The Ethisphere Institute (ethisphere.com), an organization focused on defining and advancing corporate ethical standards and practices, prepares an annual report which selects the most ethical global companies for that year. Ethisphere receives nominations and selects the winners on the basis of the following criteria:
• Ethics and Compliance Program (25%) Program structure, oversight, and standards; training and communication, detecting and monitoring, and enforcement.
• Reputation, Leadership, and Innovation (20%) A company's legal compliance, litigation, and ethical track record.
• Governance (10%) The availability and quality of systems designed to ensure strong corporate governance.
• Corporate Citizenship and Responsibility (25%) Performance indicators associated with sustainability, citizenship, and social responsibility.
• Culture of Ethics (20%) The extent to which an applicant promotes an organizational culture that encourages ethical conduct and a commitment to compliance with the law. There were 144 companies selected (from more than 5,000 nominees) in 2014, including Gap, Dell, Google, Adobe, Microsoft, Colgate-Palmolive, Kellogg, PepsiCo, 3M, General Electric, Starbucks, and Cisco.
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How would you use the Ethisphere report of most ethical companies, if (a) you are a business manager, (b) you are a government regulator, or (c) you are an investor?