Corporate Responsibility Magazine (the new name of CRO Magazine) announced its 11th annual 100 Best Corporate Citizens List, known as the world’s top corporate responsibility ranking based on publicly-available information and recognized by PR Week as one of America’s top three most-important business rankings.  

Click here to view the list.

The 100 Best Corporate Citizens List is based on over 360 data points of publicly-available information in seven categories. The seven categories include:  Environment, Climate Change, Human Rights, Philanthropy, Employee Relations, Financial Performance, and Governance. The 100 Best Corporate Citizens are selected from among the large-cap Russell 1000 companies, based on data provided by leading ESG investor data firm IW Financial. The 100 Best Corporate Citizens List’s open and transparent methodology is governed by a Methodology Committee of the Corporate Responsibility Officers Association (CROA).  The List methodology is published in the 100 Best Corporate Citizens List issue of Corporate Responsibility Magazine, mailed to 20,000 subscribers March 9.

Company stakeholders from investors to customers to employees to regulators watch the 100 Best Corporate Citizens List closely, and are using it now more than ever to make important decisions.  As a result, making the List is worth millions or even billions in increased shareholder and brand value,” said Corporate Responsibility Magazine publisher Jay Whitehead.  “That is why we are seeing leading companies focusing in greater numbers on their public reporting and performance, particularly in the areas of climate change, environment, employee relations, and human rights.  Between 2009 and 2010, for instance, the top company’s total score improved by 66 percent, and the average score of all 100 companies climbed by 19 percent.” 

In 2010 the 100 Best Corporate Citizens List, which features large-cap Russell 1000 companies includes 88 companies listed on the NYSE Euronext exchange.  “The strong representation of companies listed on NYSE Euronext markets on the 100 Best Corporate Citizens List underscores the commitment to corporate responsibility, ethics and integrity among the world’s leading corporations,” said Duncan L. Niederauer, Chief Executive Officer, NYSE Euronext.  “This also speaks to the inherent quality of our global marketplace as well as the high standards and best practices that NYSE Euronext and our listed companies observe and advocate.   On behalf of my colleagues at NYSE Euronext, I extend my congratulations to the 2010 Best Corporate Citizens and thank Corporate Responsibility Magazine for undertaking this important initiative.”

“The higher scores reveal a quantum leap in performance, which we attribute to the competitive dynamic of firms who understand the importance of stakeholder support from investors, customers, employees, regulators, and suppliers,” said Corporate Responsibility Magazine editor Dirk Olin.  “It’s axiomatic that sunlight is the best disinfectant, and this year’s 100 Best List improvements is proof of sunlight’s power.”
 
 The 100 Best Corporate Citizens “List Effect” is the focus of Corporate Responsibility (CR) Magazine’s next issue, mailed to 20,000 subscribers starting on March 9, 2010.  The 100 Best List was first published in 1999 in Business Ethics Magazine, and has been managed by CRO and Corporate Responsibility Magazine since 2007.