Minnesota is the headwaters for the BSR (businesses for social responsibility) movement, starting with the “5% Club” in the mid-1970s, forged by 23 companies including Target Corp, Wells Fargo Bank Minnesota, Carlson Companies, and others committed to invest profits into the community. Offshoots of the movement included the launch of Business Ethics Magazine, The Center for Ethical Business Cultures, and the two strongest business school programs in the nation on the subject – one each of which has had endowed chairs in corporate responsibility for over a decade — at the U of M and at the University of St. Thomas.

Kohnstamm Communications has been closely involved in public relations as it has related to key players of the BSR and business ethics movement, including ten years of experience with the Carlson School of Management’s program and over five years with that of the University of St. Thomas’ Center for Ethical Business Cultures. One example included a media tour of national business reporters who write on issues of business ethics including interviews with the New York Times, Wall Street Journal, BusinessWeek and Commerce Board. Another example includes generating greater corporate management understanding around SAIP – the Self-Assessment and Improvement Process that is a business method for assessing and improving ethics, governance and CSR performance.

For environmental icon Seventh Generation, we arranged a speech and meetings inside of Target Corporation with its environmental and sustainability team, which resulted in creating a stroger relationship and increased sales.