B-corps - The Sustainability Management Wiki

Authors: Emily Ravier
Edited by: –
Last updated: September 29, 2025

1 B-Corp History

1.1 The development of B-Corps

In the late 1970s, companies increasingly adopted practices aimed at maximizing shareholder value, prioritizing the protection of shareholders’ interests.² ³ The prevailing theory at the time was that the sole social responsibility of a business was profit maximization.⁴ However, this focus came at the expense of all stakeholders and companies refused to take responsibility for critical issues such as climate change, resource depletion, social injustice and abuse of human rights.⁵ Nowadays, the shareholder value maximization approach is no longer sufficient to ensure a company’s long-term economic and financial stability, due to the external pressure from different stakeholders to focus on sustainability.⁶ ¹ ² Especially, the financial crises in the early 2000s exposed the structural weaknesses of advanced economies.⁷ This led to a rising perception of the need for an institutional infrastructure for CSR, as investors and consumers increasingly sought companies that prioritize environmental and social responsibility.⁷ ⁸ As a result, a shift emerged from shareholder primacy toward the development of new business models that recognize the importance of their stakeholder needs as well as the need for organizations to combine and balance social, environmental and profit goals.² ⁵ This aligns with the stakeholder theory which states that companies are accountable not only to shareholders but also to all stakeholders affected by their operations and that all stakeholders are equally important.⁹ ¹⁰ ¹¹ According to this theory, a company’s stakeholders should be regarded as equally important as its shareholders, and businesses must take all interests into account, even when they are in conflict.² The concept of CSR aligns with this approach, prompting shareholder-centric companies to adopt CSR practices in response to new demands.¹² ³ ¹¹ B-Corps further support this shift by offering a certification that recognizes companies committed to benefiting all stakeholders, not just shareholders.² ³

The idea for B-Corps originates from entrepreneurs who experienced the abolishment of their implemented CSR practices following the sale of their company. In 1993, Tom Austin, Seth Berger, Jay Coen Gilbert and Bart Houlahan co-founded the start-up AND1, that integrated CSR practices before the concept was fully developed.5, 26For instance, they donated 5% of their profits to local charities and enforced a rigorous best-in-class supplier code of conduct.¹³ Meanwhile, the company grew quickly to be the second biggest market leader for basketball shoes in the US behind Nike.¹³ Despite their success, AND1 was sold in 2005 to American Sporting Goods, which quickly abandoned its CSR initiatives.¹⁴ ¹⁵

Following this experience, Bart Houlahan, Coen Gilbert and Andrew Kassoy realized the urgency to create a sustainable and responsible economy.¹³ ¹⁶ Therefore, they wanted to create a new company with the specific intention to benefit society.¹³ They spoke with multiple entrepreneurs and investors to find a gap that they could fill and concluded a need for credible standards to distinguish responsible businesses as well as a need for a legal framework which allows companies to grow while maintaining their mission and values.¹³ Consequently, in 2006, they co-founded the non-profit organization B Lab to offer a certification system that assess the full range of a company’s practices and to promote responsible companies.¹⁵ After creating the first version of the BIA, based on Global Reporting Initiative standards, the first 19 companies were B-Corp certified in 2007.¹⁷ ⁷ ¹⁶

Interest in B-Corps along with the number of B-Corps have grown rapidly since the first certifications.¹⁸ ⁷ In total there were 82 certified B-Corps in 2007.46 The number of B-Corps rose to 125 in 2008, to 212 in 2009, to over 320 in 2010, further increasing to 503 in 2011 and to 671 in 2012.6, 45 By 2013, the amount of certified B-Corps had exceeded 800.6, 35 The movement continued to gain momentum, with over 1,000 B-Corps in 2014, 1,500 in 2015 and more than 1,800 by 2016.6, 44, 45 Additionally in that year, B Lab implemented the fifth version of the BIA, which included enhancements for measuring social impact, developed in collaboration with Social Value International.¹⁶ Version 5 of the BIA also introduced a question section on impact business models (IBMs) and the disclosure questionnaire (DQ).¹⁶

By 2017, more than 2,000 companies were B-Corp certified, with the majority being newly-formed small and medium-sized enterprises.¹⁷ ¹⁹ By the first quarter of 2018, over 2,500 companies had completed the certification process and by March 2019, around 3,000 B-Corps were certified.¹⁷ ²⁰ Since the launch of the BIA Version 5, B Lab gathers feedback from users and stakeholders concerning the improvement of the BIA.²¹ With the support of its Regional Advisory Groups and Standards Advisory Council (SAC), B Lab released the Version 6 of the BIA in January 2019.48 Version 6 contains substantial changes, especially in stakeholder engagement, by addressing more detailed aspects of managing social and environmental concerns through an elevated involvement of stakeholders.⁵ ²² It also includes a new goal structure to improve consistency and outcome alignment.48However, these revisions resulted in a decrease in the average B-Corp score, with Version 6 averaging 90.9 points which is 2.89 points lower than the average score for Version 5.²³

By November 2020, there were 3,585 B-Corps certified and while the movement primarily consisted of small companies, larger organizations also started to support the B-Corp community.²⁴ ²⁵ By September 2021, the number of certified B-Corps had reached 4,088, increasing to over 4,200 by February 2022.9, 29, 38By the end of 2022, there were more than 6,000 B-Corps and in 2023 there were over 6400 B-Corps certified.²⁶ ²⁷ As of September 2024, 8,880 companies are B-Corp certified.²⁸ To summarize the beforementioned numbers the overall growth of the number of B-Corps is represented in the following graph in figure 1. Moreover, B-Corps are distributed within 162 industries (as of September 4th 2024), with the most B-Corps with a total of 665 B-Corps in the industry of food products, 582 B-Corps in the industry of for-profit management consultants and 530 B-Corps in the industry of advertising and market research.²⁸ For further distribution of B-Corps within the industries in 2024 see Appendix A.

Although the steady growth of number of certified B-Corps as well as the number of larger companies getting certified, in 2024 most B-Corps still are smaller companies (as of September 4th 2024) with 678 B-Corps not having any employees, 2,744 B-Corps with 1 to 9 employees, 3,381 B-Corps employing 10 to 49 persons and 1,466 B-Corps with 50 to 249 employees.²⁸ Only 462 B-Corps have 250 to 999 employees and even fewer only 149 B-Corps have over 1000 employees.²⁸

Figure 1: Increase of B-Corps (2007-2024)

Even though in total the number of B-Corps increased over the years, the amount of former B-Corps that decided to decertify has risen as well, due to the high standards B-Corps have to fullfill.⁹ ²⁹ For example, a study shows an overall decertification rate of 23,7 % in February of 2020.22 However, companies that undergo multiple (re)certification rounds are less likely to stop certification, as they develop a stronger commitment to maintaining their B-Corp status.⁹

1.2 The expansion of the B Global Network

B-Corps have expanded into various countries and regions worldwide.¹⁹ In response, B Lab established an international network, the B Global Network, which comprises a group of regional organizations aimed at promoting an inclusive, equitable and regenerative economy at the local level.³⁰ ³¹ To facilitate the transformation of the economy, B Lab Global coordinates and promotes communication and collaboration, develops and manages B-Corp standards as well as global policies.³⁰ ³² Building on these policies and standards, regional B Lab organizations support their local B-Corp communities, ecosystems and partnerships, fostering policy changes within local governments and encouraging behavioural changes in local businesses.⁵ ³²

The B Global Network began in 2006 with the establishment of B Lab U.S. & Canada, which oversees the B-Corp community in the United States and Canada.²⁶ ³² In 2011, Sistema B was founded, managing B-Corps in Argentina, Brazil, Central America, Chile, Colombia, Ecuador, Mexico, Paraguay, Peru and Uruguay.⁵ ³² By 2012, the first B-Corp in Australia had been certified, leading to the founding of B Lab Australia & Aotearoa New Zealand in 2013.55, 56 That same year, B Lab Europe was established to manage B-Corps in the Benelux states, France, Germany, Italy, the Nordics, Poland, Portugal, Spain and Switzerland.¹⁶ ³² Through this expansion in 2014, B-Corps were present in over 30 countries.¹⁶ In 2015, B Lab UK was founded and established an advisory group to address the specific challenges associated with assessing and auditing the performance of multinational companies.¹⁵ ³² By 2016, B-Corps existed in approximately 50 countries.¹⁵

B Lab Taiwan and B Lab Africa, overseeing B-Corps in Ikigai, Westlands, Nairobi and Kenya, were established in 2017.55 In the following year, the B Market Builders in Japan and Southeast Asia were created.³² B Market Builders operate in locations where the development of the B-Corp community is in its initial phases, focusing on its development and collaborating with strategic partners to accelerate growth.³⁰ Additionally, they establish the foundational pillars for creating financially sustainable organizations, with B Lab Global providing long-term support to the global movement in local markets.³⁰ As of March 2018, B-Corps were present in over 50 countries.57In 2019, B Lab Korea was founded, followed by the establishment of B Lab Hong Kong & Macau in 2020.55 By May 2019, B-Corps operated in 64 countries and about a year later in 74 countries.²⁵ ⁵

Then in 2021, the B Market Builder in China was founded and the most recent B Lab organization, B Lab Singapore, was established in 2022.55 By 2023, B-Corps existed in approximately 86 countries.³³ However, as of October 6, 2023, B Lab Global paused certifying new B-Corps in regions without representation by a regional B Lab organization.³⁴ As of September 4th, 2024 there are B-Corps in 101 countries, with the highest number of B-Corps in the UK with an amount of 2,217 B-Corps.²⁸ Following this is the US with 1,885 B-Corps present, then Australia with 563 B-Corps, Canada with 547 certified B-Corps and France with a total of 466 B-Corps.²⁸ For further global distribution of B-Corps in 2024 see Appendix B. This is in line with the previous literature showing that for example in February 2020 and 2022, 50% of all B-Corps were headquartered in the U.S. and Canada, while Europe accounted for 18.6% and South America for 15.6%.¹²

The following figure 2 visually summarizes the presented B-Corp history in chapter 1.1and chapter 1.³⁵

Figure 2: B-Corp Timeline

2 B-Corps

2.1 Profit with Purpose

Traditional for-profit business models focus on profit maximization for their shareholders and are pressured to prioritize profits over social and environmental responsibility if the two goals conflict, therefore they typically incorporate sustainable practices as supplementary efforts rather than integrating them into core operations.³⁶ ³⁷ In contrast, B-Corps see profits as a tool to fulfil their social and environmental goals, and they are held to stricter standards of purpose, accountability, and transparency than conventional companies.³⁸ ³⁹

The focus on environmental and social goals aligns with the concept of sustainable entrepreneurship (SE), which is defined as “an innovative, market-oriented and personality-driven form of creating economic and social value through pioneering environmental or socially beneficial market or institutional innovations”(p.226).⁴⁰ The importance of SE in the modern economy has grown alongside the increasing market for sustainable products as well as socially and environmentally responsible investments.⁴¹ As a result, SE encompasses various forms, including social entrepreneurship, eco-entrepreneurship and social-purpose organizations (SPOs).³⁹ ⁴⁰ Establishing purpose-driven organizations is seen as a solution to the negative societal impacts caused by profit-maximizing behaviour.⁴² Purpose within organizations is the tendency to derive meaning from business processes and a sense of intentionality that drives positive behaviour.⁴² The B-Corp certification is particularly relevant in this context, as it offers a structure to convert their purpose into impactful businesses, thereby successfully achieving their objectives.⁴² Therefore, B-Corps are often categorized, among others, as SPOs and even seen as the highest-valued standard for SPOs.⁴³ ⁴⁴

Despite B-Corps having a strong purpose-driven mission, they still follow a traditional for-profit business model, by selling their products and services on the market to generate profits, however they use these generated profits to fulfil their mission.³⁹ Examples include investing in ethical funds, empowering women through products, producing healthy organic food for children or selling community-based solar energy solutions.³⁹ Thus, B-Corps combine profitability (market logic) with social impact (social logic) and use their traditional for-profit business model to create a positive social and environmental impact for stakeholders, which is also referred to as creating “profit with purpose”.³⁹ ³⁶ Also, the mission of B-Corps is compatible with profitability, as increased profits lead to a greater positive impact.³⁹ Consequently, the economic growth of B-Corps is crucial, as more customers and profits enable a broader impact and greater investment to achieve their goals.³⁹ However, B-Corps do not focus on profit maximization and instead aim to generate sufficient profit to support their purpose, which is why in some cases for instance B-Corps even reduce their fees or profit margin on their products and services.³⁹ Thus their perceived success is measured by the impact they achieve rather than by profit maximization.³⁹

