The 100 Year Business Plan. And Other Inspirations From BLD

On Thursday, soulpepper attended BLD (B Corp Leadership Development) conference, and came away more inspired than ever to change the world. With the theme of using business as a force for good in the world, here are some key takeaways and insights from our team.

SAM SHORT – KNOW YOUR STORY

We need to understand exactly what being a B Corp means and wave the flag proudly and collectively.

We were asked what’s the core of our team? What are we doing well? And what do we have to get better at? At soulpepper we do culture well. But we have to get better at maintaining our commitment and living it everyday. One of the biggest takeaways for me is that we need to all know our story. Who is soulpepper and what are we doing to be better and make the world better? We need to understand exactly what being a B Corp means and wave the flag proudly and collectively. I think we should all have a B Corp wallpaper on Linkedin – all have it in our signatures etc, and I will come up with more policies to get us all more bought in. In addition, I will be actively seeking out aligned businesses for us to work with as well. I’d also like us to host a best practices event specifically for B Corps – more ideas to come!

JUSTIN CHOU – BE GENUINE AND TRANSPARENT

You can’t force people to care about you. But you can show them why you care so much about your cause, and let them decide whether or not your motives and values are aligned.

I have nothing against what I do for a living. But recently, I’ve begun to feel less engaged than I once was and in need of something inspiring. After attending BLD, I genuinely came out renewed, inspired and ready to change the world. I’ve learnt so much and finally been able to put names to faces that I had previously only known through social media interactions. I began to see that everything B Corps were up to was all for a reason and that no matter what industry these businesses were in, their values were all aligned. Everyone was so passionate about what they do that it was almost impossible not to feel the same way coming out.

I found that a lot of what I’ve learnt over the past few years was not only reinforced by being immersed in this wonderful community, but built on through true to life stories, lessons and experiences from industry experts. I’ve learnt that it is important to be genuine and transparent no matter what you do. That in order to gain the trust of your stakeholders, you must first start with a great product or service and promote yourself not through bragging, but instead by telling your genuine story and that of your customers and the community. You can’t force people to care about you. But you can show them why you care so much about your cause, and let them decide whether or not your motives and values are aligned.

GABRIEL MCCAY – THE NEW NORM

I want to help to continue grow the movement and community until this becomes new norm.

As with any event I have organized, as the day started, all was calm and I was excited. 5 months of organizing by a group of volunteers with full time jobs was finally going to come to fruition. Going in, I was not only excited for myself to gain more information and insight from the B Corp community, but for members of my team to learn and be inspired as well. The more people that we can get to understand the B Corp movement within our organization, the more we will understand the significance of this incredible community. What stood out for me was seeing the amount of quality information that was shared. Seeing how engaged people were with the content, and how willing they were to contribute, spoke volumes of how engaged all these people are in the movement and the values behind it.

My major take-away from the day was seeing the power of inspiration and how wonderful of a force that can be for the individuals working within a B Corp. By seeing the power of the community and hearing of the shared struggles and wins of the other organizations, we can all help each other change the world within our own industries.

This is the magic of the B Corp movement and community, and I want to continue to be a part of it. To continue to share and engage others to become involved and grow the community until this is the new norm.

RIK KLINGLE-WATT – THE 100 YEAR BUSINESS PLAN

My watershed moment happened in the afternoon. We were attending a breakout session when one person casually mentioned they were 20 years into their 100 year business plan. That stopped me cold. While we all talk about legacy and future generations, never has the concept been so clearly stated. Or been so tangible to grasp. What made it so impactful for me is they weren’t bragging. It was an off hand comment they made that demonstrated their genuine purpose behind their company, and what they were doing to be a force for good. It made me so damn proud to be part of the B Corp community and renewed my own personal commitment to be the best for the world.