Founded more than 100 years ago, the Better Business Bureau (BBB), serving Northern Colorado and Wyoming, helps people find and recommend businesses, brands, and charities they can trust. BBB embraces ethics every day by encouraging businesses and nonprofits to build a foundation of trust within their organization.
For the past 24 years, BBB has taken the month of April to elevate the celebration of trust and integrity in the marketplace by honoring organizations in Northern Colorado and Wyoming with the prestigious BBB Torch Award for Ethics. This year’s event will take place on April 28th at the Embassy Suites Loveland.
Six students from Colorado State University, University of Northern Colorado, and the University of Wyoming were selected as Ethics Scholar Interns to work with this year’s nominated businesses and nonprofits. Each intern researched their assigned organization, conducted interviews with leadership, and reviewed documentation to form a complete picture of how well the organization met the Torch Award criteria.
The criteria are based on how an organization excels in Character, Culture, Customers and Community and centers around four key themes: How does the organization’s leadership set an ethical tone? How does it work toward a culture of trust with employees? How does it build ethical relationships with customers and clients? And how does it support the community?
“BBB’s collaboration with the universities has been a key component of the Torch Awards since the program's inception in 1999. This partnership has given our Ethics Scholar interns an out-of-the-classroom opportunity to learn about ethics directly from business and nonprofit leaders. It also gives leadership a chance to speak with students about ethics and how to run an organization the right way,” said Shelley Polansky, president/CEO of BBB, serving Northern Colorado and Wyoming.
Ethics Scholars presented their findings via a written paper and verbal presentation in front of an independent panel of judges who determined this year’s business and nonprofit winners.
Participation in the award process allows the finalists and winners to take a step back and evaluate their organizational culture. Many times they even learn about areas where they can improve. Being recognized from an outside source, boosts their credibility and enhances their reputations as honest and ethical organizations, while also advancing marketplace trust.
“It gives winners the opportunity to really tell their story about how an ethical organization behaves and what really makes them stand out in the marketplace,” Polansky said.
For more information about the BBB Torch Award for Ethics program and to buy tickets for this year’s event, visit: bit.ly/TorchAwards202