B Corp Certification

B Corp Certification

Part One: Justification of the Benefits

Key Components

The triple bottom line (TBL) is a sustainability model that helps measure a firm’s success in three areas: the people, the profit, and the planet. This model extends a firm’s success metrics to encompass the contribution to the social well-being of the people, a fair economy, and a healthy environment (Slaper & Hall, 2011). This model argues that instead of the one bottom line, which is profit making, business firms should pursue a triple bottom line that considers the profit, the people, and the environment.

People are one of the components of the TBL. This component considers all the stakeholders an organization depends on in the supply chain. Essentially, these stakeholders include the company shareholders, the employees, the customers, the suppliers, and more. NationaliTeas’ corporate social responsibility should meet the people’s or stakeholders’ needs (Henriques & Richardson, 2004). People are the drivers of the firm’s operations. Employees benefit the firm because they provide their skilled services to enable it to produce, process, and sell tea. The tea suppliers are the farmers who farm the crop and sell it to the firm.

The firm’s employees provide the labour force that processes the tea in the processing factory. Employees are also involved in distributing the finished products to the market. The customers buy the product, and thus, the organization receives revenue (Henriques & Richardson, 2004). Thus, people are at the centre stage of any organization’s operation. People as a component also benefit society in several ways. First, people are involved in the supply chain of the finished tea products in the market, meaning that the community can enjoy their tea drink because people are committed to supplying it (Slaper & Hall, 2011). The farmers, as part of the people component, benefit society by providing employment opportunities to farm workers and unlocking cash flow in society from the proceeds of the tea.

Profit as one of the components of the TBL is the financial benefit NationaliTeas gains from running this business. The main goal of a business is making profits; therefore, profits have many benefits to the firm and society (Zak, 2015). First, profits from the sale of the tea enable NationaliTeas to offset expenses such as employee salaries, transport expenses, electricity, and water expenses. The profits enable the company to expand its operations by entering new markets and engaging more suppliers to boost production (Slaper & Hall, 2011). Profits also enable NationaliTeas to purchase equipment and tools to facilitate production. Profits benefit society in many ways; first, when the firm makes profits, it employs more workers, and the workers come from society. This implies that society’s people get employment opportunities because the firm makes good profits (Henriques & Richardson, 2004). When the firm makes profits, it implements corporate social responsibility activities such as building some feeder roads, scholarships to students, and provision of water to the community.

The planet or environment, as one of the TBL components, is crucial to the operation of nationalities. Environmental components require an organization to operate sustainably; it advocates for efficient energy use, maintaining high-quality water resources, safe disposal of wastes, and use of renewable resources (Slaper & Hall, 2011). A firm that observes environmental components benefits in the following ways: First, it can operate for many years without becoming incapacitated due to a deteriorated environment (Slaper & Hall, 2011). Secondly, observing environmental conservation by this firm would enable it to preserve the clean water that the firm uses. The firm would not incur extra expenses for water purification when the water resources have been conserved (Henriques & Richardson, 2004). To society, environmental conservation leads to healthy living where there is less pollution that could cause diseases. Both water resources and air are clean; hence, people living around them lead a healthy lifestyle.

Organization Value

The TBL concept emphasizes that a firm must not just aim to make profits but also focus on uplifting society and preserving the environment. Many benefits accrue to NationaliTeas for incorporating a TBL in its decision-making and operations compared to organizations with only one bottom line model (Tseng et al., 2020). First, when this organization adopts the TBL model, it will have a more sustainable future that considers both social and environmental sustainability (Henriques & Richardson, 2004). The benefits that come with sustainability include reduced energy consumption. NationaliTeas uses a lot of energy in processing tea in its production processes (Slaper & Hall, 2011). Thus, embracing TBL would enable it to use less energy in its processing. Secondly, TBL is important to NationaliTeas because it will enable it to get methods that would help set goals and measure and improve sustainable systems (Henriques & Richardson, 2004). Any organization needs to be in a position to measure goals to devise ways to boost its sustainability.

