Reactions to story from SFGate

• 

  ‘B corporation’ plan helps philanthropic firms

  http://www.ncet.org/b-corporation-plan-helps-philanthropic-f...
  194 days ago in Nevada’s Center for Entrepreneurship and Technology · Authority: 14

  Mike Hannigan and Sean Marx started their Oakland office supply company, Give Something Back, with an unusual mission - donating all profits to charity. As they grew to sales of more than $26 million, Hannigan and Marx often wished for additional capital to help fuel that growth. But they held back from seeking outside investors for fear of undermining their philanthropic mission. “Even if investors came in saying, ‘I am totally into giving away the profits,’ two years later they might change their mind,” Hannigan said. Now Hannigan and Marx believe they’ve found a solution to their dilemma - writing their values into their company’s legal structure as something called a “B corporation.” Read full story: Technorati Tags: San Francisco Chronicle, Mike Hannigan, Sean Marx, Give Something Back, “B corporation”, Businesses for Social Responsibility, Co-op America’s Green Business Network, Social Venture Network, Jay Coen Gilbert, Method Home, Numi Tea, Hanson Bridgett law firm, Coen Gilbert, Bart Houlahan, Andrew Kassoy, MSD Real Estate Capital, Michael Dell, Mark Leno, entrepreneurship, Seventh Generation, King Arthur Flour, Ben & Jerry’s, Ahmed Rahim, Rick Aubrey, Adam Lowry, NCET, Nevada’s Center for Entrepreneurship and Technology …
• 

  "B" is for Beneficial: The B Corporation

  http://www.worldchanging.com/archives/008059.html
  194 days ago in WorldChanging · Authority: 1,610

  As small, socially responsible businesses gain attention, some large corporations start to take notice, and in some cases take over (See, for example, Ben & Jerry’s, Tom’s of Maine and Burt’s Bees.) To help companies maintain their morals in the face of corporate takeovers, and to attract socially responsible investors and consumers, a nonprofit called B Lab has created B Corporation, where the 'B' stands for beneficial (to the business, public and environment). B Corporation is a certification for business that are “purpose-driven” and that want to create benefits for all stakeholders (employees, the community, the environment, ect.), not just shareholders. And in a time when every business wants to at least look like they’re going green, this certification could be essential for socially responsible investors and consumers who are trying to differentiate “good companies” from “good marketing.” The certification was created to help companies interested in the triple bottom line have the best of both –profit worlds. As a “for-purpose” business, B Corporations can reach beyond the capital limitations of the nonprofit world, and also the constraints of having to appease shareholders or investors as a for-profits. In the words of B Corporation’s co-creator Jay Coen Gilbert: "We are witnessing the birth of a new sector of the economy between the private sector and the nonprofit sector," Coen Gilbert told the SF Chronicle. "Our grandchildren will be talking about this new sector the way we talk about the nonprofit sector. ... Eventually it will be 5, 7, 10 percent of GDP. And unlike nonprofits, it will have the ability to scale up from there because it can attract capital. There will be a social stock exchange, lower capital gains taxes for investing in these companies, and government procurement preferences. All of that is going to happen - but for it to happen, we need to create some standards.” And what he means by creating standards is their certification system, which allows businesses to prove their intentions to operate in socially and environmentally responsible ways to investors and consumers. “As a B Corporation, you differentiate your business from the growing barrage of green- and cause-marketing campaigns and stand out as a leader in the market, creating a clear path for others to follow,” states the organization. “You also embed your values into your corporate governing documents so they can survive new investors, new management and even new ownership.” To become a certified B Corporation, applicants must score above 80 points on a 200 point test, and must amend their articles of incorporation to say that managers must consider the interests of employees, the community, and the environment instead of worrying solely about shareholders. The SF Chronicle reports: Method filled out B Lab's scorecard and received a grade of 128.7 out of 200, well over the passing score of 80. Similarly, Numi Tea - which sells organic, fair trade teas from more than 25 countries - scored a 101.2 and became a B corporation. Companies like Numi, Method and Give Something Back say they were attracted to the B corporation idea partly because of its potential to help them attract investment capital without jeopardizing their ideals. Some are comparing the certification system to the LEED certification for green buildings or TransFair's certification of fair-trade businesses. It will be interesting to watch as this certification gains popularity -- more than 100 businesses currently have B Corporations status, such as New Leaf Paper, Comet Skateboards and Dansko. Will other organizations start labeling efforts? Will corporations try to gain certification for less than purpose-driven reasons (As this Inc.com article points out, corporations could score higher in social areas and lower in environmental stewardship and still make the cut.)? Will their amendments hold up in court? As businesses continue to evolve to fit our demands for more social responsibility, only time will tell. Help us change the world - DONATE NOW! (Posted by Sarah Kuck in Business at 1:03 PM)
• 

  Share the wealth...

  http://philanthropy.blogspot.com/2008/05/share-wealth.html
  196 days ago in PHILANTHROPY 2173 · Authority: 65

