>>>Some say charity begins at home.
For Johnson & Johnson, charity
begins with the corporate credo,
the company’s statement of beliefs
spelled out more than 60 years ago
by its then chairman, Gen. Robert
Wood Johnson.
>>>Starting in the 1930s, Johnson urged
the country’s business leaders to adopt a
philosophy predicated on responsibility
toward customers, employees, the community
and stockholders.
>>>What impressed people most at
the time was the order in which
Johnson placed those responsibilities,
with customers coming first and
stockholders last.
>>>He set down Johnson & Johnson’s
own credo in 1943 in a one-page document.
It reads, in part, “We are
responsible to the communities in
which we live and work and to the
world community as well.”
>>>Johnson urged the company’s
managers to apply the credo as part
of their everyday business philosophy.
More than six decades later, the
credo remains alive and well at
Johnson & Johnson, according to
Shaun Mickus, the company’s corporate
communications director.
>>>“Every day, throughout the
world, Johnson & Johnson tries to
live by the principles set forth in our
credo in business activities and
community affairs,” Mickus says.
>>>Indeed, company employees are
periodically surveyed to evaluate
how well the company meets its
responsibilities under the credo.
Senior managers act quickly to remedy
any shortcomings.
>>>Nor has the document itself
remained static. Over the years, some
of the credo’s language has been
updated and new areas have been
added, recognizing the environment
and the important balance between
work and family, for example
>>>Founded in 1887, Johnson &
Johnson operates in communities
around the globe. Today, more than
230 Johnson & Johnson operating
companies employ roughly 116,200
people in 57 countries. They manufacture
health care products and
provide related services for the consumer,
pharmaceutical and medical
device and diagnostics markets.
>>>The company’s history of giving
stretches back to 1906 when it provided
disaster relief in the aftermath
of the devastating San Francisco
earthquake and subsequent fires.
>>>“Since that time, the company’s
commitment to philanthropy has
played an increasingly important
role in the communities in which we
live and work,” Mickus says. “As the
world’s most broadly based human
health care company, we have a
responsibility to help those in need.”
>>>To get the most out of its
philanthropic efforts, Johnson &
Johnson focuses on three areas:
saving and improving lives; preventing
diseases; and building
health care capacity. |
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>>>“We believe within these focus
areas we can make life-changing,
long-term differences in human
health by targeting, through community
engagement, the world’s
major health-related issues at their
root causes,” Mickus says.
>>>That focus can be seen in some of
the philanthropic efforts that make
the company proud. “We are privileged
to work with many fine organizations—
nonprofits, educational
institutions, government agencies,
etc.—in New Jersey, across the country
and around the world,” Mickus says.
>>>One example is the Johnson &
Johnson “Bridge to Employment”
program. Through a partnership
with the Academy for Educational
Development, the program boosts
student achievement in underserved
communities by introducing them to
a broad array of health care careers.
As a result of their exposure, the students
see that education can be relevant
to their futures.
>>>A second effort is the Wharton
Fellows Program in Management
for Nurse Executives. More than 20
years old, this program provides
nurse executives with business
management skills through a partnership
with the Wharton School at
the University of Pennsylvania.
More than 1,000 nurse executives
from around the world have graduated
from the program.
>>>On the West Coast, Johnson &
Johnson has collaborated with the
UCLA Anderson School of
Management for more than 15 years.
Together, they have developed training
programs for HeadStart directors
and parents, medical and health
care professionals and executive
directors of community health care
organizations. The programs offer
advanced management training for
professionals and vital health care
training for parents.
>>>Johnson & Johnson’s international
partners include the United
Nations Development Fund for
Women, the Global Coalition on
Women and AIDS and MAP
International, which promotes the
health of people living in the world’s
poorest communities. In cooperation
with Johnson & Johnson, MAP provided
critical medical supplies to survivors
of Hurricane Katrina.
Visit the Johnson & Johnson Website |