A business model which prioritizes SD alongside profits, is also often referred to as a sustainability-driven hybrid business model.⁴⁵ The combination of market logic and social logic, along with the integration of non-profit and for-profit objectives, forms the foundation of hybrid organizations (HOs), that balance economic, social and environmental value creation by incorporating purpose into their organizational structure.³⁹ ⁴⁶ ⁴⁷ B-Corps are often classified as HOs, as they embody their aforementioned core aspects through operating between the realms of profit and non-profit companies and are committed to positive environmental and social impacts while also meeting profit targets.³⁸ ³⁶ This holistic approach, which integrates environmental, social and economic dimensions, aligns with the TBL framework.¹⁸ ⁴⁸ Achieving a balance among these three dimensions is crucial, as a sole focus on profit leads to insufficient positive impact, while a mission centred solely on social and environmental objectives that neglects the generation of sufficient profits results in insufficient positive impact as well.59Therefore, the hybridity of B-Corps makes them vulnerable to external legitimacy challenges and internal tensions between competing logics, potentially leading to mission drift, where companies abandon their social or environmental missions in favour of financial goals or the other way around.⁴⁹ ⁵⁰ Consequently, the degree of alignment of the social, environmental and economic practices affects how much HOs encounter tensions among these various logics, and effectively managing any potential tensions between the objectives is essential for the long-term viability of these companies.³⁹ ⁵¹ In that regard, B-Corps follows the approach to make a choice between mission and profits, but rather see these elements as parts of a unified strategy.⁵¹ ⁵² This approach helps preventing mission drift and internal conflicts arising from the pursuit of both profit and purpose, safeguarding the success of the B-Corp model.⁵¹ ⁵²

2.2 B-Corp Certification

Companies striving for environmental and social responsibility are often confronted with higher costs, leading to the phenomenon of greenwashing, where companies state to be sustainable without genuine engagement.⁵³ ⁵⁴ To demonstrate authenticity and avoid accusations of greenwashing, companies are turning to global CSR certifications.⁵⁴ In this context, third-party certifications represent a tool to signal a the commitment of a company and thereby enhance credibility, reputation and business with socially conscious consumers.⁹ ⁵ Thus, third-party certification has become a growing trend.⁹ However, some certifications are industry-specific, focus solely on environmental or social aspects or are limited to specific regions.¹⁸ ²⁴ ⁹ In contrast, the B-Corp certification takes a comprehensive approach to sustainability by encompassing all areas of a company’s operations and ensuring that the impacts extend to all stakeholders.¹⁸ ²⁴ ⁹ Accordingly, the B-Corp certification is unique in that it evaluates a company’s entire performance as well as transparency and accountability.⁵⁵ This broad appeal alongside the involvement of all stakeholders sets B-Corp certification apart from other certifications.⁹

The B-Corp certification is a voluntary third-party certification awarded by B Lab or its global subsidiaries through rigorous social and environmental audits and is used to confirm a company’s voluntary positive impact and also is a proprietary to B Lab.¹² ⁵⁶ To be qualified for the certification process, a company has to be a for-profit entity with at least 12 months of trading history and revenue, when applying for the certification.⁵⁵ ⁵⁷ ⁵⁸ ⁵⁹ To accomplish B-Corp certification a company is required to prove extraordinary social and environmental performances by completing the BIA, scoring at least 80 out of 200 points, legally commit to be accountable to all stakeholders and ensure transparency by publicly displaying its B Impact Report.³⁴ ⁴⁹ Additionally, in order to receive certification, companies must sign the B-Corp Agreement and Declaration of Interdependence, along with paying an annual fee.¹⁸ Moreover, a B-Corp has to recertify every three years.⁵⁴ ⁶⁰ The B-Corp certification requirements are visualised in figure 3 and are explained in detail in the following three subchapters.

Through the certification process, B Lab assists companies to evaluate, track and legitimize their social and environmental impact.⁵⁶ Overall, the B-Corp certification serves as an important signal to stakeholders, as B-Corps publicly commit to aligning people, planet and profits.⁵⁴ ¹³ ⁷ ⁶¹ Through its publicly validated commitment, B-Corps may attract new customers and talented employees and expand their networks, resulting in increased media exposure, gaining strategic advantage alongside distinctiveness in a competitive environment.²⁶ ⁵⁴ ⁷

The certification process, however, can be costly, as B-Corps must pay a fee based on their annual turnover.¹⁶ ³⁶ These costs include submission and annual certification fees paid directly to the certifier as well as expenses related to restructuring processes and procedures to meet certification standards.⁵⁴ ³⁶ ⁶² This may involve changes in production, distribution, supplier relationships, customer interactions and internal policies as well as the hiring of new employees, taking in a large amount of management time.⁵⁴ ³⁶ ⁶² As a result, B-Corp certification often correlates with an decline in short-term sales growth of approximately 20%.⁶² Therefore, companies seeking certification may require additional external funding to cover these increased costs.⁵⁴

Figure 3: B-Corp certification requirements

2.3 BIA Tool for Performance Requirement

Measuring sustainability performance is challenging, despite the availability of various models.⁶³ In that cause B Lab offers a transparent and robust protocol to assess business models and their impact, namely the BIA.¹⁴ The BIA score achieved during certification is a measurement tool of ESG (environmental, social, governance) and the CSR commitment.⁵⁴ The BIA evaluates companies on social and environmental impact, transparency and governance, focusing on five areas: community, customers, environment, governance and human resources.15, 18, 22,49, Moreover, the growing number of BIA users, surpassing the number of certified B-Corps, demonstrates its influence.²⁴

The BIA is a self-managed assessment tool that is customizable based on company-specific factors like size, industry and location and is carried out via a confidential online platform.¹² ²⁴ ²² The BIA has over 50 modifications within the assessment, leading to companies scoring differently due to the consideration of their size, industry and region in the BIA assessment track.²² ⁶⁴ It includes core and additional questions, with responses weighted differently in the final B Impact score depending on the company’s characteristics.¹⁹ Companies receive points based on their answers, with a total possible score of 200 and to meet the performance requirement of the certification the company must at least score 80 points.¹⁸ ¹² ⁹ ²² Even if companies do not reach the minimum of 80 points, they can use the BIA for free for tracking their development and improvement of their score over time as there are no restrictions on how many times they can use the BIA.¹⁶ The final B Impact Score is formed by the different scores per BIA dimension, which is documented in the B Impact Report.15, 21However, the BIA does not adhere to a consistent measurement scale, as no minimum score is required per BIA dimension.³⁸ ²⁴ ⁶⁵

The governance dimension is designed to assess the adoption of a social or environmental mission alongside a company’s ethics, accountability and transparency of its policies and practices.¹² ⁹ ²² The worker section covers the impact of a company on its employees through indicators, like wages, social benefits, health, wellness and safety at work, compensation, training and opportunities for advancement, work environment, communication, workplace flexibility, financial security as well as satisfaction and engagement.¹² ⁹ ¹⁹ ²² The community section assesses a company’s relationships with its suppliers, its diversity, equality and inclusion and its civic engagement within the local community as well as the degree of contribution to a social problem in the community through the company’s economic impact.¹² ⁹ ¹⁹ ²² The section environment focuses on the environmental management, emissions, water use, waste, resource conservation, energy efficiency, suppliers, transport as well as land and wildlife protection measures.¹² ²² The dimension customers assesses the impact of the organization on its consumers, for example if its products or services serve the common good by solving a social or ecological problem or for instance are aimed at underserved population groups.¹² ⁹

The content of the BIA is monitored by the B Lab SAC, which continuously updates the assessment based on expert and stakeholder input.¹² ³⁴ For example, for the current Version 6 of the BIA, B Lab and its SAC developed a new goal structure aimed at improving consistency, aligning outcomes and enhancing clarity of the performance evaluation.²¹ The new goal structure includes optional sections for companies with IBMs designed to deliver specific, positive impacts to particular stakeholder groups.²¹ As part of the new goal structure, a new goal has been added to the customer dimension, called costumer stewardship, ensuring the representation of customers in the assessment, even for companies without a customer-focused IBM.²¹ Furthermore, through collaboration with the Impact Management Project more nuanced follow-up questions have been incorporated in each IBM to evaluate how a company is managing the impacts of their business model.²¹ Additionally, efforts have been made to consolidate and streamline questions without reducing rigor and a more accessible scoring model has been developed by removing the 90-point cap on points earned from IBMs.²¹ Through these changes and improvements the BIA is getting more rigorous, however, as already mentioned before, this also causes score fluctuations, making it more difficult for companies to achieve the minimum of 80 points.²³

2.4 Stakeholder Governance and Legal Requirement

As mentioned previously, traditional business models focus on maximizing shareholder value, while often neglecting the needs of stakeholders. In contrast, B-Corps operate under the aspiration of being the “best for the world”, benefiting all stakeholders rather than the traditional corporate goal of being “best in the world”.⁹ ⁵ ⁶⁶ Stakeholder engagement requires exchanging with stakeholders to address their needs and expectations as well as providing accountability for non-financial activities.⁶⁷ This engagement is a key mechanism in corporate governance, also known as stakeholder governance, helping to achieve non-financial goals and promoting accountability to stakeholders, which is crucial for long-term viability of a company.⁶⁷ Consequently, the stakeholder governance enhances social and environmental performance by ensuring that companies consider the needs of all stakeholders in their decision-making processes, resulting in business practices that benefit all stakeholders. 54, 62, 81 B Lab encourages stakeholder governance by requiring aspiring B-Corps to sign the Declaration of Interdependence which emphasizes the interdependence between various stakeholders and rejects an exclusive focus on shareholders.³ ⁵

In the Declaration of Interdependence is written:

“We envision a global economy that uses business as a force for good. This economy is comprised of a new type of corporation – the B Corporation – which is purpose-driven and creates benefit for all stakeholders, not just shareholders.

As Certified B Corporations and leaders of this emerging economy, we believe:

That we must be the change we seek in the world.

That all business ought to be conducted as if people and place mattered.

That, through their products, practices, and profits, businesses should aspire to do no harm and benefit all.

