Cliff McCorkle freely admits he's an
idealist working in a world filled with
hard-nosed realists.
But McCorkle is beginning to find
success with an organized effort to inspire
businesses in northern Nevada to commit
themselves to standards of integrity and
honesty.
His Sparks-based nonprofit organization,
The Golden Guild Inc., makes a
pitch that businesses and their employees
will thrive if they consciously dedicate
themselves to The Golden Rule.
But the group is taking things a bit
farther as it prepares in next year or so to
publicly praise companies that subscribe
to its tenets.
Already, The Golden Guild Inc. has
made a mark in the Reno area with occasional
billboards that simply encourage
honesty and fairness.
"This is basic mom-and-apple-pie
stuff. But nobody is saying it," said
McCorkle.
The business program, however, is the
biggest part of The Golden Guild effort.
Here's how it works:
Companies selected for The Golden
Guild honor roll have undertaken management
workshops in character, won
support for the effort from at least 90 percent
of their employees, committed themselves
to a community service program,
and operated without unresolved complaints
at agencies ranging from the
Better Business Bureau to the U.S. Civil
Rights Commission.
In return, The Golden Guild will
spread the word to consumers about participating
companies through its Web site,
paid advertising and other materials.
McCorkle said a few days ago that the
greatest effects of the program should be
seen in the operations of participating
companies.
The Golden Rule treat others like
you want to be treated is one that
demands trust, respect, and fairness, he
said. Those same values help build
stronger employee teams and stronger
customer relations.
"Everyone would agree that's a noble
cause," McCorkle said.
"But how do you do it? We want to
celebrate the ones that are doing it right."
One of the first companies to sign on
Western Nevada Supply has seen
positive effects.
"In any organization, you can't have
enough about the Golden Rule, honesty,
integrity, caring and thoughtfulness," Rick
Reviglio, the company's general manager,
said last week. "It's a fundamental rule of
anything in life not just business."
The company's mission "We make
a difference in people's lives" already
was well-known when Western Nevada
Supply took on The Golden Guild commitment,
and the program increased the
awareness of its importance among
Western Nevada Supply's 200-plus
employees.
"If you increase the awareness, then
you will increase the success rate," said
Reviglio.
He said the supply company's management
team enthusiastically embraced the
program, and that enthusiasm spread
through the company.
McCorkle acknowledged that he has
an agenda: He hopes adults who dedicate
themselves to what he calls "noble values"
at work will take those values home and
teach them to their children.
"If we do this with enough companies,
we can change the fabric of the community,"
he said.
That changed fabric, he said, will be
seen in a community that is concerned
about doing the right things in its future.
"I'm trying to raise up a society of
social activists," McCorkle said "Not necessarily
people who agree with you or
with me, but people who care."
A resident of the area for much of the
past 40 years, McCorkle made his mark
as a real-estate syndicator and a state
senator.
Even in his success, however, he began
asking how he might translate success
into significance.
Ultimately, that question led him to
creation of The Golden Guild.
Along with the business program,
The Golden Guild provides workshops
and character-awareness posters to
schools and businesses and oversees a
speakers bureau.
The standard bearers
The selection committee of Golden Guild Companies includes:
* Nazir Ansar, former professor of business management at the
University of Nevada-Reno
* Sam D. Young, retired chairman of Chase Bank of Texas
* Larry Tuntland, former president of First Interstate Bank of Nevada
* John Smith, former general counsel of First Interstate Bank of Nevada
* Gen. Martin Brandtner, a retired Marine Corps lieutenant colonel.
* Jim Johnson, retired owner of Elevator Services
* Fritsi Ericson, president and chief executive of Nevada Women's Fund.
* Bernice Martin-Mathews, a state senator
Members of the group's advisory committee are:
* Randolph Townsend, president of Northstar Investors Inc.
* Rick Reviglio, general manager of Western Nevada Supply
* John Mitchell, division president of Centex Homes
* Marsha Lindsey, president of Nevada Bell
* Walter Davis, vice president of physicians services for Washoe Health Systems
Here's how to participate in The Golden
Guild:
Cliff McCorkle, president of The Golden Guild, can
be reached at 743-8329 or via e-mail at cliff@goldenguild.
org. The organization's Web site is www.goldenguild.
org.
Participating companies are asked to contribute to
support of the nonprofit. Companies with 10 or fewer employees are asked
to contribute $1,000 a year. The contribution schedule rises to as much as
$10,000 a year for companies with more than 250 employees.
