FOR IMMEDIATE RELEASE
Contact:
Chris Cimko, Edelman PR
(202) 326-1754
Frank Tortorici/Randall Poe,
The Conference Board
(212) 339-0231
ANHEUSER-BUSCH, BANKBOSTON, CASCADE ENGINEERING AND SEAFIRST/BANK OF AMERICA NAMED WINNERS OF RON BROWN AWARD FOR CORPORATE LEADERSHIP
WASHINGTON D.C, March 24, 1999--Anheuser-Busch Companies, Inc., BankBoston Corporation, Cascade Engineering and Seafirst/Bank of America, were today named winners of the Ron Brown Award for Corporate Leadership. The award honors organizations for outstanding achievements in employee and community relations. Vice President Al Gore congratulated the chief executives of the four firms at a ceremony today in the White House (summaries of winning programs begin on page 3). Last year's winners were IBM and Levi Strauss. Fully funded by the private sector, the award is named in honor of the late U.S. Secretary of Commerce Ron Brown. The award is sponsored and managed by The Conference Board, the not-for-profit research and business membership organization.
The winners were selected by a distinguished panel of judges (see names of judges and directors on page 7). More than 139 corporate programs from 61 companies were judged, with two-thirds of this year's entries from Fortune 500 companies.
"On behalf of CSX Corp., I am so pleased to be here today to honor BankBoston, Anheuser-Busch, Cascade Engineering and Seafirst Bank, and the outstanding programs they have established," observes John Snow, Chairman of the Ron Brown Award's Board of Directors. "We have set a tradition of excellence with this award, and this year is no exception. In 1998, we honored two companies, but this year, the applicants were simply so good that we were compelled to recognize four very deserving companies."
"Companies are getting increasingly more sophisticated in forging links that strengthen their businesses, their employees and the communities they're both part of," said Melissa Berman, Senior Vice President, Research and Program Development, The Conference Board, and Director of the Award Program. "This year's winners were exceptionally innovative in creating best practice programs that can be adopted across many businesses."
The Ron Brown Award for Corporate Leadership is the first Presidential Award to honor companies for outstanding achievements in employee and community relations. The Award is sponsored and managed by The Conference Board's Global Corporate Citizenship Program, which examines and reports on a wide range of corporate leadership and citizenship issues. The Conference Board's twofold mission is to improve the business enterprise system and enhance the contribution of business to society.
SUMMARIES OF WINNING CORPORATE PROGRAMS:
ANHEUSER-BUSCH COMPANIES, INC. FOCUSING ON THE ENVIRONMENT
Employees at all Anheuser-Busch subsidiaries have formed grassroots, cross-functional Environmental Quality teams that aggressively address environmental issues - ranging from solid waste problems to energy and water conservation. These efforts have reduced the amount of solid waste going into landfills by 15 percent throughout the company. Cans and glass bottles containing Anheuser-Busch products have steadily become lighter over the past 40 years, producing less waste. Excess milled rice at Busch Agricultural Resources Inc. is donated to a senior citizens' program to feed the hungry. Anheuser-Busch Recycling Corporation is now the world's large recycler of aluminum cans.
ABOUT ANHEUSER-BUSCH COMPANIES, INC.
Anheuser-Busch Companies, Inc., is a St.-Louis based corporation. Its subsidiaries include the world's largest brewing organization, the second-largest U.S. manufacturer of aluminum beverage containers and one of the largest theme-park operators in the United States. In addition to being the world's largest recycler of aluminum beverage containers, the company also has interests in malt production, rice milling, real estate development, turf farming, creative services, metalized and paper label printing, railcar repair and transportation services.
Contact: Charles Poole, Anheuser-Busch (314) 577-2012
BANKBOSTON CORPORATION REVIVING THE INNER CITY
BankBoston was honored for its systematic efforts to revive the health of America's inner cities. BankBoston's Community Banking Group, comprising First Community Bank (FCB) and the BankBoston Development Company (BBDC), has become a leader in providing unique services to low-to-moderate income people. Most importantly, it has proven that the inner-city market can be served profitably by understanding and meeting the needs of diverse cultures. BankBoston launched the First Community Bank in 1990, and since then the program has evolved into a profitable 42-branch, 13-city bank-within-a-bank with $1.6 billion in deposits. Customers include low-to-moderate income individuals and small businesses, focusing on those owned by minorities and women. In April 1997, BankBoston became the first commercial bank in the nation to create a community development company, known as BBDC. BBDC provides equity investment, financial solutions and technical assistance to minority- and women-owned b! usinesses in the bank's inner city markets.