To do so requires that we act with the understanding that we are each dependent upon another and thus responsible for each other and future generations.”³⁴

Additionally, even though the B-Corp status itself has no direct legal ramifications and no restrictions on the legal form of organizations that may apply for certification, B-Corps must demonstrate a legal commitment to stakeholder governance.¹⁶ ⁵² ⁶⁸ B-Corps are required to integrate purpose into the legal structure of their own company and extend their CSR by legally enforcing their decisions to consider the impact on all stakeholders.⁴² ⁶⁹

A possible approach to achieve the legal requirement is to adopt a corporate form that explicitly requires stakeholder governance, like a benefit corporation.⁴⁹ ⁶⁰ ⁶⁷ If a benefit corporation is a legal entity in the location of a B-Corp, the legal requirements for the B-Corp certification necessitate that the corporate form must be changed to a benefit corporation within two years to retain certification.⁴⁹ ⁶⁷ ⁷⁰ For states that newly recognize benefit corporations, a B-Corp has four years to incorporate as a benefit corporation.⁷⁰ Additionally, a business established as a benefit corporation has an increased likelihood by approximately 1.78 times to achieve the B-Corp certification compared to an otherwise similar company.⁷¹

Adopting a locally available legal form that mandates stakeholder governance typically involves amending the corporate charter of the company.³ Consequently, B-Corps are obligated to make structural changes and change their articles of incorporation or equivalent governing documents to the fullest extent possible under applicable corporate law to include clauses that ensure that the executives and directors of B-Corps stay legally accountable to all their stakeholders.¹⁹ ⁵ ⁶⁹ The articles of incorporation must be changed to include provisions that enables the management to take into account the effects of any business decision on all stakeholders, while also signalling the company’s commitment to its mission.⁷⁰ However, the detailed legal requirements for a B-Corp vary due to the type of its legal entity.⁵⁹ ⁶⁹ Consequently, B Lab provides a legal requirement tool on its website, offering tailored requirements and instructions.⁵⁹ ⁶⁹

By enshrining their obligations and social mission in their statutes, B-Corps receive legal support for these commitments and legal protection for managers to consider the needs of their stakeholders, thereby mitigating mission drift.⁵ ⁴² ⁵² Moreover, this ensures the B-Corp’s purpose stays the same even in the event of ownership changes.⁴² ⁵² ⁷²

In many regions, the corporate law permits stakeholder governance, but in some jurisdictions the law does not allow the adoption of stakeholder governance.⁶⁹ Therefore, in these states, B-Corps must simply sign the B-Corp Agreement, thereby agreeing to consider all stakeholders to the highest level permissible by law until the law there is amended by the government.⁶⁹ ⁷⁰ Moreover, if fulfilling the legal requirement conflicts with the law in the location of the company, B-Corps have to collaborate with B Lab to determine a possible and fitting legal pathway.⁶⁹

2.5 Transparency Requirement

Stakeholders often question the trustworthiness of profit-for-purpose companies due to perceived issues with transparency, implying a potential lack of impact or a barrier in reviewing their true influence.³³ A high level of transparency allows stakeholders to better assess a company’s impact, resulting in greater financial benefits for the company.³⁸ ⁷³ For instance, investors often consider the information disclosed by companies, such as sustainability reports, when making investment decisions and have a higher tendency to invest more in sustainable companies, like B-Corps, than conventional companies if they anticipate higher CSR and financial performances.³⁸ ⁷³ Moreover, demonstrating transparency can enhance consumer trust in certifications, strengthen the perceived genuineness of commitments and improve the company’s moral legitimacy from the stakeholders perspective.9, 62, 88Consequently, companies may increase the benefits of engaging in CSR activities by communicating these efforts through governance structures or transparency tools, thereby gaining a competitive advantage that differentiates them from others and cultivating a positive reputation.⁹ ³³ ⁷⁴

Public transparency may involve tools, like annual reports, social media or adopting certifications and labels that validate business performance.⁴⁵ Therefore displaying the B-Corp logo on a firm’s facilities, product packaging and websites, demonstrates a commitment and fosters trust with stakeholders and acts as a symbol of transparency.⁵⁶ ⁴⁵ ⁷⁵ Additionally, B-Corps are obligated to display transparency by publishing their B Impact Report, which contains the company’s overall BIA score and sub-scores in each of the five BIA dimensions, on the B Lab Global website, thereby giving stakeholders an option to review the performance of the company and prevent potential fraud.¹³ ³ ⁴¹ Moreover, subsidiaries of parent companies, that are large or multinational businesses, and public companies with a total market value over $100 million are further required to publish the non-sensitive answers of their full BIA on their profile page on the B Lab Global website.¹⁹ ⁷⁶ Also, other B-Corps may voluntarily publish their full report on their B-Corp profile page.¹⁹

Furthermore, B-Corps must submit a DQ in the certification process and if a company responds positively to any questions regarding negative impacts, its DQ will be made publicly available on B Lab’s website.¹⁹ This signifies a possible advancement in reporting transparency, as it stands in contrast to voluntary sustainability reporting, which frequently does not reveal negative impacts.¹⁹ Additionally, B Lab performs a background investigation prior to awarding certification, and if it discovers that a company has engaged in serious misconduct, it has the authority to deny the application.¹⁹

3 B Lab

3.1 Definition

B Lab is a non-profit organization situated in Philadelphia, Pennsylvania, that promotes B-Corps as well as benefit corporations, aiming to leverage the economy as a force for good. 35, 57 B Lab defines itself as “the nonprofit network transforming the global economy to benefit all people, communities, and the planet”.³¹ Therefore, B Lab’s mission is to accelerate a global cultural shift, redefining business success and transforming the economy into one that benefits all, fostering a more inclusive and sustainable economy.⁷⁷ ³⁶ In pursuit of this mission, B Lab aims to create a movement of companies doing the best for the world and emphasizing value-based objectives.⁷⁷ ¹⁶ To facilitate this transformation, B Lab develops standards, guidelines, and tools to transform economic systems in line with its vision.³⁰ ³¹ Alongside the B-Corp certification and BIA, in 2020, B Lab partnered with the UN Global Compact to develop the SDG Action Manager, a program that encourages certified and aspiring companies to contribute to achieving the SDGs.²⁵

In the context of B-Corps, B Lab provides a role as an accreditation organization and certifies companies that meet its standards, providing independent verification of their social and environmental commitment.⁷ In that regard, B Lab collects and monitors data, while being observed by a standards board with a total of nine, mostly independent, members.⁷ Although other organizations certify CSR practices, B Lab is unique in offering a holistic certification that evaluates social, environmental and financial aspects simultaneously.⁷

B Lab is most known for certifying B-Corps, but its mission extends beyond certification.⁷⁸ B Lab’s Theory of Change guides their mission and is divided into the problem that needs to be overcome, the solution for the problem and the resulting outcome.³¹ ⁷⁹ B Lab identifies the current economy’s failure to create positive impact as the problem that needs a solution to get the outcome of an inclusive, equitable and sustainable economy, that benefits all stakeholders.⁷⁹B Lab emphasises three aspects that reinforce the problematic role of traditional businesses. These are the legal system design, the business behaviour and actions and the corporate culture that measures success through their profits, which strengthen social and economic inequality.⁷⁹ As a solution for this problem B Lab is building a global B-Corp movement to reform the economic system by collaborating with powerful stakeholders, like governments, thereby driving systemic change.³⁰ ⁷⁸ To pursue this movement B Lab follows a multi-track strategy, explained in the following chapter 3.4.2. 29, 45, 57, 93 The following figure 4 summarizes B Lab’s theory of change.

Figure 4: B Lab’s Theory of Change

3.2 B-Corp Movement

Activists, scholars, business leaders, investors, and policymakers have shown an increasing interest in transforming capitalism to create a more sustainable economic system.⁷⁷ The B-Corp movement has gained credibility across societies and sectors, making it well-positioned to drive this systemic change.⁷⁹ Launched by B Lab, the B-Corp movement promotes the development of more ethical and purpose-driven companies that focus on the TBL.⁴⁹ ¹⁹ ⁵ Therefore, the B-Corp movement seeks to overcome the limitations of the capitalist development model and transition towards sustainability.² Accordingly, the B-Corp Movement manifesto states the following:

“Together, we transform the global economy to benefit all people, communities, and the planet. Together, we lead economic systems change that will realize our vision of an inclusive, equitable, and regenerative economy. Together, we create standards, policies, tools, and programs that shift the behavior, culture, and structure of capitalism. Together, we’re changing the rules of the game so that all businesses have to balance profit and purpose. Together, we’re building a movement of people using business as a force for good. Together, we won’t stop until all business is a force for good.”(p.10)³⁰

Driving the B-Corp movement is B Labs multi-track strategy to achieve holistic change in the economic system. Its strategy comprises building a community of certified B-Corps that demonstrate high social and environmental performance, driving public policy including the invention of a legal infrastructure for purpose-driven enterprises, the development of templates for state legislation, the promotion of regulations that accelerate the growth of this sector and lastly encouraging impact investing through the Global Impact Investing Rating System (GIIRS).⁵⁶ ¹⁶ ²⁹

Certified B-Corps are the centre of the B-Corp movement and represent companies that voluntarily create positive social and environmental impact while obeying to the standards set by B Lab.⁴⁹ B-Corps even see themselves as tools for change, as they often create new sustainable innovations.³⁹ As mentioned before, B-Corps must be for-profit companies with a sustainable mission, accountable to their stakeholders, have a legal form or articles of incorporation supporting stakeholder governance, be transparent about their impact and demonstrate high social and environmental performance. Individuals whose values align with the principles underlying B-Corp certification are more likely to seek certification for their organizations.⁷¹ Notably, women have played a leading role in promoting B-Corp certification, driven by its focus on advancing sustainability norms, thereby supporting the B-Corp movement.⁷¹

Corporate law traditionally requires companies to prioritize profits and shareholders’ interests, even at the expense of stakeholders as well as social and environmental values.⁹ However, B Lab’s policy initiatives promote significant legal reforms concerning corporate accountability and social impact, offering a legal alternative to the conventional public corporation model.³¹ ⁸⁰ In 2008, B Lab co-founders Gilbert and Houlahan collaborated with a law firm in Philadelphia to develop a new corporate law that supports a social and environmental responsible mission while generating profit, the so-called benefit corporation.¹⁴ ¹⁵ ⁸¹ A benefit corporation is a legal structure that aligns long-term mission objectives with stakeholder value creation and is only available in the regions which have adopted benefit corporation legislation.³⁰ The benefit corporation started in 2010 in Maryland and is now in effect in about 38 US states and has spread for example to Italy in 2015 and to France in 2019, but specific aspects of this legal framework may differ depending on where they are adopted.¹⁷ ²⁵ ²⁹ ⁸² In this regard, B Lab has been a major advocate for the adoption of benefit corporation statutes by governments worldwide.¹⁴ ²⁵ ⁵⁶ Furthermore, the benefit corporation law requires directors to consider not only shareholder value but also the public benefit in their decisions and companies must provide a significant positive social and environmental impact, meet higher accountability and transparency standards as well as prepare annual benefit reports for shareholders. 31, 44 Although benefit corporation laws vary by jurisdiction, they generally require companies to provide a general public benefit, but some states further require the creation of specific benefits, such as improving local education systems.¹⁷ ⁷⁰ Also, benefit corporations do not need to obtain B-Corp certification, but many companies seek certification to enhance outcomes and transparency.27, 97Moreover, as already mentioned in chapter 3.2.2, a B-Corp may fulfil its legal requirement by incorporating as a benefit corporation. Consequently, both forms complement each other.

B Lab developed GIIRS to attract capital by providing information on companies and investment funds, to investors interested in companies that are financially stable as well as socially and environmentally responsible.⁷ ¹⁵ The GIIRS rating system, was introduced in September 2011 as an external measurement framework for B-Corps’ social impact.⁵⁶ ²⁹ The initial development of GIIRS was funded $6.5 million from several institutions, for example the Rockefeller Foundation and Deloitte.²⁹ As of 2017, through the usage of GIIRS 90 investment funds had evaluated their portfolios.²⁹ This has since been integrated into the B Analytics platform for assessing, benchmarking and reporting on impacts, that launched in 2013.53 The platform is supposed to present the largest databank of authenticated social and environmental performance statistics for private companies, containing information from more than 1,100 businesses.²⁹

4 Process of becoming a B-Corp

The B-Corp certification process is demanding and requests the involvement of teams and several departments in a business.⁵⁵ ³⁴ Moreover, the certification process varies, as it depends on factors like sector, industry and ownership structure.³⁴ Additionally, the costs, duration and timelines for the B-Corp certification vary significantly with certification fees based on annual revenue as well as variable target deadlines and resources due the different operational complexity depending on the business’s size.⁵⁶ ⁶⁰ ⁸³

Small early-stage businesses or startups, which typically have less than 12 months of trading history, are not allowed to pursue B-Corp certification, as they are not ready to go through the full BIA yet 20, 23, 82, 98 However, to address this, B Lab created the temporary Pending B-Corp status.³⁰ ⁵⁵ ⁶⁸ ⁸³ This status allows such companies time to prepare for the comprehensive certification process by taking the initial steps, while signalling to customers and investors their commitment to achieve the highest standards of social and environmental responsibility, even before full certification.³⁰ ⁵⁸ ⁸⁴ For startups, the application process takes between six to twelve months, depending on the necessary changes required to meet certification standards.⁵⁷ In order to obtain the Pending B-Corp status, a company must meet legal requirements and companies located in jurisdictions without a law permitting stakeholder governance are not qualified for the Pending B-Corp status.⁸³ ⁸⁴ The company must also complete and submit a prospective BIA, sign the Pending B-Corp agreement and a payment of $500 is required for businesses with less than $200,000 in revenue.⁵⁷ ⁵⁸ ⁸³ ⁸⁴ Once approved, the company is granted permission to use the name “Pending B Corporation” and the corresponding logo, although these cannot be used on packaging or in printed materials and the company will not receive a verified score.³⁰ ⁸³ ⁸⁴ After operating for a certain period, as fixed by the local B Lab organization, the business is required to complete the full certification process.³⁰ ⁸³ ⁸⁴

