Consider, for a minute, just how many businesses of all kinds are out there. With even more opening all the time. Each one catering to every possible need, every possible customer, in every possible way. It’s endless.
If only there were a way to quickly tell which companies were in it for the right reasons? A sign – to make it easier to choose which ones you want to run with. And just like that, there is: the Certified B Corp badge.
You’ve probably heard about benefit corporations. B Lab, a nonprofit that certifies companies as B Corps, “leads the movement built on the simple fact that business impacts and serves more than just shareholders — it has an equal responsibility to the community and to the planet,” explains Rose Marcario, former CEO, Patagonia.
Grady Britton’s agency mission, “Leave today better than yesterday,” is all about incremental and constant improvement in everything we do, everyone our business touches. It aligned naturally with the B Corp ethos and we became certified in 2015.
I won’t spoil the fun (errr, the work) ahead for any company diving in for their first certification. Let’s just say it’s comprehensive. It very thoroughly examines where and how your company goes beyond the norm, beyond what’s expected for an otherwise “successful” enterprise.
This kind of examination keeps your company on target – true to your mission – as challenging as it can be. Which is good practice to be in anyway.
“So you’re a B Corp. So you’re perfect, right?” Lol, it would be wonderful if it went like that.
No matter how good your intentions, you can – and likely will – get dragged for something, somewhere, sometime. Maybe you will even drag yourself (good job on doing that in advance, btw.) That’s not a bad thing. As with any change or improvement, it takes self-reflection (mission-reflection?) and ongoing attention and work. Find your courage, feel your flow, and embrace it.
When Grady Britton was first certified in 2015, our score was 81.5. When we were recertified (and yes, it gets harder) in 2017, we scored 92.5. In 2022, GB earned recertification with our highest score yet of 102.5. So the work works. And if you like data, check out our B Impact scorecard here.
A B Corp certification simply acknowledges that you’re going beyond. That you’re committed to doing business with a broader lens on who and what your business is affecting – internally within your organization and externally out in your community and the world. You’re part of a collective progress toward Better. Good job, you!
As Madeleine Albright, former U.S. Secretary of State put it, “I often wonder to what extent business can help society in its goals and alleviate poverty, preserve ecosystems, and build strong communities and institutions... B Lab has proven that there is a way.”
Simply put, do what you do, and do it really well. And then go beyond. It’s kind of the only way to go.
“Going beyond” can look like a lot of things. In fact, it will look like a lot of things. Just as it should.
For Grady Britton, we look at all sorts of internal processes to improve our agency and ourselves – from physical office space (do we need all of it?), utilities, and resource conservation, to ongoing cultural examinations around HR practices, DEI training and learning, to name just a few.
Swinging that same lens outward, to positively impact our community, is every bit as vital to us. It just so happens that our annual GB Grant will also be going live soon.
Now in its 12th year, the GB Grant is a very tangible example of how we put our talents and our mission to work – to Leave Today Better Than Yesterday where we live. Each year, we invite local nonprofit organizations to apply for $25,000 in-kind marketing and branding expertise, and/or 150 volunteer hours, provided by our Griffs. See some of our past winners here.
Do you need to be a B Corp to do these things? To go beyond? Absolutely not. More and more businesses are recognizing the interconnectedness of what they do and who they affect in their daily operations. So in a way, becoming a certified B Corp is your reward; a way of proclaiming to the world – to your current employees and shareholders, your future hires and partners – that you’re already Going Beyond. And now you’ve got proof.
We’ll see you out there. xoxox, GB