Fortune’s Marc Guenther has a fantastic story on Best Buy’s big leap into sustainability and corporate responsibility. In March, the electronics retailer has taken back nearly any TV or gadget you can name for at most a nominal fee. Though the company is far from breaking even on the effort, it has brought new customers into the store while also providing a rallying point for Best Buy employees.

What’s most interesting to us is the reason that Best Buy introduced the program. It wasn’t based on a pressure campaign from a special-interest group. It came up to the top through the interest and concern of employees, who voiced what they were hearing from shoppers every day. And new CEO Brian Dunn has said hearing from people all over his organization — and especially from ordinary folks in the world, is a big part of his job.

“One of my roles as CEO is to be the chief listener,” Dunn told Fortune during an interview at Best Buy’s headquarters outside Minneapolis. “I don’t believe that the model is any longer that there are a few really smart people at the top of the pyramid that make all the strategic decisions. It is much more about being all around the enterprise, and looking for people with great ideas and passionate points of view that are anchored to the business and connected to things our customers care about.”

A phenomenal article. Let’s hope Dunn’s efforts to make both empathy and strategy widely held in his organization take hold over the long run.