As the B-Corp certification process differs depending on the company’s size B Lab categorizes a small businesses as a companies that “generates less than $10M USD in annual revenue and employs less than 50 full time employees”.24The certification process for small enterprises can take between three to twelve months, depending on whether the company chooses to delay certification to maximize its BIA score or applies as soon as it reaches the required minimum of 80 points.⁶⁰ The first step in the certification process is to establish a B Team, comprising internal stakeholders and partners responsible for managing the company’s certification.⁵⁹ ⁶⁰ This may include employees from finance, human resources, legal, marketing and communication, procurement, project management, senior leadership and sustainability.⁵⁹ ⁶⁰ The most critical role is that of the project manager, often referred to as the “B Keeper”, who coordinates the entire process.⁶⁰ Therefore, companies with only a few employees, only have the B Keeper as their B Team.⁶⁰ The second step of the certification process is registering for the BIA, which sets the third step, the data collection, into motion.³⁴ ⁶⁰ ⁸³ Although optional, gathering the necessary documentation is recommended, such as a list of employees, criteria for selecting socially and environmentally responsible suppliers, records of charitable donations and financial statements.¹⁶ ⁵⁹ ⁶⁰

In the fourth step, the company completes the BIA, which can take anywhere from three hours for a small business to several weeks for a larger corporation, depending on factors like the number of employees, the company’s age, locations and ease of gathering documentation. 38, 56, 59, 74, 75, 84After completing most of the BIA, companies must also fill out the DQ, which examines areas like litigation history and potential negative impacts on stakeholders as well as the environment.²⁴ ⁶⁰ ⁷⁰ The supply of supporting documentation is mandatory for each answer.¹⁶ ⁶⁰ The DQ does not impact the certification score, but it helps identify potential issues.¹⁹ ⁶⁰ Companies must disclose any formal complaints, fines or sanctions they have faced in the past five years, for example related to employee safety, environmental practices, financial reporting or political contributions.¹⁹ If any answers suggest a material negative impact, the DQ is posted on the B Lab website.¹⁹ After this step, companies should review their current score with the B Team and identify key areas for enhancement.³⁴ ⁶⁰ A baseline score of 85-90 points is recommended to leave space for potential downgrades during the further certification process.⁸⁵ Once the BIA is finalized, companies submit their BIA for review by B Lab analysts, in the following step.⁵⁹ ⁶⁴

In the sixth step, the evaluation phase, a B Lab analyst reviews the BIA and assesses the company’s eligibility for certification.³⁴ ⁶⁰ ⁸³ In this step the company is not allowed to further alter their answers in the BIA, however if the company notice an incorrect answer, they may put a comment with a new response and supporting relevant documentation on the question.⁶⁰ Also, an executive must sign the B-Corp Statement to ensure all responses were honest and accurate, along with a description of how the BIA was completed.⁶⁰ Furthermore, the analyst examines the company’s structure, its involvement in controversial industries and BIA track appropriateness as well as carrying out a preliminary scoring screening that reviews the selected IBMs in the BIA.³⁴ ⁶⁰ ⁶⁴ ⁸³ If necessary, the company may be required to answer additional questions or resubmit the BIA for further review.³⁴ ⁶⁰ ⁶⁴ ⁸³ The seventh step is the verification phase and the most intensive part of the process, which involves multiple rounds of review and might include site visits.³⁴ ⁶⁰ In this step the company has to provide further information and supporting documentation for selected responses on heavily weighted questions, so that B Lab analysts may confirm the accuracy of the assessment.²⁴ ³⁴ ⁵⁷ ⁶⁴ ⁷⁰ First the company must complete the operational highlightssection, that contains practices that it currently reports or markets publicly or that has been recently implemented to improve its impact.⁶⁰ Then B Lab assigns an analyst to work with the company, to customize the verification report and to conduct a review call to clarify responses.⁶⁰ ⁷⁰ Additional documentation, such as policies, reports and photos, may be requested to verify the BIA answers.⁶⁰ Once all questions in the verification report are fully verified, the BIA Impact score may change, as answers without supporting documentation will be deselected and negatively affect the score.⁶⁰ If the company does not achieve the minimum verified score of 80 points after that step, the analyst will offer guidance on how to improve and in some cases, companies must go through multiple rounds of review and make revisions to governance and founding documents before the certification is granted.²⁴ ⁶⁰

After this step, small businesses must have met the legal requirements, before finalizing the certification.⁶⁰ Then, the company signs the B-Corp Agreement, which is a three-page pro forma document and the Declaration of Interdependence (see chapter 3.2.4), agreeing to consider the interests of broader stakeholders.³⁴ ³⁹ ⁶⁰ ⁷⁰ ⁸³ Additionally, the company must pay an annual certification fee, which for businesses earning less than $5 million, is around $2,000 per year.⁵⁹ Afterward, the company receives its verified score and the B-Corp certification status.⁶⁴ After that, to comply with B-Corp’s transparency requirements, the company must create a public profile on the B Lab website with its achieved B Impact score.³⁴ ⁵⁹ ⁶⁰ The B-Corp is then allowed use the B-Corp logo on products, marketing materials and other platforms.⁶⁰ In the post-certification phase, the company begins to prepare for recertification, which occurs every three years.³⁴ ⁸³ Companies should start the recertification process a year in advance to allow for time to implement new practices to improve their score.⁶⁰ Maintaining B-Corp certification is an ongoing commitment, requiring businesses to revise their BIA, validate their impact score every three years and meet any legal requirements.³⁴ ⁸³ As of July 2024, companies must submit an updated BIA six months before their recertification date.³⁴ ⁶⁴ Furthermore, 10% of B-Corps are unsystematically chosen for an on-site inspection as part of the recertification process, ensuring ongoing compliance with their commitments.⁵ ³⁹ ³³

To further explain the different certification processes, the differences and similarities with the certification process for small companies are described. Companies following the certification process for small-medium businesses are categorized by B Lab as companies generating “more than $10M USD in annual revenue or employs between 50 to 250 full time employees”.³⁴ The timeline for the certification process can range from six months to a few years.⁷⁶ The first six steps in the certification process remain the same as those for small companies. However, the seventh step, the verification phase, differs slightly. Small-Medium businesses are not required to complete the operational highlights section, but they must provide initial documentation regarding their employees and suppliers. For employees, the required documentation includes the total amount employees working full-time, part-time or temporary.91Additionally, detailed information for each employee is required, such as name or identifier, employment status, hours worked per week, location of work, gender identity, hiring date, percentage of company ownership, whether the employee is under 24 or over 50 years of age, whether the employee is part of an underrepresented social group, their role within the company and whether they are still employed at the company.⁷⁶ If an employee does not work anymore for the company, the end date of their employment and the reason for their departure must also be provided.⁷⁶ For suppliers, the following information is required: the fiscal year report with the type of currency reflected, payrolled salaries and bonuses, labour benefits costs and details about independent contractors who do not work full-time.⁷⁶ For each supplier, the required information includes supplier or vendor name, location, if the supplier is situated within 50 miles of the company’s head office, the acquired product or service, total costs incurred with the supplier, the percentage of supplier expenses, if it is independently owned, how long the company has been working with the supplier, whether the majority is owned by women or underrepresented groups, whether the supplier has adopted a formal code of conduct and whether the supplier is evaluated and screened for social and environmental impact.⁷⁶ Once this documentation has been received, a B Lab analyst supports the company through the last stages of the verification phase, including the verification report, review call and IBM documentation, which is similar to the rest of the verification phase in the certification process for small enterprises.⁷⁶ Small-Medium Enterprises have up to two years, after starting the certification process, to complete the legal requirement, though it must be fulfilled at this stage in order to proceed with certification.⁷⁶ The rest of the certification process follows the same steps as for small companies.

B Lab categorizes medium businesses as companies that generate “more than $100M USD in annual revenue or employs more than 250 full time employees”.³⁴ The certification timelines for these companies range from six months to several years, similar to small-medium companies.⁸⁶ However, for medium companies, there is an additional step between step two (registration for the BIA) and step three (data collection), which involves contacting the regional B Lab organization for support in navigating the certification process.⁸⁶ Furthermore, the evaluation process differs for medium companies. The B Lab analyst focuses solely on evaluating the complex structure of the company and any controversial industries it may be involved in.⁸⁶ In the following step, during the verification phase, the company is required to provide information on employees and suppliers, similar to small-medium businesses.101Moreover, the assessment track confirmation and the preliminary scoring screen, evaluated in step six for small and small-medium enterprises, are reviewed during the verification phase for medium enterprises.⁸⁶ Apart from these differences, the verification phase remains the same as for small and small-medium companies. Medium enterprises must also meet the legal requirements within two years and before finalizing the certification, as is the case for small-medium enterprises.⁸⁶ The remaining steps in the certification process mirror those of small and small-medium enterprises. However, companies with annual revenue between $100 million and $174.9 million are required to pay an annual certification fee of approximately $30,000.⁵⁹

B Lab classifies a large businesses as a company that “generates more than $100M USD in annual revenue with 10 or more subsidiaries operating in multiple countries or generates more than $1B in annual revenue”.³⁴ The first step, building a B-Team, differs significantly for large enterprises. The B-Team must include the Chief Executive Officer (CEO), who is expected to support the project team.⁸⁵ The project team should also include leaders for investor relations, legal support, marketing and communications and a B Keeper.⁸⁵ Furthermore, if the company operates globally, it is advisable to include B-Team members from each language group.⁸⁵ After building the B-Team, the second step is not to registrate for the BIA but rather a preliminary risk review.⁸⁵ This review identifies potential risks that could impact the company’s eligibility for certification or require additional processes.⁸⁵ The first type of potential risk involves generating more than 1% of revenues from industries such as coal, pornography, casinos, weapons, tobacco or prisons.⁸⁵ A second potential risk is realistic concerns of systematic involvement in deception or human rights abuses within the past two years.⁸⁵ The third risk factor involves other significant high-risk concerns or accusations regarding key stakeholder issues that have arisen within the last two years.⁸⁵

The third step is the application for the BIA, which typically takes one to two months, where the company must complete and hand in the large enterprise and multinational application form.⁸⁵ Following this, B Lab will send an application review memo, outlining the company’s eligibility for the B-Corp certification, potential risks that might affect eligibility, possible issues during certification preparation and a customized certification pathway recommendation for the company and its subsidiaries.⁸⁵ The application fee is $2,000 for companies with $100 to $500 million in revenue, $4,000 for those with $500 million to $1 billion in revenue and $8,000 for companies exceeding $1 billion in revenue.⁸⁵ ⁸⁷ In the following steps, the company works closely with B Lab’s certification and verification team.⁸⁵

Step four is the Risk Screen, which assesses potential risks that might impact certification eligibility, including risks associated with controversial industries or practices.⁸⁵ Companies operating in such sectors are also reviewed in the industry-related risks.⁸⁵ In the next step, the eligibility review, the issues identified in the previous step are further evaluated, which may result in additional certification requirements.⁸⁵ Step six involves the BIA performance consultation, during which companies obtain tailored guidance from B Lab’s certification and verification team regarding the BIA requirements and relevant IBMs.⁸⁵ However, for most businesses, this step is optional.⁸⁵ Step seven involves subsidiary and full global group scoping, in which the company works with a member of B Lab’s certification and verification team as well as their contact from the regional B Lab organization to analyse the corporate structure, financial reporting lines and identify the required number and scope of BIA submissions.⁸⁵ This step also determines which entities of the company must fulfil the legal requirements and outlines a feasible reporting and verification timeline.⁸⁵ Subsequent steps include registration for the BIA, data collection and completion of the BIA for the company’s operations as defined in step seven.⁸⁵

In the verification phase, the B Keeper works with B Lab to validate the company’s social and environmental impacts.⁸⁵ This process involves a thorough review of documentation for related entities of the company, markets or business units.⁸⁵ The verification process may also include a virtual or onsite visit with an in-depth review of approximately 50 BIA questions, a site visit, interviews with employees and supplier background checks.⁸⁵ In step twelve, the company must meet the transparency requirements by presenting the necessary documentation, which will be made public on the company’s B-Corp profile.⁸⁵ This includes material disclosure items, statements on controversial issues, the full set of BIA questions and the company’s BIA Impact score, which will be available on B Lab Global’s website.⁸⁵ After the CEO signs the B-Corp agreement and the Declaration of Interdependence, the company must meet the legal requirements within two years of certification.⁸⁵ ⁸⁸ Then the final step is preparing for recertification and completing the recertification process, as outlined in previous certification pathways.

