Art and business: companies recognize the social value of cultural assets

Social sustainability is also increasingly becoming a priority for businesses, which recognize the importance of corporate art assets and cultural initiatives as strategic tools for community well-being. However, despite the growing commitment of companies in this area, the absence of shared definitions and the lack of well-defined ESG (Environmental, Social, and Governance) metrics continue to hinder the reporting and measurement of their impact. This is the finding of the second edition of the study Art and Cultural Initiatives as Resources for Social Sustainability, conducted by the Institute for Transformative Innovation Research (ITIR) at the University of Pavia, in collaboration with ARTE Generali, Banca Generali and Deloitte Private.

Presented on March 5, 2025 at Deloitte’s headquarters in Milan, the report highlights how companies are increasingly integrating art and culture into their sustainability strategies, seeking to promote a positive impact on artistic heritage, the economic growth of local communities and social well-being. However, the research also shows that, in Italy, France and Germany, corporate cultural initiatives are still not measured and reported on with uniform criteria. This regulatory gap is a significant barrier to comparability and the spread of best practices across the sector.

Corporate art as a strategic resource

In recent years, the report says, more and more companies in a variety of industries have shown a growing interest in art and culture, which takes the form of a variety of ways, including creating corporate collections, commissioning works of art and opening corporate museums. Investments in art assets and cultural initiatives now represent new tools for enhancing corporate identity, promoting stakeholder engagement, and aligning corporate brand narratives with broader cultural and social values.

So-called “Corporate Art Assets”-art assets and cultural initiatives promoted by companies-are recognized as strategic assets, not only for the cultural value they bring, but also for the positive impact they have on communities. Art and culture are increasingly seen as tools for social inclusion and strengthening ties between businesses and the local area. The report analyzed how for-profit and nonprofit organizations manage, measure and communicate the social impact resulting from their cultural initiatives. The study was based on a mixed approach, including an analysis of the scientific literature, an analysis of the communication of 128 organizations in Italy, Germany and France, and qualitative interviews with companies and experts in the field, using the GIOIA methodology (a structured approach to qualitative research, aimed at generating simplified theoretical models to understand complex organizational phenomena) to interpret the data.

Cultural impact communication: the dominance of the web

The report considered a sample of 126 organizations (60 in Italy, 44 in Germany and 22 in France). A central aspect of the report concerns the communication of the impact of corporate cultural initiatives. It emerged that the web channel is the main communication medium used by companies to convey the impact of their cultural initiatives. In particular, France stands out for its adoption of websites dedicated to these issues, with 73 percent of companies using specific websites to communicate the social impact of their cultural activities. Italy and Germany show a more balanced distribution, but even in these countries the use of corporate websites for cultural impact communication is significant, albeit lower than in France (Italy at 55 percent, Germany at 36.96 percent). In addition, financial reports are used very little, with percentages below 2 percent in all countries analyzed. Corporate websites are also widely used: 43% for Italy, 61% for Germany, 23% for France. In contrast, reports as a communication tool are less common.

The areas of impact most frequently communicated by companies are influence on the cultural ecosystem (57% in Italy, 33% in Germany and 90% in France), creative communities (36% in Italy, 15% in Germany and 86% in France) and education (57% in Italy, 26% in Germany and 59% in France). Wanting to drill down by country area, it emerges that in France, companies communicate the social impact of their art assets on “dedicated websites,” plus French companies focus more on analyzing their impact on local communities and developing creative contexts; in Germany, companies usually communicate the social impact of their art assets on the company’s main website, and show the greatest heterogeneity in the types of impact communicated outwardly; in Italy, Italian companies show a balance between social impact information and economic and financial indicators.

As a result of these findings, the next phase of the research was geared toward delving more deeply into these aspects, through a series of interviews, with a specific focus on social impact. Through delving into the management methods adopted by companies, and the report sought to define how organizations in different industries can leverage art and culture to promote sustainability and contribute meaningfully to global social goals. The interviews involved Italian organizations, but in the following will be extended to Germany and France, then progressively to other countries. The interview was defined, on the one hand, to gather confirmation on the quantitative results from a different angle and, on the other hand, to collect complementary and unstructured testimonies on the topics of interest in the study. The interviews investigated the critical managerial practices in art management that enable art assets such as corporate art collections or corporate museums to become strategic levers for social, economic, and environmental sustainability; the ways in which companies measure and evaluate the social, environmental, and economic sustainability impacts of their art assets; and the performance indicators, both quantitative and qualitative, that are used to assess these impacts.

From the summary of the interviews, the data collected show that most companies are still at an early stage in integrating arts and cultural assets into their sustainability strategies. However, there is a widespread awareness of the value that art and culture can bring in this area. Still, arts initiatives to support sustainability mainly involve local communities and institutions, artists, and employees. It also emerges that corporate collections have come about at the instigation of leadership: as a result, the analysis highlights how corporate culture and values are key to aligning art with sustainability goals. As for managerial practices, managing art from a sustainability perspective requires management sensitivity to art to understand its alignment with corporate goals; ability to structure medium- to long-term goals, considering that art and culture can support sustainability strategies more effective over time than short-term interventions; external accelerating factors (the integration of art into sustainability strategies has been incentivized by increasingly stringent regulations, particularly those related to reporting, as well as tax benefits such as the Art Bonus). In addition, it emerged how in recent years, external factors-most notably the COVID-19 pandemic-have prompted companies to introduce artwork into offices to make environments more welcoming and encourage employees to return to the office. Finally, as for measuring impacts, few companies have taken a structured, ad hoc approach to measuring sustainability impacts. However, many companies recognize the need to develop specific measurement tools and are working internally or with external consultants in this direction as a priority in the immediate future.

