Portland creative agency North has just become one of the first creative agencies to be declared a Certified B Corporation®, according to an announcement.
Certified B Corporations are leaders of a global movement of people using business as a force for good. They are required to meet higher standards of overall social and environmental performance, transparency and accountability and aspire to use the power of business to solve social and environmental problems.
There are more than 2,000 Certified B Corporations in over 130 industries and 50 countries with 1 unifying goal – to redefine success in business but most of them are social and environmental companies.
North’s mission is do something similar. The statement reads: “We make advertising that breaks through and impacts modern culture because it’s rooted in an unconditional respect for each other, our clients, our planet, our community, the truth, and creativity,” which also explains the reason why this certification was important to them.
“‘Being a force of good inspires creativity and brings out the best in our clients, our stakeholders and ourselves,” said Mark Ray, president and chief creative officer at North “We want to be the change we seek in the world, and it was a good place to start.”
Becoming a certified B Corps required meeting rigid performance and legal requirements, a process that took over 8 months. Additionally, it requires meeting transparency standards like holding quarterly financial update meetings where they share the company’s earnings and financial status with employees.
To demonstrate its commitment, North made several changes to qualify. The agency implemented a company-wide paid “volunteer time off” policy that encourages employees to pursue up to 40 hours a year of group and personal volunteer activities.
“It was time to put our money where our mouth is,” explained Rebecca Armstrong, managing partner at North “We want building houses, cleaning up beaches or coaching local little league teams to be the cultural norm at North. We want to see employees giving back to the community that supports us.”
Other changes include creating a resource book that gives priority to local vendors, B Corps certified vendors and businesses owned by women or minorities.
The agency was founded in 2006 and works with clients including Columbia Sportswear, CLIF Bar & Company, Anchor Brewing Company, Stanley PMI, Subaru of America (Legacy), and Keen Footwear (Legacy).
