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Smart organizations know that a laser focus on ethics and compliance does a lot for the corporate brand and for the bottom line alike. Good practices and clear procedures in procurement and supply chain roles are a critical to these initiatives. By every measure, it’s worth the effort to build a good reputation as an ethical company.
“Over the last 12 years, we have repeatedly seen that those companies who focus on transparency and authenticity are rewarded with the trust of employees, customers, and investors. While negative headlines might grab attention, the companies who support the rule of law and operate with decency and fair play around the globe will always succeed in the long term,” Timothy Erblich, CEO of the Ethisphere Institute said in a written statement.
For a dozen years now, the Ethisphere Institute has annually recognized those companies that have made their mark on global society by paying attention to corporate governance, risk, sustainability, compliance, and ethics. The 2018 World’s Most Ethical Companies report identified 135 companies spanning 23 countries and 57 industries.
“In 2017, we saw a profound change in the discourse around the world, but as part of that disruption we also saw global companies emerge as society’s leading voice to advance the human condition,” Ethisphere reported.
Organizations in the high-tech sector, including defense, distribution, manufacturing, logistics, automotive, and more, were well represented on the list. The awards were based on the following criteria:
- Ethics and compliance program (35%)
- Corporate citizenship and responsibility (20%)
- Culture of ethics (20%)
- Governance (15%)
- Leadership, innovation and reputation (10%).
Increasingly, organizations of all kinds are extending their business strategy to include a community focus that takes diversity/inclusion, investments, and the company voice into to mold the company grand and win the loyalty and respect of employees, customers, and stakeholders alike. “At Microsoft, trust and integrity are core to our values and critical to our success. We’re passionate about applying the power of technology to improve our world, and that starts with doing business in a way that builds and maintains trust with our customers,” said Microsoft president, Brad Smith.
These efforts do translate into measurable business value. Ethisphere compared the stock prices of publicly-traded companies recognized on the list this year with the U.S. Large Cap Index and found that honorees outperformed the average by almost 11 percent over the last five years and nearly 5 percent over three years. “Ethics and integrity matter at Dell,” said Dell Technologies chairman and CEO, Michael Dell, adding that Dell has been listed for five years in a row. “We work hard to earn our customers’ trust, improve our communities and inspire our team members through sound, ethical decision-making. Because at Dell, how we do our work is just as important as the results we achieve.”
Click on the image below to start a slideshow on EPS sister site EBNonline of this year’s honorees from the high technology and electronics related categories.