Multinationals are defined by B Lab as companies with a minimum of $1 billion in annual revenue.100, 103, 104Multinationals also follow the certification process of large businesses, but companies with $5 billion or more in revenue must fulfil additional baseline requirements to achieve B-Corp certification.⁸⁷ ⁸⁹ Moreover, an independent Multinational Company Standards Advisory Council (MNCSAC) evaluates and verifies a company’s actions concerning these requirements and amends the baseline requirements when necessary.⁸⁹ In total there are five baseline requirements. The first requirement, named reporting, mandates that companies produce an annual, comprehensive impact report using a third-party standard that is publicly transparent.⁸⁹ ⁸⁷ The second, materiality assessment, requires the company to conduct a transparent, regular materiality assessment and stakeholder engagement process to identify relevant megatrends and material topics and further includes a complaint mechanism.⁸⁹ ⁸⁷ The third, materiality issue management, requires transparent management strategies for the most relevant material issues, with exclusive performance objectives and demonstrated progress in that regard.⁸⁹ ⁸⁷ The fourth requirement, tax and government affairs disclosure, demands a transparent report on the company’s tax approach, practices like lobbying and overall effective tax rate.⁸⁹ ⁸⁷ Finally, the human rights policy requirement mandates a precise human rights policy, that explicitly commits to key human rights treaties or highlights the most critical human rights concerns through a human rights risk assessment.⁸⁹ ⁸⁷

Companies with an annual revenue higher than $5 billion also are required to take part in the B Movement Builders program, which imposes additional baseline requirements.⁸⁵ ⁹⁰ ⁹¹ The B Movement Builders initiative, launched by B Lab in 2020, aims to help multinational companies achieve B-Corp certification and has the potential to significantly contribute to B Lab’s Theory of Change by forming a coalition of leading multinational companies committed to certification and impact improvement.³⁰ ⁹⁰ ⁹¹ The B Movement Builders program is based on authentic credibility, scalable collaboration and impact transformation.⁹¹ The program contains a review process, divided into two steps, that evaluates if a company is meeting the baseline requirements.⁸⁹ Additionally, all companies participating in the program are obligated to establish inspiring and ambitious goals, endorsed by the MNCSAC as part of their company-specific initiatives.⁸⁹ The first step in the review process is the baseline requirement consultation, in which the company collaborates with B Lab’s standards team to better understand its strategy for meeting the baseline requirements.⁸⁹ Following this step, the company receives a flag rating (green, yellow or red) that indicates its level of compliance with the baseline requirements. A green or yellow flag signals that the company is eligible to proceed with formal review by the MNCSAC.⁸⁹ A red flag, however, indicates that the company must take further steps toward meeting the baseline requirements.⁸⁹ In the second step of the review process, the MNCSAC approval, the B Lab standards team works with the company to produce a official statement and additional documents that outline the company’s actions in relation to each requirement.⁸⁹ These documents are then evaluated in a MNCSAC meeting, where a voting decides if the flag ratings proposed by the B Lab standards team are accepted.⁸⁹ If the MNCSAC votes that the company is fulfilling all the baseline requirements, the company is qualified to complete B-Corp certification process.⁸⁹ Furthermore, the company is required to provide incremental disclosure on its B-Corp profile, detailing how it is meeting each baseline requirement.⁸⁹ If the company fails at the fulfilment of all baseline requirements, the MNCSAC supports the company by giving feedback on the necessary improvement actions.⁸⁹

Figure 5 summarizes the explained different B-Corp certification processes depending on the company’s size.

Figure 5: B-Corp certification process depending on company size

5 Best Practice Examples

5.1 Governance

In each dimension of the BIA, the highest points are mostly awarded for practices related to specific IBMs. An IBM demonstrates that a business intentionally provides a positive impact for at least one of its stakeholders.48Therefore, the following chapters highlight best practice examples from companies that have achieved high scores in these dimensions through the implementation of IBMs.

Tony’s Chocolonely, B-Corp certified since December 2013, is a Dutch chocolate company committed to advocating for equality by promoting a 100% slave-free standard in the chocolate industry.¹³ ⁹² Its mission is to make cocoa farming structurally more sustainable by eliminating child labour and other illegal labour practices in the chocolate supply chain.⁹³ As of September 2024, the company’s overall B Impact Score is 125, with 19.7 points in the governance dimension of that are 10 points awarded for their mission lock IBM.⁹² The mission lock IBM recognizes corporate structures and amendments that safeguard and legally ensure a company’s mission, consider stakeholders and integrate social and environmental performance into decision-making, regardless of ownership changes.⁹⁴ ⁹⁵

Tony’s Chocolonely has embedded its mission, sourcing principles and the legal obligation of its leadership to uphold these principles in its Articles of Association.⁹³ Going beyond the typical measures, in June 2023, the company established a new governance structure to secure its mission by creating a legally independent mission lock foundation under Dutch law.⁹³ ⁹⁶ This foundation holds a “golden share”, which is a non-economic stake in the company, allowing it to prevent any legal changes to the company’s mission, sourcing principles or other mission-related articles.⁹³ The mission lock foundation is overseen by three independent Mission Guardians who have no other stakes in the company than the “golden share”.⁹³ ⁹⁶ Even though the first set of guardians was appointed by Tony’s Chocolonely’s supervisory board for a maximum term of four years, future guardians will be selected by the current Mission Guardians, ensuring their independence from shareholders.⁹⁶ While the Mission Guardians do not have veto power to block potential sales or restructuring, they will be notified in advance and Tony’s Chocolonely is prohibited from cancelling or converting the “golden share” into another class of shares.⁹⁶

The responsibility of the mission guardians is to protect the mission, act as representatives of Tony’s Chocolonely’s mission, serve as a point of contact for stakeholder concerns and ensure that the company’s mission is consistently reflected in its daily operations.⁹³ ⁹⁶ Therefore, the mission and sourcing principles cannot be amended without the approval of the Mission Guardians, who must first obtain written approval from Tony’s Chocolonely’s supervisory Board.⁹³ ⁹⁶ For instance, any stakeholder can anonymously raise serious concerns about mission drift by contacting the Mission Guardians via mail.⁹³ If such concerns arise, the guardians will work with the leadership team and supervisory board to resolve the issue within two months.⁹³ In extreme cases, where no resolution is reached within two months or if an agreed solution is not implemented within six months, the guardians will publicly report these concerns in the company’s annual impact report, through international full-page newspaper advertisements and may refer the matter for legal investigation and arbitration.⁹³ Consequently, this mechanism led by the Mission Guardians is designed to irrevocably safeguard Tony’s Chocolonely’s impact for as long as the company exists, irrespective of its shareholder structure, thereby serving as a best practice for the mission lock IBM.⁹⁶

5.2 Workers

BioCarbon Partners Limited has been B-Corp certified since July 2017 and is a leading forest carbon offset development company and conservation organization in Africa.⁹⁷ ⁹⁸ Its mission is to conserve wildlife and habitats by securing sustainable funding through forest carbon markets, coupled with extensive community engagement.111, 112Moreover, in 2021 and 2022, the company was awarded the “Best for Workers” B-Corp award.⁹⁹ Through its workforce development IBM, BioCarbon Partners Limited gained 28.9 extra points in the workers dimension of the BIA, achieving a total of 63.2 points in this area and a current overall B Impact Score of 154.8 points (as of September 2024).⁹⁷ The Workforce Development IBM recognizes targeted hiring programs and practices that focus on chronically underemployed populations.⁹⁵

BioCarbon Partners Limited supports the conservation of over one million hectares of wildlife habitats in Zambia, benefitting around 238,405 people.¹⁰⁰ In Zambia, rural communities rely heavily on forests for their livelihoods, but widespread poverty contributes to deforestation due to the scarcity of formal employment opportunities.¹⁰⁰ ¹⁰¹ In collaboration with 5,875 community members from the Bunda Bunda Chiefdom and the Soli Shamifwi Royal Establishment, BioCarbon Partners Limited’s projects promote sustainable land-use practices that conserve forests and wildlife while simultaneously investing in rural communities.¹⁰¹ Furthermore, the company generates revenue by selling carbon offsets, which is reinvested into the local Zambian communities, providing sustainable livelihoods and improving access to education, healthcare and clean water.⁹⁸ Additionally, BioCarbon Partners Limited supports the community by generating income opportunities through projects funded by Forest Carbon Fees.¹⁰⁰ The company employs over 200 people across seven sites in Zambia, creating local employment and jobs that support the protection of their environment.⁹⁹ ¹⁰⁰ Moreover, through its projects, BioCarbon Partners Limited has improved the skills and knowledge of around 3,247 community members by offering training programs.¹⁰² For example they offer a program that focuses on horticulture, which is particularly beneficial as it diversifies land use and creates an additional income stream for partner farmers.¹⁰² To maximize the potential of climate finance and carbon offset projects in contributing, it is crucial that communities, who are most vulnerable to the impacts of climate change, are empowered with the resources to make decisions on how to secure their basic needs.¹⁰² Through climate finance and Village Loan Savings Groups, initiated by BioCarbon Partners Limited, financial services are made accessible to marginalized communities, allowing them to build bankable credit and integrate into formal economies, thus opening new revenue streams.¹⁰²

Women in Africa are especially vulnerable to poverty due to lower human capital accumulation, social injustices and their marginalization in policy-making and decision-making processes.¹⁰² Therefore, their work often falls under the informal economy or unpaid domestic duties.¹⁰² Although African women are the main producers and processors of food, they frequently face limited access to land and agricultural resources, thereby exacerbating their income insecurity.¹⁰² Additionally, gender gaps regarding access to credit and property further perpetuate women’s financial exclusion and poverty.¹⁰² To address these challenges, BioCarbon Partners Limited trains women in farming techniques, empowering them to become decision-makers in cash crop agriculture.¹⁰² Moreover, the company provides access to agricultural inputs, credit and technologies, providing women with enhanced chances to grow their businesses, engage with supply chains, and become formal part of the economy.¹⁰² As a result, women can access larger-scale loans and business ventures.¹⁰² BioCarbon Partners Limited further promotes conservation farming, which minimizes tillage, utilizes crop rotation and significantly reduces labour time.¹⁰² This approach helps women spend fewer hours farming while producing higher yields, thereby reducing the burden on female-led households, especially during peak planting times.¹⁰²

Overall, BioCarbon Partners Limited’s initiatives positively impact household income, job creation and the provision of essential services, all while conserving African landscapes, therefore showing a best practice example in the workforce development IBM. These efforts have strengthened the livelihoods of over 50,578 households, leading to a 220% increase in average household income in Kwacha between 2016 and 2022.¹⁰² ¹⁰³

5.3 Community

Fairphone is a mobile phone manufacturer, B-Corp certified since April 2015, striving to create a fairer supply chain for electronics.¹⁰⁴ ¹³ The company’s overall B Impact Score is 122.4, with 49.1 points in the community dimension, of which are 29.4 points for the supply chain poverty alleviation IBM (as of September 4th 2024), that focuses on companies reducing poverty in their supply chain through by promoting fair trade practices, fostering favourable labour conditions and assisting underserved.¹⁰⁴ ¹⁰⁵

Fairphone is committed to sustainable and fair sourcing for all 14 key minerals used in its products.¹⁰⁶ Its bottom-up fair sourcing approach actively involves stakeholders along the supply chain to identify areas for improvement and maximize positive impact.¹⁰⁶ Although the mining sector presents significant social and environmental challenges, it remains essential to developing economies, providing livelihoods for millions globally.¹⁰⁶ Therefore, Fairphone’s approach is to identify good practices, certifications and initiatives in mining and encourage suppliers to source from these, ultimately driving demand for fair materials.¹⁰⁶ Where fair mining sources do not exist, the company works with international and local organizations to develop such.¹⁰⁶ Through initiatives, like the Uganda Gold project, Fairphone strengthens mining communities and works to reduce the prevalence of child labour in the sector.¹⁰⁷

