The Better Business Bureau serving Mainland British Columbia is pleased to announce the recipients of its prestigious 2008 Thompson-Okanagan Torch Awards.
“These companies provide a model for all businesses to follow because they display the highest of integrity with their customers, staff and stakeholders,” says Lynda Pasacreta, BBB President and CEO. “These are mainly small businesses who have invested significant amounts of money and effort to inspire social change within their industries, and we are proud to acknowledge their efforts.”
The winners were selected by a panel of business ethics experts and announced at a ceremony in Kelowna on November 19 at the Harvest Golf Club.
The Marketplace Excellence award recipient for the Thompson-Okanagan region is CanScribe Career Centre Inc.
CanScribe Career Centre is a private educational institution located in Lake Country, BC. The Centre offers a forward-thinking approach to employee retention, providing each staff with regular performance reviews and benefits which include gifts, profit sharing and company-paid travel opportunities. In addition, CanScribe employees are encouraged to have personal and professional development growth through education and health courses. Part of the new hiring process, all employees must sign a code of ethics to ensure all directors, officers and employees follow a minimum global standard of conduct to help protect the interests of the company and its customers.
This year’s winner of the Advancing Marketplace Trust Award
(small-medium business category) is: Aspenware Inc.
Aspenware Incorporated is a Vernon-based company that makes laminated wooden cutlery called WUN (Wood Utensils Naturally). WUN cutlery is a biodegradable product made from a renewable resource harvested on a small scale. The company tries to optimize the use of traditionally overlooked aspen and birch harvested using good forestry practices, or purchased from already harvested materials.
The company, was founded by teachers Claus Gerlach, Terry Bigsby and Dr. Bob Bigsby, currently manufactures 30,000 pieces of cutlery per day at their plant in Lumby. The product is being showcased by the BC government as a model of BC innovation.
This year’s winner of the Advancing Marketplace Trust Award (large business category) is: Club Penguin
Club Penguin first arrived on the scene in 2005 and two years later the company was bought by Disney. The company uses social networking to create an online virtual world designed for children aged 6 to 14. Subscribers take on the identities of penguins through which they can chat, play games, have fun and interact in an advertising-free zone.
Club Penguin’s founders Lane Merrifield, Dave Krysko and Lance Priebe consulted with educators, law enforcement representatives and other parents to create a safe online environment. Using powerful filtering and live moderators, they monitor chat and activity on the site and prevent the sharing of inappropriate or personally identifiable information. The site was awarded the “kid’s privacy seal of approval” from the Better Business Bureau showing its commitment to high security standards.
Special thanks goes out to our media sponsor, the Thompson Okanagan Business Examiner:
Kevin Rothwell, Lance Priebe co-founder of Club Penguin, Lynda Pasacreta
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Kevin Rothwell, Terry Bigsby (Aspenware Inc), Lynda Pasacreta
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Colleen and Kevin Gaudet Canscribe Career Centre with Kelowna Mayor Sharon Shepherd |