Becoming a B Corp helped us learn where best to focus our efforts

Most people will agree, we’re living in a crunch time for climate change. You only need to switch on the news to see the IPCC’s predictions – unpredictable weather, a rise in sea levels, deforestation, and other climate impacts – unfolding in front of our eyes.

Faced with a problem of the scale of climate change, it’s easy to feel our actions are insignificant. But in fact, the choices we make daily – what we buy, what we eat, what we waste – collectively changes a lot. Rubies in the Rubble, alongside many other purpose-driven brands, believes businesses have a huge amount of power and responsibility in making sure the planet is a better place than we found it. But how can we help consumers identify the businesses shaping the future we want? Enter B Corporation!

The B Corporation network is an incredible collection of companies committed to doing better through business – meeting the highest standards of social and environmental impact.

The assessment is notoriously rigorous in scrutinising businesses, leaving no stone unturned in evaluating whether meaningful practices are deep-rooted. Rubies in the Rubble was certified as a B Corp in 2020, and though we were founded with sustainability at our core, going through the challenging process revealed a holistic view of our business’ impact.

The B Corp process also gave us the nudge we needed to operate a blind screening process for recruitment. This minimises discrimination by ensuring that for the first stage of any application, our team can only assess candidates based on their experience. Information that may lead to bias – such as name, age, gender, or education level – is shielded.

The assessment also prompted small functional changes, like enrolling in a cycle-to-work scheme – making cycling a more accessible commute for our staff by spreading the bike costs over time, allowing them to make savings through a tax break.

Most importantly, the B Corp framework provided us with the means to better understand how and where to prioritise our time to have the most impact. If you’re a business looking to make positive change, reach out to B Corp and get working on the multitude of ways you can help shape a better future for all of us.