We are pleased and proud to announce that we have joined over 280 other leading companies who are setting a new corporate standard for social and environmental performance, by becoming a Certified B Corporation, a.k.a B Corp.

B what? you might ask!

Last spring Azavea joined a regional organization called the Sustainable Business Network (SBN) of Greater Philadelphia.  Originally founded by Judy Wicks of the White Dog Cafe, SBN is now part of a national network of private, independent, locally owned businesses that operate in support of a “triple bottom line“.  The triple bottom line extends the measurement of business success from the usual bottom line (profits) to “people, planet and profit” and is based on the idea that companies should consider environmental and social impact as well as the usual profit motive.  While the idea was originally developed by a UK management consultant, John Elkington, it has spread to many parts of the world.

As part of joining SBN, we filled out an extensive survey created by an organization called B Lab.  B Lab (also based in the Philadelphia region though it operates nationally) was created to promote the designation of a new corporate form, the “B Corporation“.  Under current IRS regulations, there are several types of private for-profit businesses including C Corporations, S Corporations, LLC’s, LLP’s, partnerships and sole proprietors.  Azavea is an S Corporation (which is a C Corporation that elects a special status under Subchapter S of the IRS code).  The B Corporation status represents a new type or for-profit company that uses the power of businesses operating in a market-based economy to solve social and ecosystem problems. B Lab is working with state legislatures to try to have the B Corporation status added as a new corporate form in each state.

Azavea joins other leading B Corp companies

So you might be thinking that all of that Corporate Social Responsibility (or “CSR”, to those in the know) stuff sounds good, but it’s actually kind of hard to measure.  How can they separate the green-washing from the sincere operations?  So B Lab has developed a survey that attempts to capture the business practices of an organization and score them.  Companies that score high enough can become certified as B Corporations.  And they don’t just take your word for it, they audit the firm’s statements to ensure the integrity of the results.

But it’s not all. To become certified, B Corporations must meet comprehensive and transparent social and environmental performance standards, and amend their corporate by-laws to incorporate the interests of employees, community, and the environment. They also agree to contribute a portion of their revenue (based on the company’s size) each year to B Lab to support the program, and to undergo an audit of their business practices once every 2 years to ensure that their business practices continue to align with the B Corporation’s principles.

You might now wonder why Azavea would qualify.  The B Corporation status emphasizes the triple bottom line of social responsibility, sustainability and profitability (people, planet, profit).  At Azavea, many of our business decisions stem from these three principles.

We were founded in 2000 with the vision to build innovative location-based web and mobile solutions and perform spatial analysis for clients committed to making positive and enduring impacts in the communities they serve. We have worked with numerous non-profit, academic and government clients to answer complex geospatial questions in a wide variety of domains including natural resource planning, neighborhood revitalization, economic development, crime analysis, real estate property analysis, redistricting, political advocacy, and cultural resources.

But most of our B Corporation points came from our management and employment practices, including:

• Financial transparency – we open the books to all of our full-time staff
• We hold at least two meetings per year to report to employees on company performance
• 100% health care, prescriptions and dental care.  For care that’s not covered by our health plan, we offer up to $2,000 per year in medical reimbursements
• Public Transit and biking cost reimbursement plans
• Paid time off for voting
• Paid maternity and paternity leave
• Retirement plan with company match
• Profit sharing plan
• Domestic partner benefits
• 3 weeks vacation plus additional sick time
• Training and professional development opportunities
• Reimbursement for continuing education expenses
• Part-time / flex time schedules available
• Portion of profits go to charitable organizations
• Mission statement that incorporates social value and employee interests

Moreover, our 10% personal research and pro bono programs have enabled staff members to spend some time working on projects that are not focused on the immediate needs of a particular client, while at the same time enabling the company to expand its skill sets and broaden its business opportunities in areas and domains not explored before. These programs have been at the source of projects such as Walkshed (to calculate and map walkability), BusMinder (a real-time bus notification application), a white paper on Gerrymandering, geographic service maps for MANNA, and the Haitian Earthquake Registry, to name a few.

The same service-oriented attitude extends to Azavea’s commitment to redistributing a minimum of 2% of our annual profits to charitable organizations selected by staff through the company’s “Time to Give Back” program.

But we’re not resting on our laurels! In addition to the business benefits, the B Lab survey also highlighted some areas where we can improve.  Here are some of the ideas:

• Establish a Board of Advisers made up people independent of the company
• Develop an environmental policy
• Conduct environmental review / audit and share with staff and customers
• Measure our annual energy consumption and use it to develop metrics by which we can reduce it

We are proud of our new corporate status and look forward to implementing some of the above ideas in our business practices.