FastCompany RSS

Jeff Swartz

When Do You Greenlight a Project?

Boots on the Ground: Timberland CEO's View of Haiti, Wyclef Jean, Disaster-Inspired Innovation

Timberland CEO Jeff Swartz on adapting a mission in a time of crisis--and growing innovation from disaster.READ»

Engaging Your Employees with Emotional Benefits

In a values-driven company, it's relatively easy to engage employees: they sign up and show up for our annual global service days, use their Path of Service benefit (paid time off to volunteer) and are actively involved in ...READ»

The Hard Work of Collaborative Solutions

In business school, everyone wanted to be the CEO--you know, the infallible one in the suit, with years of experience and wisdom, the one with all the answers. What a bogus model. Turns out, the best leaders are the ones with the ...READ»

From Counting Carbs to Counting Carbon

We all know what a nutrition label looks like, what calories are, how to decipher a list of ingredients. The labels are standardized and regulated by governments, and serve consumers seeking to make thoughtful choices about their consumption. Why doesn't the same thinking apply to fashion purchases?READ»

Responsible Consumerism and The Challenge of Real World Brand Building

In an economy as whacked out as this one is globally, the tired "customer is king" adage is actually a wicked understatement. Consumers have seemingly infinite choices from good brands--many of them desperate to move the merchandise ...READ»

Building the Right Model for Business in China

How Timberland CEO Jeff Swartz balances the demands of the marketplace with the demands of the civic square.READ»

LEADERSHIP   |  Comment

Timberland's Jeff Swartz on Corporate Responsibility

No one preaches corporate responsibility quite like Timberland's Jeff Swartz. Embraced by hip-hop trendsetters, his boot company grew eightfold in market capitalization from 1992 to 2005, hitting $1.6 billion. He used his position to deploy social initiatives galore, instituting some of the toughest worker-protection standards in the manufacturing industry, planting 1 million trees, and sponsoring thousands of volunteer events. He won accolades from Wall Street and social activists alike. But with his company's revenue soft and the stock price tumbling, is his own job sustainable?READ»