Three Fairfield County-based corporations made the Ethisphere Institute”™s list of the world”™s most-ethical companies, and several more were included with significant operations in the area.
Fairfield-based General Electric Co., Stamford-based Pitney Bowes Inc. and Norwalk-based Xerox Corp. were named to the list, as was Thomson Reuters Corp., which has a large office in Stamford (the Ethisphere Institute disclosed Thomson Reuters as a significant sponsor in 2009, but says it maintains a “Chinese Wall” policy to avoid conflicts of interest).
Companies are evaluated on seven criteria:
- corporate citizenship and responsibility;
- governance;
- ethical leadership by executives;
- ethical leadership within a company”™s industry;
- internal controls;
- a company”™s historical track record; and
- products or services that contribute to the public”™s well being.
Pitney Bowes said annual ethics and compliance training is mandatory for employees, and said managers are rated in their annual performance appraisals on their ethical leadership.
“Ethical business practices are the foundation upon which Pitney Bowes was built, and are a vital part of how we operate around the world,” said Murray Martin, CEO of Pitney Bowes, in a prepared statement.
Also making the list were The Hartford Financial Services Group; and PepsiCo Inc. and Swiss Re, which have their respective global and North American headquarters in Westchester County, N.Y.
