A B Corp assessment, also known as the B Impact Assessment (BIA), is a comprehensive evaluation tool developed by B Lab to measure a company’s social and environmental performance. This assessment is used to determine if a company meets the rigorous standards required to become a Certified B Corporation, or B Corp.
It can be hard to know where to start to improve your company’s environmental performance. A great place to start is with B Corp.
B Corps (certified Beneficial corporations) are built by entrepreneurs who believe that the purpose of a company goes beyond making profits to creating social and environmental good.
The B Corp assessment is a free, confidential online questionnaire that allows you to examine your company’s environment, social and governance (ESG) performance, and the impact of its products or services. The assessment is part of the B Corp certification process.
Your answers to the questionnaire lead to a report in which your company is scored on various aspects of governance, social responsibility and environmental sustainability. The assessment is rigorous. It delves deep into your company’s policies, practices and activities. That is daunting but worth the effort, even if you have no intention of pursuing B Corp certification
Entrepreneurs are intrinsically motivated to protect the environment, according to a 2021 BDC study. The survey of 1,515 Canadian entrepreneurs found that 83% believe they have a responsibility to act to protect the environment. Equally striking, 82% said they have already done so.
When you do the assessment, you sharpen your thinking about which goals to pursue and how to achieve them.
Carla Heim, Director, Corporate Sustainability, BDC
Entrepreneurs are intrinsically motivated to protect the environment, according to a 2021BDC study. The survey of 1,515 Canadian entrepreneurs found that 83% believe they have a responsibility to act to protect the environment. Equally striking, 82% said they have already done so.
For example, an entrepreneur interested in reducing their company’s carbon footprintmight have thought about buying electric or hybrid vehicles but not about their supply chain. Because the assessment probes every aspect of your company’s impact, you are prompted to consider deficiencies you may not have considered. The B Corp tool is also useful for entrepreneurs who are detecting market pressures to improve—notably by reducing their use of fossil fuels—and are thus motivated to act.
“Change is not coming. It’s already here.” Heim says. “The sooner you start this journey, the more resilient your company will be.”
Consumers, governments and investors are demanding action on climate change. The risks are mostly reputational but also include rising difficulty in accessing capital. Canada is among the countries targeting net zero greenhouse gas emissions by 2050 and BlackRock, the world’s largest fund manager, is calling on business leaders to disclose a plan for how their company will cope with “a net-zero economy.” These pressures are starting to reverberate through the economy.
B Corps are typically as profitable as traditional businesses but enjoy advantages when it comes to brand differentiation and employee recruitment
However, entrepreneurs should only do projects that are