Do This When You're Stuck in B Corp Certification
You’ve started the B Corp Impact Assessment. But now you’re...stuck. You’ve gone through a couple of times and jumped around to different areas. Maybe you’re rocking one section but have completely ignored others.
The B Corp Impact Assessment is time-consuming. It’s robust and challenging but it makes the result all the better. Over 100,000 businesses sign up to complete the assessment, and 3,500 are certified as of 2020, according to Vogue Business. If you’re feeling stuck, here are five steps to take to keep moving along in the assessment process.
Download the excel
When you’re in the assessment, it can feel overwhelming to jump to different categories or get a holistic picture of the process.
I recommend downloading the Excel version of the assessment to make it easier to see everything. You can then sort and filter as needed, hide rows you’ve completed, and get a better idea of what you need to do. If you’re on the assessment home page, you’ll see a place to download the Excel version under “download” at the top.
Use the excel spreadsheet to search and categorize your assessment and have it in a place where you can reference it when you make a plan of action. Some other things to do with the excel version:
Hide rows you’ve completed
Sort by area or focus
Sort by a point value
Sort by points you’ve gotten
Search using keywords
Assign people
If you have a team, please use them! At a minimum, larger companies will need to rely on their executive teams and HR departments to complete assessment tasks. HR teams will be able to provide a lot of information required for the community section. The executive team will need to review some documentation and provide oversight for some items.
If you’re assigning people, make sure you’re including deadlines, explicit instructions and regular check-ins.
Assign time
If you’re a team of one or a small group, assign time to work on the assessment. I recommend setting aside an hour a week and just picking an area to focus for that week. Setting consistent time will help you focus and move ahead in the process. Even half an hour every other week will make a difference in the application process.
Go big or go small
This is where your excel comes in handy. When you have the Excel, find the “Points Available” column and sort either smallest to largest or vice versa. Many companies like having the largest point values available to focus on first; others find satisfaction in checking off numerous “smaller” point values. Sort the sheet and figure out which points you want to attack next.
The excitement of checking off a higher point value or finding connected areas that get points can help propel your energy and move you to the next level.
Set up admin time and add notes
When you’re in the assessment, many points can be categorized into “administrative” tasks or “to-dos” that take time to complete. These include items like policies, getting supplier information or revenue figures. Set aside time to complete these “admin” tasks.
Categorize these admin tasks in your project tracking software or mark them directly in Excel. Adding notes like “need to speak to x to get this done” or “draft policy saved here” helps keep top of mind where you left off on that task or what the next step should be. Taking notes helps you quickly shift back into the B Corp mindset each week instead of trying to remember where you left off.
Once you’ve gone through and added notes, set aside admin time as part of your B Corp process time to take action. This usually means setting up the meeting to speak with the person that can help, or working on that policy.
Interested in hands-on help with your B Corp assessment? Sign up for a 90-minute strategy session, or contact us to learn about long-term help for your assessment.
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