Lipscomb University recognizes leaders of high integrity at Business with Purpose event

Lacey Klotz  | 

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Lipscomb University, in conjunction with the Hilton & Sallie Dean Institute for Corporate Governance & Integrity, held its sixth Business with Purpose Awards Luncheon, Thursday, April 28, at Nashville's Music City Center.

Nearly 400 of Nashville’s top business executives as well as students from Lipscomb University’s College of Business and Lipscomb Academy’s Ignite program gathered at the event that honored New York Times columnist and best-selling author of The Road to Character, David Brooks. Brooks received the Global Leadership Award along with other companies and individuals who were also recognized for their dedication to doing business with purpose and integrity.

“The mission of the Dean Institute is to assist companies in creating cultures of high integrity and in employing best practices of good corporate governance,” said Turney Stevens, director of the institute and dean emeritus of Lipscomb’s College of Business. “The Business with Purpose Awards is a part of the function of helping businesses create cultures of high integrity by recognizing and rewarding companies and individuals that lead with purpose on a regular basis, and David Brooks is one of those individuals.”

Brooks’ new book The Road to Character explains why selflessness leads to greater success. He tells the story of 10 great lives that illustrate how character is developed, and how we can all strive to build rich inner lives, marked by humility and moral depth. In a society that emphasizes success and external achievement, The Road to Character is a book about inner worth.

During his acceptance speech, Brooks captivated audience members by encouraging them to strive for eulogy virtues rather than resume virtues, saying leaders should strive to be compassionate and kind rather than trying to solely “get-ahead” in the business realm.

An independent selection committee chaired by Alfonzo Alexander, president of NASBA’s Center for the Public Trust, created a new process for selecting this year’s award recipients. Alexander along with four leaders in the community including Susan Huggins, CEO of CABLE; Ron Samuels, CEO of Avenue Bank; David Costello, Former CEO of NASBA; and Louis Upton, author and speaker; accepted nominations from the community at large before researching and selecting the finalists in each category.

Private Company Category:

  • The Bakery Cos.
  • Barge Waggoner Sumner and Cannon
  • CapStar Bank
  • Churchill Mortgage Company
  • Lee Company **WINNER

Public Company Category:

  • LP Building Products **WINNER
  • SunTrust Bank
  • Tractor Supply Company

Professional Service Firm Category:

  • Adams and Reece LP
  • Bass Berry & Sims
  • Butler Snow
  • Crosslin & Associates **WINNER
  • LBMC

Nonprofit Category:

  • The Memorial Foundation
  • Second Harvest Food Bank of Middle Tennessee **WINNER

Leader with Purpose Award Category:

  • Jack Fleischer, Hermitage Lighting Gallery
  • Terry Turner, Pinnacle Bank
  • Vic Alexander, Kraft CPAs **WINNER

Global Leadership Award:

  • David Brooks **WINNER

Tokens, a radio-style variety show founded by Lee Camp, a professor of theology and ethics at Lipscomb, provided entertainment at the event, and Camp served as the Master of Ceremonies.

Presented by NASBA and Connor, the proceeds of the sixth Business with Purpose event will fund student scholarships at Lipscomb University, to support the Student Center for the Public Trust and its student chapters and to support the work of the Dean Institute around the world in encouraging companies, both large and small, to develop cultures of integrity and to use the current best practices of good corporate governance.

Other sponsors included Bradley Arant Boult Cummings, Ethisphere Institute, Jackson National Life Insurance Company, Adams & Reece LLP, Baker Donelson, The Bank of Nashville, Churchill Mortgage, Deloitte, Ernst & Young LLP, Ingram Industries, Kraft CPAs, LBMC and Tractor Supply Company.

Founded in 2008 shortly after the financial crisis made it clear that a new emphasis on integrity was overdue in America’s businesses, the Hilton & Sallie Dean Institute for Corporate Governance & Integrity was created through a generous gift from the Deans.

Lipscomb University’s College of Business partnered with the Center for the Public Trust to form the nation’s first Student Center for the Public Trust in 2009. The StudentCPT provides an interactive environment where ethical business behaviors and ideas can flourish, while creating opportunities for students to network with the business community and develop professional leadership skills. Today, there are 29 chapters in 17 states with more chapters in the planning stage.

For more information on the Dean Institute for Corporate Governance & Integrity visit: deaninstitute.lipscomb.edu.