Ethics At Best Buy What we believe. Why we believe it. What we're doing about it.
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Ethics At Best Buy
What we believe.
Why we believe it.
What we’re doing about it.
UNLEASH THE
POWER OF
OUR PEOPLE WHAT WE BELIEVE, AND WHY
As a company, Best Buy strives to act in an ethical manner at
LEARN FROM all times on behalf of all stakeholder groups, both internal and
external. We hold our leaders accountable for applying sound
CHALLENGE AND ethical judgment to their decisions and human interactions. And we
invest a significant amount of time, money and resources each year
CHANGE
in engaging our 150,000 employees in this story.
Impressive sounding, but what does it all mean? What are “ethics,” anyway? How
does Best Buy define what is right or wrong? Are there any absolutes? If so, what
are they? What is the balance between following rules and exercising judgment?
SHOW RESPECT, Do the rules apply the same to everyone, every time? It’s questions like these that
have shaped our points of view on business ethics at Best Buy:
HUMILITY AND Ethics begin with values.
Everything Best Buy is now – and strives to become – ultimately ties back to our
INTEGRITY core values as a company:
» Unleash the power of our people.
» Learn from challenge and change.
» Show respect, humility and integrity.
» Have fun while being the best.
HAVE FUN Employees come and go. Business strategies morph over time. The world around
us is in constant turmoil. But Best Buy’s values as a company will never change.
WHILE BEING
THE BEST
ETHICS AT BEST BUY PAGE 1
UNLEASH THE LEARN FROM
POWER OF CHALLENGE
OUR PEOPLE AND CHANGE
Ethics are often about what you don’t do. Ethics apply to everyone equally.
Companies usually try to define their ethics by creating “to do” lists for Officer or entry level. Employee or customer. Vendor or shareholder. Ethics know
employees. The result is a series of prescribed behaviors that is inherently no class boundaries at Best Buy and everyone is held to the same standards. We
incomplete, impossible to remember and rarely attainable. At Best Buy, we believe our core values should always be apparent in our actions – regardless of
think ethical guidance is also found in the things you don’t do*: who the stakeholder is or what their connection to Best Buy may be.
» Ethics are…not doing what you have the power to do.
The ability to “get away” with something doesn’t make it right. WHAT WE’RE DOING ABOUT IT
» Ethics are…not doing what you have the right to do. Our points of view on business ethics are no different than those of
There is a big difference between the thing you have a right to do other large companies around the world. However, what we’re doing about it is
and what is actually the right thing to do. very different. While most companies go to great lengths to make embarrassing
situations “disappear” as quickly and quietly as possible, we use them as learning
» Ethics are…not doing what you want to do. opportunities to develop stronger leaders and create a better Best Buy:
An ethical person chooses to do more than the law requires and less
than it allows. www.KathleenEdmond.com
*Courtesy of the Josephson Institute of Ethics
It’s easier to learn from mistakes if you talk about them
Last year, Kathleen Edmond started blogging about the ethical missteps she
Ethics are about culture, not compliance. observes in her duties as Chief Ethics Officer at Best Buy. A manager terminated
A focus on legal compliance can be helpful, particularly when the rules of the for having inappropriate photos on her office computer. An employee accused
game are clear. However, what happens in situations where there are no rules? of accepting kickbacks. Inconsistencies in the handling of a disciplinary action.
When the rules conflict? When the letter of the law contradicts the spirit of the The names are omitted to protect both guilty and innocent and no proprietary
law? At Best Buy, we want employees who have strong convictions and can information is ever shared. However, the scenarios are real and loaded with
make ethically sound decisions – especially in times of ambiguity. That’s why we learning opportunities. Better yet, it’s all out in the open on the Internet for
encourage our employees to ask questions, challenge norms, seek input from everyone to see. This willingness to embrace – not conceal – these learning
others, and advance their points of view. Compliance is good, but culture is better. opportunities led The Ethisphere Institute to name Edmond one of 2009’s 100
Most Influential People in Business Ethics.
Ethics are gray, not black or white.
Few things in life are absolute; for everything else, there are shades of gray. This Peer Review
is particularly true in the global business community. There are as many views Everyone deserves to be heard
of right and wrong as there are cultures on the planet. What is a questionable Through the Peer Review process, Best Buy employees can request that unbiased
business practice in one region of the world – or even within a particular industry – co-workers hear both sides of a specific workplace dispute, such as those involving
is a normal social courtesy in another. That’s the art we call business ethics and the termination or other disciplinary action. The Peer Review Panel acts as a “jury of
challenge we face at Best Buy every day. When in doubt, revisit the values! peers” for the requesting employee, ensuring that our policies and work rules
2 PAGE ETHICS AT BEST BUY ETHICS AT BEST BUY PAGE 3
SHOW RESPECT, HAVE FUN
HUMILITY AND WHILE BEING
INTEGRITY THE BEST
have been applied properly and consistently. The Panels’ decisions are binding
on the company and they have the power to overturn termination decisions if
LET’S TALK!
necessary. Since 2007, several hundred Peer Review hearings have been held Our effort to ensure an ethical workplace culture at
on behalf of our employees. In most cases, the Peer Review Panel finds that Best Buy won’t be finished until our company values
the requesting employees have been treated fairly…but not always. Go to are present in every decision and every interaction…
www.IAmBestBuy.com and click “Our Stories” followed by “Peer Review” to every day. Whether you are an employee, customer,
see a video testimonial of how Peer Review helps to ensure ethical treatment business partner or community member, we’re
of our employees and also sharpens leadership skills in the process. Other Peer eager to engage you in the conversation. Do you have
Review summaries can also be found on www.KathleenEdmond.com. learnings to share? Questions to ask? Ideas to test? We
want to hear from you!
Leadership Dialogue Kathleen Edmond
Employees crave direct contact with their leaders
Chief Ethics Officer
In addition to the blog noted above, our Chief Ethics Officer regularly engages 612-291-7451
Best Buy employees in ethical dialogues via direct e-mail. Case in point, our new Kathleen.Edmond@bestbuy.com
Gifts and Business Courtesies policy. Rather than form her own opinions about 612-437-1387 (text)
what was right – and wrong – with Best Buy’s stance on vendor gifts, Kathleen
Edmond sent a direct e-mail to every Officer, Director and General Manager
in the company asking for their recommendations. Nearly 100 leaders replied,
representing every conceivable point of view on the topic. As a result of this
dialogue, significant changes were made to the policy and “buy-in” was secured
in advance among those affected by the changes.
www.BestBuyEthics.com (coming March 2010)
Technology can drive cultural change
In early 2010, Best Buy will launch a new website
designed specifically to help people learn about
ethics and shape their points of view. It isn’t just
about reporting, either. An “Ask A Question”
feature will enable visitors to start a dialogue on
any ethics-related topic and we will celebrate
the positive behaviors in our environment by
asking users to “Tell Us About The Good Stuff.”
The site will also link to the various social media
(LinkedIn, Twitter, www.KathleenEdmond.com)
where we have a presence and will be wide open
for all to see and participate, not hidden behind
a firewall.
4 PAGE ETHICS AT BEST BUY ETHICS AT BEST BUY PAGE 5
BEST BUY and BEST BUY logo are trademarks of BBY Solutions, Inc. ©2010 Best Buy. February 2010
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