Do prosocial-certified companies walk the talk? An analysis of B Corps’ contributions to Sustainable Development Goals

Boni, L., Chiodo, V., Gerli, F., & Toschi, L. (2023). “Do prosocial-certified companies walk the talk? An analysis of B Corps’ contributions to Sustainable Development Goals.” Business Strategy and the Environment, 1–15. https://doi.org/10.1002/bse.3612 [open access]

Abstract

This paper investigates the contribution of the B Corp movement in Europe to achieving Sustainable Development Goals (SDGs) compared with non-B Corps. B Corp certification aims to identify organisations that utilise business as ‘a force for good’, but there is limited empirical evidence on how effectively certified organisations translate their prosocial claims into measurable SDG contributions. We address this through cluster analysis, comparing 313 B Corp-certified and 1506 non-certified European companies by way of the SDG Action Manager tool. Our findings reveal three clusters of B Corp-certified organisations with varying contribution levels across all SDGs, indicating that the certification does not consistently identify organisations with significant SDG impacts. Non-certified companies, meanwhile, do not exhibit distinct patterns. These results raise doubts about whether the B Corp category identifies a distinctive prototype member that can define clear prosocial norms and practices. The paper contributes to understanding B Corp organisations’ narratives by providing insights into their empirical performance compared with non-certified organisations. It also offers potential explanations for these discrepancies and proposes strategies to strengthen B Corp certification bodies in alignment with the SDGs, while acknowledging the presence of intra-category variations