This month, the EADA B Impact Team, made up of 4 Masters participants, will present its final assessment feedback and improvement plan towards making Makers of Barcelona (MOB) a certified B Corporation. Certified companies go through a comprehensive assessment process to demonstrate that they meet the highest standards of social and environmental performance, transparency, and accountability.
The B Impact Team project follows from the B Corp Conference in January, which was open to all students in the International Master and MBA programmes and explained the mission and purpose of the B Corp movement. “This movement is redefining the concept of business success by creating a community of people using businesses as a force for good,” explains B Lab Spain Director Pablo Sánchez. “B Impact teams provide students with the skills, awareness and knowledge to promote purpose-driven companies in their professional careers.”
B Impact teams are student-led, faculty-supervised consulting teams of students that assist businesses to measure and manage their social and environmental impact. Like any consulting project, the B Impact assessment provided participants with valuable experience in determining project scope, setting timelines, and establishing workflows and deliverables.
The diversity of the profiles in the B Impact Team gave me a more realistic view on cooperation in a real business setting.
For team member Edward Jiménez, the B Impact project reflected both his values and career goals. “I plan to pursue a career in consulting, and the B Impact Team gave me experience in this area and added value to my C.V.” he says. “I have also always been interested in supporting companies that are socially and environmentally responsible, so it was a good fit.”
The transversal nature of the B Impact project brought together students from diverse International Master programmes at EADA for the team: Pierre Fabre (Master in Sustainable Business & Innovation), Mart Jacobs (Master in Management), Edward Jimenez (Master in Finance) and Jason Reddig (Master in Finance). You can learn about participants’ first-hand account of the B Impact Team here.
“I joined the team because I wanted to challenge myself by working with people from different academic backgrounds and mind-sets,” says Pierre. “The diversity of the profiles gave me a more realistic view on cooperation in a real business setting.”
Consultants in training
Since January, the B Impact Team has been working as consultants for MOB, a creative co-working hub for Barcelona’s community of entrepreneurs and creatives. During this time, the team has used the B Impact Assessment Tool to measure and manage the social and environmental impact of MOB, compiling a detailed report about the company’s mission, employee well-being, community engagement and environmental stewardship.
There are 4 main steps to the assessment:
- Completing the company assessment
- Analysing the feedback received and comparing the company with others
- Designing an improvement plan
- Meeting the accountability and transparency requirements
For the B Impact Team, being part of the comprehensive assessment process demonstrated the commitment of today’s companies to making a positive impact. “Consumers increasingly opt for companies that have shown that they care about our environment and treat their workers well,” says Mart. “People want to know that they are buying ethical products and services, and that is very reassuring.”
According to Jason, the B Impact experience was especially rewarding as it provided a unique opportunity to both have a positive impact and gain experience as a consultant. “After hearing about the B Corp Certification, I immediately saw the importance of forming a global network of environmentally and socially responsible businesses,” he says. “Plus, the project provided great professional experience to share with future employers. As an aspiring consultant, my biggest take-away was learning that I really enjoy this line of work.”
This month, the Team will present MOB with a detailed improvement plan with targeted recommendations based on the initial company assessment. This plan is designed with aim of MOB achieving B Corp Certification within a year of implementation.