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We have started 2008 with a bang. In this issue we'll share upcoming events, highlights of the "goings on" with AIM High, and good news from a few of our Honor Roll companies.
Please take note of and plan to participate in CAREDAYS08: Terrific Tales, which we will celebrate by creating classroom libraries in schools not fortunate enough to be able to afford books for students to read in their spare time.
We are in the thick of reviewing Honor Roll applications. Our team of volunteer reviewers is very busy....so, if you'd like to volunteer to be a reviewer next year, please let us know!
As a growing not-for-profit we are, as you might imagine, in need of funds to support our efforts. You are receiving this newsletter because you believe in the mission of Center for Companies That Care. Please consider making a tax-deductible donation by clicking here.
We look forward to hearing from you with input, suggestions, words of wisdom...just write.
Marci |
| UPCOMING EVENT: VIRTUAL BOOK CLUB |
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March 11, 2008, 12-1pm Central Time
Beyond Good Company: Next Generation Corporate Citizenship
by Bradley K. Googins, Philip H. Mirvis, and Steven A. Rochlin
We are excited that co-author, Brad Googins, will be joining us on the call.
(from flap)
Now more than ever, social responsibility is a live issue in the business circles. Many observers have contended that we are entering an era of "stakeholder capitalism," and various thought leaders have touted the prospect of solving the world's biggest problems through business-driven solutions. At the same time, skeptics have questioned just how invested companies are in corporate citizenship, and whether their commitments to social responsibility are little more than a public relations tool. In Beyond Good Company, three experts on corporate citizenship reveal that the game really is changing. Bradley K. Googins, Philip H. Mirvis, and Steven A. Rochlin have spent much of the last twenty-five years polling executives, interviewing hundreds of them face-to-face about the role of business in public life. They show how a wide array of companies in diverse industries---including 3M, Shell Group, Unilever, FedEx, GE, and Starbucks---have integrated social responsibility with mainstream business practices, addressing such vital issues as global warming, water shortages, malnutrition, and unemployment. The result is an inspiriting and practical look at how today's corporations can be a force for good in the world without sacrificing the bottom line. COST:
Free - members of Community of Caring (includes employees of 2007 Honor Roll organizations and 2008 Honor Roll applicants and Education Initiative student mentors and sponsors.)
$25 - non-members
Click here to register for the March 11th Virtual Book Club if you are not a member.
NOTE: The next Virtual Book Club is May 27th, at which time we will be joined by Ellyn Satter to discuss her just published book: Secrets of Feeding a Healthy Family. |
Social Responsibility Certificate
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Earn a Social Responsibility Certificate from Loyola Business
School and Center for Companies That Care. The 5-day comprehensive course is entitled Becoming a Socially
Responsible Corporation.
March 24-28, 2008 in downtown ChicagoThis five-day business certificate course is a must for anyone dedicated to being a
socially responsible business. The course will cover:
- understanding
sustainability
- building
a work environment that enables individuals to thrive
- limiting
the environmental footprint of the business
- developing
a community involvement strategy
Please click on the above link to register directly with Loyola. |
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CAREDAYS08: TERRIFIC TALES |
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Beginning on Companies That Care Day, March 20, 2008, we will kick off CAREDAYS08 by returning to a past, and successful, way of celebrating: Terrific Tales.
It's time to get started planning for this worthwhile initiative. We plan to celebrate CAREDAYS with Terrific Tales in '08,'09 and '10, with the goal of providing classroom libraries in 10% of all low income schools that lack libraries. This is a lofty goal, but one we know we can achieve with your help.
Please click here to link to the Center for Companies That Care website for all the information you need to know in order to participate in this worthwhile activity. We have done the work to identify age-appropriate books; identify schools in your area in need of classroom libraries; and suggest ways in which you can raise money to buy books and help kids learn.
Please block March 20th as the kick off for celebration...and start planning now.
