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Doctors have an ethics code. PR professionals, accountants, lawyers, ombudsman, engineers and ethics officers all have ethics codes.  In many ways, a well crafted ethics code defines a profession; it gives guidance to its practitioners to support the most taxing judgment calls they will have to make and articulates its defining values to those outside the profession. As the conscience of many organizations, it's time for Corporate Responsibility professionals to follow suit.

CROA's Professional Development Committee Chair calls CR professionals to define an ethics code.

Help us pick the "Responsibility Play of the Week" : an example of responsible or irresponsible behavior from any where in the world -- doesn't have to be business-related.  This week's candidates:

• Jets bench Braylon Edwards for his DUI arrest.
• BP gets ready for a major management shake-up
• J&J does a phantom recall of a number of medicines

Which one should be our "Play of the Week"?

Water is where climate change meets people.  As the climate changes its most visible, most pressing impact will come in how it impacts the access, availability, and cleanliness of water.  Beyond carbon, beyond greenhouse gases, water is the most pressing challenge facing every living thing on earth.

Prof. Aneel Karnani of the University of Michigan lays out his case against corporate social responsibility (CSR) in a Wall Street Journal podcast. The WSJ editors themselves chime in declaring, "Corporate social responsibility is either irrelevant or ineffective. Take your pick." Both Prof Karnani and the WSJ editors entirely miss the point. In the end Karnani restates Friedmanism declaring that companies should seek profits and regulators alone should chase down bad-actors.sustainability.  And how to play a bigger game in advancing the debate about sustainability.

How can companies quantify their sustainability?  How should customers investors evaluate that sustainability?  How should communities, regulators, and NGOs recognize and reward it?

Some thoughts on channeling your inner math-geek to capture and hold the attention of the CEO, CFO, COO, and CIO.  Tips, tools, and tactics for making the hard-data business case for sustainability.  And how to play a bigger game in advancing the debate about sustainability.

On June 30, the CROA convened its Corporate Excellence for Government Roundtable at the George Washington University to address Corporate Responsibility in the Public Interest.  Martha Johnson, head of the US government's General Services Administration, charged the assembled executives to take on improving transparency and responsibility throughout the government's supply chain.

Why does no one trust BP CEO Tony Hayward?  No one trusts Tony Hayward because he and BP have not made -- never made -- the conscious decision to be responsible and every action they take continues to demonstrate their lack of responsibility.  Take their continued reluctance to be transparent.  They show zero interest in measuring or disclosing the true amount of oil coming out of that well.  They release information on their repair operations on a "need to know basis."

No amount of "make good" -- in fact no amount of doing good -- can make up for a fundamental lack of character.  BE transparent Tony.  BE Accountable Tony.  BE Responsible Tony.  Then you can try to earn back our trust.