Fairphone collaborates with suppliers and sub-suppliers through initiatives such as surveys, feedback sessions as well as facility improvements and offers bonuses of up to one month’s extra salary to sub-suppliers of components who are paid the minimum wage.¹⁰⁷ Moreover, Fairphone’s code of conduct outlines expectations for human rights, health and safety, environmental standards and ethical sourcing for partners and suppliers.¹⁰⁶ These requirements are incorporated into all contracts with direct suppliers and Fairphone incentivizes improvements by offering higher product prices for enhanced social and environmental impact.¹⁰⁶ Additionally, the company has established a co-investment fund to improve supply chain conditions.¹⁰⁶ Compliance is monitored through supplier self-assessment questionnaires, on-site visits, independent audits and worker satisfaction surveys.¹⁰⁶ Fairphone extends its reach beyond the final assembly manufacturer, requesting assessments and creating risk and opportunity ratings for critical component suppliers.¹⁰⁶ When violations of their standards are identified, Fairphone works with suppliers to implement mitigation strategies.¹⁰⁶ Furthermore, Fairphone sets high social compliance standards, particularly for its key supplier, the final assembly manufacturer.¹⁰⁶ This supplier has implemented the Clean Electronics Production Network’s tool for safe chemical management and has received certification for sustainable management, such as SA8000, ISO 14001, ISO 45001 and ISO 50001.120,14 It has also been audited against the BSCI standard to ensure healthy working conditions.¹⁰⁶ To further enhance the protection of employees and the environment, Fairphone implements a list of forbidden substances across all suppliers and is a founding signatory of the Toward Zero Exposure Commitment Program, which aims to eliminate chemical hazards in the electronics supply chain.¹⁰⁶

In response to low wages paid to workers preventing them from accessing essentials such as food, healthcare and education, Fairphone collaborates with production partners, labour rights experts and non-governmental organizations to implement innovative programs.¹⁰⁷ ¹⁰⁸ In 2019, they introduced the first living wage program in the electronics sector, providing a $1.85 bonus to factory workers per Fairphone 3 and 3+ produced, additionally to the regular wages, to provide instead of the minimum wage, a living wage that guarantees a adequat standard of living to the employee and its family.¹⁰⁷ ¹⁰⁸ The program has improved workers’ livelihoods, reduced the need for excessive overtime and increased job satisfaction and retention.¹⁰⁷ ¹⁰⁸ In July 2020, Fairphone revised its bonus system by distributing the bonus on a monthly basis rather than quarterly, offering a higher bonus to lower-earning workers along with eliminating the requirement that workers must be employed at the factory for at least three months to be eligible for the bonus.122Currently, workers receive a $1.99 bonus per Fairbuds XL and Fairphone 4 produced.¹⁰⁷ Additionally, Fairphone actively lobbies for the inclusion of living wages in the EU Directive on Corporate Sustainability Due Diligence and has published guides to help industry peers implement living wages in their supply chains.¹⁰⁶ ¹⁰⁷ ¹⁰⁹ Also, Fairphone participates in the Clean Electronics Production Network, the Responsible Business Alliance and the Living Wage Lab to promote safe working conditions and living wages in global supply chains.¹⁰⁷

As Fairphone adopts multiple practices on how to mitigate poverty and implement fair working conditions throughout their whole supply chain, their practices serve as a best practice example for the supply chain poverty alleviation IBM.

5.4 Environment

Seventh Generation, is a subsidiary of Unilever and one of the pioneering members of the B-Corp community, that is certified since May 2007.27, 38, 124 It is a brand of home and personal care products that aims to safeguard human health and the environment.¹¹⁰ Their overall B Impact Score is 114.5, with 44.9 points in the environmental dimension and 12.0 points attributed to their IBM for toxin reduction/remediation (as of September 4th 2024).¹¹⁰ This IBM applies to companies whose products or services reduce or remediate toxins or pollution.⁹⁴

Seventh Generation is committed to promoting healthier, more sustainable products across the industry, with a goal of eliminating all chronic toxins from their products by 2025.125 They are also tackling the global plastic waste issue through their “Zero-Waste Revolution” initiative, which envisions a future where all their products and packaging are made from renewable or recycled materials.¹¹¹ This effort reduces waste, diverts materials into new products and minimizes negative environmental impact.¹¹¹ Currently, most of their plastic bottles are produced from 100% post-consumer recycled (PCR) content.¹¹¹ In 2022, 75% of the plastic used in their packaging came from PCR materials, with 1% biobased and only 24% from virgin plastic.¹¹² By 2025, the company aims to eliminate 75% of virgin plastic use, with one-third of this decrease achieved through innovations that disrupt single-use solutions and they aim for all packaging to be sourced from PCR or biobased materials.¹¹¹ ¹¹² To meet their zero-waste packaging goal, Seventh Generation is redesigning packaging systems.¹¹² For instance, they have re-engineered laundry detergent and fabric softener packaging to be 100% PCR, reduced the weight of these products and shifted to more concentrated formulations.¹¹² They have also reduced plastic usage by 83% for their Oxy Booster Packs by switching to stand-up pouches, though this requires in-store recycling instead of curb side options.¹¹² Additionally, 50% of their laundry detergent packaging will shift to non-plastic alternatives.¹¹¹

Recognizing that 97% of their packaging is already recyclable, Seventh Generation acknowledges the challenge of ensuring these materials are actually recycled, as many labelled recyclables still end up in landfills.¹¹¹ To address this, they provide recycling drop-off locations for plastic films and bags and are working to expand access to reliable recycling programs for their consumers.¹¹¹ Moreover, all their products carry the How2Recycle logo, designed to make recycling easier for customers.¹¹¹ They are also lobbying to improve access to recycling, aiming to provide more consumers with consistent and reliable recycling programs.¹¹¹ The company is further exploring compostable packaging and reusable or refillable product designs to reduce waste.¹¹¹

Seventh Generation’s sustainability efforts extend beyond packaging to the ingredients used in their products. They are committed to ensuring that by 2025 100% of their ingredients are either sustainable, bio-based or recycled.¹¹¹ As part of this initiative, they aim to replace 30% of the palm kernel oil they currently use with non-land-use, bio-based oils.126Their products are also becoming more compact, which reduces the resources needed for production and transportation.¹¹¹ Additionally, Seventh Generation has made significant progress in eliminating chronic toxins from their products. Since 2013, they have reduced the amount of chronic toxins by 98%, focusing on harmful chemicals, such as boric acid, Methylisothiazolinone, Octylisothiazolinone and 1,2-benzisothiazol-3-(2H)-one.¹¹² Their products have not contained boric acid since 2018 and they have reduced the presence of the other mentioned chemicals to less than 0.005% of total product mass, particularly in their laundry and dish cleaning products.¹¹² They continue to collaborate with suppliers to further reduce these chemicals and they are committed to achieving their goal of zero chronic toxins across all product lines by 2025.¹¹²

Overall, their practices on reducing pollution through packaging as well as on the consumers end and their focus on environmentally friendly, non-toxic ingredients and product design, represent a best practice for the toxin reduction/remediation IBM.

5.5 Customers

Clean Yield, B-Corp certified since April 2011, is a pioneering member of B-Corps and a leader in the field of socially responsible investing (SRI).⁷ ¹¹³ Their overall B impact score is 157.8, with 55.9 points in the customer dimension, off which 19.7 points (as of September 4th 2024) are achieved through the IBM investment criteria that encompasses processes, policies and practices for evaluating the social and environmental aspects of investments.¹¹³ ¹¹⁴

Sustainable investing is central to Clean Yield’s mission, as they seek to combine financial returns with positive societal and environmental impacts.¹¹⁵ Therefore, Clean Yield has developed a long-term investment strategy focused on diversified portfolios of high-quality stocks and bonds, enhanced by impact investments.¹¹⁶ Their approach includes SRI, impact investing, proxy voting and shareholder activism to ensure portfolios align with client values and drive meaningful change.¹¹⁵ By integrating these strategies, Clean Yield ensures that investments are not only financially rewarding but also support a more sustainable planet, providing expert guidance and tailored solutions throughout the sustainable investing process.¹¹⁵ Moreover, the company integrates a firm’s ESG profile into its analysis of financial prospects and stock valuation and their sustainable asset management approach is client-centred and collaborative, offering public equity investments that provide clients with diversified market exposure aligned with sustainable investment criteria.¹¹⁶

SRI forms the foundation of Clean Yield’s investment strategy. By incorporating environmental and social factors, they select companies that uphold high ethical standards.¹¹⁵ ¹¹⁷ The first step of their sustainability screening process is the evaluation, where the company starts by applying negative screens to eliminate companies engaging in harmful activities and then after passing the negative screens the company assesses positive screens to ensure social and environmental contributions.¹¹⁵ ¹¹⁷ Clean Yield excludes companies involved in fossil fuel extraction, weapons production, tobacco, animal testing, fur production, factory farming, gambling, payday lending, for-profit degree programs, discrimination, the prison industrial complex, support for repressive regimes, problematic surveillance and environmental injustice.¹¹⁷ Positively evaluated companies are excelling in areas such as public ESG reporting, beneficial products and services, diversity, equity and inclusion, community engagement, employee well-being, global responsibility, strong governance and environmental stewardship.¹¹⁷ The second step is reporting, where direct the engagement with companies provides additional information to complete evaluations and then salient findings are compiled into a sustainability research report.¹¹⁷ The third step is the approval, where the research team evaluates the findings from the step before and if they align with Clean Yield’s criteria, the sustainability research report is combined with the investment report and presented to the investment committee for final acceptance.¹¹⁷ The fourth step is monitoring, where they conduct annual reviews and ad hoc monitoring of companies guarantee ongoing adherence and recognize possible risks.¹¹⁷ The last step is the removal, where if a company does not fulfil the criteria anymore, Clean Yield engages with the company and may remove it from their buy list if improvements are not made.¹¹⁷

Clean Yield also offers private impact investments, which go beyond SRI by focusing on catalytic investments that deliver significant societal and environmental benefits.¹¹⁵ ¹¹⁶ These investments are incorporated into client portfolios when aligned with risk tolerance and liquidity needs.¹¹⁵ ¹¹⁶ Impact investing involves placing capital in companies that achieve both social and environmental values alongside financial returns.¹¹⁶ These investments support mission-driven enterprises by providing them with affordable patient capital, which is crucial for their growth and impact.131Clean Yield offers clients the opportunity to support local communities through community impact investments.133Additionally, Clean Yield focuses on identifying alternative impact investments that drive positive environmental and social impact.¹¹⁸ Clean Yield’s impact investments especially focus on areas such as regenerative agriculture, community development, clean energy, social justice and sustainable forestry.¹¹⁵ ¹¹⁸ All investments are made on a non-discretionary basis, requiring client approval in advance.¹¹⁸ While some impact investments may yield lower financial returns, they generate substantial social and environmental value.¹¹⁸ Clean Yield ensures that clients understand the risks and returns associated with each impact investment.¹¹⁸

To summarize, their high standards in SRI and their impact investing efforts Clean Yield’s practices serve as a best practice example for the investment criteria IBM.

6 Drivers and Barriers

6.1 Management

B-Corps provide an innovative model to balance the dimensions of the TBL, thereby offering multiple advantages for businesses focused on sustainability, leading to greater success for B-Corps. However, they still must overcome certain obstacles, that are hindering their success.