  Share the wealth of information, that is. Here are Tactical Philanthropy's comments on my company's (Blueprint Research & Design, Inc.) standard business practice of generating public reports from all the work we do for foundation clients. Answers to FAQs: Why does Blueprint include this public report clause in its contracts? So that research on a social issue can be used by others who care about that issue. How do the foundations react? Once we explain what we're trying to do, most of the foundations that we work with are very positive. In fact, most of them have welcomed the opportunity as a chance to discuss Intellectual Property issues. Some foundations won't use our contract - this is fine because it is a chance to change their standard contracting language. Sometimes there isn't anything in the work that either we or the foundation thinks will be of interest to the public. The clause gives us a chance to discuss this upfront with the foundation. How can an advisory firm require something of a client? How can they not? Good working relationships are built on mutual trust and benefit. Our values are as important to us as are our clients' values - the contract negotiation stage of business development is one, of many, opportunities to express and stand by what we care about and are trying to make happen in the world. This is also why Blueprint is proud to be one of the nation's first B Corporations. Have you ever lost business doing it this way? Sure. We've also built long term relationships with key foundations, influenced their contracting procedures, opened up the door a little bit on IP issues in philanthropy, influenced our consulting firm colleagues, and leveraged dollars to certain issues by sharing the research. This kind of sharing is all good. It is also not enough. Most foundation research is site and topic specific, written for a professional audience, and requires patience and context to be useful in making grant decisions. We are actively addressing these problems with several ventures we have underway, all of which are designed to help make the best information on what works and what is known available to donors and philanthropic organizations so that they can improve their giving and achieve their missions. This is why I spend so much time monitoring developments in communications technology, social media, and intellectual property. This is why I care about the intersection of business practices and philanthropy. This is why I care about innovation, prizes, or buzzwords. This is why I write about philanthropic capital markets and social idea markets. This is why I write this blog and why I founded Blueprint - to help build better systems for using research to improve giving. OK - I am stepping down off the informercial soapbox now. Thanks, Sean, for the post. Tags: philanthropy, knowledge, blueprintresearch, BRD
• 

  B Corporations

  http://cheddarpath.com/?p=16
  198 days ago in The Cheddar Path · Authority: 3

  An interesting article in the San Francisco Chronicle recently highlighted the growing number of “B Corporations” in the San Francisco Bay Area. B Corporations, with the B standing for ‘beneficial,’ are for-profit companies that must receive a passing grade on a long scorecard that covers environmental practices, employment practices, purchasing policies and whether their products are beneficial to society. They must also adopt legal language stating that their directors may consider the welfare of outside stakeholders such as employees, customers, their community and the environment, as well as the financial interest of shareholders. Basically, the B Corporation movement is a way of creating sets of standards and legal structures that measure what exactly it means for a business to be responsible, sustainable and green. Jay Coen Gilbert, one of the founders of the AND1 basketball footwear/apparel company and one of the co-founders of the B Corporation movement, summed up his dreams for socially responsible businesses by saying: “We are witnessing the birth of a new sector of the economy between the private sector and the nonprofit sector. Our grandchildren will be talking about this new sector the way we talk about the nonprofit sector. … Eventually it will be 5, 7, 10 percent of GDP. And unlike nonprofits, it will have the ability to scale up from there because it can attract capital. There will be a social stock exchange, lower capital gains taxes for investing in these companies, and government procurement preferences. All of that is going to happen - but for it to happen, we need to create some standards.” It seems to be very visionary thinking, and I think that kind of vision is exactly what we need in terms of taking the movement for progressive social justice, and the role of economics within that movement, to the next level.
• 

  Good marketing makes good cents - Eureka Times-Standard

  http://smartaffiliatelandmine.org/2008/05/18/good-marketing-...
  198 days ago in SmartAffiliateLandmine.org · Authority: 2

  Good marketing makes good cents - Eureka Times-Standard Good marketing makes good cents - Eureka Times-Standard What exactly is marketing and why is it important to your business? Wikipedia, the online encyclopedia, defines marketing as “the process of creating or directing an organization to be successful in selling a product or service that people not only ‘B corporation’ plan helps philanthropic firms - San Francisco Gate del.icio.us Mike Hannigan and Sean Marx started their Oakland office supply company, Give Something Back, with an unusual mission - donating all profits to charity. As they grew to sales of more than $26 million, Hannigan and Marx often wished for ‘Sex and the City’ fashions take a starring role in the movie - Chicago Tribune Barack Obama was joking when he said he was canceling all appearances the day “Sex and the City: The Movie” opens. But for Chicago fashionistas, the May 30 debut is no laughable matter. Giggle-inducing, maybe. But laughable, definitely not. Last June Eye-catching colors - Baltimore Sun Up some narrow stairs and past the Pimlico Race Course jockeys’ room is a wall of color. This is a place most racing fans can’t go - equivalent to backstage at a Broadway theater - called the silks room. Its name is a misnomer. The hundreds of Clothes need customers - Detroit Free Press After months of planning and product development, first-time entrepreneur Merrill Guerra and her start-up company, RealKidz Inc., face their first big test. With a limited budget, can they sell 817 pants and shirts for plus-size young girls Brought to you by - SmartAffiliateLandmine.com - Viral Marketing Tools that will make your online sales explodeShare and Enjoy:These icons link to social bookmarking sites where readers can share and discover new web pages.

Advertise on Technorati