Great Companies
 What makes a great company? There are many definitions, but probably the most popular is Fortune magazine's annual 500 list that rates companies on criteria such as Innovation, People Management, Financial Soundness, Quality of Management, Use of Corporate Assets, Social Responsibility, Long-term Investment, and Quality of Products/Services. Fortune also rates the top 100 companies that are Best to Work For, evaluating them on Pay/Benefits, Job Growth, Employee Turnover and Opportunities for Women and Minorities.
These are certainly good places to start in identifying great companies. I would suggest the following additional criteria:
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Heritage - Companies that have been successful for many decades have usually developed go-to-market strategies, operations, and financial management that works.
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Renewal - Companies that reinvent their products and processes to meet the demands of changing market conditions are best suited for growth in the uncertain future. Look for companies that have been successful entering new product categories and new markets and restructuring their organizations every decade or so.
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Globalization - In most product and service categories the fastest growing markets are outside the U.S. Look for companies that either have sizable global operations or plans to develop them in within the next decade.
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Absence of Controversy - If a company is constantly in the news over some controversy or other, it may not be a great company to work for. There are exceptions of course. Wal-Mart for example, is a very well run and ethical company that is the target of negative PR because of its size and exposure. Generally speaking however, the best run companies only make the news for growing their business.
What They Want
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