Three Steps to Becoming a B Corp “Best for the World”

We are all familiar with the term “Best of”… Each year businesses ask us to vote for them in a specific category, “Best Taco, Best Yoga Studio, Best Chiropractor…” Then a list is published, and it is really more of a popularity contest than a true examination of how that business is the best.  

There is a new term that is spanning the globe and that is the “Best FOR” framework, launched by B Lab, a global movement driving business to be a force for good. This framework clearly has meaning. The “Best For The World” framework honors businesses that have completed the Comprehensive B Impact Assessment, evaluating positive impact on workers, environment and the community. The businesses that score in the top 10% of more than 2,500 Certified B Corporations from 50 countries are on the “Best for the World” list.

I am proud to announce that Vista Global Coaching & Consulting has been named to the “Best for the World” 2018 list in the Overall Category and the Customer Category. How did Vista Global get there?

Step 1: Clarify your personal and business values

As an entrepreneur, you are your business. Therefore, your business reflects your personal values. When I founded Vista Global in 2010, I spent a lot of time thinking about the ethos of my business; my business DNA, what services Vista Global would offer, the types of clients we would work with.  How we worked with clients would reflect my personal values. I was familiar with B Lab when I founded Vista Global and reviewed the core tenets of the impact assessment. I saw alignment and I wanted to demonstrate this alignment through certification.

Step 2: Benchmark your practices by doing the B Impact Assessment

Once there is clarity that your company values align with the B Lab framework for creating business as a force for good, it is time to measure your practices. “Walking the Talk”, how do your company practices in environmental performance, employee relationships, diversity, involvement in the local community and impact on customers reflect the criteria of business as a force for good. By completing the BIA, your company has a roadmap of strong practices and areas for improvement. Vista Global received Best for the World status in the Customer category, as a business that provides 95% of its services to purpose-driven enterprises, providing educational services and serving individuals in need.

Step 3: Continue to identify areas for improvement

Vista Global has just completed its 4th re-certification process and each time, we have increased our impact scores. How have we done it? Each period, we review the results and develop a strategy to focus our attention in the next two years to increase positive impact. In 2016, B Lab launched a new Inclusive Economy Challenge. This challenge provides the tools for businesses that are committed to improving the collective impact of the certified B Corp movement.  

“An inclusive economy is one that creates opportunity for all people of all backgrounds and experiences to live with dignity, to support themselves and their families, and to make a contribution to their communities.”

Where to start your journey to becoming Best for the World? B Lab has a network of 25 local communities throughout the United States and Canada that are building a grassroots movement. If you are in Wisconsin, please join me and the B Local Wisconsin group. It is a bold aspiration to be best for the world and it can only happen if we all do our part. Any questions about B Corps? Let’s chat!