Column Articles Links

The Center for Leadership and Social Responsiblity strives to communicate with the UW Tacoma community members in many ways, including a column on the first floor of Dougan Hall.

We invite you to create and join discussions on the topics posted in the column's display cases. Feel free to send suggestions for postings and topics to clsr@uw.edu.

We'll link the articles highlighted in the column on this page.

May 2012

• Green Jobs: Towards Decent Work in a Sustainable World. This comprehensive report on the emergence of a “green economy” and its impact on the world of work in the 21st century was prepared by the United Nations Environment Programme (UNEP), Worldwatch Institute, and Cornell University Global Labor Institute. It shows at a global level that green jobs are being generated in some sectors and economies.
• National Business Ethics Survey (NBES). Published every two years, Ethics Resource Center's National Business Ethics Survey (NBES) is the nationally-recognized barometer of workplace ethics. The 2011 survey was administered among 4,683 for-profit employees who, among other things, shared how whistleblowing is perceived in their company. Learn more about the current state of misconduct reporting in the US.

April 2012

• Business Etiquette: 5 Rules That Matter Now. Courtesy and manners are essential - particularly in business. Learn about dos and don'ts at a business meeting.
• Do Campaigns for “Ethical Supply Chains” Help Workers? In the past 20 years what has become known as the “ethical supply chain” movement has targeted brands such as Nike, Gap and Coca-Cola. Most recently, Apple came under attack because of the alledged poor working conditions of the people who make iPads and iPhones. How seriously should firms take these issues? Have Apple's actions been successful so far? Find out from the Economist magazine experts.
• Energy Sources 101: Solar Energy Pros and Cons. Solar power is perhaps what most people think of first when they think of renewables. Solar means clean energy, no greenhouse emissions from use, and abundant supply. At the same time, it is not available at night or under clouds, requires a large amount of open space, and is relatively expensive. Find out what compromises sustainability activists offer.
• The Profits of Virtue. Nancy Folbre, an economics professor at the University of Massachusetts, Amherst, explains the role of social responsibility in modern corporate culture, its effects on profitability and consumer behavior.
• 5 New Ways to Network (That You Won't Dread). All it takes is a little imagination, and networking might even be kind of fun. These five ideas will help you get started.
• Zero Waste at DuPont. DuPont's building division had gone from sending 81 million points of waste to landfill in 2008 to zero in 2012. David Walter is an executive who led the zero waste effort. Find out how he did it.
• Energy Sources 101: Natural Gas Pros and Cons. Natural gas contributes 21% of the world's energy production today, yet, some think that it is a potential environmental nightmare. Explore for yourself what's good and bad about it.
• US Sues to Lower Prices of E-book Bestsellers. The Justice Department and 15 states sued Apple Inc. and major book publishers, alleging a conspiracy that raised the price of electronic books. If there was price fixing, the lattest e-book hits may have cost too much.
• 10 Leadership Tips from Steve Jobs. These are excerpts from Walter Isaacson’s, “The Real Lessons of Steve Jobs,” published in the Harvard Business Review, April 2012. Learn more about what it means to simplify, control the experience, and innovate.
• Zimride: Reinventing the Road Trip. Zimride is a San Francisco-based startup that is using social media to connect drivers with people needing rides. In the process they save people money, help the environment, and sometimes help their customers make new friends.
• 2012 Cone Green Gap Trend Tracker. The third in a series of benchmark surveys examined American consumers' perceptions of environmental marketing. The good news: Americans continue to buy with the environment in mind. The bad news: consumers are not necessarily trusting companies' environmental claims.
• Tata Motors Air Car - Is It Really Coming? Learn more about how this lightweight car works and what are the chances of it hitting the American market in the near future. The article is by RP Siegel, PE, President of Rain Mountain LLC and the co-author of the eco-thriller Vapor Trails.

