#6: Mailbag: Havas Decertified, B Corp Fee Increase, Tips for Young Professionals, & More

After the first five episodes of Beyond the B, it's time to reach into the listener mailbag! In this episode, Emmy and Ryan address a range of topics, including Havas having its B Corp certification revoked, the recent fee increases on B Corp certification imposed by B Lab, how to increase sales and referrals among B Corps, how young professionals can best navigate the B Corp movement, and more.  

The conversation begins with reflections on the podcast's journey so far, highlighting listener statistics and locations. Next, Emmy and Ryan tackle the intricate issue of how B Corp organizations balance the dual objectives of achieving success while doing good. They highlight initiatives that offer networking platforms and support.

Drawing from their own careers, Emmy and Ryan provide advice on navigating challenges and identifying opportunities for young professionals aspiring to enter the B Corp world. They discuss mindset shifts to embrace and pitfalls to avoid. They emphasize the privilege of working in this field and share resources to facilitate self-exploration and career visioning.

This episode also features a discussion on the recent increases in B Corp Certification fees and their implications for the industry. The hosts discuss the Havas agency having its B Corp status revoked and the role of complaints in enhancing accountability. Join the conversation centered on what matters most to listeners today.

Key Points From This Episode:

• Listener stats: 1,325 downloads to date in the US, Canada, UK, Japan, and more.
• Thoughts on how small B Corp organizations can do well while doing good. 
• Ryan’s initiative to refer business between B Corps. 
• Key challenges and opportunities for young professionals entering the B Corp world. 
• Adopting the mindset of what you can provide, not what you can get out of an opportunity.
• What to avoid when you are entering the B Corp environment.
• Navigating the unique privilege of working in this space. 
• The importance of internal exploratory work to create a vision of your dream job.
• Upskilling yourself in order to strike out on your own.
• Responding to the B Corp fee increase and the substantial associated changes.
• How to stay up to date via newsletters, network leaders, and more. 
• Discrepancies in pricing according to revenue and the related structures. 
• The role of Clean Creatives in B Lab and public sentiment towards this.
• Revoking of B Corp status due to revenue sources.
• Why complaints are an important part of creating accountability for certification.
• Reasons behind including episodes that take this format.

Quotations: 

 “Whenever folks ask us about whether they should pursue B Corp certification – B Lab always says margin before mission.” — Emmy Allison [0:05:00]

“If you want B Corps to refer you business, have you referred business to B Corps?” — Ryan Honeyman [0:12:35]

“[In B Corp,] we have this privilege and honor of being able to incorporate impact and prioritize people and planet in the work that we do.” — Emmy Allison [0:24:53]

“Once you have done a lot of internal work and identified where you want to go, you’re actually way more likely to go there.” — Ryan Honeyman [0:32:19]

Links Mentioned in Today’s Episode:

• B Local Illinois: https://www.illinoisbcorps.org/
• The Go-Giver: https://thegogiver.com/
• What Color Is Your Parachute?: https://parachutebook.com/
• Designing Your Life: https://bookshop.org/p/books/designing-your-life-how-to-build-a-well-lived-joyful-life-dave-evans/8574377
• Clean Creatives: https://cleancreatives.org/
• Daniel Schmachtenberger on The Great Simplification Podcast: “Silicon Dreams and Carbon Nightmares: The Wide Boundary Impacts of AI”: https://www.thegreatsimplification.com/episode/132-daniel-schmachtenberger

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Gratitude:

Thank you to Corey Lien and Nozomii Torii for being our first monthly contributors at Beyond the B!