5 ways we're committed to being a good corporate citizen.
Commerce Bank takes the role we play in people’s lives seriously. We believe our corporate purpose of helping people focus on what matters most includes our customers as well as our team members, communities and shareholders. To us, being a good corporate citizen is not only the right thing to do, it is fundamental to achieving our mission and purpose, and aligns with our culture and values. Here are five ways we’re committed to generating positive impact:
1. Building strong communities.
We’re dedicated to helping our communities thrive so that our customers, team members and neighbors can achieve their goals. To help build strong communities, we’ve focused on building strong relationships. Our relationships in each of the markets we serve inform our community investment work, which spans philanthropic giving, financial empowerment, community reinvestment and volunteer work.
As part of our mission, we believe it is important everyone has access to financial information and is empowered to make the right decisions for themselves. Through our relationship with Jennings School District, we were able to start a program at Johnson Jennings Junior High to help middle schoolers develop a strong understanding of banking and finance. Our community outreach and banking officer also creates opportunities for individuals in areas with less financial resources to learn how to become more financially stable, start building credit and establish a healthy financial future.
2. Supporting our customers.
At Commerce, we’re here to help our customers navigate life’s challenging moments. To do that, we are focused on creating the best possible customer experience for all our customers. We continually enhance our technology and financial solutions to support our customers so they can bank when, where and how they prefer. From expanding the ways our customers connect with their banker to speeding the time it takes to receive an insurance claims payment, we are focused on meeting our customers’ evolving needs.
We’re also committed to supporting innovation in the financial industry. We have aligned ourselves with global venture firm SixThirty to invest in emerging companies and support them through mentorship, training and networking. We aim to help these companies develop strong products that will be helpful as well as safe and secure for customers
3. Engaging our team members.
Each of our team members brings strengths, skills and perspectives that enrich our work. We take a comprehensive approach to employee engagement to help our team members thrive in their careers at Commerce. In 2020, we formalized our diversity, equity and inclusion initiative to place special focus on our team members as well as our communities, suppliers and customers. For our team members, we are committed to fostering an inclusive environment where all employees can find community, develop their skills and continue to grow in their career. And we provide them 8 hours of paid time off to volunteer for a cause they care about.
4. Acting with integrity.
As good corporate citizens, we believe it is imperative we do the right thing for our customers, team members, community members and shareholders to continually earn their trust. Team members at Commerce maintain a high standard of ethics as part of our corporate governance work. We make ethics, compliance, risk management and security practices the shared daily responsibility of our entire team.
5. Investing in a sustainable future.
Throughout our markets, we pay close attention to the impact our business has on the environment. Our commitment to environmental sustainability informs our work at every level. We proactively seek opportunities to reduce our carbon footprint by recycling waste, investing in solar energy and incorporating Leadership in Energy and Environmental Design (LEED) principles in our construction projects. If you drive an electric vehicle, you can recharge your car at 15 electric vehicle charging stations at Commerce locations in the greater St. Louis metro area, Illinois and Kansas City. We have also incorporated sustainability into our real estate loan process and portfolio management services.
Being a good corporate citizen is part of who we are.
Being a good corporate citizen is deeply embedded in our culture and values as a company. Our work in this area is guided by our commitment to corporate social responsibility (CSR). Each year, we hold ourselves accountable to our CSR initiatives by conducting an Environmental, Social and Governance (ESG) assessment. For the latest news on our CSR work, see our ESG report and our blog Ideas & Tips on commercebank.com.
