CR Magazine Announces 2012 COMMIT!Forum Agenda
Robert F. Kennedy, Jr. and former Sen. Paul Sarbanes join David Stockman, President Reagan’s Budget Director, and Joan Blades, Co-Founder of MoveOn.org, to headline this year’s Forum
EDISON, NJ (June 18, 2012) – Corporate Responsibility Magazine today announced the agenda for its 2012 COMMIT!Forum event, including topics for plenary sessions, working groups and—new for this year—the UnConvention. The Forum, taking place October 2-3 in New York City, is an annual conference that brings together the world’s leaders shaping the face of corporate responsibility to tackle the tough issues surrounding the role of business in society and recognize the important commitments that companies and their NGO partners are making to change the world.
Some of the most anticipated sessions scheduled for the COMMIT!Forum include:
- Oxford-style Debate of whether Corporate Transparency and Disclosure Requirements Have Done More Harm Than Good with former US Senator Paul Sarbanes
- Society, Sustainability, and the Rule of Law with lawyer, author and Chair of Common Good, Phillip K. Howard
- The Economics of Transparency with Ernst Ligteringen, Chief Executive of the Global Reporting Initiative (GRI)
- Investing in Responsibility, a discussion with investment officers from CalSTRS and CalPERS and other leading investment firms
- ERP for Your CSR: The Software Powering the Next Generation of Sustainability Management, Data, and Reporting with Jim Sullivan, Vice President at SAP, and Janice Warren, Director of OneReport
Additionally, the Forum will feature a unique UnConvention bringing left, right, and center together to find common ground and effective solutions to society’s toughest challenges including:
- Crony Capitalism: Building Common Ground on Maximizing the Potential of the Free Market While Reducing Cronyism Favoring Privileged Industries, Individuals, & Firms
- Dual Deficits: Overcoming Society’s Mounting Fiscal & Sustainability Debts moderated by Bill Shireman, President and CEO of The Future 500
- Energy Security: Safe, Stable, & Reliable Energy Sources to Fuel Our Economy with panelists from the US Navy, Tauri Group, Harvard Kennedy School, and Sierra Club
- Digital Freedom: Securing an Online World that Generates Greater Innovation, Prosperity, & Freedom moderated by Bruce Piasecki, author of Doing More With Less
“There is a lot of excitement building around this year’s program,” said Forum Chairman Richard Crespin. “We are confident that it will shine a spotlight on the innovative ways business is positively impacting society and the environment plus provide a knowledge-sharing platform to inform new partnerships and commitments that will change the world.”
These are just some of the many notable sessions at the 2012 Forum. Over 800 total attendees – C-suite executives, heads of corporate responsibility, sustainability officers, investment analysts, NGO and government leaders, academics, and more – will convene at the Cipriani Wall Street for two days to make commitments that change the world. The complete agenda can be found at www.commitforum.com.
Thanks go to Forum sponsors AHA!, AT&T, Brown Flynn, Deloitte, Mosaic, and State Street for their support.
About the COMMIT!Forum (http://www.commitforum.com/)
The COMMIT!Forum, calls people to commit to changing the world. How? By inspiring, educating, and engaging them in ways that prepare them to make the commitments necessary to change themselves and their organizations. The path to COMMIT, which began on April 17th at the New York Stock Exchange with the announcement of CR Magazine’s 13th Annual 100 Best Corporate Citizens, culminates October 2-3 in New York City at the Forum and continues well beyond through commitments people make there.
About CR Magazine (www.thecro.com)
CR Magazine is the voice of the corporate responsibility profession covering case studies, best practices, and trends in the 5 primary segments of the CR profession: a) Governance, Risk, Compliance, b) environmental sustainability c) Corporate Social Responsibility, d) philanthropy, and e) workforce/diversity.
Philip Howard Named Keynote Speaker 2012 COMMIT!Forum
Conference Brings Together Key Members of the Corporate Responsibility Community
to Commit to Changing the World
EDISON, NJ (Jan. 17) – Corporate Responsibility Magazine announced today that lawyer Philip K. Howard, author of Life Without Lawyers and founding chairman of the non-profit Common Good, will keynote the 2012 COMMIT!Forum, taking place October 2-3 in New York City.
“We are honored to have Philip Howard join the COMMIT!Forum. The event, which has quickly become the single largest gathering of leaders improving business and society, is the perfect place for organizations to determine, find partners for, and showcase their commitments to change the world,” said Forum Chairman Richard Crespin.
