Rachel Gilley, CEO of Clarity Global: “Becoming a Certified B Corporation was both a challenging and rewarding journey. It wasn't easy, and nor should it be. While we were strong in areas like environmental and social impact, the certification process revealed where we could do better, and that’s the beauty of it. Our clients value knowing we operate at the highest ethical levels, and it’s equally important for our team to see we’re driven by meaningful principles. Just in the past six months, we’ve seen a massive increase in talent specifically searching out B Corp opportunities, as they seek to be part of a business that aligns with their world-view. It was a two-year journey, and I'm incredibly proud of our team for making it happen.”

Paul MacKenzie-Cummins, founder and managing director at Clearly PR: “When Clearly became a B Corp in 2021, we were only the sixth PR agency in the UK to gain certification. There was little awareness of what being a B Corp meant, but that quickly changed a year later when it graduated from being a moment into a full-blown movement.

“We began to see the benefits of this for ourselves within a year of certification. Clearly PR’s profile as an employer of choice was elevated, and we estimate that this has saved the agency around £10,000-£15,000 a year in recruitment fees.

“By the end of 2023, our average contract value had seen a 63% increase and it tipped the balance in our favour when pitching new clients. This would all suggest that I should be B Corp’s biggest fan, but that is not the case.

“My concern is the growing number of PR agencies jumping onto the B Corp bandwagon and failing to communicate their sustainability and social commitments in ways that demonstrate best practice. Just look at LinkedIn, this B Corp Month has seen agency after agency pump out meaningless and identikit statements such as: ‘Being a B Corp is more than a certification; it’s a commitment to ensuring we’re a business that can be a force for good.’

“It’s b****cks and does nothing to stem the rise in case of greenwashing. If this is how PR agencies talk about themselves, it therefore follows they’re advising clients in the same way. That’s wrong and simply opens their clients up to criticism and potential allegations of greenwashing. They need to clearly communicate the impact of these commitments. Frustratingly, very few are doing this.”

Mey Tang, office and operations manager at Stand: "Stand has proudly been a B Corp since July 2022. We submitted our recertification application this year, but it wasn’t a straightforward decision.

“Being a B Corp is a great way to prove your commitment to building a sustainable future. However, it doesn’t look at every aspect, which made us question whether we should submit again. While you’re asked what kind of bank you use, you’re not asked for its name or environmental performance. Banking with a company that funds oil and gas will dock your total points, but won’t stop you from becoming a B Corp, meaning accredited companies could still be funding fossil fuels.

“We are also frustrated that companies are operating in a way that goes against what the certification stands for, remain B Corps for longer than they should and risk threatening its credibility.

“It was hard to reconcile how such a rigorous set of standards fail to look at some fundamental measures of protecting people and the planet. We concluded that B Corp remained an important measure for Stand but that we would use our profile and voice to call out actions by B Corps that go against the movement, like banking with investors in fossil fuels, or working with clients who are sacrificing the planet in the interests of their profits.”

A spokesperson from B Lab UK said: “The current process to become a B Corp is rigorous and the only business certification that requires companies to look at such a broad range of their operations – their workers, customers, community, the environment and overall governance. To certify, companies need to achieve over 80 verified points across these five areas and pass a risk review.

"B Lab continuously evolves its risk standards to evaluate the potential negative impacts of different industries, policies, and practices. These standards help determine a company's eligibility for B Corp certification, ensuring that companies are not only focusing on positive impacts but also addressing and mitigating potential harms. Furthermore, any possible incidents of misconduct or misrepresentation by B Corps can be raised through B Lab’s public complaints process.

"Next month, B Lab will launch the new standards for B Corp Certification which will be the most significant shift since B Lab’s inception. They will set out minimum standards for all B Corps to meet across an even broader range of impact areas, including human rights, workplace culture, fair wages, climate action and environmental stewardship.

"The new standards will require B Corps to demonstrate continuous improvement at each recertification, recognising that continuous improvement is a core principle of B Corp Certification. This will ensure even greater rigour and transparency and mark a big leap forward in defining what good looks like for business.”

Sinéad Gray, joint MD at Kindred: “We’re using this B Corp Month to reassert our commitment to B Corp status at Kindred. Why? Because we feel strongly that this certification isn’t just a tick box or a greenwashing exercise. And we disagree with those who claim it is.

“We’ve been B Corp registered since 2022 and we’ll be re-certifying this year, working hard to increase our – already high – assessment score by 5%. It’ll be a challenge, but it’s one we welcome as we agree with the 91% of B Corps in the UK that say it’s had a positive impact on their organisation. From a revenue perspective, we’ve increased our work with likeminded B Corps including Lily's Kitchen, Nespresso and Abel & Cole.

“When it comes to business management, the requirement to report annually keeps us on track. Things move fast in agency life, priorities change and we often favour things that are new and shiny. However, our certification gives us a valuable B Corp lens which keeps us focused on making good decisions to meet the required high standards of social and environmental performance, transparency, and accountability.

Andrew Laxton CEO at Mixology PR: "We’ve recently chosen Planet Mark (full disclosure, they became a client last year) over B Corp because it offers a far more rigorous and accountable approach to sustainability. As a PR agency, we know that sustainability claims need to be backed up with real action, and Planet Mark’s certification process ensures exactly that.

“Unlike some certifications, this isn’t just a one-time achievement. Every year, members have to prove they’re reducing their carbon footprint. If they don’t, they get downgraded. That means there’s no room for greenwashing, which has been a criticism of B Corp in the past and something they’re now working to address.

“Ensuring our organisation, and our supply chain, is on the pathway to Net Zero is no longer just the right thing to do, it’s a commercial imperative. Businesses are under increasing pressure to demonstrate real action, with procurement teams prioritising partners who can prove their sustainability commitments. This level of recognition is crucial for us.”

Rebecca Oatley, co-founder and CEO at Wilful: “Wilful has recently certified group wide and I have to say that it has been absolutely brilliant for really uniting our team around what’s important for the agency and that everyone has a role to play in this. For example, everyone on the team works with partners and suppliers and as we engage them, we’re now looking at things like carbon and community impact. B Corp has meant that we have considered our partner relationships in a different light. We have had the conversations around paying a bit more for these services because these are the kind of companies we want and need to do business with.

“On the challenge side, we’re in an economic downturn and margins are squeezed so these conversations have occasionally been quite intense. It definitely tests your mettle when budgets are squeezed but as a B Corp, the recertification keeps you steadfast.

“We’ve seen some of the recent criticism of B Corp but we believe that this somewhat misses the point of a movement of likeminded organisations that are all committing to the rigours of certification because they fundamentally believe that business should be a force for good. If you’re just using it for marketing, or publicity for that matter, it will never deliver value back. Surely, as business leaders, it’s our collective responsibility to create, fair, just, planet-positive organisations and hold that as a benchmark of success alongside our financial performance.”