EOA Podcast: Episode 11 – The synergy between B Corps and employee ownership

Episode 11 of the EOA Podcast explores the growing trend of employee-owned businesses gaining or applying for B Corp certification. Listen below…

There are now 1,000 B Corp-certified businesses in the UK and just under 10 per cent of these are employee owned.

In this episode you will hear all about the B Corp movement from the not-for-profit organisation that started the accreditation scheme, while three employee-owned businesses at different stages of their B Corp journey also share why becoming certified was important to them and the benefits they are reaping.

Our podcast guests also offer insights into why they believe there is a growing trend of EO businesses applying, and the synergy that exists between employee ownership and B Corp, before ending with tips for anyone thinking of exploring this for their company.

Episode interviews

  • Annie Olivier, head of Growth at B Lab UK, which was launched in 2015. The global B Lab non-profit network was created in 2006 with the mission to inspire and enable people to use business as a force for good. It certifies companies – known as B Corps – who are leading the way.
  • Nic Ryan, Director of Colleague Support at Stockport-based One+All, which has 60 employees. The school uniform provider was founded in 1935, became employee-owned in 2015 and then B Corp certified in 2020.
  • John Baumback, Group CEO at Seetec, which provides services within a number of sectors such as skills and education, employability and health, criminal justice, and social care. Seetec was already B Corp certified when it became employee owned in 2020.
  • Kingsley James, EOA Board member and Executive Director at Emperor. He is now a minority shareholder since its sale to an EOT in 2020. The creative communications agency was the most recent employee-owned business to be certified, announcing its B Corps news on October 24, 2022.

The episode also hears from a member of the EO community on why they love employee ownership.

You can use the links below to listen to the episode, or you can listen on Apple Podcasts, Google Podcasts, Spotify, Anchor, Overcast, Breaker, Castbox, Pocket Casts, RadioPublic and Stitcher.

You can also view the full episode schedule here >>

Or you can also read our in-depth blog here: Why there’s a growing trend of employee-owned businesses wanting to become B Corps | EOA Big Read