Did you know that any business can use the B Impact Assessment as a benchmarking tool to measure your business’s impact in these five important areas:

  1. Employees
  2. Community
  3. Environment
  4. Governance
  5. Customers

Whether you’re going for #bcorp certification or not, these measurement tools will expose areas in need of attention to get you where you want to be. More than 150,000 businesses have taken the B Impact Assessment. This digital tool can help measure, manage, and improve positive impact performance for the environment, communities, customers, suppliers, employees, and shareholders.

This is a free service, all you need to do is register for an online account, answer a few questions, and begin the assessment. If you decide to become a certified B Corp and achieve a score of at least 80 points (out of 200), you’re well on your way. It isn’t until this juncture, that there is a scalable fee beginning at $1000.

It’s the first step in a comprehensive, globally-accepted, verified status that close to 6000 businesses have achieved. Only 1/3 of businesses that complete the assessment achieve this status and it can take up to a year to complete the process.

Those who certify have a tremendous competitive advantage in the marketplace as more and more consumers are making conscious choices about whom they want to do business with. Authenticity, transparency, and trust are key factors consumers consider as part of their buying criteria.

Consider these points from a recent Forbes article:

  • In NielsenIQ’s corporate social responsibility survey, 55% of global respondents said they are willing to pay extra for products and services from companies that are committed to positive social and environmental impact.
  • In a 2016 Neilson survey, 56% of participants said “a brand being known for its social value” was a top purchasing driver. And 53% of participants said “a brand with community commitment” was a leading purchasing driver.
  • And social responsibility even leads to employee retention. 75% of employees who engage in corporate giving programs tend to stay with the company longer.

If you’re concerned about the impact your business has on the world, but don’t know where to begin to figure it out, then I urge you to give the assessment a try.

Need help? Let me know. I’ve partnered with one of the premier B Corp Management Consulting firms that have years of experience doing this work.