Tag: BCorp

The “hybrid” condition of organizations as a key tool for sustainable business development

Posted on | by Marta Re Ferrè

Companies are no longer focused exclusively on profits: a study by the Politecnico di Milano and the University of Bologna analyses hybrid organisations, companies that integrate sustainability and economic logics. Focus on B Corporations, with two key approaches: internal social mission or market strategy. A model for the future of sustainable business.

 

In today’s economic landscape of growing environmental and social crises, companies can no longer limit themselves to maximising profits. There is a growing awareness that business success should be measured not only in financial terms, but also in terms of the social and environmental impact generated. This is the context for hybrid organisations, or those companies that integrate both social and economic logic into the way they do business.

But what does it really mean to be a hybrid organisation? The study carried out by Leonardo Boni, Assistant Professor at the POLIMI School of Management of the Politecnico di Milano and afferent of the TIRESIA research centre, together with Riccardo Fini and Laura Toschi of the University of Bologna, analyses the nature and measures the various facets of the hybrid condition within a sample of Italian companies that have B Corp certification, a standard obtained by for-profit companies that have a high level of social and environmental performance.

The study proposes a scale for measuring hybridisation that has three main levels:

  • The emergence of the hybrid condition – Why does a company decide to pursue social objectives alongside economic ones? Motivations can be strategic (improving reputation, attracting new customers sensitive to sustainability) or deeper, linked to the ethical vision of the company and the influence of external stakeholders.
  • Integrating the social dimension – It is not enough to declare a commitment to sustainability, it must be translated into concrete actions. Hybrid companies must be able to develop specific skills to better manage the dual economic and social objectives, adopt internal processes to align governance and business strategy, and create incentive mechanisms for employees.
  • Developing an impact thesis – Hybrid companies should not only mitigate the negative impacts of their activities, but also aim to create a lasting positive impact. This approach requires the development of a clear impact thesis: what social and environmental goals do you want to achieve? How will they be measured?

From the analysis of 101 Italian B Corporations, the study identified and validated a measurement scale with four factors: (i) strategic interpretation of social impact; (ii) individual and entrepreneurial dynamism; (iii) diffusion of organisational capabilities; and (iv) influence of external actors.

From this scale, the study identified two macro-types of hybrid companies:

  • Internally identity-oriented B Corporations – companies that are born with a strong social mission and integrate it into every aspect of their strategy. For them, profit is a means to amplify positive impact.
  • Market-driven B Corp – companies that adopt the B Corp model to differentiate themselves, attract investment and respond to external pressures (customers, suppliers, institutions).

This study contributes to the understanding of how and to what extent a company embraces a hybrid state, supporting the path of innovation and adaptation of practices and processes fundamental to the generation of positive social impact. From this paper, it is suggested that the divide between for-profit and non-profit is overcome, but that the two souls can coexist in organisational models that can be measured and implemented.

MIP Politecnico di Milano, the only Business School in Europe to gain B Corp Certification

Posted on | by Angela Leone | Leave a Comment on MIP Politecnico di Milano, the only Business School in Europe to gain B Corp Certification

The Business School joins the international community of companies that stand out for their commitment to combining profit with the well-being of society and care for the environment.

 

MIP Politecnico di Milano Graduate School of Business is delighted to announce that it has achieved B Corp Certification. This prestigious recognition is awarded to companies that emerge for their commitment to sustainable development and building a more inclusive society. MIP Politecnico di Milano is the first Italian and only European business school to have been accredited, and is just one of a few worldwide.

 

During the accreditation process, MIP was helped by Nativa, designer of sustainable and regenerative evolution models, the first B Corp in Europe and B Lab’s Italian partner.

 

B Corp companies form an international community of companies with the common goal of combining profit with a search for the collective well-being, and care for the environment and society as a whole. Around 3,400 companies have been awarded this certification, one hundred or so being in Italy. The required certification process involves a rigorous assessment to examine the organisation’s model of governance, its care for human capital, its relationship with its partners and social context, and respect for the environment. The procedure, therefore, analyses and measures the results achieved by the company in question in this area.

 

This recognition certifies MIP’s consolidated commitment and, more generally, that of the School of Management of Politecnico di Milano to which MIP belongs, for years actively involved in research, training and joint projects with companies on topics concerning social responsibility. MIP’s status as a B Corp certified company will direct its actions in the field of sustainability over the upcoming years. Its plans include expanding initiatives that can produce an impact in the areas of accessibility, inclusion, the well-being of people and environmental sustainability.

 

One of the essential elements that led MIP to undergo this certification is its full understanding of the role that every company will play in building a better tomorrow for everyone. The purpose and raison d’être of every business will increasingly be re-thought, to give centrality to the role that it wishes to hold in society. As well as encouraging growing interest in its training programmes on the topics of purpose, sustainability and inclusivity, MIP intends to use its status as a Certified B Corporation to accelerate the virtuous process by which it will become itself a sustainable organisation.

 

Vittorio Chiesa and Federico Frattini, President and Dean of MIP Politecnico di Milano, respectively: “All of us at MIP are intensely proud to have received this significant certification”. We are, above all, delighted to say that we are the only European business school to be a Certified B Corporation. Furthermore, in the current unprecedented health emergency, when we are querying the development models that allowed it to happen, seeing our contribution for a more sustainable future being recognised in this way takes on an even deeper meaning. Business schools are increasingly underlining their strong role as agents for change committed to building a better and more inclusive society”.

 

Raffaella Cagliano, Deputy Director of the School of Management of Politecnico di Milano: “This acknowledgement is a major milestone and rewards the hard work carried out with passion and commitment in recent years. B Corp Certification fits into a strategy of sustainable growth that the School of Management has been carrying forward for a long time, and we are convinced that this is the principle responsibility for an institute like us that operates in research and trains young professionals and managers”.

 

Eric Ezechieli, co-founder of Nativa: “Our collaboration with MIP Politecnico di Milano has been highly beneficial and we are happy to have helped MIP, as a representative of Italian excellence, in accelerating its progress towards B Corp Certification. MIP’s commitment towards people, society and the environment is a clear signal to all business schools: parameters linked to sustainability must be included in the organisation’s mission, as a core competence for tomorrows’ decision-makers”.