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Ron and his team initially submitted their assessment for certification in June 2023, after which they had to split their assessment for two entities in January 2024 and are awaiting conclusive evaluations from B Lab. However, sustainability is not a new business direction for i-team Global, that develops and distributes innovative products and solutions for the cleaning industry. “i-team’s first products in the ‘90s had a modular design. Not necessarily for circularity or sustainability sake, but mostly to maximize the value for our customers”. Products with a modular design are easier to repair and allows replacements of product components instead of the full product. This minimizes the total costs of ownership.
Ron reflects: “later, we realized that this approach for product design and innovation goes hand in hand with achieving sustainability and circularity in our products and our ambitions as a company. In other words: we make impact through our products. This realization has helped us in our current transformation towards a B Corp.”
In the assessment leading up to certification, businesses will need to disclose their operational performances as well as their impact business models. That i-team Global makes impact through their products is reflected by their impact business models (IBM): “with the help of Been Management Consulting, we have identified two impact business models. The first is focused on resource conservation, as our products are designed to be energy and water efficient and produce less waste due to the modular design. The second IBM is focused on the end-user, as our products are designed for ergonomically responsible use and improve the working conditions of cleaners. This addresses a significant challenge in the cleaning industry: A quarter of cleaners who work with machines drop out during their working lives due to physical complaints related to their work.”
Identifying the two impact business models has helped Ron and i-team Global to re-imagine the sustainability story of the organization. “We don’t see the B Corp certification as the ultimate end-state”, Ron says. “Instead, we perceive it as journey for sustainability improvement and we find value along the way. Part of what we find is confirmation that what we have been doing is right, other parts inspire us and make us want to do better. Both operationally and strategically. For example, we are looking into our product innovation processes and how we can optimize for the impact we make through our products. Especially the material in- and outflow is something we would like to improve.”
Additionally, the B Corp transformation helps to embed sustainability-thinking in the organizational culture. “i-team Global started as a family business with social responsible entrepreneurship at its core. As we grew, you saw that parts of the company’s DNA didn’t always stand out as before. B Corp has been a reason to retell the story to everyone within i-team and thus also safeguard a certain philosophy in the organization.”
The process towards certification has been made a lot smoother for i-team Global by the support of Been Management Consulting. “Been has helped us heaps with identifying and documenting our impact business models towards the auditor of B Lab. They know what to communicate to B Lab for effective evaluation, which has been very helpful”, Ron reflects.
“Additionally, Malou Bok in particular has made a true impact in the internal organization by vocalizing a critical outside-in perspective as a specialist. In doing so, she catalysed crucial internal discussions into the right direction.”
Ron knows what aspiring B Corps should pay attention to: “be aware of the impact on your organization. B Corp is not just a certification, but it requires a transformation of the organization to live up to the ambition B Corp stands for. In line with that, organizations should use the B Impact Assessment as a means to improve their sustainability performance. So be realistic when you fill in the answers”.
For dealing with the amount of work related to the certification process, Ron stresses it is important to begin in time: “especially gathering and documenting the evidence related to your answers in the B Impact Assessment should not be underestimated.”
Ron has a clear idea about the future: “I would like to see that sustainability and impact business are self-evident and embedded in our ways of thinking, doing, and being. And that it is a matter of course to critically review your organization how to do better. Not just for i-team Global, but for all business.”
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