We’re thrilled to announce that last week we were officially awarded B Corp™ status. As a purpose-driven creative agency, this recognition of our commitment to doing good solidifies how working with a strong vision and ethics, whilst leading with empathy, can benefit business in many ways.
So, what is B Corp?
The global B Corp movement is a group of leaders using business as a force for good. The B Corp community works toward reduced inequality, lower levels of poverty, a healthier environment, stronger communities, and the creation of high-quality jobs with dignity and purpose. It focuses on placing stakeholders at the heart of all businesses, harnessing their position to transform the role of business in society.
Essentially, the B Corp certification aims to reinvent capitalism to ensure that it works for both people and the planet. Which sounds just like us.
Becoming B Corp certified requires a rigorous assessment of the whole of the business – not just services and products – to ensure you meet high standards for social and environmental performance. And for good reason, there are only 360 B Corp certified businesses in the UK, so we’re in good company. We’ve long admired other businesses who have achieved this sought-after status, so we wrote a blog celebrating our favourites here.
The assessment looks at five key areas across the business:
- Governance – mission and engagement, ethics and transparency, governance
- Workers – career development, health, wellness and safety, engagement, human rights, worker owned
- Environment – Environmental management; air and climate; water; renewable energy; resource conservation; transport distribution & suppliers
- Community – Diversity, equity and inclusion; supply chain management; civic engagement & giving; local economic development
- Customers – Customer stewardship; education; access to basic services; economic empowerment
Assessments are scored on a points basis and to qualify a business has to score over 80.
Why B Corp?
For us, becoming B Corp Certified was a goal from the beginning. We are on track to hit our 100% purpose-driven work target in 2022 and being included in the B Corp community is a massive nod to all the effort we’ve put in on our journey so far. Working at a 100% purpose-driven rate isn’t always easy, but the commitment we have to doing good – and only doing good – as an employer, partner and member of our community is something that is integral and central to our culture.
As a company we scored highly in the Governance section – specifically on our mission and engagement levels. Our culture is central to our business planning and all day-to-day decisions – we were recently shortlisted at the UK Company Culture awards for ‘Best Team Culture’. We go above and beyond to engage the whole team with decisions around workload, projects and the direction of their careers. A bi-monthly retrospective formalises this, but we have clear open lines of communication at all times, on all levels of the company.
Alongside this, we are committed to keeping wellbeing central to our business practises. We’re always looking for ways to improve our colleagues’ lives, whether that’s through enhanced leave and parental policies, or giving them the opportunity to structure their work hours around personal commitments and projects. Recognising tangible help to support everyday lives of the team has greatly improved our staff wellbeing. We’ve addressed this by becoming a Real Living Wage Employer, providing a home working fund for equipment and laying out our policies in a transparent way. Inspiring confidence in Matchstick Creative as an employer, as well as a brand, helps our business practises whilst simultaneously supporting our staff.
We prioritise supporting our Matchsticks in their career journeys, which was why career development was also an area we scored highly on. We do this through regular PDP meetings to help our colleagues achieve their goals. Our improved working processes and empathetic culture have resulted in:
- 3 promotions
- 1 career change
- 5 Kickstart placements
- 2 mentorship schemes
- Enhanced staff retention
What does the B Corp status mean for Matchstick Creative?
Although achieving B Corp status was the focus of our agenda for this year, it doesn’t mean there isn’t room for improvement in both our business and our impact. We will be using our new status to influence business policy and help drive our mission to be as impactful as possible. We’re also continuing to work towards clear career development plans for all staff, a full staff training programme and refining our business model.
We want to say a big thank you to our clients, partners and everyone who has supported us so far. And major ‘snaps’ to our team for being the most talented and empathetic people who make coming to work everyday something to actually look forward to.
Find out more about our story and our values, or get in touch with our CEO to discuss B Corp certification and what it could mean for your business.
