One successful journey of a Certified B Corp

When I visited Futureberry in Milan back in November 2019, Dino Torrisi, the Founder & Chief Explorer Officer, and his partner Massimo Gennarelli, had already started a transformation process in the organization aiming to modernize it, upgrade its spectrum, and enhance its contribution to the society.

An important number of key changes were being implemented, and I was called to help the teams while transitioning.

One of the elements they were using to visualize the new role in building better futures was to embark on a sustainability journey adjusting several internal practices and running the assessment to become B Corp.

That very first application did not match the minimum points (80) to be considered for the verification process but gave lights to visualize the road ahead.

Then the pandemic of COVID 19 and the extreme lockdown hit hard Italy, and Milan specifically as the region was the epicenter of the most severe cases at that moment.

We took a decision while experiencing all the difficulties, the fears, the uncertainties, and the vulnerability of such a dramatic moment: to start a radical transformation process at Futureberry!

There were intense weeks of hard work, deep discussions, heated debates, and immensely creative moments of co-creation and dreaming together with the then-called leadership team of Futureberry.

I played the roles of catalyzer, challenger, referee, stimulator of diversion, note-taker, and probably a bit of a “pain in the a**” when necessary. A proper motivator of change!

The result of that work is the Essence of Futureberry, the most strategic exercise led by Dino and Massimo to take the organization to different levels, beyond the known, assuming the risk to explore new fields, and setting the aim high, out of their comfort zone.

The Essence is the core of what Futureberry is, where it is heading, what is its contribution to creating a better world, and what are the fundamental elements that hold the ship afloat (we called them Tenets) and determine the culture of the organization.

The hardest endeavor was the process of absorbing the Essence into the day-to-day activity, the attitudes, and behaviors of the people collaborating with the company, the communication, and all the internal policies, principles, and best managerial practices decided along with the Essence.

Individual mentoring, group dynamics, active workshops, inspirational guests, and open space to talk, challenge, reflect and build together the new Futureberry was part of the plan we designed.

Simultaneously we embarked on a journey to put on writing all the philosophical discussions, and all the dreams, into a concrete set of internal policies, guidelines, and actions to consolidate the decisions taken before thus not leaving loopholes to deviate from the strong commitment to becoming true contributors to a better world (people, planet, society).

After some months of advancing in those endeavors, we run the B-Lab Assessment again. What we saw, as a result, was very encouraging and gratifying confirmation that all the efforts produced the internal change we aimed for. Therefore, we formally applied to become a certified B Corp.

Furthermore, Dino and Massimo decided to take an extra step and changed the foundations of the company to become a ‘Società Benefit’, a legal entity under the Italian law that is defined as those that are “in addition to their economic activities, aim to contribute to the common benefit, and operate in a responsible, sustainable and transparent manner”.

This step ensured that Futureberry’s social or environmental performance is a part of its decision-making over time, regardless of company ownership.

During the last months that we have been under the verification process of this journey to become B-Corp, it becomes clearer to me that the transformation of Futureberry, although not yet finished, was solid, real, and an example for other organizations that are thinking to start similar paths.

After Futureberry received the formal certification as B Corp, with an astonishing 101.5 points (above the benchmarking), I’m grateful for the possibility of being a direct actor and witness of such a beautiful process.

I’m feeling inspired, creative, and reinvigorated for the challenges ahead.

Grazie mile Futureberry!

I’m grateful for the possibility of being a direct actor and witness of such a beautiful process: a formal certification as B Corp, with an astonishing 101.5 points (above the benchmarking)!