These companies are transformative, not just out of need, but because they recognise that integrity is the key to their advancement.
Cosmetics industry players L’Oréal, Colgate-Palmolive and Kao Corporation have been named on this year’s 2017 World’s Most Ethical Companies list compiled by The Ethisphere Institute.
The trio are joined by Marks & Spencer and H&M, which also secured spots among the 124 honourees.
Now in their eleventh year, the list honours companies globally that are defining and advancing the standards of ethical business practices.
The companies listed this year span five continents, 19 countries and 52 sectors.
Kao Corporation, which owns cosmetics brands including Molton Brown, John Frieda and Jergens, has appeared on the list for the 11 years it has been running.
Kao Corporation President and CEO Michitaka Sawada said: “For 130 years, we have upheld the value of Integrity passed down from Kao’s founder.
“As a core value, we positioned integrity as the foundation of the Kao Group Mid-term Plan 2020 (K20), which started from this year.
“This integrity continues to be embraced as K20 guides the group’s daily business activities.”
To be in with a chance of making the cut, companies have to meet key criteria assessed based on the Ethisphere Institute’s Ethics Quotient framework.
The methodology is weighted into five key categories: ethics and compliance programme (35%), corporate citizenship and responsibility (20%), culture of ethics (20%), governance (15%) and leadership, innovation and reputation (10%).
Ethisphere CEO Timothy Erblich added: “Over the last 11 years we have seen an impressive shift in societal expectations, aggressive emergence of new laws and regulation and geopolitical swings that can further disrupt the balance.
“We have also seen how companies honoured as the World’s Most Ethical respond to these challenges. They invest in their local communities around the world, embrace strategies of diversity and inclusion and focus on long term-ism as a sustainable business advantage.
“In short, these companies are transformative, not just out of need, but because they recognise that integrity is the key to their advancement.”