Natura&Co: Creating a Culture of Change from Within
Making decisions that benefit all people, communities and the planet is one of the core principles of the B Corp movement. To rethink the role of business, all B Corps are required to change their legal articles to embed purpose into their organization and ensure they consider their impact on all stakeholders – including, but not limited to shareholders. But what does this mean in practice, especially for large multinationals? As part of a collective call to action for all business leaders, investors and policy-makers to embrace this way of doing business, B Lab sat down with the B Movement Builders to understand what adopting these governance frameworks means to them.
Why is it important for Natura &Co to adopt this commitment to Stakeholder Governance?
From the very start, Natura &Co has built its strategy around making decisions based on the interests of a wide range of stakeholders – which include, but are not limited to shareholders. Embedding this as both our purpose and the duty of our members (directors) in our bylaws makes it clear how instrumental this is to our overall approach as a business.
How have the framework, tools and lessons from the B Corp movement supported your commitment to Stakeholder Governance?
We believe the principle of continuous improvement is a key element of effective stakeholder governance. This is why we are developing tools which help us learn and grow when it comes to how we operate as a business. One example from Natura&Co is the IP&L – a decision making tool which enables people to ‘measure what matters’ by accounting for human, social and natural capital.
How does your governance translate to how you do business?
At Natura &Co, we have a clear purpose: to nurture beauty and relationships for a better way of living and doing business. Stakeholder governance is how we show the world – our people, our beauty consultants, our customers, our investors - that our purpose is more than words on the wall. It guides the culture of the business and informs how we make decisions – from the small everyday decisions to the big strategic ones. Businesses wishing to make this change should ask themselves to consider their purpose – and how to ensure this purpose is alive both in the governance and culture of the business.
What ripple effects would Natura &Co like to see in your industry after making this commitment public?
We hope to see more businesses walking the talk of stakeholder governance through their actions and decisions by hardwiring this approach into their articles and bylaws. We also hope to see more businesses backing important campaigns to mainstream stakeholder governance into policy and legal frameworks– such as the Better Business Act and Interdependence Coalition.