One primary driver for obtaining B-Corp certification is the protection of a company’s mission, as B-Corps, unlike other third-party certified companies, harmonize their dual mission by leveraging, measuring, monitoring and communicating their mission.³⁹ ⁴³ Especially through their legal requirement, B-Corps ensure the protection of their mission.¹³ Accordingly, most B-Corps perceive no inherent conflict between profit and purpose, viewing profits as a means to achieve purpose.³⁹ This approach allows for more balanced decision-making when considering trade-offs across the TBL dimensions, without prioritizing one over the other, which also minimizes tensions in financial resource allocation.³⁹ ⁵¹ Overall, the certification acts as a safeguard, mitigating mission drift by keeping the company’s focus on its environmental and social goals while maintaining financial stability, through its profit with purpose approach.¹⁴ ⁴⁹

Another key driver for B-Corp certification is the third-party authenticity and the external validation it provides, enhancing the legitimacy and credibility of the company in the eyes of stakeholders, which is reinforced by clear communication of the company’s mission, signalling to stakeholders that the business is not engaging in greenwashing but is genuinely committed to making a positive impact.²⁶ ⁴⁹ ⁷ Moreover, this fosters transparency and trust, attracting employees and investors whose values are aligned with the company’s mission.⁴⁹ However, studies have shown that not all certified companies fully disclose their certification status to external stakeholders.⁶² A review of 25 B-Corp websites revealed that many fail to provide specific details about how they engage with stakeholders or the exact impact of their business practices, with most information confined to their B-Lab profile pages.¹⁹ ¹¹⁹ Despite that, the B-Corp status provides a visible way to classify and validate the company’s commitment to sustainability, thereby acting as a hallmark or trademark, indicating that the company upholds stakeholder engagement, best governance practices and sustainable environmental policies.⁴⁹ ³⁹ Consequently, B-Corp certification instils confidence in the company’s social and environmental performance.²⁶

Another significant driver for B-Corp certification is the differentiation it provides from companies making less authentic sustainability claims, particularly those focused solely on shareholder value maximization or engaging in greenwashing.⁵⁴ ³ ⁶² By signalling their social and environmental performance, B-Corps are better positioned in competitive markets, gaining approval from consumers, investors and business partners.²⁶ ²⁰ ⁶² However, in regions where B-Corps are more common, this distinction may be less impactful as a promotional tool.²⁵ ¹¹⁹

Furthermore, a driver for B-Corps on the management level is the reputational benefit that the certification provides, as placing themselves in a visible category, enhances credibility to their commitments, thereby improving their image and legitimacy as well as gaining networking and financial advantages.²⁶ ⁵ ³³ Therefore, B-Corps are gaining more media presence and attract attention from academics, practitioners and policymakers, as these organizations are viewed as credible purpose-driven entities contributing to a more sustainable world.¹³ ⁴² In that regard, the certification does not always indicate a management’s interest in all sustainability issues, as some companies pursue the B-Corp certification for instrumental reasons, such as enhancing their reputation, building networks with important entrepreneurs or easily entering markets by being a part of the B-Corp community.40However, mission-driven companies with enhanced reputation in CSR may invite greater scrutiny from social activists, who tend to hold these organizations to higher standards than their profit-driven counterparts.⁷⁰

Additionally, over the years B-Corps attracted larger, multinational corporations, as the certification increasingly encourages companies to adopt stakeholder-driven governance models and participate in the broader B-Corp network.⁴⁹ Despite this trend, mainstream adoption of the B-Corp certification among large, publicly traded companies remains limited.³⁹ Many larger firms, while supportive of B-Corp values, remain focused on financial returns and view B-Corp certification as less compelling.³⁹ Also, some multinational corporations, such as Nespresso and BrewDog, have attracted criticism despite obtaining B-Corp certification due to their controversial histories with social and environmental issues, like low wages, child labour and a harmful work environment.18This potentially undermines the credibility and authenticity of B-Corps.⁵⁴

B-Corp certification often is associated with sales growth, with companies achieving higher B Impact scores typically experiencing greater growth compared to those with lower scores.⁷ ²² However, the primary expenses extend beyond the initial application and annual certification fees, the major costs arise from aligning with BIA standards, which often necessitates changes to production, sales, supplier relationships and internal processes.⁵⁴ ⁶² This can divert management’s focus from growth-oriented activities, resulting in reduced sales growth for some companies, particularly smaller and younger ones that lack the internal capacity to manage the demands of certification, making them slowdown in the year after certification compared to other firms that have not yet been certified.⁵⁴ ⁶² Moreover, through the certification, B-Corps get a lot of attention early from others that may lead to either being distracted from working on opportunities or dividing their precious time and energy instead of focusing on the viability of the business.⁶¹ This suggests that limited management attention, combined with the complexity of the certification process, hampers growth efforts.⁶² Still some organizations, focusing on the environmental and social impact, still perceive the B-Corp certification as valuable, even if there is a downside to growth.⁶² ¹²⁰ In contrast, another study shows, that B-Corps saw improvements in sales and employee growth, though not in asset growth, indicating that the effects of certification vary by region.⁵⁴ ¹²¹ Moreover, a multi-country analysis found that, while B-Corps generally exhibit higher revenue growth than non-B-Corps, this however comes with greater revenue volatility.⁵⁴ ²² Overall, the financial performance of B-Corps can vary in the short term, with both positive and negative effects observed, but in the long term, B-Corps are expected to achieve more stable financial performance.²² ⁷⁰ External signalling mechanisms take time to propagate, resulting in positive long-term rather than short-term growth effects.⁶²

Moreover, B-Corps have also demonstrated resilience during periods of economic instability, by showing a stable financial performance.⁷⁰ Research shows that B-Corps were more likely to survive the financial crisis in the U.S. compared to their non-certified counterparts and they continue to show higher survival rates than average small businesses.⁵⁴ ⁷ ⁷⁰ Moreover, they have a similar financial performance as their competitors in the private sector, even though they have to invest a lot in their CSR practices.⁵⁴ ⁷

The financial performance of B-Corps presents a mixed picture, on the one hand it is said that debt-financed B-Corps tend to underperform relative to their non-certified peers, with higher leverage exacerbating the negative impacts of certification.⁵⁴ On the other hand, the B-Corps mitigate the negative effects of higher financial leverage as research indicates that they are less adversely affected by high debt levels compared to non-B-Corps.³⁶ Moreover, their prosocial behaviour, signalled through certification, can offset some of the financial risks associated with leverage.³⁶ In fact, B-Corps with higher levels of debt experience more favourable outcomes in terms of sales growth and employee costs than their traditional counterparts.³⁶ While an adverse relationship of sales growth and leverage is obvious for companies that are not B-Corps, this is the opposite for, especially equity-financed, B-Corps, since customer loyalty, driven by CSR engagement, counterbalances the risks related with high leverage.18, 59This advantage is particularly relevant given the growing prominence of SRI, which has prompted lenders to offer more favourable financing options to B-Corps, seen as lower risk due to their commitment to sustainability.³⁶

The rigorous and time-intensive nature of certification, along with ongoing recertification requirements, can be a barrier for B-Corps, particularly for smaller firms.⁵⁴ ⁶² Only about 7.5% of companies achieve B-Corp certification and the process can take months or even years to complete.³ ⁷⁰ As a result, around 34% of firms cancel their certification during the later stages of the process, finding the demands too rigorous.⁵⁴ ²⁹ Additionally, the update of BIA content, which focuses on ongoing enhancement, will inevitably lead to score variations for B-Corps.²³ Many companies struggle to reach the 80-point threshold for recertification and those that fail, despite improving practices beyond their original rating or because of struggling to keep pace with social and environmental changes, may find these updates unsettling or discouraging.⁶¹ Ultimately, approximately one-third of B-Corps decertify but continue to uphold prosocial practices initiated during certification.²⁹ ⁶¹ These companies, rather than adhering to updated B Lab requirements, chart their own path, often finding it difficult to keep up with B Lab’s rising standards.⁶¹

A key reason for pursuing B-Corp certification is the emphasis on its required continuous improvement.³⁶ ¹¹⁹ The certification process is an ongoing process and encourages companies to assess their social impact, identify risks and opportunities and improve their BIA score over time.⁵⁴ ⁶³ ¹²² While B-Corps may not make incremental updates to individual practices, they often reconfigure their prosocial impact strategies as a whole.136Even though, companies often emphasize that they identify with the B-Corps model as their practices were already in place, with certification mainly serving as a way to document and formalize them, the certification process still prompts all B-Corps to review their strategies and practices.³⁹ Although the iterative nature of the process allows opportunities for aligning with evolving practices, it can obscure internal and external perceptions, masking attention deficits as opportunity costs.⁶¹ ⁶² ¹²³ Moreover, some companies only make minimal adjustments and benefit from the B-Corp label without meaningfully improving their social or environmental impact.⁶ ⁵² ⁶¹ Therefore, scholars have criticized the certification for not driving companies to pursue more transformative solutions to societal challenges and only recognizes the effort of those companies as making their impact less harmful.²⁶ ⁶ ²⁵

6.2 Employees

Employees increasingly consider a company’s social and environmental performance when evaluating job offers.⁷ ⁷⁰ This shift in values is particularly significant among the generation of Millennials, whose purchasing power and preference for mission-driven companies are increasing.¹³ ⁷⁰ Millennials, that are projected to make up 75% of the workforce by 2025, desire to align their personal and corporate values, thereby looking for a work-life integration.¹³ ⁷⁰ Moreover, academic institutions support B-Corps, for example through offering loan forgiveness for graduates that progressed to work for B-Corps.¹³ Thus, B-Corps can leverage their certification to attract talent by aligning their values with this generation’s social and environmental priorities.⁴⁹ ⁷⁰ In that cause, recruitment and socialization practices serve as a micro-level strategy for managing tensions and preventing mission drift.⁴⁹ Furthermore, B-Corps effectively attract suitable and talented candidates, even in competitive labour markets, by highlighting their certification in job postings and interviews.⁴⁹ ³⁶ Some candidates specifically seek B-Corps, while others may be unfamiliar with the certification, but it often sparks meaningful discussions that draw in individuals aligned with the company’s social or environmental mission.⁴⁹ Moreover, employees drawn to B-Corps for their social and environmental impact are sometimes even willing to accept lower wages in exchange for more meaningful work.³⁹ Many B-Corps prioritize intrinsic motivation and personal values when selecting employees, thereby fostering internal value alignment and commitment to the company’s sustainability goals.⁴⁹ ³⁹

A barrier B-Corps face is finding employees who can effectively balance profit and purpose. Applicants may be either too commercially oriented or overly idealistic, making it difficult to find a good fit for the dual-purpose nature of B-Corps.⁴⁹ Moreover, while high salaries can help attract qualified employees, they may reduce the assets to achieve a positive social or environmental impact, potentially making the organization less appealing to social investors.⁴⁹ ¹²⁴ Internal tensions may also arise when employees compare their salaries to those in other companies.³⁹ Although B-Corps emphasize purpose and sustainability, some employees may still prioritize financial compensation, underscoring the need for clear communication about the trade-offs between purpose-driven work and lower financial rewards.³⁹ Consequently, even in mission-driven companies, self-interest remains a factor, as employees expect competitive compensation for their contributions.³⁹

Additionally, B-Corps often provide employees with ownership rights or other forms of participation in decision-making, promoting deeper engagement and strengthening the relationship with both internal and external stakeholders, thereby contributing to the company’s overall success.⁵ ⁶⁶ Employee ownership and participation in decision-making also help build stronger psychological contracts between workers and companies, particularly in competitive environments where job security and traditional employment benefits are declining.⁶⁶ Therefore, B-Corps have an increased likelihood to share employee engagement because they are committed to higher standards.⁶⁶ Consequently, despite offering lower salaries, employees in B-Corps tend to remain committed to the company’s mission, leading to lower turnover rates due to higher employee satisfaction, thereby saving resources.25, 84Additionally, B-Corps foster employee engagement through various practices such as wellness initiatives, workforce diversity and employee benefits, which are measured and published through the BIA.⁷⁰ Moreover, this inspired many companies to pursue greater workforce diversity, including diversity in ethnicity, gender and skills.⁴⁹ One B-Corp, for example, acknowledged its predominantly white and male staff but set goals to transition toward greater inclusivity, partly due to the influence of B-Corp standards.⁴⁹

On the downside, B-Corps’ employee productivity does not significantly differ from that of non-B-Corps, despite their commitment to CSR.⁵⁴ This discrepancy may be attributed to the fact that non-B-Corps can reduce their workforce during economic downturns, while B-Corps have maintained or increased their number of employees.⁵⁴ This highlights the costliness of maintaining a CSR commitment, particularly when compared to the more flexible labour practices of non-certified companies.⁵⁴

