Want to enhance your brand reputation, foster customer loyalty, and be part of a values-driven business network? Getting B Corp certified could be for you!
ICYDK, March is B Corp month, and the 2024 theme ‘This Way Forward’ is about sharing how the B Corp community paves the way for better business. Sendle has been a Certified B Corp since 2014, so we want to wrap this month up with friendly insights for companies interested in joining the B Corp community as well.
First things first: What is a B Corporation?
The B in B Corporation stands for benefit for all, yet in hindsight, it can be hard to tell what it actually means. But in a nutshell, B Corp is a movement that combines purpose and business, initiated by the non-profit organization B Lab in 2006. Becoming a B Corp signals to customers that you’re not just about economic gains. Instead, your brand walks the walk and is committed to making a positive impact on this planet. Being a Certified B Corporation also attracts high-performing investors and employees who share the same values.
Sendle as a Certified B Corp
At Sendle, we work to set a standard of accountability, dedication, transparency, and doing good for the rest of our industry by being a B Corp. We’re the first 100% carbon-neutral delivery service in Australia, Canada, and the United States at no extra cost. Therefore, every time you ship with Sendle, you’re choosing affordable deliveries for you and your business, while being kind to the environment, too. B for benefit, indeed!
And we’re not ones to shy away from raising the bar and making things brighter! We’re on a mission to move from the carbon-neutral delivery we offer today to achieving net zero by 2040.
5 key areas of a B Corp Certification
You need to apply for a B Corp certification for your company to be considered a B Corp. This certification is the gold standard for businesses because it evaluates a company’s practices and impact in five key areas:
1. Governance
This area will cover your company’s overarching mission, ethics, accountability, transparency, and how you embed your vision and values into your operational framework. The best practices they look at include how you engage your employees, board members, and the community to fulfill your mission.
2. Workers
The B Corp team will assess your dedication to creating positive outcomes for your workforce, taking into consideration fair compensation, benefits, training programs, and ownership opportunities. Some other things that will be evaluated are your company’s communication practices, worker health and safety, job flexibility, and overall working conditions.
3. Customers
How you serve customers and provide products or services that contribute to the greater good are key aspects of the B Corp evaluation. They’ll consider whether you offer essential services like education, healthcare, and financial management or not. They’ll also study your ethical marketing practices, data privacy, security measures, and mechanisms for gathering customer feedback.
4. Environment
You’ll review the impact your business has on the planet, and detail ways you can reduce negative impact and work to restore the climate, water, land, and biodiversity. They may also visit your facilities and review materials, emissions, resource, energy usage, transportation and distribution methods, and the environmental footprint of your supply chain.
5. Community
The economic and social well-being of your community are also a variable for B Corp certification. The organization will ask for best practices, initiatives, or policies directed at community impact, such as embracing supplier relations, social engagement, charitable efforts, and more.
How to become a Certified B Corp
You’ll need to start with three steps to become a Certified B Corp; although for some, it may seem like a lot to accomplish. But take our word for it when we say the entire process is so worth it to improve for your business, your customers, and the world!
We discussed these steps in the video animation below. Enjoy!
It’s a privilege and a commitment
One of the best things about being a B Corp is that we build greater connections with our customers, partners, and the community, especially those who uphold similar values. It’s a privilege and a commitment—something you can always be proud of, knowing it’s not just about business, but also for others and the planet.
Pursuing B Corp certification is a major step toward better business, so we’re genuinely proud of you! If you’re interested in hearing more about our story, feel free to look at Sendle’s positive impact. To learn more about becoming a B Corp, please visit the B Corp website.
