CR Magazine Announces Responsible CEO of Year Award Winners

EDISON, N.J.--(BUSINESS WIRE)--At the single largest gathering of socially responsible corporate leaders, Corporate Responsibility (CR) Magazine, unveiled the winners of the Responsible CEO of the Year awards. Lauded by their peers at the 2011 CR Magazine Awards Dinner, the CEOs were nominated based on success in aligning business and stakeholder interests to “do well by doing good.”

“the greatest green success story of the past decade.”

CR Magazine is the voice of the corporate responsibility profession, covering case studies, best practices, and trends in the five primary segments of the CR profession. The annual COMMIT!Forum calls people to commit to changing the world by inspiring, educating, and engaging them to change themselves and their organizations. This year’s path to the COMMIT!Forum commenced on March 2^nd at the New York Stock Exchange with the announcement of the 12^th Annual CR 100 Best Corporate Citizens List. As part of that initiative, 10 CEOs of the Year were nominated for their vision, discipline and boldness.

The winners of the 2011 Responsible CEO of the Year awards are:

Donald Knauss, Chairman and CEO of The Clorox Company
Fred Krupp, President of the Environmental Defense Fund
Paul Rooke, Chairman and CEO of Lexmark

"Ask anyone what separates good corporate responsibility programs from great, and you'll get one answer: CEO support," said Richard Crespin, Executive Director of the Corporate Responsibility Officer Association. "That's why these awards are so important. They recognize leadership at its best."

CR Magazine additionally lauded the recipient of the new Lifetime Achievement award, established to recognize an individual whose risk-taking, vision, and pioneering spirit have led to significant achievement in the corporate responsibility field over the course of their career.

“It is a true honor to give the inaugural Lifetime Achievement award to someone who has instilled a vision of transparency and high standards within his organization,” commented Dirk Olin, CR Magazine editor. This inaugural award was bestowed upon Jeffrey Joerres, Chairman, CEO & President of ManpowerGroup for all that he has accomplished over a long career dedicated to service.

The Master of Ceremonies for the dinner was Terry Moran, co-anchor of ABC News “Nightline”. He was joined by keynote Rush Kidder, President and Founder of the Institute for Global Ethics, author of “Moral Courage” and “How Good People Make Tough Choices.”

More information about the annual COMMIT!Forum can be accessed at www.commitforum.com.

About the Award Recipients

Jeffrey Joerres, Chairman, CEO & President, ManpowerGroup

Since becoming CEO of ManpowerGroup in 1999, Jeffrey Joerres has instilled his vision of transparency and high standards, to create a sustainable business model that has allowed ManpowerGroup to grow into a $22 billion innovative workforce solutions provider. His vision extends beyond the executive summary, culminating in tangible program initiatives that have changed the workforce. For example, along with Hope Worldwide, he implemented training centers in India after the 2004 Indian Ocean tsunami, which had a profound impact on the workforce and the role of women in society. Additionally, with the mission to help people find meaningful work, ManpowerGroup has implemented numerous programs in this post-recession global economy to further advocate for the importance of creating sustainable and ethical practices, and it was recently named #1 of Most Admired Companies in their industry by Fortune magazine.

Donald Knauss, Chairman and CEO, The Clorox Company

When Donald Knauss took over as CEO of Clorox in 2006, he quickly made corporate responsibility a business imperative, transitioning Clorox from a chemical intensive consumer product company to one that has sustainability as a core focus. He became a pioneer when he started a collection of natural cleaning products called Green Works. This unprecedented step took Clorox in a new direction of corporate social responsibility. Under Knauss’ leadership, the company has increased transparency by providing full disclosure of ingredients in its cleaning products and committing to decreasing greenhouse gas emissions, energy consumption, and water use each by 10 percent by 2013. Knauss also has a long-standing commitment to promoting workplace equality and embracing diversity. In 2006, he received The Jackie Robinson Foundation’s ROBIE award, a tribute to an individual who has promoted and expanded opportunities for minorities in the corporate world.

Fred Krupp, President, Environmental Defense Fund

Fred Krupp has been head of Environmental Defense Fund for 26 years, overseeing its growth from a $3 million budget to a recognized worldwide leader. He is widely lauded as the foremost champion of harnessing market forces for environmental ends, such as the market-based acid rain reduction plan in the 1990 Clean Air Act that The Economist hailed as “the greatest green success story of the past decade.” Today, this approach has become the leading model for solving the problem of global warming. Krupp is a proven leader , who is clearly geared toward a sustainable future. He broke new ground by engaging American companies like McDonald’s, FedEx, and DuPont to lessen their impact on the environment, resulting in the elimination of millions of dollars of waste. His work has been acknowledged through many awards, including the Keystone Leader in the Environment Award.

Paul Rooke, Chairman and CEO, Lexmark

In his executive roles at Lexmark, Paul Rooke has driven environmental sustainability and corporate social responsibility through all business divisions, positively impacting the way they design their products, the way they operate their facilities, and the way they interact with the community. In 2007, when he took the helm of Lexmark’s former inkjet printer division, he found little environmental focus so he immediately shifted the emphasis toward sustainable and environmental friendly practices. Rooke also placed large emphasis on transparent disclosure of Lexmark’s practices. The culmination of his work and vision has led to Lexmark receiving recognition in this area, including being named to the “100 Best Corporate Citizens List.”

About the COMMIT!Forum www.commitforum.com

The COMMIT!Forum, calls people to commit to changing the world. How? By inspiring, educating, and engaging them in ways that prepare them to make the commitments necessary to change themselves and their organizations. The path to COMMIT, which began on March 2nd at the New York Stock Exchange with the announcement of the 12th Annual CR 100 Best Corporate Citizens List, culminates September 26-27 in New York City and continues well beyond through commitments people make there.

About CR Magazine www.thecro.com

CR Magazine is the voice of the corporate responsibility profession covering case studies, best practices, and trends in the 5 primary segments of the CR profession: a) Governance, Risk, Compliance, b) environmental sustainability c) Corporate Social Responsibility, d) philanthropy, and e) workforce/diversity.