Hootsuite recently became a #BCorp. In this case study, part of our #HootHROS series, we explore what it means to be a #BCorp, why we chose to become one, and how we earned this certification.

1. CASE STUDY: HOOTSUITE & #BCORP
CaseStudy:
Hootsuiteand
#BCorp
Leading with Purpose:
Why Hootsuite became a #BCorp
This is the 4th post in our HR Open Source [#HROS] initiative. You can
learn more about #HROS here, but the aim is to work out loud and share
behind-the-scenes looks at how some of our social HR projects come
together, and what we learned from them.
Brands like Patagonia, Method, Warby Parker, and Etsy use the power of
business to address social and environmental problems. But what you
may not know is that all these companies are also B Corporations, or
B Corps. In June this year, Hootsuite joined this growing movement of
changemakers that use business as a force for good.
What is a #BCorp?
B Corps are a new kind of company that seek a better way to do business.
Think LEED or Fair Trade certification, but for a business, not just a building
or a bag of coffee. B Corps are certified by the nonprofit B Lab to meet
rigorous standards of social and environmental performance, accountability,
and transparency. Today, there is a growing community of more than
1,300 Certified B Corps from over 40 countries and 120 industries working
together toward one unifying goal: to redefine success in business.

2. CASE STUDY: HOOTSUITE & #BCORP
Why is Hootsuite a #BCorp?
Our journey to becoming a B Corp started in the summer of 2014.
With the launch of Hootsuite’s CSR (Corporate Social Responsibility)
program earlier that same year, our Talent team identified the need for
a framework that would make the most impact.
Our philosophy around CSR has always been what we like to call
‘Collective Social Responsibility.’ This is the notion that it should be
woven into the very framework of a company’s overall strategy, not
siloed within a small department.
With this in mind, B Corp’s framework was a clear match for us. Instead
of being certified based on how much a company donated to charity
every year, it took a holistic look at how each company uses business
as a force for good.
The benefits of becoming a B Corp
There are many reasons why companies choose to become a B Corp.
One of the key drivers for Hootsuite was to attract and engage top
talent who are looking for more than just a paycheque. As they seek
greater purpose and a company that aligns with their values, B Corp is
a way for us to show how we roll.
It is also a stamp of approval, telling our customers that we are
committed to higher standards of performance and transparency. The
certification holds us accountable to our commitments by comparing
our performance against other companies that are best for the world
and providing a roadmap for improvement. Finally, it gives us the
opportunity to help lead a growing movement that’s gaining traction
around the world with over 250 B Corps certified this year so far.
“When you support a
B Corporation, you’re
supporting a better
way to do business.
Governments
and nonprofits
are necessary but
insufficient to
solve today’s most
pressing problems.
Business is the most
powerful force on the
planet and can be a
positive instrument
for change.”
B Lab

3. CASE STUDY: HOOTSUITE & #BCORP
How we did it: From CSR to B Corp
Today, we’ll look at the steps taken along our journey to becoming a B
Corp, and how you can do the same.
Step 1: Measure our impact
To become a B Corp, companies must fill out the B Impact Assessment
and earn a minimum of 80 out of a possible 200 points. Before
presenting this framework to the executive team, we needed to see
where we stood. After filling out the assessment, we came out just 10
points shy of the points required to be certified.
But a company doesn’t become a B Corp overnight, it needs to be
embedded into every aspect of the business—including values. Being a
socially responsible company has been in our DNA from the beginning.
Taking the first step to measure our impact reaffirmed the importance
of this for us and motivated us to do better.
Our customized improvement report made recommendations on
the potential improvements our company could make. The B Impact
Assessment website also provides guidelines and best practices
on everything from how to write a whistle-blowing policy, to how to
implement an environmental management system.
Our improvement report suggested that we:
‹‹ Measure our greenhouse gas emissions and put an emission
reduction plan in place
‹‹ Create a local purchasing policy
‹‹ Develop a social and environmental screen for suppliers
Once we identified the stakeholders who needed to be involved, we
established a roadmap to help us achieve success. After three months
of teamwork and tenacity, we exceeded our goal of 80 netting out
at 83. We submitted our final assessment to B Lab for final approval
along with supporting documentation that B Lab reviews to validate the
answers to key questions in the questionnaire.

