I typically blog about industry trends, AMD products or perhaps to clarify something I believe our competitors have muddled.

But today I’d like to turn my attention – and hopefully yours as well – to something a bit different.  Today I’d like to celebrate AMD for being a company that, at its core, represents corporate responsibility at its best.  This isn’t a boast ─ this is about our culture, about who we are and how we act.

As AMD employees across the globe can tell you, doing the right thing as a neighbor is something we take seriously. AMD has been investing back into the communities where we do business for more than twenty-five years.  From planting mangrove trees in Malaysia to donating funds generated from an in-house flea market to the China Red Cross, AMDers take an active role in the communities where we work and live.

One way we do this is by investing in math and science education through programs like AMD Changing the Game.  Another is through our Global Climate Protection Plan, now in its eighth year (which in itself is a feat), which is widely considered a model in the industry ─ none other than the U.S. EPA honored AMD with its 2008 Global Climate Protection Award.  Last month our Lone Star campus in Austin was awarded LEED Gold Certification, the largest commercial building in Texas to receive this significant “green building” designation. 

And most recently, AMD was, for the second year in a row, recognized as one of the Global 100 Most Sustainable Companies, which measures against, “social, environmental and strategic governance issues.”  Clearly, we’re doing something right.

We’re not proud of this recognition because it makes us feel good (which it does!).  We’re proud of this because it recognizes not only AMD, but the importance of doing the right thing. 

Much of this is owed to the work of a core team whose efforts are focused at least in part on ensuring we remain true to this important aspect of our mission as a corporation.  But this recognition extends beyond that dedicated group and is something that all AMD employees should, and rightly do, take pride in.  In times good and bad, this is a course that we continue to steer.

So, the next time you see an AMD employee (whether you happen to be one or not), please give her or him a hearty pat on the back and a heartfelt “thank you!” 

It’s the right thing to do.

Nigel Dessau is senior vice president and chief marketing officer at AMD. His postings are his own opinions and may not represent AMD’s positions, strategies or opinions. Links to third party sites are provided for convenience and unless explicitly stated, AMD is not responsible for the contents of such links sites and no endorsement is implied.