BUS 8460: CSR Standards Comparison - B Corps and AASHE STARS Analysis

This report provides a comparative analysis of two prominent Corporate Social Responsibility (CSR) standards: B Corps and the AASHE STARS standard. The report begins by introducing the background and purpose of each standard, detailing the principles and objectives. It then delves into a comparative analysis, contrasting at least seven subcategories of each standard, such as diversity, wellbeing, research, and waste disposal. The report also identifies common subcategories and highlights the key differences in their application. Furthermore, it examines the general focus, purpose, and application of each standard, followed by a discussion of their respective advantages and disadvantages. The report concludes with a comprehensive overview of the two standards, offering insights into their strengths and weaknesses, and providing a valuable resource for understanding CSR practices. This report is contributed by a student and is available on Desklib, a platform providing AI-based study tools for students.

Running head: CSR STANDARDS COMPARISON 1
CSR Standards Comparison
Name
Institution

CSR STANDARDS COMPARISON 2
Section A: Standards Background and Purpose
The standard chosen for this analysis is the B Corps. The purpose of B Corp Certification
is to assess a product or service and to examine the general environmental and social impact that
the company stands for (Gehman & Grimes, 2017). In its application, B Corps conducts a
rigorous assessment of the impact of the company on the environment, workers, customers and
community after which it makes a transparent impact report on the net. B Corps also deals with
the legal documents and ensures that the corporation’s board of directors balances the purpose
and the profits.
B Corps was started in 2006 by Gilbert, Kassov and Houlan. B Corps works on five
major principles which include accountability, transparency, availability, performance and cost
(Chen & Kelly, 2015). On accountability, the corporation’s directors are obliged to consider the
impact that the company has on the shareholders and the environment. Regarding transparency,
Certified B Corps are mandated to publish and provide a public report of the company’s
environmental and social performance. The report is then examined by an impartial third party
standard. On performance, the corporations are expected to attain a minimum score of on the
assessment test and the process of recertification takes place after every two years. On
availability, any business is able to have B certification regardless of the business entity or the
country in which the business exist. The certification cost varies based on revenues. The
certification is provided by B Lab and is renewed after every two years. An example of an
organization using B Corps certification is Bancolombia. This bank is the third largest in Latin
America with a value of more than 55 billion dollars’ worth of assets. The B Corps platform has
enabled the bank to focus on ways of improving the impact with other corporations within its
supply chain and strengthening supplier relationships.

CSR STANDARDS COMPARISON 3
The Sustainability, Tracking, Assessment and Rating System is a self-reporting and
transparent framework used in measuring the sustainability performance in universities and
colleges. STARS is aimed at engaging and recognizing full spectrum of institutions of higher
learning including research universities and colleges. STARS looks at the long term goals of
sustainability for institutions of higher learning that have already achieved high and entry points
for institutions that are making steps forward in achieving sustainability. The history of the
AASHE Star standards dates back to 2006 when it was called upon to develop rating system
based on sustainability in institutions of higher learning including colleges and universities
(Bonney & Duram, 2016). ASSHE Stars standards only apply to industry of higher learning
including colleges and universities. It operates on the principles of research, exposure and
knowledge. ASSHE Stars Standard conducts administrative clarifications and edits on a quarterly
basis and makes substantive changes on an annual basis. Major revisions can be done once after
every two years.
Members that are qualified to apply for ASSHE Stars are restricted to institutions of
higher learning. The organization that provides certification for academics is the international
Organization for Standardization (ISO). The importance of certification is ensuring that the
course programs offered focus on sustainability and stay current to the happenings in the world.
Secondly, the certification is important in sustaining professional credibility and reputation.
Third, the certification improves client trust on the learning institution. University of Vermont is
an example of higher learning institution that has received a gold rating from STARS for
education. Since 2014, the university has greatly improved in the manner in which it has
formalized the integration of themes of sustainability as well as curriculum tools.