4. CASE STUDY: HOOTSUITE & #BCORP
Step 2: Get buy-in from the top
Our next step was to get executive and board approval. To become a
B Corp, we must meet the legal requirement by amending articles to
incorporate stakeholder interests and give legal protection to directors
and officers who consider the interests of all stakeholders—employees,
customers, community, and the environment—not just shareholders,
when making decisions. This embeds sustainability into the DNA of our
company as it grows ensuring our mission can better adapt to new
management, investors, and even ownership.
Fortunately, our board members are incredibly progressive and
understand the value that a purpose-driven culture brings to a company,
especially at a software company where intellectual capital is critical.
Step 3: Celebrate
After receiving board approval and the news that we were an official
new community member among B Corps, it was time to share our
exciting news.
As a growing but young movement, it was important to first tell our
employees what it meant to become a B Corp. For our internal launch,
we did the following:
‹‹ Shared an email announcement care of our CEO
‹‹ Held lunch & learn information sessions in our Vancouver and
London offices with B Lab
‹‹ Incorporated educational materials in our onboarding
‹‹ Created the Values & Impact Team, a cross-functional team who
help manage our certification and communication
‹‹ Followed up with an internal employee survey, lovingly known as
Hootpulse, where we could also share our progress and gather
feedback

5. CASE STUDY: HOOTSUITE & #BCORP
To help communicate our certification externally, we created a
multi-channel campaign spearheaded by our Social Media team that
included:
‹‹ Joint press release with B Lab
‹‹ Blog post announcement with accompanying video
‹‹ Social media support across all Hootsuite-branded channels
‹‹ Employee advocacy sharing across their own social channels
Success: Becoming a certified B Corp
We’ve only been a B Corporation for a few months, but already the
results have been incredibly positive. For example, from our survey
we learned that 40% of our employees wanted to participate through
volunteering, while 20% wanted to be a part of a committee that
helped to amplify content.
What we got wrong
One of our core value is to always lead with humility and an important
component of our open-source HR case studies is sharing what could
be improved upon.
Tailoring our internal messaging
When we designed our internal launch plan, we didn’t tailor messaging
to different departments, instead treating the entire organization as
one audience. The results from the engagement survey showed that
20% of our employees did not know enough about B Corp to say how
they wanted to be involved.
Making the value proposition more known
While our results show us that we did a great job increasing awareness
around the movement, we continue to receive questions from external
stakeholders less familiar with our brand as to why we became a B
Corp. It is clear why a company like Method or Seventh Generation is a
part of the community, but it may be less obvious for a SaaS company.
We’re still iterating on this.
2
hires
2000+
organic social shares
1
new agency partner
...PAR
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6. CASE STUDY: HOOTSUITE & #BCORP
Key takeaways for HR
Include senior leaders in purpose initiatives
It is often Millennials who are the first to volunteer their time towards
giving back, however, it is just as important to engage more senior
purpose-driven employees. Getting executive buy-in for decisions that
affect the business is easier if they’re already a part of the conversation.
Need for continuous education
With our hyper-growth trajectory, we will need to continue to educate
new and existing employees on what B Corp is and what it means to
Hootsuite. There are a number of opportunities to better incorporate
this into our onboarding, our branding and our initiative engagement.
Let the people decide
We weren’t that surprised to learn that 40% of our employees wanted
to volunteer their time, since 80% of our fundraising and volunteering
initiatives are championed internally. However, it is a good reminder
that we need to continue to ask for feedback so that we can support
causes that we can all get behind.
In conclusion
Hootsuite became a certified B Corp in June, but the reality is
that we’ve always been one. It ties to our vision and mission to
revolutionize communications and transform messages into
meaningful relationships with all our stakeholders. Our organizational
key performance indicators measure the importance of not only our
shareholders, but also our employee and customer happiness. B corp
extends this even further taking into account other key stakeholders
like our community, our suppliers, and the environment.
It is an exciting time to be part of this growing movement. B Corp is
so much more than just Corporate Social Responsibility. It is the effort
of the entire organization and as a result is far more impactful and
meaningful than a siloed CSR program could ever hope to be.
“When I was deciding which
company I wanted to work with,
I was interested in how the
company I chose impacted the
community and the environment.
That was a big deciding factor
for me because it’s important
to me to contribute positively
to my community and be part
of something bigger than just
making profits. When I came
across Hootsuite’s B Corp
certification it gave me comfort
that they were measuring the right
things. While other companies
have corporate responsibility
reports that they publish annually,
the metrics they track can
sometimes be misleading, difficult
to compare, and missing across
years. I was happy that Hootsuite
was ascribing to a methodology
that allowed for easy comparison,
visibility, and accountability. It
signaled to me that I’d be working
at a company that recognized the
broader impact of business in the
community.”
Livia Danila, Senior Accountant, Hootsuite