Becoming B Corp – for small(er) businesses there’s more to gain than the certification

We’re delighted to announce that Rock Agency has achieved B Corp certification, joining a network of more than 4000 businesses across 73 countries pledging to make business a force for good.

Most will be familiar with the movement and the flagship businesses that have helped make it. Some might not be aware that small businesses (classed as having less than 50 employees) can also get accredited. We thought we’d share some of the benefits we experienced in going through the process for anyone thinking they might be up for it.

We could not have been happier to receive the B Corp stamp of approval – the company it puts us in, the standard it holds us to as we continue to grow. But, what we also discovered was that the accreditation journey was just as valuable as the end goal.

Let’s not sugar coat it, accreditation isn’t easy, it takes time and resources. For us, that was about nine months of work – a substantially shorter timeframe than most; but only because we’re lucky to share an office with another B Corp, meaning much of the building-specific sustainability modifications had already been done.

The accreditation process is a valuable exercise in combing through every aspect of a business. For us, it took us on a tour through our own systems, creating opportunity to identify weaker spots and improve.

Full transparency, we’ve grown so much over the past couple of years, both as a business and as a team, and we’ve been so focused on our clients and our output it’s been easy to overlook internal systems and processes. But, by doing B Corp we were able to create and formalise company policies to a standard that not only reflects our values, but aligns with the more established business we’ve become.

Ah, the absolute satisfaction of having all those documents and policies written and organised – codes of conduct and ethics, new employee orientation information, a revised mission statement, a health and wellbeing policy, a flexible-work policy, a parental leave policy (and the list goes on). Without a doubt, we’re standing on stronger foundations than we did before by having these things in place.

We don’t want to downplay the environmental and social benefits to becoming a B Corp, or how much we’re committed to the cause. That said, there’s lots of information out there about that (most important) aspect of the movement – the B Corp website being the best place to start. We thought it might be useful for others, if considering going through accreditation, to understand that the process, though rigorous, is valuable. There’s lots to gain along the way, beyond just the certification at the end – the chance to turn inwards, reconsider and define goals, policies and culture. And after the years of working remotely, and when so much has changed for workplaces, it also feels like an ideal time to do it.