Thanks Houston!  CCI 2010 was definitely a memorable experience.

The sessions that the companies presented were particularly good — Shell really helped us gain a better understanding of deepwater drilling and exploration and what a complicated business it is. ARAMARK, with the help of Houston Mayor Annise Parker, helped us understand the value of the Neighborhood Centers Inc. model. The Siemens Sustainable Community Awards introduced us to Laura Spanjian, Houston’s new Director of Sustainability.  Displaying the Awards winners — Newton, Iowa; Grand Rapids, Michigan; and Philadelphia, Pennsylvania – on Times Square was also a kick. 

Houston Mayor Parker	Laura Spanjian	Live Times Square feed

North Little Rock Mayor Pat Hays did his best to steal the show, but also reminded all of us what sustainability was all about by showcasing his grandchildren.  In a variation on this theme of investing for the future, Dr. Renu Khator, president of the University of Houston, talked about the development of the knowledge economy, and showed why the university will play a central role in Houston’s future economic development.  John Zogby (Zogby International), Alan Webber (Fast Company), and Michael Tschong (ubercool) also brought fresh research and perspectives to the challenges that we as corporate citizens face.

Here are some of my take-aways in no particular order. 

First, I think it’s great that HUD is willing to embrace a new approach and put the “UD” back in HUD.  Urban development is not just about “bricks and sticks” — we are learning that neighborhoods and communities are great when they have diversity and opportunity (schools, jobs, health care, arts and parks, etc.) and when kids have multiple support systems to help them realize their potential and opportunity.

Corporate citizens have a good story to tell in this regard, but they need visibility.  This is where planners can help, by sharing their ideas about the future development of their communities.  This is also where mapping “who is doing what” really helps.  From a corporate citizens’ perspective, it’s not always clear who’s in charge of dealing with particular housing issues or STEM deficits, particularly on the non-profit side.  We need more clarity about who is taking ownership for solving the specific issues we face.

I also thought the conversation about knowledge diffusion was very important.  People all over the country are experimenting.  It was great to learn about positive experiences that companies had with particular programs.  Our challenge at BCLC is to try and figure out how to get this knowledge out more usefully to the folks on the front lines who need it the most. 

Carolyn Berkowitz, president of the Capital One Foundation, raised a very important point.  Sometimes we don’t know what we need to know, so we don’t even know how to ask the right questions.  Michael Tschong (ubercool) answered this one by saying that companies need to embrace crowd-sourcing and wikinomics more.  But, I think this requires a degree of humility, openness, and vulnerability that are definitely learned behaviors.

Another important element was the discussion around social media and individual and organizational empowerment.   John Zogby and Alan Webber are right:  Corporate citizens are going to be on the front lines of instilling a sense of loyalty and commitment in individuals, not just as part of their employment and customer experience but as part of their post-employment and post-customer experience.  The goal is to ensure that folks online post (pardon the pun) nice things even when their direct relationship with the enterprise is over.

The CCI 2010 conference helped move the needle in a number of important ways.  BCLC is going to continue to build the relationship with HUD and other relevant agencies.  We’re going to work more on mapping, capturing best practices, and sharing them through our networks, and we’re going to figure out ways to empower individual companies even more.  For example, I’d like to see a lot of different sessions run by companies in Philadelphia for CCI 2011 next year. 

As far as corporate citizenship goes, it looks like managers are going to have to pay even more attention to systems issues, HR issues, brand and reputation, and public-private partnerships.  It feels like the profession is turning the corner, but our language, methodologies, and technical support systems haven’t caught up yet.

Hat’s off to the presenters.  They did a great job and provided a lot of food for thought.

Until next time.