Standards and Governance

Multiple governing bodies and advisory bodies oversee the work of B Lab, the global B Corp Movement, and the requirements for B Corp Certification.

Board of Directors

B Lab is governed by a dynamic process of broad, transparent, multi-stakeholder engagement. The Board of Directors establishes Advisory Councils to ensure continuous incorporation of best thinking and practices into B Lab's mission and activities. The Board also has ultimate decision-making authority on recommendations coming from the Advisory Councils and oversees strategy, budget and operations.

Bart Houlahan,

Co-Founder B Lab, Former CFO, COO and President of AND1

Debra Dunn,

Director, Skoll Foundation

Katie Hill,

Global Governance Council Representative; B Lab Europe’s Management Board Chair and Former B Lab UK Executive Director

Lorene Arey,

President, The Clara Fund

Luis Duarte,

Chief Philanthropy Officer of ZOMALAB

Ommeed Sathe,

Vice President & Head, Social Investment ProgramCommunity Resources Department, Prudential

Swati Mylavarapu,

Founder, Incite Labs and Incite Ventures

Global Governance Council

The Global Governance Council oversees the global growth of B Lab and the B Corp Movement. The eight-member council has representatives from each global partner organization, including B Lab US & Canada and B Lab's Independent Board of Directors. The responsibilities of the GGC include global expansion, policy strategy, and approval of new global partners.

Ben Anderson,

B Lab US & Canada

Co-Chair: Bart Houlahan,

B Lab

Co-Chair: Mele-Ann Havea,

B Lab Australia & New Zealand

James Perry,

B Lab UK

Juan Pablo Larenas,

Sistema B

Katie Hill,

GGC Representative to B Lab Board

Leen Zevenbergen,

B Lab Europe

Lorene Arey,

B Lab Board of Directors

Standards Advisory Council

Oversight of the B Impact Assessment is the responsibility of B Lab's Standards Advisory Council, an independent committee of 20-22 members, each with deep industry or stakeholder expertise. The Standards Advisory Council is divided into two subgroups — one to oversee the content and weightings for the version of the B Impact Ratings System that is appropriate for companies and funds in developed markets; the other for the version that is appropriate for companies and funds in emerging markets.

The Standards Advisory Council’s responsibilities include:

Approving changes made to the B Impact Assessment as part of its three-year update process
Determining eligibility for B Corp Certification in cases where companies make material disclosures on the Disclosure Questionnaire
Reviewing material complaints against Certified B Corporations
Approving addenda to the B Impact Assessment created by specialized Advisory and Working Groups

Decisions made by the Standards Advisory Council may be appealed to the Board of Directors.

CONTROVERSIAL ISSUES AND B CORP CERTIFICATION B LAB'S COMPLAINTS PROCESS

Developed Markets SAC

Bart Houlahan,

Co-Founder, B Lab

Hewson Baltzell,

President and Chief Operating Officer of Helios Exchange

Clara Barby,

Partner, Head of ImPACT+, Bridges Ventures

Debra Dunn,

Director, Skoll Foundation

Bonny Moellenbrock,

Executive Director, SJF Institute

Stephanie Nieman,

Associate, SJF Ventures

Richard Pike,

Technical Director, Cook Trading Ltd.

Beth Sirull,

Former President, Pacific Community Ventures

Bob Willard,

Author and Speaker, Sustainability Advantage

Jamie Robertson,

Managing Director, 361 Degrees

Thomas van Craen,

Managing Director, Triodos Bank Belgium

Emerging Markets SAC

Carlos Eduardo Lessa Brandao,

Independent Board Member

Chid Liberty,

Project Manager, Dalberg Global Advisors

Darin Kingston,

Portfolio Manager, Global Development Incubator

Flory Wilson,

Former, Director, Impact Management Team, B Lab

Genevieve Edens,

Impact Assessment Manager, Aspen Network of Development Entrepreneurs (ANDE)

Joseph Wozniak,

Program Manager - Trade for Sustainable Development, The International Trade Center (ITC) - WTO/UNCTAD

Kelly McCarthy,

Senior Manager, IRIS, Global Impact Investing Network

Rob Schneider,

Senior Alliance Manager, U.S. Agency for International Development (USAID)

Veronica Chau,

Project Manager, Dalberg Global Advisors

Watanan Petersik,

Director, Lien Centre for Social Innovation; Chair, Ashoka Singapore Advisory Council

Advisory and Working Groups

The B Impact Assessment is tailored to a company's size, sector, and market. When the need arises for more nuance in assessing the impact of particular topic areas, models, or industries, B Lab convenes expert working groups to develop standards for approval by the Standards Advisory Council. Active working groups are listed below. See a list of past working groups.

Multinational and Public Markets Advisory Council

An increasing number of mission-aligned, multinational and public companies (MPCs) have recently expressed interest in B Corp certification and in helping to accelerate the movement. MPCs, however, are often challenged to apply the performance standards and meet the legal requirement for certification due to their more complex operating and governance structures. To address this challenge, B Lab has created the Multinationals and Public Markets Advisory Council (MPMAC), a multi-stakeholder advisory body tasked with recommending a meaningful, manageable path to certification for MPCs. The MPMAC is composed of two working groups—one focused on mission-aligned structures for MPCs, and one focused on creating meaningful performance standards. Learn more about the MPMAC's scope and timeline.

Following the first phase of the MPM AC process, the initial recommendations of the Performance Standards Working Group are now available. A group of corporate testers and stakeholder organizations have been invited to the MPM AC for testing the recommendations, and the public is also welcome to submit feedback as well.

Mission Alignment Working Group

Aurelien Cohen, Danone
Daniela Saltzman, Generation IM
Tara Smith, Campbell's Soup
Janine Guillot, SASB
Lucy Fergusson, Linklaters
Margaret Foran, Prudential
Robert Eccles, Harvard Business School
Colin Mayer, Said Business School
Ed Liu, Morgan Stanley
Bill Clark, Drinker Biddle and Reath
Jameela Pedecini, Perella Weinberg Partners

Performance Standards Working Group

Niki King, Campbell's Soup
Francisco Piza, Bancocolombia
Jeffrey Hogue, C&A
Jessica Sobel, Hain Celestial
Kristen Sullivan, Deloitte
Laura Palmeiro, Danone
Juliana Pasqualini, Natura
Sue Almond, Grant Thornton
Terence Jeyaretnam, Ernst and Young
Sara Parrott, SunCorp
Sue Garrard, Unilever
Andrew Collins, SASB

Testers

DSM
Veolia
Sodexo
BNP Paribas
Danone
Natura
Suncorp
Laureate Education
Unilever
Bancolombia

Commenters

Global Reporting Initiative
Shift Project
Future Fit Business Benchmark
Trillium Asset Management
CECP
LBG Network
The B Team
Business and Human Rights Resource Center
RepRisk
Ellen MacArthur Foundation