A good example of a well-known company leveraging blogs, slide shows, videos and other techniques to participate more transparently and, as their CEO puts it so well, "learning out loud" (I love that phrase). These types of strategies are not only important for a variety of traditional reasons (e.g., sustainability, corporate social responsibility, and brand value), but also valuable in terms of recruitment and talent strategies. There is a growing body of research that suggests that Gen Y-ers want to work for companies that are good citizens, participate in community-building efforts and promote volunteerism). Note: One of the citations below includes links to what some other organizations are doing regarding transparency and social responsibility - those references and links are also informative.
Patagonia is First to Track Environmental and Social Impact of Its Products
"We believe that to avoid complacency, we must constantly examine our internal processes to improve upon the positive and mitigate the negative," said Casey Sheahan, president and CEO of Patagonia. "The Footprint Chronicles allows us to do this publicly -- sort of learning out loud."
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"Our customers are scientists, activists, professors, doctors and more -- they have the collective experience and knowledge we're looking for," said Sheahan. "We're highlighting exactly what happens in the manufacturing process and asking customers for their suggestions and help in efforts to find solutions to our less sustainable practices. It's a unique dialogue to engage in -- but one that will ultimately allow us to cause less harm to the planet."
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The Footprint Chronicles includes more than 35 filmed interviews and slideshows of factory workers, farmers, owners, designers and third-party auditors to provide an unprecedented level of transparency both internally and externally -- from the factories and manufacturing partners that create its products, to the end of the product's lifespan.
Environmentalism: Current Campaign
Freedom to Roam, a long-term initiative, is dedicated to establishing migration wildways for animals between protected areas. Patagonia’s partners in Freedom to Roam include other companies, conservation organizations and recreation groups.
The following essay, "Paths to Survival" by Rick Ridgeway, appeared in our Heart of Winter 2008 catalog and serves as the introduction to Freedom to Roam.
Patagonia is First to Track Environmental and Social Impact of Its Products
Patagonia Takes Next Step in Corporate Transparency and Accountability
The 2003 Gap Social Responsibility report set an early high water mark in transparency by disclosing violations of its Vendor Code of Conduct. The next year, Nike took the next step of disclosing the names and locations of all its contract factories worldwide in its 2004 Corporate Responsibility report.
In 2006, Timberland's “Our Footprint” labeling program took a major leap forward by disclosing the environmental and community impacts of its products (as well as the factory where they were manufactured) right on the packaging, like nutrition labels on food. The next year, Timberland unveiled its Green Index labeling, which went further by disclosing climate impacts, chemicals uses, and resource consumption associated with its products.
Last year, Stonyfield Farm took corporate environmental engagement to the next level by funding Climate Counts, a nonprofit that rates carbon emissions reduction strategies of companies on a 100-point scale (Nike came in second place with a 73, Stonyfield sixth with a 63, and Gap 25th with a 39--Timberland wasn’t rated.)
JustMeans is doing pretty cool things with Timberland and Bertelsmann and a bunch of other companies using social media. I don't think they are talking about it yet and are fully launching next month but I was just on a conference call showcasing some of their technology, and it was pretty crazy.
Posted by: John Brennus | April 16, 2008 at 03:51 PM