Visual Capitalists List Of America's Most Responsible Companies In 2021

Written Assignment Unit 3
Name Withheld
University of the People
BUS 3306-01 Business and Society
Mr. Mohd Asad Siddiqui, Instructor
Visual Capitalist’s list of America’s Most Responsible Companies in 2021 is where I began to select a company that is committed to the creation of long-term wealth and sustainability as well as preserving and expanding the resources available to it, whether human, social, or natural (Note: I despise the term ‘human capital’, and this is the only time I will use it).
The list of 20 companies showed some of the normally expected: HP, Dell, Cisco, and others which surprised me. One of these companies was General Motors. As the only automobile manufacturer on the list, I found this interesting. What is it that puts

Total revenue for 2021 was $127 billion, up from $122 billion in 2020, not yet fully recovered from its last pre-pandemic revenue in 2019 of $137 billion (Annual Report, 2022).
GM is headed by Chair and CEO Mary T. Barra (Executive Summary, 2021). In emergence from the COVID pandemic, GM has not only preached sustainability, but is putting substantial funds into the manufacture of electric powered and autonomous vehicles. GM appears to be positioning itself to become an exemplary 21st Century zero emissions, zero waste company.
Sustainability
GM illustrates a commitment to sustainability in Environmental, Safety, Workforce,
Supply Chain, Governance, and Customers & Technology. Direct (facilities) and Indirect
(products), combined show a reduction in total greenhouse gases (GHG) from 6.9 million metric tons of CO2e in 2020, to 6.2 million in 2021 (ESG Data Center, 2023), a 10% decrease in emissions while increasing revenues 5% over 2020. The executive summary states plans to produce over 1 million electric vehicles (EV) each in North America and China by 2025, a 300% increase over 2021.
GM also plans a $7 billion upgrade to its plants in Michigan, to add 4,000 full-time employees (FTEs) and retain 1,000 existing

GM has also earned a place on the Dow
Jones Sustainability Index for seven consecutive years “as the only automaker on the North
American index and a first-in-our-industry Gold Award” (Executive Summary, 2021). GM also placed on the 2022 World’s Most Ethical Companies for three consecutive years, “and the only automotive original equipment manufacturer to be recognized on the list” (Executive Summary,
2021).
Embedding Long-Term Wealth Creation
GM is committed to retooling its product lines to make its operation and its product lines zero-emission within the next 12 years (Executive Summary, 2021). With fewer operating parts in electric vehicles than in their fossil-fueled counterparts, GM stands to increase its profitability even while making the electric vehicle lower in sale price. To complement the increase in electric vehicles, GM will invest $750 million in charging stations in the United States and Canada, and infrastructure improvements to support these stations.
Conclusion
GM is positioning itself to be a leader in sustainability, diversity and ethics not just in its industry, but as a global example to hold up to the rest of the world. With a commitment of