Accountability score*: 50
Global 500 rank: 25
Sector: Trading and merchandise
Region: Europe

France's Carrefour hyper- and supermarket chain is the only merchandise retailer in the top half of this year's list, much less the top ten (the next is Home Depot at No. 52). While Carrefour fell from No. 5 last year to No. 10 this year, its CSR practices are still way ahead of its industry peers. It produces a comprehensive annual responsibility report, which includes simple numerical indicators for things like the quality of its food products, the percent of local producers among suppliers, and the percent of women among its managerial ranks. And of course, as the adage goes, if you can measure it, you can manage it.