This month’s Shining Light Company is Meritor, Inc. (Ticker: MTOR), a leading global supplier of drivetrain, mobility, braking, and aftermarket solutions headquartered in Troy, Michigan with over 9,000 employees in 18 different countries. With more than a 100-year legacy of providing innovative products that offer superior performance, efficiency and reliability, the company serves commercial truck, trailer, off-highway, defense, specialty, and aftermarket customers around the world.

 

Meritor’s core values are: pursuit of excellence, integrity, teamwork and respect. While most companies have a set of core values and visions they can point to, Meritor sets itself apart by living these out day to day. They have many programs in place that provide a roadmap to company success while spotlighting their belief that true value lies in good corporate citizenship. One such program is M2016. This three-year plan will help guide them to achieving their corporate goals while meeting the expectations of shareholders, customers and employees through improving profitability, reducing debt, offering a more advanced portfolio of innovative products, building a diverse workplace, and most importantly by engaging and empowering their employees.

 

Even though Meritor has a large worldwide footprint, their commitment to social responsibility shows they know the importance of a local presence.  They strive to improve and strengthen the communities in which their employees live and work, and their employees share the same commitment.  Each manufacturing site has its own local strategy that is supported at every level of the company.

 

When it comes to sustainability and giving back, one of Meritor’s long range goals is to achieve a minimum of 40,000 hours each year of employee community service by 2020. As part of their “Power of Volunteering” initiative, they use a tool called VolunteerMatch (http://www.volunteermatch.org) to help employees identify service opportunities that align with company and community interests.  Read here how one group is making a real difference in the lives of women and families affected by violence, homelessness, illness, and poverty. At the corporate level, The Meritor Charitable Trust Fund and International Giving program supports education, arts and culture, civic responsibility, and health and human services through direct financial contributions to local and global initiatives.

 

Other eco-friendly milestones include exceeding their “Green Miles” target of improving energy efficiency, decreasing fuel consumption, and reducing greenhouse gas emissions by eliminating more than 20 million miles driven through the use of more efficient routes and combining cargo loads.  Also, in 2012, their global facilities recycled 84% of all waste from operations. Employee safety is always a big concern and has improved significantly in the past five years, even allowing them to achieve a world-class injury rate of less than 0.5 in December 2012.

 

Inclusion and a diverse workforce are both part of Meritor’s culture.  The Women’s Business Resource Group and the African American Business Resource Group are both supported by Meritor. These resource groups attract, retain and develop talent for the company.  They also aid in, among other things, community service programs (like the one mentioned earlier) and employee networking. Learn more about these groups here.

 

Meritor, Inc. is an example of a global company that operates with genuine care for their workforce and their local communities.  They understand the importance of living out their values every day and taking on social responsibility by giving a portion of their time and resources through philanthropic activities. For these qualities and their long, rich heritage of forward thinking, we are proud to spotlight Meritor as this month’s Shining Light Company!