Sample Op-ed-Internal
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[NOTE: This sample is drafted as a generic opinion column for consumer
co-op publications. Use this format, but make your opinion column
as specific as possible. All information in italics
should be filled in to localize the column for your community.]
Product: Sample Op-ed--Internal
Co-op Type: Consumer Co-ops
Use: Run in Internal member newsletters, newspapers
or magazines under CEO or Board Chair byline
Audience: Members
This October, Co-ops Celebrate Consumer Trust
A new national consumer survey, released during the annual celebration
of National Cooperative Month, confirms what many of us expected:
that consumers have greater trust in businesses they own and govern,
and rate consumer co-ops higher on questions of trust and ethics
compared to large, publicly traded, investor-owned companies.
That information may not surprise any of [co-op name]'s
members, but it should serve as a wake-up call to those who oversee
corporate America—Congress and the regulators.
Though Congress has imposed new requirements on corporate America
to improve accountability and reduce fraud, corporate governance
practices still bear little resemblance to the democratic, member-governed
structure that co-ops have embraced for nearly 150 years. And though
the Securities and Exchange Commission is considering new regulations
requiring more shareholder input into corporate board elections,
they won't do much to eliminate the token democracy of corporate
director elections. By contrast, co-op board elections are truly
democratic.
This survey results demonstrate that if corporate America is to
have any hope of enjoying the trust that co-ops have earned, policy
makers will have to do a lot better than that. They'll have to improve
business accountability not just to investor-owners, but also to
customers.
Consumer co-ops don't have to worry much in this area—our
owners and customers are exactly the same people. We serve one master:
you. That means co-ops are free of the conflicts of interest that
have produced the never-ending parade of corporate scandals that
have so badly eroded public trust. And that is increasingly appealing
to consumers.
When 2,031 adult Americans were asked about a series of governance
characteristics, two-thirds said customer-owned and governed businesses
were more trustworthy than other types of companies. Sixty-two percent
said locally owned and controlled businesses were more trustworthy,
and a majority said companies that allow customers to democratically
elect the board of directors—as co-ops do—are more trustworthy.
Those Americans were describing the structure of consumer-owned
cooperatives: credit unions, food cooperatives, electric and telephone
co-ops, housing cooperatives and many others.
Not surprisingly, Americans also rated co-ops higher than publicly
traded corporations on a series of positive business attributes.
More than two-thirds of Americans agreed that consumer co-ops are
ethically governed, while just 45 percent said the same of publicly
traded corporations. More than 75 percent agreed that these co-ops
run their businesses in a trustworthy manner compared to just 53
percent for publicly traded firms.
Asked whether consumer co-ops have the best interests of consumers
in mind when conducting business, 77 percent of Americans agreed
they did. Fewer than half said the same of investor-owned companies.
Co-ops also scored higher than publicly traded companies by wide
margins on questions of value, quality, price, and commitment to
their communities.
Consumers also said they'd be more likely to do business with
a company or store if they knew it was a co-op. This was true for
food, utility, childcare and healthcare cooperatives, mutual insurance
companies and credit unions. Those who were already members of a
co-op were even more likely to prefer them. That demonstrates that
though most consumers know co-ops by reputation, those who have
first hand experience with co-ops have an even stronger recognition
of their value and service.
But for more consumers to benefit from cooperatives, they'll need
more information about them. A national coalition of cooperative
organizations, including [insert your national membership organization,
if appropriate] and the Consumer Federation of America, recently
called on federal and state consumer protection and information
bureaus to make more information about cooperatives available to
consumers.
Consumers have alternatives to the public companies they've grown
skeptical of: they have co-ops as a more trustworthy and preferred
option. But to exercise that option, they have to know we're here.
And if Congress and federal regulators want to restore public trust
in corporate America, they will have to go further than they've
gone with new accountability and democratic governance requirements.
Corporations will have to start acting more like co-ops: working
in the best interests of the people who use their goods or services,
supporting the local community, and operating democratically, giving
owners—Americans—a true voice in the business.
At [insert co-op name], and at the nation's 48,000 other
co-ops, that's exactly what we do. And we'll continue to work hard
to serve you—our consumers and our owners—and earn your
trust. Not just in October, but year round.
-end-
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