Corporate social responsibility is a framework for doing business in a way that aligns with a company’s values and has a positive impact on society. It typically involves a set of self-imposed standards, such as explicit benchmarks for sustainability or workplace safety, the company is proactively working to meet. The following are examples of companies with corporate social responsibility, holding themselves accountable to their stakeholders, customers and the communities where they operate.
Companies With Corporate Social Responsibility
- PatientPoint
- Toast
- Trupanion
- S&P Global
- McCormick & Company
- Amalgamated Bank
- Ecolab
- Illumina
Companies With Corporate Social Responsibility
Discover is the corporation that owns and operates Discover Bank, a traditional bank that offers personal consumer and business banking services, including credit card services, to a network of over 50 million cardholders. The company’s corporate social responsibility initiatives include small business financing, affordable housing and financial literacy programs.
Upside’s fintech platform operates a cashback app tailored for retail rewards, enabling users to redeem rewards for purchases made at brick-and-mortar locations. By collaborating with Chime and other consumer fintech firms, Upside harnesses digital retail dynamics to deliver more value to customers. The company puts 1 percent of its revenue toward sustainability initiatives like food waste rescue and offsetting carbon emissions.
From private wealth management to life insurance policies, Northwestern Mutual provides its clients with a range of services to prepare them for a secure financial future. Northwestern Mutual says its initiatives aimed at making a positive impact on the world are important to its overall mission. The company’s yearly sustainability and social impact report shows Northwestern Mutual has been working to expand financial access, for example, by investing millions of dollars in women entrepreneurs through Northwestern Mutual Future Ventures and in business owners from underserved communities through the Impact Investment Fund.
UL Solutions offers a combination of software products and testing, inspection and certification services meant to empower companies across dozens of countries to pursue growth while also prioritizing safety and sustainability. Its offerings cover a range of areas, including corporate social responsibility, with UL Solutions using various assessments to help clients “identify risks, strengths and opportunities for improvement.” UL Solutions’ own commitment to making a positive impact on the world focuses on three environmental, social and governance pillars: people, planet and prosperity. For example, UL Solutions has committed to science-based targets for reducing its greenhouse gas emissions as a way to contribute to preserving the environment.
Global biopharmaceutical company Merck works to advance healthcare through cancer research, efforts to prevent the spread of infectious diseases and other research and development initiatives. Merck demonstrates its commitment to social responsibility in a variety of ways, including establishing ambitious sustainability goals and striving toward pay equity. For example, the company has taken on science-based targets for cutting down on greenhouse gas emissions across its operations. By 2030, Merck aims for its GHG emissions to be at least 46 percent lower in comparison to where they sat in 2019.
MetLife is a financial services company that serves individuals, families and businesses with solutions that encompass insurance, employee benefits, asset management and annuities. In the area of social responsibility, the company’s goal is to “strive to be a force for good” through charitable giving, volunteer work, community partnerships and pro bono services. The MetLife Foundation’s efforts largely focus on bolstering economic inclusion and stability for underserved and low-income populations.
KUBRA develops consumer experience management solutions to streamline billing, payments and communication for organizations in industries ranging from utilities and telecommunications to healthcare and waste management. Its corporate social responsibility efforts fall under the KUBRA Cares initiative, which focuses on diversity, equity and inclusion; environmental sustainability; and community impact. For example, KUBRA aims to incorporate sustainability into its product portfolio with offerings like Dropcountr, which provides water usage analytics that can help to limit consumption and contribute to conservation.
Financial services company FirstBank works with both businesses and consumers, providing them with an array of financial products and solutions. Its offerings include a mobile banking app that’s equipped with features for depositing checks, sending and requesting money via Zelle and managing credit cards. FirstBank’s emphasis on environmental, social and governance, or ESG, has resulted in millions of dollars in donations to nonprofit organizations, as well as partnerships to reduce carbon emissions and plant trees.
Adyen is a fintech company providing business solutions to facilitate payments, risk management, revenue optimization and other important processes. The company says its corporate social responsibility efforts focus on the “long-term trajectory of the world.” Its initiatives under that umbrella include investing in carbon removal projects and offering a charitable giving solution that allows businesses to collect donations for various causes from customers at checkout without having to shoulder any associated fees.