March 2012

• 'Best' of B Corporations. B Lab - a nonprofit dedicated to using the power of business to solve social and environmental problems - released its first “Best for the World” list recognizing companies creating the most positive overall social and environmental impact.
• Empowering Women Through Education. BSR, a global network of nearly 300 member companies, came up with a concept of BSR's HERproject. Creators of the project, built around private-public partnerships, believe that businesses that invest in educating and empowering women in the workplace enjoy higher efficiencies, lower absenteeism and turnover rates, and higher return on investments.
• Future of the Book for IDEO. As books in digital format become more and more popular, book publishers have to come up with more innovative ideas on how to capitalize on the changes that are happening. A team from IDEO, a design and innovation consulting firm, developed three new concepts to enhance book reading experience. Find out more about "Alice", "Coupland", and "Nelson".
• How to Work A Room Like You Own The Place. Want to know how to change a networking situation from being "a boring waste of time" to "an exhilarating event that expands your circle"? In this article, Nisa Chitakasem gives some useful tips.
• Sustainability 2.0: Using Sustainability to Drive Business Innovation and Growth. The report by William Sarni & Peter Capozucca analyzes how a strategic sustainability plan can help organizations transform their key business processes and influence customers behavior.
• Does CSR Really Contribute to Reputation? In his blog entry,Bernd Lorenz Walter examines the paradox: on the one hand, stakeholders expect corporations to take responsibility, but on the other, when corporations begin to talk about CSR, stakeholder scepticism rises. Learn more about the reasons why.
• The Pomodoro Technique. Learn about simple yet effective time management tool.
• Working Fewer Hours is Good for the Planet. What if environmentalists pushed to empower people to choose to work fewer hours, buy fewer things, enjoy more time with family or friends - will it help the environment? Read more in the blog by Marc Gunther.
• Consumers Would Buy More Sustainable Clothing, If they Could Find It. The 2012 Styling Sustainability Survey discovered that around 69% ticked 'at least sometimes' when asked if they considered sustainability when purchasing clothing in 2011. It also discovered that shoppers would buy twice as much eco-apparel in 2012. Read more in the article by Antonio Pasolini.
• Global Corporate Reputation Index. Launched by Burson-Marsteller and partners, it is based on 40,000 consumer interviews about 6,000 companies in six countries (US, Germany, Russia, Japan, China, Brazil) and reveals the top 25 companies with the best corporate reputation – a magic mix of marketplace performance and corporate citizenship.

February 2012

• How Panera Bread is Revolutionizing Philanthropy. The Sustainable Brands category this week showcases an article about Panera Bread and its Panera Cares program championed by the company's CEO Ron Shaich. He sought to create Panera Cares Cafes without prices that feeds its patrons on a pay what you can basis. The program's vision is to help solve food insecurity problem in American communities.
• Tully's Taste of Community. One of the best things about a great cup of coffee is sharing it with someone, giving you the chance to discover something about yourself, about a friend, or even about a newfound favorite flavor. Tully’s wanted to take this one-on-one coffee break and move it one step further, encouraging their coffee lovers to rediscover and reconnect with their entire community. Find out more about Tully's Corporate Responsibility efforts.
• Global CR Opportunity Study. The study presents the findings of an online survey conducted in 2011 by Echo Research. The survey was conducted in 10 countries – the United States, Canada, Brazil, the United Kingdom, Germany, France, Russia, China, India and Japan. Across all countries, the survey was conducted among a random sample of the online adult population ages 18 and older. A total of 10,024 adults completed the survey, including 5,015 men and 5,009 women.
• How to Come Up With Creative Ideas? In this article Duncan Murtagh, an Irish enterpreneur, describes an unusual way of how an individual or a company can generate business ideas.
• Apple's China Problem - and Ours. Is Apple doing worse than other companies when it comes to protecting workers' rights in foreign countries? Who gets the biggest benefit from globalization: capitalists or Third World workers? What can we as consumers do about poor working conditions in the countries where our stuff comes from? Answers to these and other questions in the blog entry by Marc Gunther.
• How to Find a Business Mentor Who'll help You Achieve Your Leadership Goals? In this article Rene D. Petrin, the founder and president of Management Mentors, a company that has been designing and implementing business mentoring programs since 1989, describes her 8-step approach.
• Cisco Brings Smart Cities Within Reach. Given the impact that computers and smart phones have had on our personal and professional lives, it seems that the application of computer technology to the infrastructure of cities has even greater potential to change the way we live. Despite this potential, and with only a few exceptions, smart city technologies have yet to be adopted in most places. But, according to Cisco, this all may be about to change.
• Trends That Will Shape Sustainable Consumption in 2012. Raphael Bemporad, the founding partner and Chief Strategy Officer of BBMG offered a list of five trends that he believes will shape sustainable brands in 2012.
• Stop Wasting Waste: Fixing the Travesty of Lost Value in Recycling. The value chain of production, use and end of life that encompasses manufacturers, designers, retailers, consumers, recyclers and waste haulers is extremely interwoven and complex. Unleashing the value of such a system requires a significantly different approach.Read more in the article by Champa Gujjanudu.
• The 15 Keys to Long-Term Success. Family connections. Good looks. Ivy League educations. Sure, they all help getting you started on a fabulous career. But do they ensure your future? Probably not. According to many experts, the road to success depends on your taking actions like the ones listed by Dr. Kathleen Begley.
• Why Google Invests in Clean Energy? Last year, Google invested more than $915 million in clean energy projects–solar, wind and transmission. Does Google have an energy policy? Does it need one?
• Street Art Utopia. Pictures displayed on the column can be found here.

