Companies I Admire

I wanted to make this a more personal post. I found myself thinking of the top 10 companies that I respect and my experiences with them:

Established ones like

• Ben & Jerry's -- I buy its ice-cream because I agree with it deep social consciousness, namely its focus on ensuring good financial return for its suppliers and promoting good environmental practices.
• Google -- Its myriad products make my life truly richer and better, from accessing maps while driving to reading news to keeping in touch with people.
  
• Pixar -- Every single movie has a fresh story and superb animation. No wonder it is the most successful film company in history by revenue/movie.
  
• REI -- Amazing customer satisfaction. They allow you to return products (as long as good condition) for full refund, no questions asked, at any time.
  
• Toyota -- I drive a Honda hybrid but I see its success deriving from the trail-blazing work of Toyota (Toyota promotes continuous improvement through a system they call "kaizen").
  

Start-ups like

• Amyris -- Mass-produce malaria treatment using biotechnology. Most of the 1.5 million people who die from malaria cannot afford the treatment but Amyris's solution promises to make it available for 25 cents.
• Azureus -- Uploading and downloading files from other people. The key innovation -- you can watch a movie while still downloading it.
  
• Kiva -- Microfinance at its best. I lent a small amount of money via the Internet to a needy small business and expect to recoup it completely.
• Tesla -- My dream car. It is the world's first sports electric car, combining the sleek design of a Lotus and a super efficient engine (the equivalent of 250 miles per gallon!)
• Wikipedia -- Who would have imagined that a volunteer-contributed online encyclopedia would have more useful content than any other effort undertaken in history?
  

These are very different companies yet there are fundamentally common themes. Specifically, they seem strongly focused on three things:
1) constantly innovating -- Never getting complacent, always keeping ahead of the game.
2) doing what is best for users -- Even if they lose money in the short term, this builds long-term loyalty.
3) social responsibility -- Making sure to improve the community around them.

For me these are the hallmarks of a successful company that stands the test of time. What is it for you?