Career planning: 5 resources to find your next responsible employer

Responsible Careers:  Strong career planning involves identifying employers whose mission and values align with your responsible career goals.  Of course, you certainly know that you can conduct company research through hoovers.com or through glassdoor.com  to find out more about the products and services a company provides, about the company's latest financial results, as well as feedback about the company culture from current and previous employees.  However, it can be difficult to assess employers that have true commitments to economic, social and environmental value creation from those who are using the CSR initiatives as a public relations cover up.

How can one find big and small companies that are truly dedicated to being profitable while providing their employees with fair wages, learning opportunities and are also contributing to the communities where they operate?  What about finding companies that one can believe in when it comes to preserving or restoring our environment?  Of course, our justmeans company listings is the best resource you can start with to find companies dedicated to get business done - better!  In addition, here are 5 resources that will help you find more information so that you can assess whether you want to work for a specific employer:

2010 Black List of Bad Businesses (by Corporate Responsibility - CR - Magazine) - Let's start with an easy step:  Eliminating companies not worth considering.  As you surely know, CR Magazine publishes every year its list of 100 best corporate citizens.  This year, they decided to also publish the bottom 100 companies from their assessment as the 2010 black list.  Obviously making the Black Company List is not a good thing.  Instead, it is a clear signal that a company is not transparent about its operations and/or is not providing corporate responsibility data points that would enable a fair assessment of its operations.  Hence, joining these companies without really good evidence that the company aligns with your goals might not be the best responsible career planning move you can make.

2010 Top Small Companies To Work For (by Inc. Magazine) - It might be difficult to find great smaller companies that operate according to a triple bottom line approach (i.e. people, planet and profits) to get business done - better. Fortunately, great research published in Inc. Magazine this month provides a list of smaller companies that take good care of their employees, their communities, and the environment.  These companies span a variety of industries including manufacturing, information technology, personal services, and even professional sports.  This research was conducted through a partnership led by Yvon Chouinard (founder of Patagonia) and Ken Lehman (co-founder of Winning Workplaces), and their results are very well laid out for aspiring responsible leaders to find companies they can believe in.

2010 World's Most Ethical Companies (by Ethisphere) -  This list of companies spans across continents and industries.  Both bigger and smaller companies are included.   Companies that make this list are truly going beyond 'ethical' business statements and actively demonstrate sustained ethical practices and leadership in their respective industries.  Companies included in this list also span various industries, including Aerospace, automotive, banking, healthcare, insurances, and telecommunication.  Reviewing the 2010 ranking as well as previous years' ranking can be a valuable career planning step to investigate how your companies of interest have consistently performed as ethical leaders in their industries over time.

Benefit Corporations (by B Lab) -  As mentioned in previous posts here and here, B Corps are companies that have economic, social and environmental value creation built into their DNA.  With over 300 certified B Corps operating in the US in a variety of industries including investment management, consumer packaged goods, consulting, and energy, these are great companies for responsible professionals to consider.  With B Corps passed into legislation in Maryland and Vermont this year, the B Corps movement is gaining steam and with this growth might come additional opportunities throughout the US for professionals that want to get business done better.  B Corps principles are very much aligned with those of the People-Centered Economic Development Group in the UK.

Accounting and Governance Risk (AGR) Rating (by Audit Integrity) - You can enter the stock ticker of any company you are interested in to receive a free AGR rating summary.  The AGR rating is a reliability and transparency measure of a company's integrity.  It measures integrity in terms of financial reporting as well as corporate governance.  Looking into a company's AGR rating is a great career planning move to ensure that the corporate culture you are considering holds integrity as a key factor of business success.  Note that AGR ratings are available for companies in the US and beyond.

Through these resources, you can refine your career planning strategies and increase your chances to join companies that are truly committed to get business done better!  If there are other resources you regularly use to research and assess employers, please let me know through the comment section below!

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