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UNITE FOR LITERACY 
is a great organization that makes books available to children in the United States and around the globe. They provide no-cost reading material to emergent readers – both young kids and those learning a second or third language.
A great concept for a charitable non-profit, right? Sure. But these folks have a unique for-profit business model that’s part of an emerging trend in companies which do good while making money.
I had a chance to talk this week with Unite for Literacy’s CEO, Michael McGuffee. He, Mark Condon and Kurt Hoeven started this company a couple of years ago, based on 20 years of powerful experience working with families who live on Native American reservations. They saw firsthand what happens when kids lack a connection to written language, whether English or their mother tongue.
BRENDA AND RICHARD LUCIO own the 
Blue Agave Grill in Fort Collins, the fourth restaurant they’ve started in northern Colorado.
I was introduced to Brenda and the company a few weeks ago, and was particularly struck by the relationship she has with employees. So I sat down with her this week to discover the secrets behind this.
As you may know, the restaurant industry is infamous for its levels of turnover. Companies often pay below minimum wage, attracting youngsters who have little loyalty and given minimal training.
After all, why bother with extensive training when the employee’s going to leave in just a few months?
BILL TRACK 50 
is a great little company focused on helping people to be better integrated with what’s going on in our government.
It’s a straightforward idea: There’s loads of public information about what’s going on in legislative action, and people need to have a simple way to track it, pull information together, and use it for their own decision making.
Wait a sec: All this information is publicly available, right? Why would anybody pay to get it?
That’s a darned good question.
J OSH MILLER 
is a pastor who is starting up a new church in Fort Collins, St Thomas Church. He brings a wealth of experience and amazing energy, so I have confidence that he’ll see success with this venture.
I first met him at a local Chamber of Commerce event. How unusual is that, right? It’s almost as if business relationships can’t at all be associated with spirituality.
So of course I just had to find out more.
SilverEdge 
WAS A TRADITIONAL payments services company in Colorado. From that history as Payment Solutions, they’ve reinvented themselves under a new name as a payment technology provider for small- and medium-sized businesses.
I saw that they were growing swiftly – they made the Inc. 500 in 2012, the Mercury 100 in 2011 and were awarded the Mercury Fastest Growing Company in 2012. But I hadn’t paid much attention.
This is an impressive business. Fast growing, focused, and solid in their convictions.
A few weeks ago I met Ken Salazar, president and CEO, and was impressed with the values foundation they have for the company. So I was glad I had a chance to meet with him and dig into the topic.
KELLER WILLIAMS 
REALTY is the largest real estate franchise company in North America, with over 100,000 associates in 700 offices and twelve countries. They have grown rapidly since being started in 1983.
But that’s not the real story.
This company is really, seriously, passionately, designed around the agents who provide such great service for their clients.
ANNETTE 
AND PATRICK ARCHAMBEAU have a neat little window-washing business here in northern Colorado. They’re focused, professional, and dedicated to building their loyal client base.
But they’re also quite clear that this company isn’t the purpose of their lives. That honor falls to the dear horses they serve.
Back in the mid 1990s they formed a non-profit, now Archway Foal and Rescue Training. This is their deep passion, helping foals needing medical and social assistance. They typically work with an animal for 3 to 4 years, sometimes saving them from slaughter.
AS YOU WALK IN the front door of C3 Real Estate Solutions, you see three words on the glass in the lobby:
That’s not a terribly uncommon thing; a number of businesses like to prominently display key words to make an impression on their customers. Fresh! Best deal anywhere! Innovation!
But when I attended their Chamber Red Carpet event a few months ago, I got the distinct impression that the founders, Jesse Laner and John Simmons, actually run the company this way. That’s NOT common.
LEE 
PORTER is one of three founders of InnovatioNews, a news organization that targets entrepreneurship and innovation in Colorado USA.
It’s an all-electronic publication, not printed on paper. The focus is on high quality news and other digital content which is on the IN website, distributed via email, pushed through social media and placed strategically on other websites. InnovatioNews is jumping on the age of new media with full enthusiasm – which is a pretty great fit, given their subject.
This company is jumping on the age of new media with full enthusiasm – which is a pretty great fit, given their subject.
MODERN WOODMEN OF AMERICA 
is a community-minded financial services company in the US. Founded in 1883, they are structured as a 501(c)(8) “Fraternal Beneficiary Society,” a category I’d never heard of. This is a designation for organizations which are primarily intended to provide insurance-type benefits to their members.
Modern Woodmen has a rich legacy of service, including widows and orphans, those suffering from the Tuberculosis outbreak a century ago, education, and eye care.
I had a chance this week to talk with John Weidenfeller, the local Regional Director in Northern Colorado. He’s been with the organization for ten years now, opening up the Fort Collins office a few years ago. He’s a strong supporter of the values of this company, and has committed himself to leading a group which is aligned around those principles.
The Values-Based Business 