ABOUT BANKBOSTON
BankBoston (NYSE: BKB), with assets of $73.5 billion and some 25,000 employees, is the nation's oldest commercial bank and New England's only global bank. BankBoston is engaged in consumer and business banking in New England, delivering sophisticated financial solutions to corporations and governments nationally and internationally, and full-service banking in leading Latin American markets. The Corporation's common stock is listed on the New York and Boston stock exchanges.
Contact: Bruce Spitzer, BankBoston (617) 434-8251
CASCADE ENGINEERING HELPING EMPLOYEES BALANCE WORK AND FAMILY
Through the creation of PHASES, an acronym for Providing Health Activities Safety Enrichment Services, Cascade Engineering helps employees balance the often conflicting demands of work and family at various stages of their lives. It also provides employees with a variety of personal development programs and helps them become more responsible citizens in their communities. The program's most notable achievement is its Domestic Violence Awareness initiative, a joint effort of the Wellness Committee and Safety and Environmental Services at Cascade designed to build awareness of the dangers of domestic violence. The company offers managerial and employee training, a community speaker series, and discussion featuring employees who have been victims of domestic violence.
ABOUT CASCADE ENGINEERING
Cascade Engineering is a leading manufacturer and designer of injection-molded products and services for a wide range of industries. Cascade Engineering was created in Grand Rapids in 1973 and is now part of the global Cascade Engineering Family of Companies.
Contact: Dan Calabrese, Cascade Engineering (616) 732-8003
SEAFIRST/BANK OF AMERICA REACHING OUT TO YOUTH
Bank of America's NW Region Youth Job Program is a comprehensive commitment providing educational and job opportunities to deserving young people. Launched in 1992 by Bank of America's Washington state operation, Seafirst Bank, the program has provided jobs, bank mentors and the promise of up to $10,000 in college scholarship assistance to more than 300 high school students in 15 cities. Under this program, students are trained to high standards of performance, and are given opportunities to grow and develop both personally and professionally with guidance from a department supervisor and a volunteer bank mentor. Upon graduation from high school, the bank awards participating students with a college scholarship. All students are from low-income families. They are chosen with the help of high school principals and counselors.
ABOUT SEAFIRST/BANK OF AMERICA
Located in Washington state, Seafirst Bank has been a part of Bank of America since 1983 when the two banks merged. Bank of America, with $618 billion in assets, is the largest bank in the United States. It has full-service operations in 22 states and the District of Columbia and provides financial products and services to 30 million households and two million businesses, as well as providing international corporate financial services for business transactions in 190 countries. The company's stock (ticker:BAC) is listed on the New York, Pacific and London stock exchanges and certain shares are listed on the Tokyo Stock Exchange.
Contact: Sheri Pollock, Seafirst/Bank of America (206) 358-6681
RON BROWN AWARD FOR CORPORATE LEADERSHIP
Judges:
Alma Arrington Brown, Senior Vice President, Chevy Chase Bank Corp.
James Houghton, Retired Chairman of the Board, Corning Incorporated Rosabeth Moss Kanter, Professor of Business Administration, Harvard
University School of Business Linda Mason, Chairman, Bright Horizons Family Solutions
Patrick F. Noonan, Chairman, The Conservation Fund John W. Snow, Chairman, President and CEO, CSX Corporation
Franklin Thomas, Retired President, The Ford Foundation
Dennis Weatherstone, Retired Chairman, J.P. Morgan & Co., Inc.
Members of the Board of Directors:
Paul A. Allaire, Chairman and CEO, Xerox Corporation
Curtis H. Barnette, Chairman and CEO, Bethlehem Steel Corporation
Susan V. Berresford, President, The Ford Foundation
Lawrence A. Bossidy, Chairman and CEO, AlliedSignal Inc.
Alma Arrington Brown (ex officio), Senior Vice President, Chevy Chase Bank
John H. Bryan, Chairman and CEO, Sara Lee Corporation
Kenneth I. Chenault, President and Chief Operating Officer, American Express Company
William M. Daley (ex officio), Secretary, U.S. Department of Commerce
George M. C. Fisher, Chairman and CEO, Eastman Kodak Company
Rajat Kumar Gupta, Managing Director, McKinsey & Company
Robert D. Haas, Chairman and CEO, Levi Strauss & Co.
Alexis M. Herman (ex officio), Secretary, U.S. Department of Labor
Dana G. Mead, Chairman and CEO, Tenneco
Lewis E. Platt, Chairman, President, CEO, Hewlett-Packard Company
John W. Snow, Chairman, President and CEO, CSX Corporation
Edgar S. Woolard, Jr., Retired Chairman, E. I. du Pont de Nemours and Company
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