Incorporating Responsibility And Citizenship

Introduction:

The process of incorporating public responsibility and citizenship is not unlike the way a company incorporates quality improvement. It begins with an understanding of customer requirements, then translates those requirements înto a vision, a mission, and goals for the company.

Concern for the Environment:

Tom Zosel, who manages the program, emphasizes how the program takes advantage of people's desire to çare for the environment. "I think the biggest hook in the entire program is giving people the opportunity to bring their environmental ac-tivism to their jobs. If you went out today and surveyed 3M employees and asked if they considered themselves environmentalists, I'd be sur-prised if you got less than a 90 percent positive response."

3M's corporate values reflect its employees' values by including a commitment to "respecting our sociai and physical environment." The goals 3M has identified to carry out this value are:

Complying with ali laws, and meeting or exceeding regulations.
Keeping customers, employees, investors, and the public informed about operations.
Developing products and processes that have minimal impact on the environment.
Staying attuned to the changing needs and preferences of customers, employees, and society.
Bringing uncompromising honesty and integrity to every aspect of the organization.

3M will continue to recognize and exercise its responsibility to:

Solve its own environmental pollution and conservation problems.
Prevent pollution at the source wherever and whenever possible.
Develop products that will have a minimum effect on the environment.
Conserve natural resources through the use of reclamation and other appropriate methods.
Ensure that its facilities and products meet and sustain the regulations of ali federal, state, and local environmental agencies.
Assist, wherever possible, governmental agencies and other official or-ganizations engaged in environmental activities.

Attention to Business Ethics

For companies like IMC and USAA, ethics is ingrained in the corporate culture.
At USAA, new employees are first exposed to the company's position on ethics during orientation.
They are further exposed during training courses that have ethical considerations embedded in their curricula.
With employees currently receiving an average of 55 hours of formal training per year, reinforcement is frequent and consistent.

USAA keeps people focused on corporate responsibility and citi-zenship by making it part of the company's planning process. USAA has identified sixkey result areas (KRAs):

service, (2) financial strength, (3) product value, (4) relationship building, (5) strategic assets (people and technology), and (6) public outreach.

By including public outreach as a KRA, along with other company priorities, USAA establishes its impor-tance for ali employees. By then developing five-year and annual plans to achieve its public outreach goals, USAA translates those goals into mea-surable actions and objectives—the surest way to make corporate responsibility and citizenship a part of the company's culture.