The third importance of embracing the TBL model in NationaliTeas decision-making is that it would enable the organization to find new ways to generate profits, such as attracting new customers and new suppliers who want to have less impact on the environment. Upholding environmental sustainability would attract like-minded tea farmers who would also want to conserve their environment for the sustainable production of tea for a long time (Savitz, 2013). Another important aspect of adopting TBL in decision-making is that the model would introduce a healthier working environment that focuses on employees and the organization’s surrounding community (Savitz, 2013). While the organization strives to make the workplace environment safer for its employees, the immediate community also feels safe because of the amenities that the firm provides.

NationaliTeas vision is “to be the most respected tea manufacturer ….driven by a commitment to ethical sourcing, minimal waste, and empowerment of our employees”. Its mission is to “Make the world more awake through rejuvenating … and sustainable practices that uplift workers, communities, and souls.” Both the company’s vision and mission focus on sustainable operation through the conservation of the environment (Henriques & Richardson, 2004). Some of the mentioned practices include waste minimization and ethical sourcing. The visions and missions are also clearly committed to improving people’s lives, including the employees and the community.

B Corporation Benefits

B Corp certification is a certification to corporations for meeting high performance, accountability, and transparency standards. It is a private certification given to profit-making corporations for their social and environmental performance (Beleyneh, 2019). This certification was launched in 2006 and is now a widely recognized certification that most profit-making organizations strive to get in the U.S. Many benefits await corporations that have B Corp certifications.

First, B Corp certification encourages corporate social responsibility by firms. When a firm attains a B Corp certification, it holds its social and environmental accountability practices. This means that B Corp-certified business corporations must observe environmental conservation and social responsibility (Beleyneh, 2019). Consumers in modern times are increasingly becoming sensitive to socially responsible organizations. Thus, organizations are fighting to attain the B Corp certification to convince customers that they care and that their products are safe.

Secondly, B Corp certification helps in attracting like-minded employees. When a business firm strives to make positive change, it attracts top, talented people looking to enrich their careers. B Corp certification encourages companies to embrace an employee-centric culture, meaning that the organizations will be able to retain top talents (Tseng et al., 2020). Therefore, NationaliTeas will be able to attract more talented employees who would add great value to its operations.

Another important aspect of B Corp certification is that it helps save costs. A company that attains a B Corp certification can access the B Corp community data, which helps organizations access more important information to learn more cost-effective ways of sustainable operations (Beleyneh, 2019). In addition, the certification helps firms to identify wasteful spending. Cost saving is one of the aims of sustainable operations. Firms need to strive to save energy, water, and time; these lead to cost savings.

Part Two: Operational Recommendations

Organizational Impact

When NationaliTeas embraces the people component of the TBL, there are several impacts or benefits it is going to get. Firstly, NationaliTeas will have a higher employee retention rate since it would have made the work environment pleasant for the employees. Secondly, the company will realize improved productivity since employees will be motivated and work to their full potential (Savitz, 2013). The People Initiative would also enjoy a steady supply of its raw materials because the supplier’s model would create a rapport with the suppliers; thus, they will have no issue with the firm and supply their raw materials steadily.

The environmental component of the TBL would benefit NationaliTeas through reduced energy consumption and carbon footprint costs. This will help in widening the profit margin. Secondly, observing environmental conservation will help NationaliTeas improve its productivity and cut unnecessary costs because of sustainability efforts (Tseng et al., 2020). Thirdly, environmental conservation would enhance brand perception and reputation since modern consumers favour firms that conserve the environment.

The profit initiatives will benefit NationaliTeas and help find new ways to minimize costs and maximize profits. Earning a profit is the major aim of being in business; thus, when NationaliTeas cuts costs and maximizes its income streams, it will have enough cash flow. Secondly, profit initiatives would help the firm to strengthen its supply chain (Savitz, 2013). It will have enough cash to ship the raw materials and the finished products to the market. Also, a good cash flow would enable the firm to promote and advertise its products to many consumers, boosting sales.

