How do you grow a movement without losing what made it powerful in the first place?
Christopher Marquis, Sinyi Professor of Management at the University of Cambridge and author of The Profiteers, joins Ryan Honeyman to explore the evolution of the B Corp movement and what it will take for business to drive meaningful systems change in the years ahead. Building on themes from his earlier book Better Business, Christopher reflects on the movement's growth beyond certification, exploring the expanding influence of benefit corporation legislation, academic research, and global communities working to reshape the role of business. Together, they discuss the challenges of measuring B Corp impact, the tensions between stakeholder capitalism and genuine systems change, and why regenerative business is about creating positive impact, not just reducing harm.
The conversation also explores B Lab's new standards, the importance of governance and mission protection, and why systems change depends on both pioneering innovators and larger companies willing to improve. Christopher shares examples from companies like Tony's Chocolonely, Patagonia, and Dopper to illustrate how mission-driven businesses can influence entire industries rather than simply compete within them.
Along the way, Christopher reflects on the changing attitudes toward sustainability, the growing global momentum behind the B Corp movement, and why collaboration, thoughtful governance, and long-term thinking are essential for lasting systems change.
What You’ll Learn:
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Discover how the B Corp movement has evolved beyond certification.
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Explore why it’s so challenging to measure the financial impact of B Corp certification.
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Learn how the new B Corp standards strengthen certification, and the role of Impact Business Models (IBMs).
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Discover how governance, mission protection, and collaboration can help transform industries.
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Learn why both smaller innovators and large companies are needed for systems change.
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Explore how the global B Corp movement continues to expand.
Quotations:
“Thinking about the B Corp movement, it's about much, much more than just the number of B Corps.” — Christopher Marquis [0:07:02]
“In the B Impact Assessment, firms are not reporting their revenue year on year. So that sort of systematic set of data doesn't really exist.” — Christopher Marquis [0:07:49]
“Many of the companies that I find very inspiring are ones that are not just trying to sell their product to be best in the world, but actually trying to create broader frameworks and systems to make the world better.” — Christopher Marquis [0:32:54]
“I can't say enough about the importance of the smaller innovative companies and what they're doing to try to create new ways of thinking about responsibility and sustainability.” — Christopher Marquis [0:43:21]
“It's good to get out of Cambridge, UK, or the US [and] to actually be talking to people because the world and people's situations are very different.” — Christopher Marquis [0:51:51]
Links Mentioned in Today’s Episode:
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Christopher Marquis – LinkedIn: https://www.linkedin.com/in/christopher-marquis/
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The Profiteers: How Business Privatizes Profits and Socializes Costs: https://chrismarquis.com/the-profiteers-how-business-privatizes-profit-and-socializes-cost/
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Better Business: How the B Corp Movement Is Remaking Capitalism: https://chrismarquis.com/better-business-how-the-b-corp-movement-is-remaking-capitalism/
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Mao and Markets: The Communist Roots of Chinese Enterprise: https://chrismarquis.com/mao-and-markets-the-communist-roots-of-chinese-enterprise/
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The Paradox at the Heart of B Corps (w/ Todd Schifeling & Suntae Kim): https://go.lifteconomy.com/blog/the-paradox-at-the-heart-of-b-corps-w/-todd-schifeling-suntae-kim
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Incorruptible: Why Good Companies Go Bad… and How Great Companies Stay Great: https://www.incorruptible.co/
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Winners Take All: The Elite Charade of Changing the World: https://www.anand.ly/winners-take-all/
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Impact Business Models (IBMs): https://www.sistemab.org/en/impact-business-models/
B Impact Assessment: https://embedded-bia.bcorporation.net/ -
Tony's Chocolonely: https://tonyschocolonely.com/
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Patagonia: https://www.patagonia.com/home/
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Dopper: https://www.dopper.com/
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Better Business Act: https://betterbusinessact.org/
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Long-Term Stock Exchange: https://ltse.com/
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Ryan Honeyman – LinkedIn: https://www.linkedin.com/in/ryanhhoneyman/
We want to hear from you! Email us at beyond@lifteconomy.com with requests for content, suggestions for future guests, and feedback about our episodes.
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Gratitude
Thank you to Corey Lien, Nozomii Torii, and Kirsten G. Bryant for being our monthly contributors at Beyond the B!