Howard will articulate his mission of rebuilding reliable legal structures that will permit Americans to use their common sense. His thesis is that making choices for the common good is impossible if everyone is tied up in red tape. Reclaiming responsibility requires a basic shift—where law sets boundaries for free choice instead of dictating choices for the lowest common denominator. His current ‘Start Over’ campaign aims to influence the 2012 election by organizing public support for structural overhaul of government and law, with the help of advisory board members former Senators Howard Baker, Bill Bradley, George McGovern, and Alan Simpson, as well as former Governors Jeb Bush and Tom Kean.
With a long record as a prominent civic leader and public policy activist, Howard has advised national political leaders on legal and regulatory reform for fifteen years, including Vice President Al Gore and various 2008 presidential hopefuls. In addition to Life Without Lawyers, he authored The Death of Common Sense and The Collapse of the Common Good and serves as Vice-Chairman of the law firm Covington & Burling, LLP. In 2002 Howard formed Common Good as a nonpartisan national coalition dedicated to restoring common sense to America.
Howard is just one of the many influential speakers that will headline the 2012 event. More information about the annual COMMIT!Forum is available at www.commitforum.com.
About the COMMIT!Forum (http://www.commitforum.com/)
The COMMIT!Forum, calls people to commit to changing the world. How? By inspiring, educating, and engaging them in ways that prepare them to make the commitments necessary to change themselves and their organizations. The path to COMMIT, which began on April 17th at the New York Stock Exchange
with the announcement of CR Magazine’s 13th Annual 100 Best Corporate Citizens, culminates October 2-3 in New York City at the Forum and continues well beyond through commitments people make there.
About CR Magazine (www.thecro.com)
CR Magazine is the voice of the corporate responsibility profession covering case studies, best practices, and trends in the 5 primary segments of the CR profession: a) Governance, Risk, Compliance, b) environmental sustainability c) Corporate Social Responsibility, d) philanthropy, and e) workforce/diversity.
COMMIT!Forum Newsroom
Members of the Press receive complimentary passes to the COMMIT!Forum subject to confirmation of their press credentials. To register for a COMMIT!Forum press pass please contact Beatrice Broderick at 212.279.3115 ext. 214 or at bbroderick@prosek.com.
Coverage of the 2012 COMMIT!Forum
10/17 – CSR, Philanthropy, Assurance and Other Insights From NY COMMIT!Forum
10/15 – How good governance boosts the bottom line
10/5 – The COMMIT! Forum Leaps Forward – Inspiring, Provocative, Constructive
10/5 – “Oil and Water” Meet on Wall Street
10/5 – How SOX has reshaped corporate responsibility
10/4 – CR Magazine Announces Top 10 Best Corporate Citizens by Industry
10/4 - Still Debating the Merits of Sarbanes-Oxley, 10 Years Later
10/4 - Found at COMMIT Forum: Inspiration from 2 Business Leaders
10/3 - COMMIT!Forum Highlights Future of Integrated Reporting
10/3 – FOX Business News – Former BB&T CEO: Sarbanes-Oxley Was a Bad Thing
10/3 – FOX Business News – Western Union Commits to Education
10/3 – FOX Business News -AEP CEO on Regulation, Energy Security
10/3 - Stanley M. Bergman Receives the 2012 Corporate Responsibility Lifetime Achievement Award
10/2 - COMMIT!Forum Workshop Provides Insight into GRI’s Upcoming G4 Guidelines
10/1 – COMMIT!Forum: Profits with Purpose
9/18 – Unemployed Americans will not Consider Working for Companies with Tarnished Corporate Images
9/13 - Hormel’s Ettinger Named “Responsible CEO of the Year”
9/11 – CR Magazine Announces Responsible CEO of Year Award Winners
9/10 – Environmental Defense Fund Joins the 2012 COMMIT!Campaign
9/10 – Inspiring Socially Good Corporate Leadership with Richard Crespin
7/16 - 2012 COMMIT!Forum to Feature Unique UnConvention
6/18: CR Magazine Announces 2012 COMMIT!Forum Agenda
1/17: Philip Howard Named Keynote Speaker 2012 COMMIT!Forum
Coverage of the 2011 COMMIT!Forum
12/15: R. Paul Herman, HIP Investor- Sustainability-Minded Investing Makes Dollars and Sense
12/13: Planet Forward- COMMIT!Forum
11/18: Monika Mitchell, Good Business International- Corporate Responsibility with Richard Crespin (audio)
11/10: Dr. Rushworth M. Kidder, Institute for Global Ethics- Corporate Responsibility & the Unsafe Mine
11/7: HIP Investor- VICE vs NICE: “Sustainability Showdown”
10/20: Mike Bellamente, Greenbiz- Why Are We Still Debating Whether to Embrace Sustainability?
