B Lab

B Lab is a non-profit organization that was founded in 2006 in Berwyn, Pennsylvania. B Lab created, and awards, the B Corporation certification for for-profit organizations.[1][2] The "B" stands for beneficial[3] and indicates that the certified organizations voluntarily meet certain standards of transparency, accountability, sustainability, and performance, with an aim to create value for society, not just for traditional stakeholders such as the shareholders.

B Lab logo

In addition to awarding the B Corporation certifications, B Lab’s initiatives include administration of the B Impact Management programs and software, as well as advocacy for the adoption and improvement of benefit corporation statutes at the state level. (The B Corporation certification should not be confused with state-sanctioned benefit corporation status.)[4] In that sense, B Lab is in the same historical tradition as private certification authorities such as Det Norske Veritas (a Norwegian foundation, operating as a classification society), UL (a private US company, whose standards are recognized by the insurance industry), and Germany's TÜV's (associations devoted to all aspects technical safety). These organizations formally are private-sector entities, but their reach is complementary with, and broadly comparable to, public or intergovernmental standards-setting bodies and certificating authorities.

B Lab runs a separate website[5] devoted to information about benefit corporations and the progress of relevant state legislation.

B Lab has attracted media attention to the concept of benefit corporation.[3][6][7][8][9] The concepts of benefit corporation and B Corporation are sometimes used interchangeably.[10][11]

B Lab has established a partnership with the United Nations to help the private sector translate the Sustainable Development Goals (SDG) into practical business processes. B Lab is in the process of creating a SDG Navigator that companies can use by early 2020.[12]

References
  1. "The Non-Profit Behind B Corps". B Lab. Archived from the original on June 5, 2015. Retrieved September 13, 2013.
  2. "Contact". B Lab. Retrieved September 13, 2013.
  3. Steiman, Hannah Clark (July 1, 2007). "A New Kind of Company: A 'B' Corporation". Inc. Retrieved September 13, 2013.
  4. Mariano, Jonathan (September 8, 2011). "B Corp and a Benefit Corporation are Not Created Equal". TriplePundit. Retrieved September 13, 2013.
  5. See "Benefit Corp Information Center". B Lab. Retrieved September 13, 2013.
  6. Adams, Susan (March 16, 2011). "Corporate Responsibility Nonprofit, B Lab, Shows Strong Growth". Forbes. Retrieved September 13, 2013.
  7. Knowledge@Wharton (November 7, 2012). "B Lab's Bart Houlahan: Building More Socially Responsible Corporations". Wharton School. Retrieved September 13, 2013.
  8. Brokaw, Leslie (November 28, 2012). "The 'Benefit Corporation' Movement". Massachusetts Institute of Technology. Retrieved September 13, 2013.
  9. Adams, Susan (March 25, 2010). "Capitalist Monkey Wrench". Forbes. Archived from the original on March 28, 2010. Retrieved September 13, 2013.
  10. Fritz, Joanne. "What Is a B Corporation?". About.com. Retrieved September 13, 2013.
  11. Hew, Ryan K. (September 6, 2011). "Law in the Brief: To B or not to B, Hawaii Gets B-Corps through Act 209". The Blawg of Ryan K. Hew, Attorney at Law (blog). Archived from the original on September 5, 2014. Retrieved September 13, 2013.
  12. Feloni, Richard (19 April 2019). "The entrepreneur behind the coveted B Corp label shares why he's partnering with the UN to solve our most pressing workforce problems". Business Insider. Retrieved 23 May 2019.
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