CSR STANDARDS COMPARISON 4
Section B
Question1. Compare and contrast at least 7 of the ASSHE Stars standard subcategories
with the sub categories of the standard you have chosen.
 Diversity and affordability-For ASSHE Stars Standards, diversity and affordability
focuses on the composition of different cultures and backgrounds in higher learning
institutions. For B Corps, diversity and affordability focuses on the incorporation of
workers from different backgrounds in an organization and how inclusivity of diverse
groups helps in working.
 Wellbeing and work- For ASSHE Stars standards, wellbeing and work focuses on the
welfare and physical wellbeing of learners and the contribution of their wellbeing to
being productive in their areas of work. For B Corps, wellbeing and work focuses on the
wholesomeness of the workers’ welfare and how this contributes to their productivity
(Michelini, Nigri, Iasevoli & Grieco, 2016).
 Research-For ASSHE Stars standard, research focuses on new input or knowledge that
can be helpful in solving the social-ecological and human challenges. For B Corps,
research is done with an aim of transparency and proving accurate response to the
stakeholders.
 Public engagement-for ASSHE Stars standard, public engagement involves incorporating
views of learners and tutors to provide accepted rules, regulations and policies. For B
Corps, public engagement involves taking into account views from different stakeholders
with an aim of making an organization or brand owned by the public.
 Coordination and Planning- For ASSHE Stars Standard, coordination and planning
involve proper structuring of the systems that contribute to smooth running of the

CSR STANDARDS COMPARISON 5
institutions. For B Corps, coordination and planning involves creating sustainable
measures and planning that gives great impact to the operations of the organization
(Sharma, Beveridge & Haigh, 2018).
 Waste disposal- For ASSHE Stars standard, waste disposal is integrated in different
course programs and measures sensitized through campaigns (Dade & Hassenzahl, 2013).
For B Corps, waste disposals are structured on sustainable and environmental friendly
ways.
 Energy- For ASSHE Stars standard, energy sources are focused on what works best in
terms of learning support while for B Corps, energy sources are focused on sustainability
and environment friendly sources.
Question2. Match common subcategories (example: measuring greenhouse gases)
and identify differences
An example of common subcategory for ASSHES stars and B Corps is diversity. While
in ASSHE Stars Standards diversity focuses on different opinions from people of different
backgrounds with an aim of incorporating broader spectrum in learning institution, diversity in B
Corps looks into taking in views from different stakeholders for acceptability of the organization
or brand (Collins & Gannon, 2014).
Question3. What differences in general focus, purpose, and application exist
between the standards?
ASSHE Stars standard focuses on engaging and recognizing full spectrum of institutions
of higher learning including research universities and colleges. The purpose of ASSHE Stars
standard is to measure the level of sustainability performance in institutions of higher learning

CSR STANDARDS COMPARISON 6
(White& Koester, 2012). ASSHE Stars standards only apply to learning institutions including
colleges and universities.
B Corps focuses on the manner in which organizations set their strategies as well as how
they manage their performances. The purpose of B Corps is to provide materiality, inclusivity,
responsiveness and impact of the operations in an organization (Grimes, Gehman & Cao, 2018).
B Corps applies to all organizations including private sectors, corporate business, government
and civil societies
Question4.What are the advantages and disadvantages of each standard?
 AASHE Stars standards help in providing a framework for sustainability in institutions of
higher learning.
 It helps in managing comparisons across institutions of higher learning and used as a
standard of measurement in these institutions
 Provides incentives for gradual progress towards sustainability
Disadvantages of ASSHE Stars Standards
 The process of acquiring this certification is costly and difficult
 It requires well-structured systems without which it can be easy to lose the certification
(Urbanski & Leal Filho, 2015)
 Accountability can be a disadvantage when a decision made by certification body gets
difficult and the learning institution is made to choose between two wrong answers.

CSR STANDARDS COMPARISON 7
Advantages of B Corps
 B Corps connects emotionally with the consumers since it does not just focus on profits
but also plays a role in impacting the environment and social lives of the consumers
(Grimes, Gehman & Cao, 2018).
 Having a B Corps Certification is a great marketing tool (Gehman & Grimes, 2017)
Disadvantages of B Corp
 B Corp is only good if an organization is cooperative (Parker, Gamble, Moroz & Branzei,
2019).
 No benefits of corporate tax are available to the B Corp Status-
 The qualification process to achieve B Corp certification can be difficult and costly

CSR STANDARDS COMPARISON 8
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