10/19: Aman Singh, CSRwire- Occupy Wall Street- The Average Joe Interprets Corporate Social Responsibility
10/18: Susan Pullin, Computer Sciences Corporation- Understanding the Value of Corporate Responsibility
10/12: Monika Mitchell, Good Business International- NYSE Euronext: Not Your Parent’s Stock Exchange
10/10: redOrbit- Corporate Responsibility Magazine names DuPont Among Best Corporate Citizens
10/10: Michelle Greene, NYSE Euronext- Corporate Responsibility Equals a Company’s Core Strategy
10/5: Jerilyn Klein Bier, Financial Advisor Green- Green, Or Greenwashing?
10/5: Raz Godelnik, TriplePundit- The Good Guys Debate the Bad Guys About the Business Case for CSR
10/4: Cindy Mehallow, TriplePundit- Six Great Resources for Corporate Responsibility Professionals
10/4: CSR Minute- CR Magazine Announces Responsible CEO Awards
10/4: Sustainable Business Forum- Responsible CEO of Year Winners Announced
10/4: Joyce Hanson, AdvisorOne- Wall Street’s Top 10 Corporate Good Guys
10/3: Rush Kidder, Institute for Global Ethics- Why Corporate Social Responsibility Needs Ethics
10/1: Dirk Olin, CR Magazine- The Great CR Debate
9/30: Gary Larkin, Governance Center Blog- Commitforum: Sustainability Reporting Now ‘Businessified’
9/30: Kate Olsen, The Network for Good- CSR Inspiration from the COMMIT!Forum 2011
9/30: Paul Herman and Vinay Nair, CR Magazine: Debate- Sustainability’s Shareholder Value
9/30: Center For Value Driven Leadership- Leaving a Positive Beer Print Behind
9/29: Carol Baroudi, Redemtech- Commit!: The Day After- and E-Waste
9/29: Aman Singh, Forbes/ CSRwire- Think CSR is None of Your Business?
9/29: Corporate Voices- Nation’s Top Corporate Citizens Share Best Practices at COMMIT!Forum
9/28: Cindy Mehallow, TriplePundit- It Began with a Tomato: Engagement Lessons from Florida’s Tomato Land
9/28: CNBC- CR Mag Announces Responsible CEO of the Year Award Winners
9/27: New York Stock Exchange- Corporate Responsibility Magazine & NYSE Euronext Host COMMIT!Forum
9/27: Marie Leone, CFO Publishing- Wear Cuff Links and Ferragamo Ties
9/23: Digital Journal- Corporate Voices Spotlights Business Leaders Building Talent through CR
CR Magazine Announces 10 Best Corporate Citizens by Industry
Leaders in Corporate Responsibility honored at COMMIT!Forum
EDISON, N.J. (September 29, 2011) – Corporate Responsibility Magazine unveiled its first-ever top 10 Best Corporate Citizens rankings by industry category at the COMMIT!Forum on September 27th in New York City.
Rankings were announced in the following sectors: financial; information technology; materials; consumer items; media & entertainment; business services; consumer staples; utilities; energy; and healthcare. This is the first year that CR Magazine recognized companies by industry, applying the methodology from its 100 Best Corporate Citizens List. The announcements were made at the 2011 CR Magazine CEO Awards Dinner.
CR Magazine is America’s leading voice on corporate responsibility, providing case studies, analyzing best practices, and tracking trends in the five primary segments of CR: energy and the environment, risk management, governance and compliance, employee relations, and human rights.
By industry, the Best Corporate Citizens are:
- CR Sector: Financials/Insurance/Real Estate – JPMorgan Chase & Co.
- CR Sector: Information Technology – International Business Machines Corp.
- CR Sector: Materials – E.I. DuPont De Nemours & Co
- CR Sector: Customer Items – Mattel, Inc.