Societal Impacts

The people’s initiatives would have a great impact on society. First, adherence to the code of ethics would help the organization attain high behaviour expectations, which would boost its reputation; hence, this would make society trust its intention. Secondly, the initiative of paying employees more than the federal minimum wage would benefit society by creating wealth (Savitz, 2013). Most people employed in the firm are from the community around; thus, good pay means that society benefits by having individuals with high buying capacity. Implementing employee health and wellness initiatives would lead to a healthy society because many workers would access better medical services.

Environment initiatives, just like the people initiative, would benefit society. First, handling hazardous materials appropriately would lead to safe surroundings; hence, society would not suffer because of the firm’s presence (Zak, 2015). Secondly, regularly reviewing the firm’s social and environmental impact would help prevent the firm’s environmental risks to the communities (Savitz, 2013). Another benefit of environmental initiatives is that they would lead to a culture of environmental conservation in society.

Lastly, profit initiatives would benefit society in the following ways: first, people would afford a better living standard because workers are paid well, and business people would have a ready market for their items in society (Savitz, 2013). The profit initiatives would also give the organization enough cash to complement its corporate social responsibility, such as community projects; thus, society would benefit from such activities.

Customer Impacts

People initiatives such as paying employees well would motivate them and work hard to ensure that the organization achieves its goals. Motivated sales employees would interact with customers well and enable the customers to have a good experience. Environmental initiatives such as tracking and monitoring the use of chemicals in the supply chain ensure that the products are safe for the customers (Tseng et al., 2020). Profit initiatives such as cost minimization help the organization earn more profit, enabling it to sell its tea at discounted prices; hence, the customers enjoy the tea at a lower price.

Business Risks

Some of the risks involved in planning and prioritizing every initiative include different dimensions of the measurement approach. Measuring the success of some initiatives is complex because the available metrics are contested (Zak, 2015). Secondly, there is the risk of a lack of integration across the three dimensions. In other words, some initiatives may boost one component and, at the same time, diminish the importance of the other components (Tseng et al., 2020). Another risk associated with TBL initiatives is that there is a risk of non-compliance. Some initiatives may need the organization to go overboard, leading to non-compliance with the set standards.

Operational Management Techniques

One of the best operational management techniques that NationaliTeas can employ is lean manufacturing. This operational method focuses on minimizing waste in the manufacturing system. The goal of waste minimization is part of the TBL initiative. The company should use a waste minimization approach to minimize costs and maximize profits (Tseng Et al., 2020). Another operational management technique that NationaliTeas can use to improve its operations is a continuous improvement process. This technique helps streamline the workflows by building on what is available and improving it. Continuous improvement techniques reduce the time wasted and the effort.

Defining Requirements and Scope

One of the requirements to implement the people initiatives is that the management of NationaliTeas should be willing. The initiation and implementation of the initiatives depend on the management’s willingness; if there is a progressive manager, they will welcome all the changes. The requirements for environmental initiatives are the laws and standards available. For example, there are set carbon emission limit laws; thus, when implementing environmental initiatives, NationaliTeas must observe these laws (Tseng Et al., 2020). One of the requirements of implementing profit initiatives is the metrics that help gauge the organization’s performance. The metrics help to establish whether the firm is making profits or losses. Therefore, the availability of metrics would enable the managers to decide which initiatives are effective (Zak, 2015). Another requirement is resources; when the firm has enough financial resources, it will be able to initiate programs such as advertisements to boost sales and profits.

Roles and Responsibilities

The human resource managers are key stakeholders who would plan and implement the people initiatives. The human resource decides the level of salaries and wages the employees get. Further, quality assurance managers and operation managers ensure that customers get quality products at a lower price (Tseng et al., 2020). The stakeholders involved in planning and implementing the environmental initiatives include quality assurance managers; they ensure that the products produced are not harmful to the environment. Lastly, procurement managers ensure that they source raw materials from farmers who have adhered to environmental standards.

