Late last year REGROUP became a certified Benefit Corporation (B-Corp). As part of our commitment to the movement, we co-hosted a B-Corp Awareness event at our offices in Ann Arbor, Michigan with Inforum, a nonprofit women’s leadership association.
B-Corp Event Recap
The evening started with Arick Davis, Impact Manager for People First Economy and founder of Last Mile Café, a B-Corp in Grand Rapids. People First Economy is a local nonprofit devoted to supporting local businesses and growing our local economy with people-first programs such as Good for Michigan.
At People First Economy, Arick serves as Impact Manager, helping aspiring B-Corps go through their Impact Assessment. Arick was joined by our panel of B-Corps:
Julie Kapnick
VP of Operations for REGROUP,
a local full-service marketing
B-Corp in Michigan certified in 2023.
Jonah Bailey
Managing Partner for Atomic Object a software development B-Corp in Michigan certified in 2007.
Katie Carano
COO/Head of People for HigherRing an ethical outsourcing partner for socially responsible companies certified in 2018.
Main Takeaways
Arick, Julie, Jonah and Katie shared their stories of certification and why they joined the B-Corp movement. Here are some takeaways:
- All organizations were drawn to becoming a B-Corp because they were already aligned with the B-Labs values on how to run a business as a source for good. Certification made sense so that standards can be upheld by an objective third party.
- Being a B-Corp does not mean that you are giving up on profitability. It means you are setting environmental and social responsibility standards in your organization. The best companies meet at the intersection of profit and purpose.
- Certification was TOUGH which made it rewarding. B-Corp certification holds our organizations accountable to ensure our processes and policies align with B-Corp standards.
- With 8,000 B-Corps worldwide, the movement is growing exponentially. More and more organizations are choosing to do business only with partners that align with their values.
- Having a certification has helped with recruiting like-minded candidates with shared values. It has also opened the door to a community of like-minded companies that could be potential partners.
LET’S B FRIENDS
If you are a purpose-driven organization, we would love to hear from you. Drop us a note:
REGROUP is a full-service brand transformation marketing agency. We help complex brands generate leads overnight while building brands over time with our brand + performance philosophy.