- CR Sector: Media & Entertainment – Starbucks Corp.
- CR Sector: Business Services – Accenture plc
- CR Sector: Consumer Staples - Campbell Soup Co.
- CR Sector: Utilities – Pinnacle West Capital Corp.
- CR Sector: Energy – Chevron Corp.
- CR Sector: Healthcare – Bristol-Myers Squibb Co.
The 10 Best Corporate Citizens by Industry full list: http://www.thecro.com/content/industrial-evolution
CR Magazine Announces Responsible CEO of Year Award Winners
Top CEOs Recognized for Aligning Business Interests with Corporate Social Responsibility
Edison, NJ (September 28, 2011): At the single largest gathering of socially responsible corporate leaders, Corporate Responsibility (CR) Magazine, unveiled the winners of the Responsible CEO of the Year awards. Lauded by their peers at the 2011 CR Magazine Awards Dinner, the CEOs were nominated based on success in aligning business and stakeholder interests to “do well by doing good.”
CR Magazine is the voice of the corporate responsibility profession, covering case studies, best practices, and trends in the five primary segments of the CR profession. The annual COMMIT!Forum calls people to commit to changing the world by inspiring, educating, and engaging them to change themselves and their organizations. This year’s path to the COMMIT!Forum commenced on March 2nd at the New York Stock Exchange with the announcement of the 12th Annual CR 100 Best Corporate Citizens List. As part of that initiative, 10 CEOs of the Year were nominated for their vision, discipline and boldness.
The winners of the 2011 Responsible CEO of the Year awards are:
- Arne Duncan, U.S. Secretary of Education
- Donald Knauss, Chairman and CEO of The Clorox Company
- Fred Krupp, President of the Environmental Defense Fund
- Paul Rooke, Chairman and CEO of Lexmark
4th Annual Responsible CEO of the Year Award Nominations Announced
Winners Revealed at COMMIT!Forum Awards Dinner in New York City on September 27th
Hosted by Terry Moran, Nightline and Keynoted by Rush Kidder, Institute for Global Ethics
Edison, NJ September 8, 2011, Corporate Responsibility (CR) Magazine today announced the nominees for the 4th Annual Responsible CEO of the Year Awards. The following leaders were nominated based on success aligning their interests with those of thousands of stakeholders to do well by doing good.
- Arne Duncan, U.S. Secretary of Education
- Scott Davis, Chairman and CEO, UPS
- Lori Dickerson Fouché, President and CEO, Fireman’s Fund
- Ilene Gordon, Chairman, President and CEO, Corn Products
- Jeffrey Joerres, Chairman, CEO & President, ManpowerGroup
- David Jones, Global CEO, Havas and Co-Founder, One Young World
- Donald Knauss, Chairman and CEO, The Clorox Company
- Fred Krupp, President, Environmental Defense Fund
- Paul Rooke, Chairman and CEO, Lexmark
- Jigar Shah, CEO, Carbon War Room
Profitable, Responsible or Both?
DEBATING THE FINANCIAL VALUE OF CORPORATE RESPONSIBILITY:
CAN FIRMS AND INVESTORS DO GOOD AND MAKE MONEY?
Leading Investment Managers and Academics to Face Off
at NYSE-Sponsored COMMIT!Forum in NYC on Sept. 26
New York, NY August 22, 2011: Is sustainability sustainable for the bottom line? If corporate responsibility programs erode or reduce returns, why do companies pursue them? On the other hand, if they are profitable, why do executives and CFOs steer away from these valuable strategies?
Four leaders in investment management and academic analysis will debate these questions in an Oxford-style debate on whether shareholder value is eroded or enhanced when companies integrate sustainability strategies and pursue corporate responsibility initiatives. In this unique format, two teams will debate, and seek to sway the audience with their compelling positions, arguments and rebuttals.
YOU are a Corporate Responsibility Officer
Individuals at all levels can take action to improve Corporate Citizenship
“[G]lobalization and the information technology revolution have gone to a whole new level,” wrote Thomas Friedman in his Sunday New York Times Op-Ed. “Thanks to cloud computing, robotics, 3G wireless connectivity, Skype, Facebook, Google, LinkedIn, Twtter, the iPad, and cheap Internet-enabled smartphones, the world has gone from connected to hyper-connected.”
