Unable to attend the symposium for health reasons, Lorna Davis (pictured), senior adviser to Emmanuel Faber, CEO of packaged food supplier Danone, gave a keynote speech through video call, stressing the value of the B Corporation (B Corp) sustainability movement ahead of an afternoon session of unpanels on the UN’s sustainable development goals moderated by Oxford University’s Said Business School and organised by B Corp’s leaders, Charmian Love and James Dickson.
B Corp is made up of more than 2,500 corporations and is intended to reward companies that act as a “force of good”. Davis is a global ambassador for the initiative, which certifies businesses for their ability to benefit the world, its inhabitants and future generations.
Danone’s involvement began in 2015, when it joined the Multinational and Public Markets Advisory Council of B Corp’s organiser, non-profit organisation B Lab. Danone’s North America unit, formed in the wake of its April 2017 acquisition of dairy product supplier WhiteWave Foods, has become the world’s largest certified B Corp.
Davis, however, argued that Danone’s nutritional focus meant social good had long been central to its business strategy, particularly since 1996 when Franck Riboud became CEO and began pushing the company more toward health products.
When Davis joined Danone in 2015 to drive its efforts to combine sustainability with profit, her team found the company’s younger employees ready to don the mantle of change.
“We had written a manifesto for the new world, and invited the organisation to that manifesto and to that future,” Davis said. “What was interesting to me is that of 100,000 people, about 5,000 people logged on to the website and about 2,500 people actively engaged.
“And they were mostly the younger people in the organisation. It is important for anybody who is on this journey to acknowledge that young people are really engaged.”
Once viewed as merely a brand enhancement for small and medium-sized enterprises, B Corp certification now acts as a draw for corporate M&A deals. Consumer goods producer Unilever acquired its fifth B Corp in December 2017 when it bought personal care product maker SheaMoisture.
There is also the prospect of more acquisitions featuring B Corps on both sides of the table, such as cosmetics manufacturer Natura & Co’s acquisition of ethical cosmetic and fragrance chain Body Shop in June 2017.
For Davis and Danone, the scheme’s appeal compared with other sustainability programs lies in its tight framework and an ability to attract minds not traditionally considered part of the cliché fabric of the corporate world.
Davis highlighted B Corp’s certification system, the B Impact Assessment, which judges the sustainability of businesses on a performance scale of 200, with only those achieving at least 80 officially deemed B Corp standard.
The rigour of this approach is complemented by the enthusiasm of younger adherents determined to celebrate the movement with energy, she added. “We tested 10 business units of ours and we found [the certification] really robust. So actually this element is super important.
“We experimented by having Danone Spain, which is a billion-dollar business, try the system. They got certified, and what I noticed is that so many of the other business units got punished. So I think that second element is really important because that competitive element is a critical part of why business is such a powerful mechanism in the world. And why I really do believe business can be a force for good.”
