B Before C: A designer's insight on purpose-driven companies

It’s election day.

Yes, you read that right.

Actually, every day is election day.

Every day is a chance to vote for the future you want to see. 

You can vote at the grocery store.

You can vote with the clothing in your closet.

You can vote through the services you use.

You can vote for Benefit Corporations.

This month is B Corp Month. B Corps, or Benefit Corporations, are, simply put—companies that value purpose over profit.

To become a certified Benefit Corporation, a company must meet a variety of goals and benchmarks on the B Impact assessment. This assessment is separated into four parts: Governance, Workers, Community and Environment. With that, the company has to prove how it practices transparent business, looks after its employees, improves community and decreases/offsets their carbon footprint. The company needs to achieve 80/200 points to receive the status.

80/200 doesn’t seem like a lot, right?  To put it into perspective, the median score for businesses that have completed the assessment is 50.9. Out of the 30,000+ businesses who have used the assessment tool, less than 10% are certified.

Here are some example questions:

              “Has the Company worked within its industry to develop social and
                environmental standards for your industry?”

           
             “What % of full-time workers were reimbursed for continuing education
              opportunities in the last fiscal year?”

             “What % of management is from underrepresented populations? (This includes
              women, minority/previously excluded populations, people with disabilities,
              and/or individuals living in low-income communities).”

             “If you lease your facilities, have you worked with your landlord to implement
              any of the following in the past two fiscal years: Energy efficiency
              improvements, water efficiency improvements, waste reduction programs
              (including recycling)?”

This certification is relatively new, having started just 14 years ago. Back in 2006, Jay Coen Gilbert, Bart Houlahan and Andrew Kassoy wanted to change capitalism by bringing ethically-minded companies together. They called this effort B Lab. It wasn’t until 2010 that the certification went into law, allowing companies to not only receive the certificate, but file for Benefit Corporation status. Currently, a company is allowed to register as a Benefit Corporation in 34 states along with the District of Columbia.

For consumers, this vigorous certification process makes conscious shopping easier. In today’s society there is a higher demand for socially driven and environmentally responsible companies than in years past. Take a moment to celebrate this step in the right direction! Unfortunately, however, this means some companies are trying to meet the needs of consumers through words instead of actions by stretching how “good” they are without much substance. When you see a B Stamp, you can be assured that that company has committed itself to higher standards of purpose, accountability and transparency. When you purchase from a B Corp, your dollar is going towards a business that actively values the place we all call home and the people in it.

For employees, working at a B Corp is an incredible opportunity. Take it from someone who found The Black Sheep Agency through the B Corp directory. In college, I was a designer at Montana’s first B Corp, West Paw. West Paw is a dog product manufacturer who is hyper-focused on their environmental impact, or lack-of. They create durable toys from their recyclable material, Zogoflex, and pet beds with eco-fiber made entirely from recycled plastic. And that is just the very condensed version of what they do. Because of my experience there, I wanted to continue working at companies that ensured their every decision aligned with the mission and core values. All that led me to this socially-driven agency across the country. Here at Black Sheep, we are rebels with a mission to support marginalized communities across the nation. Purpose runs in our blood with every heartbeat. (Again, a very condensed version. Check out what makes us a B Corp here). We might be one of the few agencies with this mindset, but we are a part of a greater, unified mission. We are a part of the 3,200 certified Benefit Corporations in over 150 industries spanning across 71 countries. 

With all that said, get out there and cast your vote.

Today, tomorrow and the next are election days, and when you vote for Benefit Corporations, you’re voting for companies that are using business as a force for good.

To find a full list of B Corps visit our online directory.