Please call Center for Companies That Care with questions. Our number is 312-661-1010. |
AIM High Overview and Update
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Center for Companies That Care created the AIM High mentoring program to ensure that vulnerable, low-income students, graduate from college, and are prepared for tomorrow's workplace.
What makes this program unique, is that a long-term mentoring relationship exists between one student and a dedicated group of professionals (3-5 people) from one company. If the relationship was only with an individual employee, and he/she decided to leave the company - the student would be abandoned. The design of this program won't allow that to happen. The National Mentoring Partnership created standards for mentoring relationships. AIM High's structure following all of the Elements of Effective Practice listed on www.mentoring.org.
Using a customized, 4-year curriculum, Center for Companies That Care trains participating companies to mentor students:
- virtually - using topically focused e-mail prompts
- in person - via group cultural, sporting, and recognition events, job shadowing/professional internships, the Career and College Alma Mater Fair, a 5-day bus tour of colleges, Take Your Mentor to School Day, and more
Eight pillars (objectives) are present in each year of this four-year programs, including:
- Goal Setting- Students set personal, academic, and career goals throughout the program
- Academic Support- Participating schools integrate the program into their curricula; mentors help students with their coursework
- Cultural Awareness- Students gain exposure to the world beyond their neighborhoods by attending cultural and sporting events with their mentors
- College Preparedness- Students will be prepared to select, apply, enroll, and graduate from college
- A Day in the Student's Life- Each year mentors will experience a day in the life of their student
- Community Service- Students will work with their mentors to participate in Center for Companies That Care's month-long CAREDAYS initiative; This year's theme is Terrific Tales, a community service project to place classroom libraries in low-income schools. Students will also read to elementary school students in their own neighborhoods
- Recognition- Students will be recognized upon completing each year of the program; a formal ceremony will be held at the end of each academic year
In January, students visited their mentors workplaces for job shadowing. They also attended a career fair during which they were introduced to a myriad of possible career alternatives.
Click here for additional information on this very exciting program. Click here to hear the students themselves talk about why this is important to their future.
Please contact Marci Koblenz for additional information and/or to become a sponsor. |
| Honor Roll Companies In the News |
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Congratulations to 2007 Honor Roll companies KPMG, Office Depot, and PricewaterhouseCoopers for winning WorkLife Matters 2007 Social Responsibility awards.
- KPMG: Recognized for their United Nations Global Compact, a principles-based initiative that aims to influence the creation of a more sustainable and inclusive global economy.
- Office Depot: Recognized for a number of programs that support their vision of "Delivering Winning Solutions That Inspire Worklife".
- PricewaterhouseCoopers LLP: Recognized for initiating the pillars of Global Communities, a effort to help the communities in which they work through providing professional services, volunteering, offering leadership and giving.
We are glad to have these organizations in our court! |
| CARING in the News |
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LA Times says "caring is in"
What we are doing is not a fad, it is a trend.
Click here for a recently published LA Times article "A Gentler Capitalism".
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| Do you support Center for Companies That Care's mission that all companies are companies that care? If so, read on! |
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 We encourage you to join the Community of Caring. Becoming a member of the Community of Caring not only entitles you to many benefits, but, more importantly, by becoming a member you declare your interest in, and commitment to, making our world a better place to live. The investment is minimal, your vote for caring will be HUGE! Please join our Honor Roll Companies as members of the Community.
Community of Caring Benefits
Participate in collaborative community building initiatives with other members
Attend Center for Companies That Care educational programs (Best Practices Road Shows, Bi-Annual Symposiums, Stepping Stones Seminars, etc.) for a discounted registration fee
Participate in mentoring programs for a discount
Select topics for and attend 1st Monday virtual lunch 'n learns -- free
Participate in the Virtual Book Club -- free
Purchase tools (surveys, starter kits, etc.) at a discount
Receive advance notice of all educational and community building programs with limited participation
Submit nominations (including self-nominations) for Center for Companies That Care committees and Board of Directors
Receive a CARE bumper sticker and a Community of Caring seal for your website
Participate in the Community of Caring listserv and consult/collaborate with other Community of Caring members
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