Mondelēz International is a global giant in the snack industry, distributing its popular brands in more than 150 countries. That lineup includes household names such as Ritz, Toblerone, Triscuit, Chips Ahoy! and Halls. The company has set explicit corporate responsibility guidelines focused on “protecting the planet and respecting the human rights of people in our value chain.” To illustrate that commitment, Mondelēz International has invested $400 million in its Cocoa Life initiative, which partners with cocoa farmers in countries like Ghana and Brazil to support sustainable business models, empower community members and conserve the environment.
The Kraft Heinz Company is a major player in the global food and beverage industry landscape, employing people in more than three dozen countries. Its commitment to corporate social responsibility centers around three core areas: healthy living and community support, environmental stewardship and responsible sourcing. Initiatives under those priorities have ranged from reducing sugar in its products and expanding plant-based food options to purchasing sustainably-sourced palm oil and ketchup tomatoes.
PatientPoint, which makes patient engagement products for healthcare practices and hospitals, also runs the PatientPoint Foundation, a non-profit organization that works to bring health empowerment to underserved populations through interactive technology. The foundation’s priorities are disease prevention, with a focus on diabetes, cardiovascular disease and mental health, and an overall mission of improving health literacy and outcomes.
Toast’s point-of-sale system, self-ordering kiosks, online ordering solution, employee scheduling software and other products give restaurants the tools and support they need to run efficiently. Toast.org is the company’s philanthropic branch, which engages in community service and giving centered around “solving critical food issues.” Its initiatives have included efforts to get meals to children through a partnership with No Kid Hungry and help pay-what-you-can restaurants get the tech they need.
Trupanion is a medical insurance company for cats and dogs with a mission to help families budget for their pets’ care. It has set ambitious sustainability goals, one of which is to become a carbon neutral company by 2040. At their Seattle headquarters, Trupanion makes incremental strides toward carbon neutrality through energy management practices and mass transit subsidies for employees — 80 percent of whom work remotely or on a hybrid schedule. The company’s commitment to corporate social responsibility also includes diversity, equity and inclusion programs for current employees as well as through their recruitment efforts.
S&P Global makes financial intelligence products for use in money commodity markets. The company says its S&P Rating, which assigns a credit rating to countries and companies similar to those used for consumer credit, is one of the most trusted financial benchmarks worldwide. S&P Global’s corporate responsibility initiatives include donating over 20,000 yearly service hours to local communities and a gift matching program that has directed more than $4 million to charity organizations in a single year.
McCormick is a food manufacturer that makes spices, condiments and seasoning mixes for consumers and food service clients. It is working toward net-zero emissions in its operations by 2050 and has won numerous awards and commendations for its corporate social responsibility, including six years of “Top 50 Companies for Diversity” from Diversity Inc, five years of Barron’s “100 Most Sustainable Companies,” and first place for food, beverage and tobacco companies in Just 100’s “America’s Most Just Companies.”
Amalgamated Bank, which describes itself as “America’s Socially Responsible Bank,” is a unionized financial institution — the largest union-owned bank in the United States. It boasts a 100 percent on the Human Rights Campaign Foundation’s Corporate Equality Index, uses renewable energy in direct operations and has given more than $536 million to racial justice, climate and economic equity organizations through its charitable foundation, according to its yearly corporate social responsibility report.
Ecolab develops and sells technology and services that provide clients with clean water through treatment, purification and cleaning. Some of the water is for drinking, but Ecolab also works with healthcare, hospitality, industry and food and beverage clients to treat the water they use in their commercial operations. As a water company, its corporate responsibility efforts include initiatives focused on water stewardship and taking action on climate change. The company has set goals to cut down on emissions and work with customers on achieving carbon neutrality.
Illumina is a biotech company that develops analysis tools for genomics. Its products have clinical and research applications for genetic diseases, cancers, reproductive health and microbiology. Illumina’s tech and products are also used in agrigenomics, or the application of genomics to agriculture, and the company’s Illumina Agricultural Greater Good Initiative aims to alleviate global hunger and food insecurity in partnership with the agricultural industry. The company’s commitment to corporate social responsibility also includes efforts to increase access to genomics and implement sustainable practices like using renewable energy and reducing packaging.