Now, thanks to the globalization/IT revolution you can be a corporate responsibility officer (CRO). “This globalization/IT revolution is… ‘super-empowering’ individuals, enabling them to challenge hierarchies and traditional authority figures – from businesses to science to government.” While these tools have caused disruptive change – from Tunisia to the Tea Party – these same tools empower individuals at every level to become change agents of a more incremental, more impactful kind.
The corporation remains one of the most prominent institutions in the lives of ordinary people. Most people in the world work for, live next to, or invest in companies. Impacting the behavior of a company offers the most direct way of improving the lives of real people without having to man the barricades or run the risk of losing life, liberty, or property. Thanks to the globalization/IT revolution, no matter your title or “day-job” you can be a corporate responsibility officer.
How? Well, given that I’m the Executive Director of the Corporate Responsibility Officers Association, my first recommendation is to join the CROA. Corporate Responsibility, defined simply, means maximizing the positive impact of business while minimizing or eliminating the negative. With this in mind, the remit of a CRO is quite vast, spanning the corporation’s financial performance, governance, natural resource use, human rights, and community impact.
When we first founded the Association we based it on a false premise: that every company would end up with a CRO. We miscalculated. Companies don’t have “a” CRO, they have dozens or even hundreds of individuals interested and motivated to improve the citizenship of their employers. So we’ve recalibrated the mission of the CROA to focus on empowering individuals at every level to take action.
As a general member, which anyone can qualify for, you get instantly connected to a network of corporate professionals, NGOs, activists, academics, investors, and others all working toward the common goal of improving the role of business in society. Beyond the network, you’ll also access resources to start working from wherever you are in the organization. As a practicing member, open to anyone with corporate responsibility as part of their job function, not only do you connect to that same network you have access to tools, data, and research to super-charge your career and fulfill your professional mandate.
Even if you don’t join the CROA, I still encourage you to think of yourself as a CRO. Here’s a five-point checklist for getting started:
1. Start with a self-assessment. Examine your role and scope of influence. You may not have direct control over your company’s hiring practices or supply chain, but you may know people who do. Inventory who’s in your network and how they might play a role.
2. Start conversations. Reach out that inventory of people in your network. Don’t try to “sell” them on corporate responsibility. Just raise the issues. Ask them their opinion. How do they think the company can make a difference?
3. Use the formal and informal processes of your organization. Many companies have evolved the old “suggestion box” and now look for all kinds of input using everything from email to social media. Use these processes to submit your ideas and questions. As a newly minted CRO you have an obligation to ask the questions even if you don’t have the answers.
4. Give up being reasonable. A lot of people get stopped at this point by what they think is “realistic” – people won’t listen to me, my opinion won’t make a difference, I’m just one person. Calling on people to change is an unreasonable act. Get used to it.
5. Take action. Without bomb-throwing, encourage the companies you work for, live next to, or invest in to improve their citizenship. Learn what others have done by connecting with similarly motivated individuals through forums like CSR MeetUp or by attending conferences like the COMMIT!Forum. In these settings you can pick up lots of tips and tactics. With these insights, try your hand at wielding the power of the globalization/IT revolution. Post appropriate updates to Facebook or Twitter. Write a blog. But at the same time, know your company’s policies on social media.
Once you put on this new mantle as CRO, you’ll find yourself looking at the world, and your role in it, in a different light. The same tools that have disrupted society offer the potential to heal its wounds. As a CRO you can play a direct role in using these tools to improve the social contract between business and society.
Ready to take on your new role as a CRO? Come to the COMMIT!Forum on Sept 26-27 in NYC and commit to making a real difference. Your transformation into a CRO begins the moment you register today: www.commitforum.com.
CR Magazine Calls for Nominations for 4th Annual Responsible CEO of the Year Awards and Establishes New Lifetime Achievement Award
CR Magazine Calls for Nominations for 4th Annual Responsible CEO of the Year Awards and Establishes New Lifetime Achievement Award
To Recognize CEOs that delivered on CR promises at the COMMIT!Forum
Washington, DC, July 12, 2011, Corporate Responsibility (CR) Magazine is requesting nominations for the Responsible CEO of the Year Awards by August 1st. Awards will be presented at the annual COMMIT!Forum, taking place September 26-27 in New York City in eight different industry segments: Large Market; Mid-Market; Small Market; Private Companies; Non-Profit/NGO; Government/Regulatory; Corporate Foundation; and Social Entrepreneur.
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