Arlington, VA, August 20, 2002 - Twenty-eight businesses from 18 states and the Canadian province of Ontario have been selected finalists in the 2002 Better Business Bureau International Torch Award for Marketplace Ethics competition. The winner from each of four categories will be announced on September 23, 2002 at an awards ceremony held in conjunction with the International Assembly of Better Business Bureaus in Minneapolis. This year marks the 90th anniversary of the founding of the Better Business Bureau.
Presented annually since 1996, the BBB Torch Award illuminates the long-term value of honest and honorable business practices. The award became international in scope in 2002 when businesses located in communities served by the BBB in Canada and Mexico became eligible to enter. Leading up to this year's competition, more than 2,800 businesses competed in 78 local BBB Torch Award competitions, with 104 businesses proceeding to the national level.
"This year's finalists remind us all that there are many outstanding, upstanding businesses that do the right thing, day in and day out. BBB Torch Award honorees excel at customer satisfaction, but they also serve their employees, investors, competitors and the communities in which they do business with integrity and distinction," said Ken Hunter, president of the Council of Better Business Bureaus.
A blue-ribbon panel of business and ethics experts judged this year's competition, which was particularly noteworthy for the number of companies selected to be honored as finalists.
Finalists for the 2002 BBB International Torch Award for Marketplace Ethics, their headquarters city, and a description of their line of business are:
Category I (1,000 or more employees)
- AFLAC Incorporated (Columbus, GA) -supplemental health insurance
- Kemper Insurance Companies (Long Grove, IL) - property & casualty insurance and risk management
- Niagara Mohawk, A National Grid Company (Syracuse, NY) - electricity & natural gas delivery
- Sun Life Financial (Wellesley, MA) - insurance & wealth management products
Category II (100-999 employees)
- Amarillo National Bank (Amarillo, TX) - commercial banking
- Anthony's Seafood Group (San Diego, CA) -restaurant
- CMC Properties (Cincinnati, OH) - developer, property management
- DeAngelo's Pizzeria Company (Baton Rouge, LA) - restaurant
- Gentle Giant Moving Company, Inc. (Somerville, MA) - moving & storage
- I. Keating Furniture World, Inc. (Minot, ND) - furniture, floor covering & appliance retail
- New Belgium Brewing Company, Inc. (Fort Collins, CO) - beer-making
- Optum (Golden Valley, MN) -health & well-being information services
- The Sheakley Group of Companies (Cincinnati, OH) - national consulting firm in benefits administration
Category III (11-99 employees)
- Canadale Nurseries Ltd. (St. Thomas, Ontario, CA) - trees & shrubs
- First American Bank, SSB (Wichita Falls, TX) - bank
- Hampton Enterprises, Inc. (Lincoln, NE) - construction/property management/development
- Kornmeyer's (Baton Rouge, LA) - retail home furnishings
- Loegering (Casselton, ND) - construction, manufacturing
- Presentation Solutions, Inc. (Buckner, KY) - audio-visual equipment sales
- Siewers Lumber and Millwork (Richmond, VA) - lumber & millwork
- Studio 904 Inc. (Seattle, WA) - hair salon
- W.W. Heating & Air Conditioning, Inc. (North Lima, OH) - heating & air conditioning
administration
Category IV (1-10 employees)
- Blue Star Learning (San Diego, CA) - hands-on technical training
- Career Solutions Group, Inc. (Indianapolis, IN) - executive recruiting
- Gem Shop (Rockton, IL) - jewelry & gems
- Hillmer's Luggage, Leather & Gifts (Topeka, KS) - retail specialty store
- National Energy Conservation Corp. (Olney, MD) - siding & replacement windows
- Woodruff Contracting Company, L.L.C. (Columbus, GA)- home builder
"America is experiencing what some perceive to be a crisis of confidence in the way business operates. Now, perhaps more than ever before, the BBB's prestigious Torch Award will bring recognition to those businesses that adhere to high standards of behavior, that have operated with integrity during good times and bad, and that have done well by doing right," said Calvin J. Collier, chair of the Council of Better Business Bureaus and senior vice president and general counsel/corporate affairs, Kraft Foods, Inc.
About the BBB International Torch Award for Marketplace Ethics:
The Judging: The finalists and award-winning companies were selected by an independent panel of business ethics experts: Ronald Miller, formerly president of the BBB of Central Ohio, now a senior consultant with the Bureau's Foundation; Laura Nash, senior research fellow, Harvard Business School; Paul Tschirhart, Sher & Blackwell; Mark Winzenread, chief financial officer & ethics officer, Walker Information, Inc. (winner of the 2001 National Torch Award); and John Yost, professor, Bradley University.
Award Criteria: Companies were evaluated against criteria that included commitment to and demonstration of ethical practices in the marketplace; high standards of behavior toward customers, employees, suppliers, shareholders and communities; truthfulness and accuracy of advertising and sales practices; ethical reputation among industry peers and in communities in which they do business; long-term value of ethics policies to shareholders, customers and employees; and training and communications programs to assist employees in carrying out established ethics policies.
Previous Recipients: Recent winners of the National Torch Award include:
Catg. I : United Supermarkets, headquartered in Lubbock, TX; CDW Computer Centers, Inc., Vernon Hills, IL; IBM Corporation, Inc., Armonk, NY
Catg. II: Cook's Pest Control, Decatur, AL; Walker Information, Inc., Indianapolis, IN; Commerce Bank & Trust, Topeka, KS; Neil Kelly Company, Portland, OR
Catg. III: Packer Thomas, Youngstown, OH; Dakota-K Auto Repair and Tire Center, Arlington Heights, IL; Tegron, Inc. (formerly Automation Systems International, Inc.), Longview, TX
Catg. IV (new category, instituted in 2000): International Minute Press, Boise, ID; Stephen C. Gidley, Inc., Darien CT
For the complete list of winners dating to 1996, the year the Torch Award was established, visit the BBB central web site at www.bbb.org/BizEthics/winners.asp.