UK’s founding B Corporations: EQi Group

EQi Group is a data and technology company that specialises in resource efficiency management, business intelligence and risk analysis. They have developed the cloud platform, ‘evolution’ – the first Resource Efficiency Planning Exchange. ‘evolution’ transforms operating performance by providing the first resource planning exchange for companies and their suppliers to better understand and control costs and risks.

By eliminating multiple system complexity, evolution® highlights waste hotspots, transparency gaps and process duplication while managing resources to drive consumption efficiency, reveal reputational and governance liabilities and seamlessly control compliance requirements.

In 140-characters or less what does being a B Corporation mean for your organisation?

Our goal is to help our clients increase economic profit, ecological balance and social compatibility. The unity of these topics not only makes companies stronger, but also more resilient.

Given our goals, we feel highly aligned with the principles of a B Corporation. Having been certified by a neutral third party, we not only want to underline our own ambition, but also to support the movement.

What were the biggest internal barriers to achieving B Corp accreditation?

As a relatively young company, we have the advantage of not having to battle any legacy issues. Hence, it was relatively easy to set up a governance structure aligned with our ambition. That said, as with any certification process, additional attention is required to go through the process and provide all the required evidence. This also included the need to formalise some of the processes that is not yet written down anywhere. At the same time, the battle for time and resources is a challenge and makes you appreciate the more positive results.

Will it change how you do business and/or who you do business with?

Our core purpose is to connect business with sustainability. In that sense, we do not need to change the way we do business. The certification is rather an expression of our intention. We certainly hope to set a signal and help the movement to get more companies to take the step towards B Corp certification.

There are 3,571,105 companies in the UK and 61 B Corps – how do we reach the point where every company in the UK is B Corp-ready?

Sustainability, in all its dimensions bears inherent value, which is often not recognised. Taking a holistic view, creating shared value to all stakeholders; both have enormous economic clout. We are frustrated to see, that sustainability is often only sitting in the corner of compliance and marketing, completely missing the opportunities for value creation.

At EQi, we are showing our customers how environmental, social and health & safety impacts their financial performance. We utilise the economics of sustainability to drive bottom line profits and make companies more competitive and resilient. Through this, we hope to bring a business language to the table, and with that maybe even a competitive urgency to follow the approach. At the end of the day, sustainability and compliance are the outcome of good management, not a cause in itself.

Is corporate action commensurate with the environmental and social challenges we face, and responsibilities we have, as a one the world’s leading economies?

The environmental and social challenges are enormous. We will only be able to master these with all stakeholders taking part. Business, being one of the main stakeholders in using and transforming resources, must obviously play its role. Utilising the principles of a free market economy and the competitive challenges it brings drives innovation, which will be key. If business solutions can be found integrating sustainability into the core of the business proposition, change will come on its own.

Any other comments?

It is exciting to see the attention B Corp is getting, especially that from bigger companies. A movement has started. Its great to be part of that and to make it happen. The planet needs it. We need it!

Read EQi Group CEO Steve Burt’s latest post for Blue & Green here.

Read about two other UK’s founding B Corporations

– ClearlySo

– Be Inspired Films