A Project of the Koeze Business Ethics Initiative at the Seidman College of Business

Grand Valley State University

Authors: Michael DeWilde, Director, KBEI & Professor of Management, Kevin Lehnert, Associate Prof. of Marketing; Vijay Godhalekar, Professor of Finance; Arik Aninos, Graduate Research Assistant; 

 

 

A service of the Seidman College of Business, Grand Valley State University

The late philosopher and business consultant Robert Solomon once wrote the “currency of the business world isn’t money; it is trust and trustworthiness.”People in business trust contracts will be respected, promises will be kept, and people “will pay on time and are who they say they are…”There are simply not enough regulators, courts, or policing officials to oversee the millions of transactions that take place every day in business, so trustworthiness is the one indispensable ingredient required for businesses to run with any efficiency at all.Solomon goes on to say that there is a crucial difference between trust and trustworthiness. No business should be expected to be trusted if it has not first established its trustworthiness.This question, the one of establishing trustworthiness, guides our project.First pitched by one of our industry partners, we tasked ourselves with creating an Index that would measure, to the degree we thought possible given the resources available, how trustworthy 18 of Michigan’s largest publicly-held companies are.Why do this?Prior research has strongly correlated high levels of trustworthiness in an organization to employee morale and retention, productivity, willingness to recommend the business as a place to work or shop, and customer satisfaction and retention.  As all of those affect the bottom line, trustworthiness, although hard to quantify, is seen as positively correlated with financial performance, especially long-term.  Largely because of social media – but also because of social and environmental concerns - companies are more in the public eye than ever. The alternatives to being trustworthy are becoming less and less attractive if long-term success is your goal.  

Also, large businesses are exemplars and have an outsized effect on workers, communities, and our state.  This effect is not solely in economic terms through job creation and product innovation, though those are obviously significant, but also as stewards of our natural resources, as sustainers of our institutions through taxes and philanthropy, and as avenues for social and economic progress for those who have not had the opportunities majority populations have had, to name but a few. By looking at financial and environmental stewardship, the treatment of workers, attitudes toward inclusion and diversity, philanthropy, and a number of other elements integral to the establishment of trustworthiness, we have created what we call the Michigan Trustworthiness Index, an Index that reflects the standing of each of these 18 firms.  We drew on a significant number of available databases, cross-referenced journal, newspaper, and magazine articles, employed public perception surveys, and used other publicly available information to come to these conclusions.  In some cases we did look at how our companies fared in other rankings. For example, as we considered treatment of employees we did exhaustive searches of Indeed.com, Glassdoor.com and other sites where we could glean information, rankings, and commentary. These were then a factor in the larger decision, which also included a look at wages and benefits, turnover, what the companies’ own websites said, lawsuits, and so on.  These were cross-referenced and assigned a weight among the authors, using our professional judgement about what trustworthiness demands by definition (would I invest?  Would I encourage someone to invest?  Would I send a student there?  What is the safety record?  The environmental record and progress?  What do they say – and do – re: inclusiveness at the board level?  Management level?  And so on…). 

 
What follows is the inaugural MTI Rankings.  We list the name of the company, its location, and where possible their mission, vision and/or values statements from their websites. That is followed by our summary conclusion, a cumulative numerical score representing trustworthiness, which is ranked on a five-point scale, with ‘5’ representing the highest level of trustworthiness.  We examined and analyzed companies’ performances in five major categories:  Treatment of Stakeholders; Branding & Reputation; Leadership & Governance; Ethics & Values; and Financial Strength (see graphs).  Under each major category were subcategories.  For example, under “Ethics & Values” we examined sustainability practices, compliance, community engagement and philanthropy.  Under “Financial Strength” we looked at indicators such as ROA.ROI/ROE and risk of bankruptcy, to name but two.  Each subcategory was given a score from 1-5, with those scores then tallied to give us the score of each major category.  Those major category scores were then calculated to come to our total overall score (categories and subcategories were weighted according to a proprietary system).  We congratulate those companies which scored high in trustworthiness and acknowledge Michigan is better off for having them here; we are hopeful that all who read this report see the importance of establishing high levels of trustworthiness now and in the future.

Though the historical arc of any company is important relative to its ethos, these rankings reflect current state analysis.  No doubt, had we published this a year ago, Wolverine Worldwide would have ranked higher; had we done this study eight years ago no doubt General Motors would have ranked lower.  We also realize there is a level of subjectivity to any rankings system that reflects the values of the authors. We were occasionally surprised by where our research and weighting system led us in our ranking, and recognize that certain environmentalists, for example, may take issue with where the utilities scored, or employee advocates with the scores of certain other companies. By looking at so many categories and subcategories we hoped to eliminate much of our own bias, and in fact it turned out that if we changed any one score within our system, even dramatically, that had very little effect on the overall ranking, which suggested a consistency to our approach.

It must be said that we do not intend to imply that those companies who scored low in the rankings are then by definition in any absolute terms untrustworthy; it simply means they did not score as high in comparison to the others we considered. By the same token, a higher score does not mean that those companies are definitively trustworthy, only that their efforts to be trustworthy are paying some dividends.

This study follows on the heels of a public perception survey we published last year on the same question.  This year’s report is, of course, more detailed and rests on much more data, considering many more factors.  We will not replicate this study every year, but, resources allowing, we may well publish another within three years. If becoming increasingly trustworthy has all the tangible and intangible benefits attributed by the research then companies could use the Index as a way to benchmark their performance and aspirations.

              1.   Whirlpool Corporation, Benton Harbor, MI

Mission Statement – Create demand and earn trust every day

Vision Statement – the best branded consumer products in every home around the world

Core Values – “respect, integrity, diversity and inclusion, teamwork, spirit of winning”

 

                Trustworthiness Score:  4.1

 

              2.   Ford Motor Company, Dearborn, MI

Mission Statement – “One team, one plan, one goal.”