6.3 Customers

As social and environmental issues are more pressing and markets are increasingly competitive, consumers are progressively showing a preference for sustainable products or services from companies that balance profit with societal and environmental contributions.27, 28, 47, p.1451 Many are even willing to pay a premium for such offerings.⁷ ⁷⁰ Thus, achieving the B-Corp status can be viewed as a strategic branding initiative.⁷ Therefore, B-Corps typically demonstrate a higher return on assets compared to large public companies, particularly during economic downturns, as consumers show greater interest in sustainable and environmentally friendly products and have an increased tendency to pay higher prices for them.³⁸ ⁹

Despite its potential, B-Corp certification remains relatively unknown among consumers, which may deter customers and complicate its adoption by business owners, making the pursuit of certification both risky and costly.¹⁸ ²⁵ ⁴³ Moreover, consumer awareness and understanding of certified labels are limited, resulting in consumer confusion.²⁷ ⁶¹ Including the complexity of visual and functional features and the presence of various rival signals at the time of purchase, results in low consumer-oriented labelling value.²⁷ ⁶¹ Furthermore, consumers often perceive little difference between competing labels, diminishing their influence on purchasing decisions.51Initially, the short-term benefits of B-Corp certification may be minimal due to its low visibility, even among consumers aware of social and environmental issues.³ As public awareness grows, however, B-Corps face increasing scrutiny and scepticism from cost-conscious and environmentally conscious consumers, combined with challenges in balancing consumer demand with affordability.⁴⁵

Certifications provide stakeholders, like consumers, with crucial information regarding a company’s positive social and environmental impacts as well as any harm it may cause.⁶¹ Consequently, in an environment of misleading certifications and labels, B-Corps offer a trustworthy alternative due to their rigorous certification process, which ensures transparency and accountability, distinguishing them from less impactful competitors.³⁸ ⁷⁰ As a result, consumers are motivated to buy from B-Corps because they perceive these companies as genuinely and effectively benefiting society and the environment, owing to their credibility.²⁰ Additionally, due to their credibility, consumers are driven to support B-Corps because they want these companies to grow and succeed.²⁰

B-Corp certification is also driven by customer loyalty, resulting from a created bond between consumers and companies that genuinely contribute to societal well-being, as consumers view their purchases as an opportunity to support positive change.⁷ This loyalty stems not only from the perceived social and environmental benefits but also from consumers’ desire to be seen as contributing positively to society.²⁰ Such loyalty helps mitigating the risks associated with high leverage for B-Corps.⁵⁴ ³⁶ While consumers value ethical considerations, they also seek high quality, exclusive design, an improved quality of life and convenience, particularly through online access.²⁰ To enhance consumer engagement, B-Corps should highlight their accreditation and ethical standards, ensuring that consumers feel self-satisfied as agents of change through responsible consumption, while also emphasizing product quality and accessibility.²⁰

6.4 Investors

Attracting investment by showcasing robust financial as well as strong social, and environmental performance offers considerable benefits for B-Corps.⁷ Therefore, the B-Corp certification can facilitate access to various financing options, including green bonds and equity financing.²² Several venture capital firms have begun investing in B-Corps and have even pursued B-Corp certification themselves, reflecting the growing interest in socially responsible businesses.⁵⁴ ⁷ Moreover, investors, particularly those focused on social impact, are closely monitoring the B-Corp trend, recognizing its market potential and an increasing number of investors are allocating funds to such companies.⁴⁹ ⁷ ¹⁶ ⁷⁰ Furthermore, providers of financial capital participating in the growth of SRI should enhance their awareness of the opportunities to create lending and investment solutions for B-Corps, as they tend to be more resilient against the negative impacts of increased leverage.³⁶ Additionally, the B-Corp label enables companies to articulate their dual purpose and clarify their hybrid nature to financiers, which often leads to better alignment between the company’s mission and the expectations of financiers, fostering collaboration with like-minded funders.25, p.1633 As a result, some investors are prepared to forgo personal financial profit in favour of social benefits, opting to invest in B-Corps due to their long-term commitment to social or environmental missions, even when traditional companies may offer superior financial performance.25, 27, 31, 87This allows B-Corps to allocate resources towards marketing, training or hiring without the immediate pressure to maximize profits.⁴⁹

Despite the growing interest in sustainable investments, awareness of B-Corp certification among traditional financial capital providers remains limited and factors such as a company’s financial health often outweigh the significance of labels or certifications.⁴⁹ Therefore, some B-Corps face challenges in accessing finance, particularly due to misunderstandings about their hybrid business model, which can be perceived as risky.⁴⁹ Moreover, B-Corps must often manage investor expectations, especially when venture capital firms prioritize exit strategies and financial returns, which may conflict with the company’s social or environmental priorities.⁷⁰ In addition, the certification also faces another dilemma, as it needs to attract more members to increase its value, but its perceived value depends on the size of its membership.⁷¹ Consequently, B-Corps prefer funding from impact investors or sustainability-focused banks, as these sources align more closely with the company’s mission and are less focused solely on financial returns, thereby mitigating the risk of mission drift.⁴⁹ Moreover, with impact investors, there is greater certainty that the investment is built on commercial capability as well as on internal motivation, whereas traditional organizations or large banks may not align with the B-Corp’s brand and mission.⁴⁹

6.5 Environment

Promoting business models that integrate clean production and sustainable consumption, such as those exemplified by B-Corps, is essential for advancing circular economy principles.³⁸ Achieving B-Corps’ sustainability objectives is heavily reliant on their commitment to circular economy principles.¹²⁵ Therefore, B-Corps actively support clean production through circular economy practices, positioning environmental protection as a competitive advantage.6, 15, p.¹⁴ Furthermore, this can encourage managers to adopt CSR strategies and seek certifications, such as B-Corp, to verify the alignment between economic performance and sustainability goals.¹⁷ Consequently, the European Commission suggests that B-Corps and SEs can drive the entrepreneurial ecosystem toward a social and circular economy.¹²⁵

The B-Corp model, as an innovative business approach, offers a framework for evaluating, measuring and monitoring social and environmental performance.¹²⁵ Therefore, the B-Corp certification guides companies toward SD and CSR activities, presenting B-Corps as a viable alternative for managing businesses with high values in the environmental dimension.¹⁷ ¹² Through their business models, B-Corps contribute to global sustainability by aligning their efforts with the SDGs.¹²⁶ ⁴⁵ A subset of B-Corps has demonstrated significant progress, particularly in SDGs 4, 5, 7, 10 and 16, outperforming their peers, especially in areas such as gender equality and ethical business practices.²⁶ Additionally, research indicates that the B-Corp certification process positively influences small and medium-sized enterprises by embedding sustainability at their core.²⁴

Despite that, B-Corps face challenges in meeting all sustainability goals, often due to limitations in technical capacity, research and development and budget constraints.⁶ Moreover, in environmentally sensitive sectors, B-Corps tend to perform better in social areas than in environmental ones, with mixed results across various SDGs.⁶ While some B-Corps contribute significantly to the SDGs, approximately 7.35% show little to no impact, particularly on issues such as poverty, diversity and climate change.²⁶ Businesses within this category either failed to acknowledge their initiatives related to the SDGs or exhibited minimal interest in making significant contributions, suggesting that in some cases, B-Corp certification does not consistently reflect substantial social and environmental impact.²⁶ Overall, limited resources and expertise prevent many B-Corps from excelling uniformly across all SDGs, often leading them to specialize in certain areas without a comprehensive strategy.²⁶ As a result, B-Corp certification does not guarantee high social and simultaneously high environmental contributions, with significant variation in performance across certified companies.²⁶

This variability within the B-Corp community raises concerns about the legitimacy and integrity of the certification, potentially encouraging greenwashing.²⁶ In this regard, also hindering the B-Corp certification is that while B-Corps are promoted as highly responsible companies, some score as low as zero in certain BIA dimensions, such as environmental performance, undermining their status as leaders in sustainability.²⁶ ⁶ Some B-Corps may excel in areas such as employee treatment while neglecting environmental issues, which can be viewed as committing the greenwashing “sin of the lesser of two evils” or the “sin of worshiping false labels”.⁶ Since greenwashing occurs when companies fail to keep or properly communicate their environmental promises, B-Corps may unintentionally contribute to greenwashing.⁶ The risks of greenwashing, along with the ambiguity of certification standards, may threaten the long-term credibility of the B-Corp network.²⁶ ⁶

Additionally, companies may aim to meet the minimum score for certification, regardless of their specific impact in various areas, allowing companies to leverage the label’s benefits without proactively advancing social and environmental objectives.²⁶ ⁶ While the B-Corp certification relates with the TBL, the BIA allows companies to prioritize certain sustainability dimensions over others, leading to only marginal improvements.9Therefore, the B-Corp certification has inherent vulnerabilities that may enable greenwashing. This creates a gap between public perception and the actual environmental impact of certified companies.⁶ Consequently, businesses should go beyond B-Corp standards and adopt ethical practices that prioritize stakeholder interests.⁵ ⁴¹ Nevertheless, it is central to acknowledge that the minimum score required for B-Corp certification is 80 points, whereas the median score for companies that are not B-Corp certified stands at 50.9 points, indicating that B-Corps typically demonstrate a significantly greater commitment to sustainability compared to traditional companies.³⁸

Another barrier for B-Corps is the absence of external accountability, since B Lab evaluates B-Corps social and environmental impact, yet B Lab itself lacks verification from outside parties regarding its accountability to stakeholders.⁵⁴

6.6 Peers

Relationships with organizations in established sectors further support B-Corps in achieving their goals.⁵¹ ¹²² Especially, peer influence plays a crucial role in shaping B-Corps’ practices, as the existence of peers encountering comparable institutional pressures affects how entrepreneurs strive to achieve their objectives.¹²² They benefit from the global B-Corp network, which connects like-minded companies to collaborate in business, scale innovations and share best practices, thereby creating a supportive infrastructure.³⁹ ⁸³ Through this benchmarking B-Corps are inspired to integrate new and improved strategies and behaviors.¹⁴ ¹²² ¹²⁷ Moreover, this sense of community fosters a shared responsibility among B-Corps to promote sustainable business practices and support others on the same path as well as putting effort into improving their performance to achieve or maintain certification.³⁹ ¹²² Therefore, the B-Corp certification serves as a mechanism to hold companies accountable for their actions, incentivizing responsible decision-making.³⁹ Consequently, as B-Corps are part of a broader social movement, they gain legitimacy and mitigate the risk of mission drift.⁴⁹

However, companies like Nespresso that are part of the B-Corp network, harm the reputation of B-Corps and present challenges to the credibility of the entire community.⁷⁰ Additionally, while benefit corporations are part of the broader B-Corp movement and are often confused with certified B-Corps, they are not required to achieve the same social and environmental criteria.⁷⁰ This discrepancy can undermine the credibility of certified B-Corps.⁷⁰

6.7 Government

Contextual factors significantly shape B-Corp adoption. For instance, women-owned businesses are more likely to certify as B-Corps, particularly in regions with weak sustainability norms.²⁵ ⁷¹ Moreover, increased unemployment rates correlate with a higher amount of B-Corps.²⁵ Overall, the adaptability of B-Corps to their environment, their ability to address tensions and their hybrid nature make them important allies for government agencies in advancing positive social change.⁴⁵

Additionally, increased regulation can sometimes hinder CSR, underscoring the importance of technological advancement and consumer awareness over regulatory measures.²⁵ ¹²⁸ Regulatory challenges include excessive legal barriers, institutional gaps, informality, political risks and outdated infrastructure.⁴⁵ For example, in Colombia, B-Corps face high costs and expenses due to complex regulations and required permits, informal economies that necessitate extensive employee training and political instability and the lack of modern technology and infrastructure further raises operational expenses, particularly in acquiring new technologies or providing services that depend on a fully developed road infrastructure.⁴⁵

Consequently, B-Corps have the potential to influence markets and society, while their transformative capacity remains limited without policy support, leading to B-Corps facing numerous tensions in emerging markets due to contextual factors and having to exert considerable effort to mitigate these challenges.⁴⁵ ⁴⁶ Therefore, B-Corps interact closely with institutional environments and appeal to policymakers to introduce regulations encouraging best practices and shape an entrepreneurial ecosystem to support companies with a strong mission.¹²⁵ Particularly, regulations that promote B-Corps and establish legal frameworks for collective ownership could foster a more inclusive form of stakeholder capitalism.⁴⁶ ¹²⁵

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