PINYON Practices Win Ethics Award
Pinyon Environmental Engineering Resources, Inc., was recently selected from among 13 finalists as one of two winners of the Business Ethics Award at the 11th Annual Colorado Ethics in Business Awards banquet.
About 700 people attended the annual luncheon, which recognizes dedication to the ethical pursuit of business, at the Colorado Convention Center on October 17 in Denver.
Pinyon President Lauren Evans and six staff members attended the luncheon, at which two other awards were presented, as well.
Last year Pinyon was a finalist in the Business Ethics Award category. When a Colorado Ethics in Business (CEBA) committee member notified Lauren that Pinyon had been nominated for the honor again this year, she thought there had been a mistake. She called CEBA and discovered it was not mistake.
“They told me, ‘We were so impressed with you last year that we put you back in the mix’ this year,” Lauren said.
According to selection criteria, the Business Ethics Award is given to businesses that demonstrate “ . . . a socially responsible approach to their business which goes beyond the expected or required.” Furthermore, finalists and honorees are those who address integrity in organizational activities and innovative partnering, and who “exceed what is required by law and/or industry standards.”
That says a lot about a woman who nearly quit the business 10 years ago because she was fed up with business practices she had observed among some environmental engineering firms. Instead, with her parents’ support, Lauren founded her own company.
“People said ‘you are so brave.’ It didn’t feel like bravery; it felt like a last resort. I was absolutely terrified,” Lauren recalled. “It was a case of: Either this works or I will find something else to do with my life.”
Lauren, who is quick to laugh about the quirkiness of human nature, is entirely serious about ethical and trustworthy business conduct. So much so that she and her employees made it the first item in Pinyon’s 13-step Corporate Mission Statement. Lauren believes the folks at CEBA realize how committed she and her staff are to “doing what we say we will do for the amount we say by the time we say.
“I think they were impressed with how we had defined who we are and how we carry that through all processes of the company,” she said.
Perhaps this is because this may not be the norm in the field of environmental engineering, Lauren admits.