering beneficiary-level data on outcomes that communities and nonprofit partners actually experience is gaining importance for only 27% of large companies. Nonprofit sentiment tracking — understanding how nonprofits experience the partnership — scores even lower at 20%.

When the reporting burden falls on those least resourced to carry it, and the reporting that would reflect their experience isn't being prioritized, the stories companies tell are missing an important part.
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Authentic stories require invested partners

The companies producing the most credible impact narratives aren't the ones demanding the most custom reports. They're the ones investing in their nonprofit relationships and sharing stories that are grounded in real outcomes for real communities. 

Here's what that looks like in practice, based on what nonprofits themselves are asking for:

Accept what already exists: 53% of nonprofits prefer that corporate donors work with existing impact reports rather than requesting custom formats. Before building a new reporting framework, ask your partners what they already track and produce. There's a good chance it tells the story you need — without requiring unpaid overtime to generate it.

Co-create, don't extract: 34% of nonprofits favor collaborating with corporate donors to develop stories together. Co-creation produces richer narratives and builds the kind of trust that makes long-term partnerships work. 

Pay for what you ask for: If your program genuinely requires custom reporting that goes beyond what a nonprofit produces for other purposes, fund it. 31% of nonprofits say direct payment for customized reporting would be their preferred solution. 

Consider skills-based support: 23% of nonprofits are open to leveraging skilled corporate volunteers to handle reporting tasks. If your company has communications professionals, data analysts or grant writers, connecting them with nonprofit partners could be a meaningful contribution.
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What this means for your program

If you're among the 59% planning to increase ROI quantification over the next 12–24 months, the place to start isn't always your nonprofit partners — it's your own reporting strategy. Before building out new reporting requirements, it's worth asking whether the way you collect, fund and frame impact data is actually set up to serve both your storytelling needs and the organizations doing the work. 

As you look ahead, these questions are also worth sitting with before you build out your strategy:

• Are your current reporting requests funded — and if not, how are your nonprofit partners absorbing the cost?
• Do you have an internal reporting infrastructure that reduces what you need to ask of partners?
• When did you last ask your partners what they already produce, rather than what you need them to produce?
• Does your impact narrative lead with community outcomes — or internal business results?
• Would your nonprofit partners describe the reporting relationship as a fair exchange?

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The pressure to prove purpose isn't going away, and leaning into storytelling to meet that demand is a smart strategy. But when reporting demands are unfunded and one-sided, they drain the partners whose stories you're trying to tell. When reporting relationships are fair and nonprofit partners are well resourced, the resulting stories are richer and far more authentic — and partners are free to focus on what matters most.

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