We are thrilled to announce that Recruit UK and the Financial Planner Life are now B Corp Certified!
As a B Corp, we’re part of a global community of businesses that meet high standards of social and environmental impact.
What does B Corp mean?
Being a B Corp certified company is more than just demonstrating good business practices.
It’s a commitment to using business as a force for good in the world. By getting B Corp certification, we are voluntarily committing to meeting higher standards of social and environmental performance, transparency, and accountability.
To become certified, businesses must meet strict requirements regarding their social and environmental performance, such as delivering a positive impact on society, reducing their energy use or environmental emissions, and employee satisfaction.
They must also meet the highest legal requirements for corporate responsibility and transparency. By earning B Corp certification, we demonstrate that we are committed to making the world a better place through our business practices.
So, what does B Corp mean for us?
“Being B-Corp brings a whole new dimension to being a recruiter. I know when I show up at RUK, each day I am doing something to help leave the world in a better way than I found it. It transcends what defines success as we no longer place it down to purely profit. We focus on how people and planet can benefit alongside our business. Alongside helping financial planning professionals grow their businesses or secure their next role, we are planting trees across the world, supporting carbon capture projects, fundraising for mental health charities such as Talk Club and the Running Charity – all while the business looks after us by providing progressive work benefits which focus on our wellbeing and health. It also connects you to local businesses who share these values and it’s been fantastic creating a network around us to learn and be inspired by.”
Charlie Scott, Senior Consultant, Financial Planner Life Podcast host and Positive Impact Officer at Recruit UK
Since we started this process, now 15 months ago, we have taken a thorough look under the bonnet of our business and made changes for the better.
We have:
- Offered our employees 4 hours a month of volunteer work they are welcome to take during their paid working hours.
- In 2022 we as a business volunteered 485 hours of our time to fundraising and charity work.
- Partnered with Talk Club, the men’s mental health charity
- Changed our legal documentation on Companies House to express our commitment to the local community, our people and to the planet.
- Reviewed, created and changed our company policies and procedures to benefit our employees and our planet.
- Partnered with Ecologi to fund the planting of 2,760 trees and fund many projects like deforestation in the Amazon rain forest and C02 prevention in India.
- We have looked at our company suppliers and changed to more sustainable options like True Start coffee, a fellow B Corp.
- Employee benefits have been changed to help pioneer wellbeing and work-life balance. Introducing things like a 9-day fortnight, hybrid working structures and more flexible career progression framework which plays to your individual strengths.
We could go on…
But the work doesn’t stop there. B Corp has changed our mindset as a business. We want to continue to partner with companies that share similar values to us. We aim to help structure the financial planning profession by looking forwards in a more sustainable and positive direction.
Here is what Stuart Leaney, Director of Recruit UK, had to say:
“Our recent B Corp certification means so much to Recruit UK. It has been a journey of hard work and dedication from the team. The process has by no means been a tick-box exercise, we have taken a meticulous look at all aspects of the business and have improved our entire structure for the better.
For me, the most important part of the certification process has been further improving our employees’ benefits, work-life balance, and overall well-being. We have increased everyone’s base salaries to keep in line with the rise of the cost of living, created a 9-day working fortnight, and improved our health and wellbeing package.
This certification is by no means the end of our journey. Our dedicated project management team will continue to listen to our employees as we grow as a business, ever-evolving to create positive change for our people and the planet.”
Financial Planner Life
We have an opportunity with the Financial Planner Life Podcast to share the word of B Corp to the financial planning profession. Since beginning our journey, we have partnered with Talk Club, donated a percentage of profits and created a financial planning talk club for anyone to have the space to talk about how they are feeling.
Our aim is to continue to help bring positive change to the financial planning profession by making it accessible for anyone to become a financial planner. We also aim to give easy, accessible content for everyone, so we can breakdown potential barriers and help bring in the next generation of financial planners.
We will continue to evolve as time goes by, constantly looking to improve.
If you would like to know more about becoming B Corp certified, we urge you to reach out to Andy Hawkins from Business on Purpose, who was a tremendous support for us throughout our journey.
Please also feel free to reach out to Sam Oakes, Charlie Scott or Emily Dalton who can give you advice and tips on the process.
Check out our 2022/3 Impact Report here
