For businesses committed to using their influence as a force for good, B Corp Certification has always been about more than what a company says. Increasingly, it is about demonstrating what it does.

B Lab’s new standards represent a significant evolution of B Corp Certification. Instead of relying on the previous points-based approach, companies are expected to meet requirements across seven key Impact Topics, including Justice, Equity, Diversity and Inclusion (JEDI). The requirements are phased across the certification journey, with additional expectations applying at Years 0, 3 and 5.

For The Diversity Trust, this development is welcome. Our mission is to influence social change to create a fairer and safer society, and we have extensive experience helping organisations turn commitments to equality, diversity, equity, inclusion and accessibility into meaningful organisational practice.

From good intentions to evidence and action

At the heart of B Lab’s JEDI Impact Topic is a simple but important principle: organisations need to understand where inequality and exclusion may exist before deciding what action to take.

The JEDI requirements therefore place emphasis on gathering information about workers’ experiences and using relevant data and stakeholder insights to identify priorities. Depending on the organisation and applicable requirements, this can include surveys, facilitated discussions and workforce-related data. The information gathered then provides a basis for action and for understanding progress over time.

This is an area where independent expertise can be particularly valuable.

The Diversity Trust can support organisations with equality, diversity and inclusion audits, research, consultation and engagement, helping businesses understand the experiences of different groups and identify barriers that might otherwise remain hidden. Our work is informed not only by professional expertise but by engagement with diverse and marginalised communities and lived experience.

For businesses considering facilitated JEDI discussions, independent facilitation can also help create an environment in which people feel able to contribute openly, particularly where workplace hierarchies and power dynamics may make conversations difficult.

Turning insight into better policies

Collecting information is only useful if organisations act on what they learn.

One of the JEDI actions identified in the standards involves reviewing organisational policies through a JEDI lens. This means considering whether policies and procedures could affect groups differently and identifying opportunities to make them more equitable and inclusive. This includes in areas such as recruitment, performance management, progression, procurement and customer service.

The Diversity Trust provides policy writing, policy development, equality and diversity audits and organisational consultancy. We can help businesses examine the practical impact of policies, identify potential barriers or bias, and translate findings into realistic improvements.

Recruitment is a good example. Our training and consultancy explores bias throughout the employee lifecycle, including recruitment, progression and retention, helping organisations move beyond simply having an equality statement towards embedding more inclusive practice in everyday decisions.

Building inclusive language and workplace culture

B Lab’s JEDI framework also recognises that inclusion is reflected in everyday communication. One of the available actions focuses specifically on developing and implementing guidance for inclusive language in internal communications.

The Diversity Trust can support organisations to review language and communications through an equality and inclusion lens and develop practical guidance that works for their people and context.

But sustainable inclusion requires more than a document.

We offer training across areas including equality, diversity, equity and inclusion, inclusive leadership, cultural competence, disability, neurodiversity, race and anti-racism, LGBTQ+ inclusion, gender, bias, menopause, mental health and active bystander approaches. Training can be complemented by consultancy, research and organisational development so that learning becomes part of wider cultural and systemic change.

Working in partnership

Our approach is collaborative. We recognise that every organisation starts from a different place, so we work with businesses to understand their context, priorities and ambitions before agreeing what support will be most useful.

For some organisations, this may involve a specific piece of work such as an audit, training programme, research project or policy review. For others, a longer-term partnership can bring different strands of work together and support sustained organisational change.

Our partnerships begin with an open conversation about values, priorities and the impact we want to create together. From there, we can develop a flexible programme of activity, agree how we will work together and review progress and learning along the way. This reflects our belief that meaningful equality, diversity and inclusion work is built through relationships, shared learning and action over time.

You can find out more about how we work in partnership in our Corporate Partnerships brochure.

Supporting continuous improvement

Perhaps one of the most important aspects of the new B Corp standards is the emphasis on progression. Certification is structured around requirements at Years 0, 3 and 5, encouraging businesses to keep developing their impact rather than treating certification as a one-off exercise.

That closely reflects our own approach. Effective equality, diversity and inclusion work is not a tick-box exercise. It involves listening, learning, acting, reviewing impact and continuing to improve.

Whether your organisation is preparing for B Corp Certification, transitioning to the new standards or looking to strengthen its existing JEDI work, The Diversity Trust can provide independent expertise across auditing, employee and community engagement, research, policy development, accessibility, training and organisational consultancy.

The new B Corp requirements create an opportunity to do more than demonstrate compliance. They offer businesses a framework for asking a more valuable question: how can we make our organisation genuinely fairer, safer and more inclusive for the people whose lives it touches?

The Diversity Trust are here to support you on this journey. Whether you need specialist support with a particular aspect of the new standards or are interested in developing a longer-term partnership, we’d be pleased to start the conversation.