References

Beleyneh, T. (2019). Benefits of B Corp Certification. Retrieved from https://bethesdagreen.org/benefits-of-b-corp-certification/?utm_source=rss&utm_medium=rss&utm_campaign=benefits-of-b-corp-certification

Henriques, A & Richardson, J. (2004). The triple bottom line, does it all add up? : assessing the sustainability of business and CSR. London; Sterling, VA: Earthscan,

Hunsaker, E. (2018). Methods & Techniques Used in Operational Management. Retrieved from https://bizfluent.com/info-8237739-methods-techniques-used-operational-management.html

Peek, S (n.d). A Complete Guide to Starting a B Corp. Retrieved from https://www.uschamber.com/co/start/strategy/b-corp-advantages-and-requirements.

Savitz, A. (2013). The Triple Bottom Line: How Today’s Best-Run Companies Are Achieving Economic, Social and Environmental Success – and How You Can Too. John Wiley & Sons,

Slaper, T. & Hall, T. (2011). The Triple Bottom Line: What Is It and How Does It Work?. Indiana Business Review. https://www.ibrc.indiana.edu/ibr/2011/spring/article2.html

Tseng et al., (2020). Future trends and guidance for the triple bottom line and sustainability: a data-driven bibliometric analysis. Review Vol. 27(27):33543-33567.doi: 10.1007/s11356-020-09284-

Zak, A. (2015). Triple bottom line concept in theory and practice. Research gate. DOI:10.15611/pn.2015.387.21.

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Directions
1. Part One: Justification of Benefits: Justify the value of working toward more intentionally incorporating the TBL framework into organizational decision-making, specifically how ethical business practices regarding people, planet, and profit can benefit society, the environment, and the company’s profit. Specifically, address the following:
A. Key Components: Explain the three key components of the TBL framework and how each component benefits businesses and society.
B. Organizational Value: Provide a justification regarding the value and benefits of using the TBL framework to inform corporate decision-making and explain connections between the organizational mission and the organizational vision.
C. B Corporation Benefits: Briefly describe the organizational benefits of attaining B Corp Certification.
2. Part Two: Operational Recommendations: Read through the Preassessment Evaluation Summary (located in the Supporting Materials section) for each aspect of the TBL (people, profit, and planet). You will need to provide a detailed description of the initiatives that will create the needed improvement. You should note the organizational and societal value of the initiative along with the operational management techniques recommended to plan and complete each initiative. For each of your three initiatives, address the following:
A. Organizational Impacts: Describe the organizational benefits of each initiative, specifically noting the expected positive impact of completing each. Examples of positive impacts include better alignment to the organization’s mission, vision, and culture statements, increased amounts of funds or resources saved, and improvements to the organization’s brand.
B. Societal Impacts: Describe the societal benefits of each initiative, specifically noting the expected positive impact of completing each. Examples of positive impacts include increased community building and positive environmental impact.
C. Customer Impacts: Describe the consumer benefits of each selected initiative, specifically noting the expected positive impact of completing each. Examples of positive impacts include increased alignment to target markets, improved product access and availability, and improved customer satisfaction.
D. Business Risks: Explain the business risks associated with prioritizing, planning, and resourcing each initiative and how these risks will be considered and monitored.
E. Operational Management Techniques: Recommend an operational management strategy or technique (e.g., project management, lean manufacturing, or Six Sigma) that is appropriate to implement for each selected initiative, and explain why.
F. Defining Requirements and Scope: Define the requirements for the successful implantation of each selected initiative as well as the scope of each. Describe how changes to the requirements and scope would impact timelines, budget, and risk.
G. Roles and Responsibilities: Explain the key internal and external stakeholders who would be involved in planning and implementing each selected initiative, as well as why each identified stakeholder is needed to successfully implement the initiatives.

What to Submit
To complete this project, you must submit the following:
Submit your project using one of the two formats listed below. Please note that your submission should include both Part One and Part Two of your project. For either format, sources should be cited according to APA style.
• Written Report: Submit a 1,500- to 1,700-word Word document. Use APA style.

Supporting Materials
The following resource support your work on the project:

Reading: Project Preassessment Evaluation Summary PDF
This document presents the results of NationaliTeas’ preassessment for attaining B Corp Certification.