Merchants of Virtue: Herman Miller and the Making of a Sustainable Company

Merchants of Virtue is about a band of people who determined to make their company a good global citizen. Herman Miller has been looking at some of the critical questions of our time—for the past 35 years. Is sustainable business sustainable? In an age where sustainability is key to future success, businesses must incorporate new strategies towards sustainability in order to give them the competitive edge. But, can employees in global companies make great products, take care of the environment, benefit society, and make good money—all at the same time? The answer, as in so many stories of people working together, comes down to a principle of management. At Herman Miller, sustainability triumphs because people commit and recommit themselves to the guiding light of company values and in turn changed the world of business. Here author Bill Birchard goes deep inside the organization to find out how Herman Miller has been accomplishing this goal—from the individuals who have become passionate about this topic—to the designers who incorporate ideas of sustainability into every product they create. Birchard shares not only the stories—but the details of how every this remarkable effort has been accomplished.