The lack of ESG standards and metrics.

Another crucial aspect that emerges from the report is the absence of a clear and shared definition of “corporate arts assets,” which hinders comparability between studies and practical applications of research. In addition, there are few recognized methodologies for measuring the social and environmental impact of cultural initiatives according to ESG standards. This limits the ability of companies to quantify and communicate the value of their actions to stakeholders.

In this context, the “Culture | 2030” framework defined by UNESCO, which promotes a systematic approach to measuring and communicating cultural impact, is presented as a useful tool for companies. This model has already been applied in some projects by Deloitte and could provide a basis for the adoption of more standardized methodologies in the sector.

An evolving path

The integration of art into corporate sustainability strategies is still at an early stage, but many companies are aware of the value of these assets. Corporate collections often come about through the initiative of leadership, and art management requires special sensitivity on the part of management. In Italy, as in other countries, favorable regulations, such as the Art Bonus and tax benefits for donors who fund the Third Sector, are an incentive to undertake cultural and artistic initiatives.

The results of the study highlight that while, as expected, dominant perspectives emerge that emphasize strategic motivations behind investments in arts assets and cultural initiatives, such as strengthening brand identity, promoting stakeholder engagement , and enhancing corporate image, philanthropic connections emerge as another central theme, with arts-related initiatives often positioned as tools for demonstrating corporate social responsibility and contributing to broader social welfare. These motivations suggest a dual function of art assets and cultural initiatives, serving both as a marketing tool to achieve corporate goals and as a means of fulfilling moral or cultural obligations.

At the same time, the absence of a widely accepted definition of “corporate art assets” also emerges, creating ambiguity in the scope and boundaries of the field. Without a clear conceptual framework, it also becomes difficult to compare studies, generalize findings or establish a mutually consistent body of knowledge. In addition, there emerges a widespread lack of a comprehensive methodology for assessing and measuring the sustainability impact of cultural initiatives. While a variety of studies highlight the potential of arts assets to contribute to ESG goals, few provide concrete metrics or Frameworks to assess their effectiveness in doing so. The second edition of the Report thus confirms what was already identified in the first, that with respect to measuring and communicating their social impacts, arts and cultural organizations have ample room for improvement.

Many companies recognize the need to create specific measurement tools as a future priority. Integrating cultural initiatives into corporate sustainability strategies not only enriches cultural heritage, but also helps to strengthen the role of companies as responsible actors in promoting lasting social and economic development. The report, therefore, is an important step in understanding how companies can measure and enhance the contribution of art and culture to collective well-being, highlighting the importance of greater transparency and common standards for more effective reporting.

Statements

“With the introduction of the reporting metrics provided by the CSRD Directive and the new regulations for Third Sector Entities, companies and organizations will no longer have to limit themselves to communicating their social impact, but do so using universally recognized indicators. This will enable them to gain benefits not only in reputational terms, but also in economic-financial terms,” explained Ernesto Lanzillo, Partner and Deloitte Private Leader. “In this context, Deloitte Private’s participation in the Observatory of the Institute for Transformative Innovation Research (ITIR) of the University of Pavia, together with ARTE Generali and Banca Generali, aims to observe how sensitivity is evolving with respect to the measured communication of the impact of art and culture on the social growth of the community and territories, supporting the ’professionalization’ of this process through the adoption of solid and reliable metrics and indicators.”

"As ITIR - University of Pavia, we are delighted to participate in the Art and Cultural Initiatives as Resources for Social Sustainability event, where we shared the results of the research we initiated last year, with a special focus on measuring and communicating the positive impact of arts initiatives and current ESG challenges in the creative sector," says Stefano Denicolai, Head of ITIR and Professor at the University of Pavia. “This event strengthens synergies with our institutional partners and is an important moment of discussion on innovative strategies for more sustainable and responsible arts management. It will be an afternoon full of insights and inspiration for a brighter and more socially conscious future.”

“The social and economic impact of budgeting for art assets, often considered exclusively as emotional assets, is still underestimated. Yet, defining the value of such assets and integrating them within asset classes in the strict sense is a highly strategic activity for the development and growth of organizations,” says Maria Ameli, Head of Wealth Advisory at Banca Generali. “In this scenario, Banca Generali’s role is to promote among entrepreneurs the adoption of sustainability reporting that enhances environmental, social and good governance initiatives.”

“As an insurance company, our mission is to protect the value of art,” stresses Italo Carli, Head ARTE of Generali Italia. “This involves, first of all, raising awareness of the value of art as an investment in all its dimensions. The more we are aware of these values, the better we can do our work with professionalism and passion for art.”

Art and business: companies recognize the social value of cultural assets

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