Why bother getting B Corp certified?
Our journey to certification as a B Corporation
If you are anything like me, you often like to bite off more than you can chew!January has been a busy month for Checklist Legal as we have the additional project of getting ready for B Corp certification.
Wait… what is B Corp certification?
If you haven’t heard of it before, B Corp certification is a way of measuring a company’s entire social and environmental impact.B Corp certification is a way of measuring a company’s entire social and environmental impact.I set up Checklist Legal to be a different kind of passionate about making a positive impact for the community we work in, changing the legal industry for the better, and bringing more to business (and especially more to law firms!) than just making money.
So why am I bothering to get B Corp certified?
I feel like I have been on the journey towards a ‘better’ business model for some time even before I started my business.I’ve read lots of articles…I’ve listened to lots of podcasts and audio books…I was on the board of a social enterprise that taught me so much about ways of delivering business with purpose (STREAT… they are amazing!)...I’ve been part of the movement for more plain language in legal documents (I got my legal engagement documents WriteMark certified)...I did a conscious contracting introductory course…I marched to support womens’ rights and felt furious at inequality around the world…I got to work with amazing for purpose and B Corp businesses as clients and suppliers…All this and more reading and discussions and learnings along the way all lead me to feel like I wanted to have a greater influence in the way the business of the law is conducted.I understand there are broad and powerful systems at work in this world and just changing the look and feel of a few contracts isn’t necessarily going to change those systems.I knew I loved working with B Corps and wanted to ‘have what they have’ in the metrics and accountability of measuring and scoping for impact.I’m not sure yet if B Corp is “the” only way to run a business but it seems like a wonderful approach to start from.I know that what I will learn from becoming a B Corp will set my law firm up for a fantastic structure to scale into great purpose moving forward.I know I want my law firm to be the kind of palace where people share our values and want to work to make the world a kinder, clearer, better place for more people.For all these reasons and probably more, I know it is worth the work to become B Corp certified!Can’t wait to share the next stage of the journey with you.
What have we done already?
We’ve done a LOT of learning. This process involves gathering feedback from and having discussions with key stakeholders. Our key stakeholders include:
Our legal legend clients (lawyers and legal professionals)
Our femme founder clients (online, service-based business owners)
Our key suppliers (everything from accountants to marketing professionals and all the wonderful consultants in between)
Our legal community (this year we worked with the innovation team at the Legal Services Board)
Bar chart showing how likely it is that previous clients will recommend Checklist Legal to a friend
Not only do I start to get an understanding of how the firm is travelling, it’s great to find areas to improve on.And… I must admit, getting a perfect 10 NPS is very nice!We’ve also started a new membership with B1G1 which allows us to tailor our giving to support the UN Sustainable Development Goals that we’re passionate about as a law firm.Our personal favourite is Gender EqualityFocusing in on related and relevant impact areas in our own backyard as well as internationally really drives home that the impacts we want to make are global. We don’t just want to make business better for female leaders in Australia….We want better legals and business for women everywhere!
Where can you start if you are interested in becoming a B Corp?
Complete the Torrens University (free!) course as an introduction to B Corporations. https://bcorp.torrensonline.com/
When will we submit our application?
We hope to submit and be certified in the first few months of 2022! Keep an eye out for updates!
Where to from here?
Want to follow our journey to B Corp certification? To find out more about our B Corp journey, see our mission and values on our website, checklistlegal.com/mission-values. We’d love to keep you in the loop! Join our mailing list.
