AMS Fulfillment has recently been granted B-Corporation status. For this we can thank the ownership, management and employees, as corporate responsibility has always been a unified effort at AMS.
A B-Corporation (B-Corp) is a legal status that mandates considerations other than just profit. All things being equal, why would clients, customers and consumers choose to do business with a B-Corp? The answer is clear – people want to see socially and environmentally responsible decisions from corporations rather than profit above all other considerations.
Across the globe, people are concerned about and care about life and health, and thriving communities. These human concerns are shared by many individuals who own and operate corporations, and that number is increasing.
In spirit, AMS Fulfillment has always operated as a business that considers more than just profit, having established a long record of community service and environmental responsibility. The ‘news’ is that now AMS has made a legal commitment to uphold social and environmental goals.
For years, AMS has operated its business in a manner that intentionally helps to solve social challenges. In the past few years this effort has increased significantly.
AMS provides employment for a large number of people, and in this way keeps families within the SCV community thriving. Seeing ‘job-provider’ as an opportunity to serve, management focused on hiring not only individuals who need a job, but also those who are less likely to secure a job due to a number of factors, such as disabilities, homelessness, active or veteran military status, former incarceration, insufficient education or language skills, and young persons needing to avoid at-risk behavior.
In addition to social responsibility in hiring, AMS has partnered with SCV College of the Canyons to offer education and training. Several years ago AMS created and outfitted an entire classroom within the AMS headquarter facility. This classroom has been used for Not For Credit and Non-Credit Certificate Programs, a new Logistics Apprentice program, and internal job training and mentoring for advancement.
Environmental responsibility has been a top concern from the beginning of AMS, and this is a process that employees proudly participate in. Jay Catlin, AMS President, elaborated on AMS’ thinking “Green”: “While our senior team has always focused on environmentally conscious efforts, B-Corp encourages that these efforts are best achieved through collaboration with all of our employees. Our new Green Team, comprised of employees from all departments, has already made some significant improvements in our environmental consciousness, but as importantly, they are much more in tune with our Corporate mission. Fulfillment companies are in a great position to make a significant impact on environmental health, and at AMS we view this as a responsibility of ours to do all we can to make a difference.”
With regard to B-Corp status, and the responsibility that goes with it, AMS CEO Ken Wiseman offered the following: “B-Corp helps us raise the bar for what we do. Up until now, we have tried to maintain a positive balance among our Customer, our Organization, our Community and Ourselves (as outlined in our Mission Statement.) Now we have a platform to compare our accomplishments to those of other like-minded organizations. We have forums to explore ideas, we have B-Corp challenges to sharpen our focus, and we have an appreciation that we are part of a movement that defines a company as great – by the balance it keeps, not just the bottom line that it achieves.”
AMS knows that community and environmentally minded business owners can achieve their social goals without sacrificing the ability to make a profit. With our choice of doing business as a B-Corporation, we cast our vote for a better future.