January 2012

• Transparency Pays Off In 360-Degree Reviews. Executives who reveal their 360-degree feedback typically do so just for their closest lieutenants. But frankness with staff about your appraisal can help your advancement – depending on how you handle it. Read more in the article by Joann S. Lublin.
• The Changing Face of Corporate Sustainability. Today, there is a growing demand for companies to demonstrate a responsible, sustainable, long-term approach to business, to produce a statement of their sustainability activities, and to clearly show how this relates to their core business strategy. Read more in the article from January 23, 2012.
• The 'Pain' of Sustainability. In today’s world companies continue to struggle to implement sustainable approaches to doing business. Here is why.
• Staples Advantage: Growing Green Supply Chain Revenues.  Staples, Inc. is a worldwide business supplier with Internet revenues second only to Amazon. At the retail store level they have promoted recycled paper, e-waste recycling and the introduction of electric delivery vehicles. Article by Bill Roth from January 16, 2012.
• The Sharing Economy and Me. The idea of sharing economy and collaborative consumption keeps spreading. It is already generating some real money. Researches from Gartner Group estimate that the peer-to-peer financial lending market will reach $5 billion by 2013. Frost & Sullivan projects that car-sharing revenues in North America alone will hit $3.3 billion by 2016. Will the idea of sharing change the way we do business? Find out more in the blog by Marc Gunther.
• Build Your Strategy Around the Future: Predictions for 2012. Changes in technology, social contracts, and scarcity of natural resources will shape 2012 and beyond. Companies that have thought this through will be the most resilient, says Aron Cramer, president and CEO of BSR, a business network and consultancy focused on sustainability.
• Patagonia. Since the dawn of corporate social responsibility, Patagonia has been its pioneer and poster child. The company was founded on the principle that the business’s bottom  line was more than just monetary.
• Act Like a Leader. In the world of sustainability, 4 dimensions of leadership are essential for everyone in business and provide the best path to a meaningful difference for all companies and the wider world.

November 2011

• Playing Board Games.  A board member uses his insider knowledge of companies to play the stock market and is later arrested.
• Supply Side Economics Doesn't Hold up to Louis Vuitton.  Keynesian economics contends that one individual's spendin is another's earnings.  Unfortunately for Americans, those jobs are being created overseas.
• Sustainable Sushi Is Not an Oxymoron. 
• What Does the Data Say?  Hans Rosling Breaks down the Impact of Foreign Aid.  Among the many experts and data sources that Bill Gates drew on as he worked on his G20 Summit report, few are as entertaining as Hans Rosling and his extraordinary, interactive graphics, which reveal global trends and the great benefits of development aid in astonishing new ways.

October 2011

• Americans Think U.S. Headed Wrong Way in Energy, New Poll Finds.  In survey of 3,406 Americans conducted by researchers at the University of Texas at Austin, less than 14 percent of respondents said they think the country is headed in the right direction on energy.
• The 10 Worst Mistakes of First-time Job Hunters.  The rumors about landing a job in this economy are true. You should be taking steps today, not next term, to prepare yourself.
• What Everyone Is Too Polite to Say about Steve Jobs.  A great man's reputation can withstand a full accounting.  Truth be told, Jobs could be terrible to people, and his impact on the world was not uniformly positive.
• Steve Jobs: seven ways he taught us to 'think different'.  Steve Jobs was the anti-technocrat — an artist, entrepreneur, dreamer, revolutionary. He shook the business world out of its coma and made business fun. And made technology fun.

September 2011

• Reputation & Integrity in the Digital Age.  Reputation and integrity matter to consumers and investors – more so now than ever before. Because the market rewards firms that they believe align well with their values, and they punish those that don’t.
• The Corporate Social Contract.  If corporations have the rights of the individual, they also have the responsibilities.

August 2011