Vision Statement – “People working together as a lean, global enterprise for automotive leadership”

Core Values – “People, products, and profits”

 

Trustworthiness Score:  3.9

 

              3.   Stryker Corporation, Kalamazoo, MI

Mission Statement – “together with our customers, we are driven to make healthcare better”

Vision Statement – N/A

Core Values – “integrity, accountability, people, performance”

 

Trustworthiness Score:  3.6

 

              4.   Steelcase, Inc., Grand Rapids, MI

Core Values:  Act with integrity; Tell the truth; Keep commitments; Treat people with dignity and respect; Promote positive relationships; Protect the environment; Excel

 

Trustworthiness Score:   3.6

 

              5.   Kellogg Company,  Battle Creek, MI

Vision Statement – “To enrich and delight the world through foods and brands that matter”   Core Values – “Integrity, accountability, passion, humility, simplicity, and results”
 

Trustworthiness Score:   3.4

 

              6.   CMS Energy Corporation, Jackson, MI

Core Values – “Consistent financial performance, fair and timely regulation, utility investment, customer value, safe excellent operations”

 

Trustworthiness Score:   3.4

 

              7.   DTE Energy, Detroit, MI

Core Values – “health and safety, responsibility, integrity and respect, passion, energy and focus, team”

 

Trustworthiness Score:   3.3

 

              8.   General Motors,Detroit, MI

Mission Statement - "G.M. is a multinational corporation engaged in socially responsible operations, worldwide. It is dedicated to provide products and services of such quality that our customers will receive superior value while our employees and business partners will share in our success and our stock-holders will receive a sustained superior return on their investment.”

Vision Statement - "GM’s vision is to be the world leader in transportation products and related services. We will earn our customers’ enthusiasm through continuous improvement driven by the integrity, teamwork, and innovation of GM people."

 

Trustworthiness Score:   3.1

 

              9.   Ally Financial, Inc.,   Detroit, MI

Vision Statement – “Be a relentless ally for your financial well-being”

Core Values – “Look externally, execute with excellence, act with professionalism, deliver results”

 

Trustworthiness Score:   3.0

 

              10.   Universal Forest Products, Inc., Grand Rapids, MI

Vision Statement:  "We’ve grown our brand portfolio. We’ve grown our product lines. But, most importantly, we’ve grown our reputation—based on our commitment to grow brands by delivering the absolute best products and service possible. Not only because it’s what you expect, but also because it’s what we demand."

 

Trustworthiness Score:   3.0

 

              11.   Dow Chemical Company (Merged with DuPont 2017), Midland, MI

Mission Statement – “To passionately create innovation for our stakeholders at the intersection of chemistry, biology, and physics”

Vision Statement – “Maximize long-term value per share by being the most valuable and respected science company in the world”

Core Values – “Integrity, respect for our people, protecting our planet”

 

Trustworthiness Score:   2.9

 

              12.   Kelly Services, Inc., Troy, MI

Mission Statement – “To serve our customers, employees, shareholders, and society by providing a broad range of staffing services and products”

Vision Statement – “To provide the world’s best workforce solutions”

Core Values – “We are personally responsible for our actions, outcomes and reputation, we build strong relationships and create Kelly advocates for life, we own and resolve customer and candidate issues with urgency, we treat every customer, employee and supplier with respect and integrity, we continuously seek opportunities to innovate and improve the Kelly experience”

 

Trustworthiness Score:   2.9

 

              13.   Lear Corporation,Southfield, MI

Mission Statement – “Exceed our customers’ needs and expectations, provide our employees, our most valuable resource, maximize value for our shareholders, treat our suppliers with respect and foster mutually beneficial relationships, support the communities where we do business and protect the environment”

Vision Statement – “To be consistently recognized by our customers, employees, shareholders, suppliers, and the communities where we do business as a leader and the Company of first choice”

Core Values – “customer focus, operational excellence, teamwork, integrity, diversity, and community service”

 

Trustworthiness Score:   2.8

 

              14.   Penske Corporation,Bloomfield Hills, MI

Mission Statement – “Our objective is to be the most profitable, growth-oriented automotive retailer in each of the markets in which we operate. To achieve this objective, we intend to expand our existing business platform and continue to grow our higher-margin businesses, expand through targeted acquisitions, implement “best practices” and emphasize customer service.”

 

Trustworthiness Score:   2.5

 

              15.   American Axle & Manufacturing,  Detroit, MI

Mission Statement – “American Axle & Manufacturing and its associates are committed to meeting customer requirements through measurable quality improvements, cost reduction and on-time delivery of products and services, while achieving profitable growth and increasing shareholder value.”

 

Trustworthiness Score:   2.5

 

              16.   Wolverine World Wide, Inc., Rockford, MI

Vision Statement – “to build a family of the most admired performance and lifestyle brands on earth”

 

Trustworthiness Score:   2.5

 

              17.   SpartanNash Company, Grand Rapids, MI  

 

Mission Statement – “to leverage our expertise in food distribution and retail to develop, activate and provide impactful solutions that exceed expectations for associates, customers and partners”

Vision Statement – “A best-in-class business that feels local, where relationships matter”

Core Values – “customer focus, innovation, patriotism, teamwork, respect, integrity, accountability, celebration and fun”

 

Trustworthiness Score:   2.4

 

              18.   Visteon Corporation, Van Buren Township, MI

Vision Statement – “Visteon's vision is to partner with our customers to help them build the best vehicles in the world. We will apply our automotive intellect to design and produce components, systems and modules that appeal to drivers and passengers.”

 

Trustworthiness Score:   1.3