7 minute read
What It Takes to Be a Certified B Corporation
by Jessica Scudella
“Certified B Corporations are a new kind of business that balances purpose and profit. They are legally required to consider the impact of their decisions on their workers, customers, suppliers, community, and the environment. This is a community of leaders, driving a global movement of people using business as a force for good.” —B Lab’s Website
You may have noticed a “Certified B Corporation” logo on some of your daily products and might be wondering what this means. According to the Certified B Corporation website, “Certified B Corporations meet the highest standards of verified social and environmental performance, transparency, and accountability.”
In order to become a Certified B Corporation a company must follow these steps toward certification.
A corporation is a legal structure that must adhere to certain guidelines, and even if members of the board or employees wish to do good, they are legally required to assign the highest priority to maximizing financial profit. B Corporations were designed as an alternative to this “profit over all” mindset. B Corporations allow for a new business mindset that balances profit, social and environmental performance, public transparency, and legal accountability.
B Corporations are not the same as Benefit Corporations. A benefit corporation is the legal structure for businesses whereas a B Corporation is a certified corporation based on the company’s B Impact Assessment Score. LLC’s and other benefit corporations can become Certified B Corporations.
The idea of B Corporations began in 2006 with three friends who left their careers to pursue finding corporations that met high goals of positive impact. The B Lab, a non- profit, was formed to approve and certify corporations that filled out an extensive questionnaire. One of the requirements in this questionnaire is that corporations must be for-profit endeavors. The first B Corporations were certified in 2007. As of early 2022, there are 4,608 Certified B Corporations in 79 countries.
—Dan Osusky, Head of Standards and Insights, B Lab
Companies applying to become Certified B Corporations must provide information on all stages of the business and all stages of the supply chain through the B Impact Assessment. The B Impact Assessment is free for corporations to take. Not only do certain corporations become approved as a Certified B Corporation, but they are also provided a ranking that can be improved over time. In order to submit the B Impact Assessment for review, there is a $150 nonrefundable fee.
The B Lab looks at the impact areas of governance, workers, community, environment and customers to score each B Corporation applicant. These numbers are then added up to a final score. If this score is over 80, then a corporation becomes a Certified B Corporation. Corporations that do not score over 80 can work to improve their scores and resubmit their applications. Only corporations that have been certified by the B Lab can market themselves as a Certified B Corporation.
The five impact areas that the B Impact Assessment looks at are: governance, workers, community, environment, and customers.
Companies that are already Certified B Corporations can continue to improve their score. The B Impact Assessment is updated every three years meaning recertification is required every three years. If their score drops below 80, their Certified B Corporation status is revoked. This is a rare occurrence. Only about one in every three companies gains above an 80 on the B Impact Assessment. The B Lab’s Independent Standards Advisory Council oversees the assessments. The size, sector, and market of the company helps to create a more personalized B Impact Assessment. Companies that are interested in becoming a Certified B Corporation must have been in operation for at least one year; otherwise they are only eligible for Pending B Corporation Status.
There is also a way to process a complaint about a Certified B Corporation if you feel that the company is not upholding B Corporation standards. This creates a process to discover if there is misconduct or misrepresentation, so the integrity of the B Corporation Certification is kept.
Each year, Certified B Corporations are rated on who has the highest scores on the B Impact Assessment. If a company scores within the top 10 percent, they are added to the Best For The World™ list. There are five categories for Best For the World™: community, customers, environment, governance and workers.
Examples of North Carolina Certified B Corporations
An example of a Certified B Corporation in North Carolina is Counter Culture Coffee, Inc. The Durham-based company was certified in September 2020. In the Wilmington area, there are multiple coffee locations and stores that use and/or sell Counter Culture Coffee, including The Complex Bean on North College Road.
Another locally known Certified B Corporation is Libby. Libby is a New Hanover County Public LiIbrary app that allows residents to access ebooks and audiobooks through the NC Digital Database. This is a free app for anyone who has a New Hanover County Public Library card. The Certified B Corporation logo can be found at the bottom of the Libby website.
Note: these certifications are fluid, so check the bcorporation.net website for the most recent information.
More North Carolina Certified B Corporations
2009, Raleigh: Southern Energy Management
2011, Hillsborough: 3Sisters Sustainable Management, Inc.
2011, Raleigh: Rain Water Solutions, Inc.
2011, Chapel Hill: Participate Learning
2013, Asheville: Cloud for Good
2014, Asheville: Earth Equity Advisors
2015, Raleigh: Murphy’s Naturals, Inc.
2016, Raleigh: Raleigh Founded
2016, Pittsboro: Fair Game Beverage Company
2016, Morrisville: Lulu Press, Inc.
2017, Charlotte: All Green Recycling, Inc.
2017, Asheville: French Broad Chocolates
2018, Chapel Hill: Food Insight Group
2018, Brevard: Gaia Herbs
2019, Charlotte: Thread Talk
2019, Raleigh: Open Eye Creative
2020, Raleigh: Leaf & Limb
2021, Raleigh: Planning Communities
In order to become a Certified B Corporation a company must follow these steps toward certification.
Examples of National Certified B Corporations
Ben & Jerry’s is a recognizable Certified B Corporation. The corporation has been certified since 2012 with an overall B Impact Score of 110.0 as of 2021. Another recognizable Certified B Corporation is Seventh Generation, which has been certified since 2007. They are one of the first corporations to be certified and, as of 2021, have an overall B Impact Score of 114.5. Seventh Generation has been awarded “Best of the World Honoree” from 2013 to 2019 and 2021.
More United States Certified B Corporations:
2009, California: Alter Eco
2011, California: Change.org
2011, California: The Guayaki Yerba Mate Co.
2011, California: Patagonia
2015, Florida: Garden of Life, LLC
2015, Oregon: The Tofurky Company
2015, New York: Eileen Fisher, Inc.
2016, Colorado: Eco-Products, Inc.
2016, Florida: The National Society of Leadership and Success
2016, Oregon: American College of Healthcare Sciences
2016, Indiana: American College of Education
2018, California: Athleta, Inc.
2018, California: TOMS
2019, Maine: Tom’s of Maine
2019, Utah: The Good Pencil Company
2020, Florida: 4ocean PBC
2020, California: University of St. Augustine for Health Sciences
2021, California: Coursera
To Learn More About B Corporations:
https://bcorporation.net/
https://bcorporation.net/ best-for-the-world-2021
Jessica Scudella is a senior pursuing degrees in environmental science and political science at UNCW. She is a Going Green intern, the Vice President of 350 UNCW and the Environmental Legislation Committee Chair for UNCW Plastic Ocean Project.
