The South West is home to a plethora of outstanding organisations that go above and beyond to make a positive mark on the tech industry, society as a whole, and the planet we live on.
Whilst we know there are a multitude of dedicated businesses in the region, some of these have taken the next steps to solidify their commitments. The standardised way to do this is to become B Corp Certified. Achieving certification is no mean feat, and speaks volumes about how a business is run. We think they deserve extra recognition, so we have put together this list of South West companies who have gained their B Corp stamp of approval.
You can also find out what it means to be a B Corp, and how you can apply.
B Corp Certification is awarded by B Lab to companies that meet high standards of social and environmental performance, accountability, and transparency whilst using business as a force for good. B Corps are accelerating a global cultural shift to redefine success in business and build a more inclusive and sustainable economy.
In order to achieve and maintain certification, B Corps must complete an impact assessment, meet the B Corp legal requirement, and sign the B Corp Agreement and the Declaration of Interdependence.
How to certify as a B Corp
The first step is submitting the free B Impact Assessment (BIA), a confidential online tool used to measure, improve and verify your company’s social and environmental performance.
Next, provided you meet the required score of 80+ points on the BIA, your business must also complete the B Corp legal requirement by amending your governing documents. Once amended, the company’s Articles will be filed with Companies House and will serve to protect the company’s mission whilst empowering directors to consider wider stakeholders’ interests.
Once your BIA score is 80+ points and the Disclosure Questionnaire is complete, you can submit your assessment for review by B Lab. Once your company has met all the requirements, you will be a certified B Corp. Find out more about the certification process here.
Why certify as a B Corp?
The UK B Corp community is one of the fastest growing B Corp communities in the world. Recent research shows that B Corps out-perform their UK peers across several business metrics, including faster growth in turnover, greater levels of employee retention, engagement and diversity, as well as higher levels of innovation.
The South West is proudly home to a handful of tech and digital organisations that have been certified as B Corp – which is no mean feat – so we thought we’d take a moment to recognise some of them.
Meet some South West B Corps
ADLIB is a technology, data, marketing and creative recruitment agency with a mission and impact that goes far beyond recruitment. A trusted partner, supporting growth, change and success at pace since 2001. As a collective, they balance purpose and profit through the commitment to considering the impact of all decisions on everyone that works at ADLIB, their community, candidates they work with, clients, suppliers and the environment. They were accredited almost 3 years ago.
“We believe that B Corp should become a normal part of every company’s everyday business. We know that an inclusive workplace brings engagement, and creating an environment of involvement, respect and collaboration ultimately drives more business value. We are driven to work with clients who value all of their stakeholders. To help grow the B Corp community, I have become a B Corp Ambassador, supporting fellow B2B service providers on all things B Corp.” — Nick Dean, Chair.
Another fantastic Bristol-based organisation has recently become a certified B Corportion! BaseKit has undergone the challenging journey to demonstrate itself as a global leader in championing an inclusive, equitable, and regenerative economy.
BaseKit creates digital tools for micro-businesses across the world. The team is on a mission to democraticise tech, as Simon elaborates: “Sometimes people talk about democratising technology just in terms of ease of use. But we want technology to reach places where it might not get otherwise.”
“We are thrilled to have achieved our B Corp certification. We are on a mission to build a business that has a positive impact on people and the planet, and the certification reflects our fantastic team’s ongoing commitment to this. We will continue to embed B Corp’s principles across the business, giving careful consideration to the social and environmental issues of every decision we make.” – Simon Best, CEO at BaseKit
Ecologi is a platform for Climate Action that helps individuals, families, and businesses become Climate Positive. They reduce your carbon footprint through the funding of quality climate solutions. Ecologi is considered a market leader having funded the planting of over 25 million trees and offset nearly 950,000 tonnes of CO2e.
“Becoming a B Corp was always in our plan, the foundations of what it means to be a company that prioritises people and the planet, are so truly aligned with our values that it was essential for us to become certified. Our goal is to always keep these values in focus as we scale and grow.” — Joel, COO.
Neighbourly was one of the UK’s very first B Corporations, founded in 2014 to help businesses deliver meaningful and sustainable community investment, into thousands of locations across the UK and Ireland. By putting local impact at the heart of responsible business they can create a system that works for everyone. Since then they have grown into an award-winning, market leading CSR platform that serves some of the world’s biggest companies and supports thousands of local good causes working to improve millions of lives and preserve essential habitats.
Rocketmakers is an award-winning software agency that designs, develops, and deploys innovative software for ambitious companies.
The organisation was added to the B Corp at the beginning of 2023. Sian, Rocketmakers’, Chief People Officer, took the lead in managing the process. She tells us, “The three pillars of B Corp are People, Planet and Profit and Rocketmakers are renowned for our culture of supporting the wellbeing of our crew, alongside our involvement in a large number of impactful projects that focus on people and the planet.
“As a business we are keen to help others with the profits that we make, providing pro-bono work, as defined in our recent Collaboratorium launch, and lastly we would hope that, being a certified B Corp will help us attract like-minded clients to work with.”
SR2 is a community-driven IT Recruitment company operating within the Tech, Digital & Engineering markets in the UK, Germany & USA, approaching business in what they believe to be the right way – with a focus on their social, corporate and environmental responsibility.
“It’s a pleasure to join other likeminded businesses to continue to grow and build a more inclusive and sustainable economy. It those businesses pursuing social responsibility that are using their businesses as a force for good that inspires us and drives us on to do more with our purpose.”
Storm develops world class web applications, websites and systems for startups, scaleups and innovative corporates. Based in Bath, the team work with businesses as a tech partner to build towards investment and/or exit. Storm is another company that recently took home a SPARKie, winning our Most Innovative Use of Tech Award.
Last year they became the third company and first digital agency in Bath to become a Certified B-Corp.
“We’re incredibly proud to have been certified as a B Corp. It is a testament to the work and effort put in over many years that has built the type of business we have today. To be the first tech business of our kind in Bath and Bristol to achieve the accreditation is exceptionally gratifying. It is also the start of a journey as we work to better ourselves over the coming years.” – David Kelly, CEO at Storm
Torchbox is a 100% employee-owned, award-winning digital agency focused on not-for-profit and third sectors. The creators of Wagtail CMS, a major open-source CMS, used by the likes of the NHS, Google and NASA, the Torchbox team are experts in their field.
The accreditation comes less than a year since Torchbox announced it was financially free as part of its transition to being 100% employee-owned, and further strengthens its commitment to operating as a force for good.
“From the process we’ve been through, the B Corps I’ve met and the events I’ve been to, it feels like we are joining a club of business with energy and ambition to be a force for good.” – Olly Willans, Co-founder and Chief People and Sustainability Officer
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