B Corp: label to woo Millennials

Sends message you’re committed to giving back

Socially conscious companies spend less on recruitment

Every business wants to stand out from the crowd — especially when it comes time to recruit the next generation of employees. But the big question that perplexes so many CEOs — particularly owners of smalland medium-sized businesses — is, how?

With increasing globalization and competition, downward pricing pressures across many industries and stubbornly soft economic conditions across Canada, developing a new point of differentiation can be a complex and expensive task.

When it comes to attracting and retaining top younger talent, that challenge becomes even more daunting. That is, of course, unless you get creative — more on that in a minute.

Every day, my executive search and recruitment firm Creative Niche works with a wide range of professionals, many of these candidates are Millennials. As we see time and again, they want something different from their employers.

Good pay and working conditions are must-haves, but the top performers can pick and choose their employers. Many opt to work for companies that give back to their communities through strong corporate social responsibility (CSR) programs. That could mean everything from supporting environmental causes to workplace diversity or donating time to local non-profits — the list of Millennial-friendly CSR initiatives is long, and the desire to promote meaningful change is strong.

A 2014 Deloitte global survey of Millennials found that 63 per cent give to charities and 43 per cent volunteer on a regular basis. A whopping 50 per cent said they want to work for an employer that embraces ethical business practices.

Make no mistake: Millennials want to work for companies that at least try to make a difference through their business practices.

More importantly, employers often find that CSR programs help drive engagement levels across their organizations and improve staff attraction and retention, particularly among those elite young professionals your company hopes to attract.

The tricky part is that positioning and marketing your brand as being socially responsible and willing to accommodate the good deeds of your socially conscious staffers can be expensive and time consuming. That’s when it makes sense to think outside the box.

One way to achieve that goal is to certify as a B Corporation — a certification process developed by the Wayne, Pa.-based non-profit B Lab in 2007 — that involves completing an assessment that measures your company’s CSR bona fides across a wide range of criteria. Think of it as the equivalent of having a product certified fair trade or organic, but for your whole company. The best part is, size doesn’t matter. Companies from oneperson consultancies to major corporations can apply.

The certification process lasts between three to six months and can be carried out using internal resources, or by engaging a third-party consultant who specializes in B Corp certification — yes, they exist. So far, more than 1,200 companies across 41 countries and 121 industries have completed the process.

The cost of certification is based on annual revenue, ranging from as little as $500 a year to $25,000 for major multinationals. Certification must be maintained and updated every two years to reflect environmental and technological advancements, as well as changes to labour law.

The advantage of being B Corp certified is that, like an organic label slapped on produce at a supermarket, it sends an immediate message to your prospective customers, or, in this case, employees. It tells them your company is committed to giving back and making a difference.

Millennials, as Creative Niche has learned, are highly purpose-driven people who don’t want to be embarrassed by an employer that disregards the environment or leverages cheap overseas labour working in terrible conditions to turn a greater profit.

Businesses that embrace CSR also tend to be innovative in their compensation packages, and provide paid time to volunteer or work on charitable projects — and top performers know it. That’s why socially conscious companies typically spend less on staff recruitment and turnover costs.

Becoming a B Corp isn’t a magic bullet that will transform your business overnight. But it could be another point of differentiation that costs relatively little and can help attract and retain the best and brightest talent your industry has to offer — especially from the Millennial set.

In that sense, it’s an employer brand-bolstering certification you might want to consider.