Launching BaseKit’s B Corp Month with B Corp Lead, Wendy Weston

To kick off  B Corp Month here at BaseKit, we’ve been chatting to our B Corp Lead and HR Director, Wendy Weston. We discussed everything we’ve been up to since being certified nine months ago, why we chose to start the process of becoming a B Corp, key achievements and future plans for BaseKit.

It’s been 9 months since BaseKit was awarded the B Corp certification, what inspired the team to embark on the B Corp journey? 

Taking us back to October 2021, the team asked if as a company we could do more for the environment. Initially this started off small by improving recycling practices and waste reduction in the office. We then decided to look at the larger picture, and investigate wider initiatives and decided upon B Corp. We felt being part of the B Corp community would provide us with a framework to be ‘a force for good’ employer.

How do the B Corp values align with the BaseKit brand? 

In April 2022, we relaunched our BaseKit values, adding in ‘A Force for Good’. It was really important to us that this stood out as its own value , cementing our focus and commitment towards the B Corp framework. 

There has been a shift over recent years, with more employees now wanting to work for companies that have similar values to their own and operate with a ‘force for good’ mantra.,

As part of the BaseKit B Corp journey, which specific initiative has been introduced that you are most proud of and why?

There are two large initiatives that I am most proud of.

The first being all the efforts from the team to raise awareness around mental health. This year we supported five members of the team, Emily, Kez, Paul, Rob Bowen and Zuza to become Mental Health First Aiders to help the wider team with their mental health, by raising awareness and being there should they need to talk to somebody. Emily is extremely passionate about mental health and every month she compiles a blog post with help from the other mental health first aiders to continuously raise awareness around mental health.

The second initiative I am most proud of is wellbeing. Early 2023, Rae came forward asking to be our wellbeing champion, to which I absolutely wanted to support. We did have wellbeing provisions in place, however Rae has really helped to promote these and implemented new initiatives, such as team football sessions and creative play sessions.

What does the future look like for BaseKit on its B Corp journey?

I’m really excited for B Corp month and in particular a new initiative for us. At our monthly all company meeting, we will be running our very first B Impact Hackathon. The main purpose of this is to engage with the team and see what ideas the team can come up with for us to implement.

Look out for more updates on what we’re up to throughout March for B Corp month, and take a look at everything else we do to ensure we are a “force for good”.