Mainebiz

V O L . X X I I I N O. X I I I J U N E 1 2 , 2 0 1 7 22 C orporate social responsibil- ity. e phrase, often called CSR, gives companies, their employees and customers the warm fuzzies about their place in the busi- ness community and society. But what does it mean to the bottom line, and at what cost? So-called CSR comes in many forms, one being the Certifi ed B Corp., a for-profi t company certifi ed by the nonprofi t B Lab to meet standards for social and environmental performance, accountability and transparency. B Lab notes it has certifi ed more than 2,173 companies in 50-plus countries and 130 industries. Nielsen's " e Sustainability Imperative" report in 2015 found that 66% of respondents in a global poll were willing to pay more for sustainably produced goods; 56% said a company's commitment to social values was an important consideration in buying their products. So far, only fi ve Maine companies have B Corp certifi cation: Maine Works, Wicked Joe, ReVision Energy, Atayne and Coff ee By Design. For small companies, the applica- tion can seem like an obstacle: It is time-consuming, detailed and requires paperwork to substantiate claims of personnel, business ethics and other metrics. It also costs a certain percent- age of revenue, with an annual fee and recertifi cation every two years. "It's a lot of work," admits Bob Garver, who with his wife, Carmen, owns Wicked Joe organic coff ees in Topsham and the Bard Coff ee shop in Portland. ey were among the Mainebiz 2017 Business Leaders of the Year. "We started and walked away for a while because we didn't have time to do it all. We fi lled out something and then they sent another 100 questions." He adds: "It was expensive and hard but we're really glad we did it. It was a bit of a gut check on how we are doing." He says, as his company goes forward, it will interact more with other Certifi ed B Corps. Part of the evaluation by Wayne, Pa.-based B Lab involves the applicant's sustainability and treatment of the envi- ronment. It also considers how the com- pany treats its employees and vendors and how it behaves in the community. Unlike traditional corporations, Certifi ed B Corps are legally required to consider the impact of their decisions on stakeholders, including workers, suppliers, community, consumers and P H O T O / T I M G R E E N WAY The benefits of B Corp status CSR rating still slow to take hold in Maine B y L o r i V a l i g r a F O C U S Backup & Recovery (B&R) is a critical component of every IT environment—and not having it can sink your company in an instant. B&R can be as simple as backing up files to a USB thumb drive or as complex as a full-fledged Backup & Recovery solution using dedicated hardware, software and management systems. The highly skilled and certified engineers at ITS have extensive experience with B&R for companies and budgets of every size, using the leading software and all popular platforms. I F T H I S I S YO U R B AC K U P & R E C O V E R Y S O LU T I O N … . . . C A L L O N T H E E X P E R I E N C E O F I T S — Q U I C K ! " T H E C E O S AY S B AC K U P I S A T I TA N I C WA S T E O F M O N E Y." I T S O LU T I O N S TO P O W E R YO U R G R O W T H I T S N E . C O M / B R 8 8 8 - 2 6 4 - 7 8 5 2 Fortunat Mueller, left, and Phil Coupe, co-founders of ReVision Energy, in Portland. A 2017 Chevrolet Bolt, left, and a 2017 Chrysler Pacifi ca Hybrid charge in the background. They say B Corp status helps attract and retain employees.

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