Decade-isms (and other Impact Business jargon!)

The impact space is truly inspiring, there’s some out of the box thinkers that are doing incredible things with their companies for this planet. 

It’s a (relatively) new space, but it’s evolving at a dramatic pace and, if you’re not used to the jargon, it can be a little tricky trying to navigate what it all means. 

We know we can get a bit excited and start throwing around Decadeisms so this is for you - a universal translator for folks who want to save the world! 

Enjoy this handy guide to the world of impact business and change-making.

So where do I start?

But before we jump into the terms, let’s chat quickly about why they are important to understand. 

Understanding the jargon helps you as the reader to envision the ideas and goals of the impact space. It brings clarity to the confusion but it also makes you feel like you're part of a special club (everyone is welcome in this club by the way). 

Luckily for you, we have organized our glossary to help you understand everything from the beginner dipping their toes in the water, to the more expert speaking impact connoisseur.

Below you will find a list of impact terms and Decadeisms that we like to refer to in our practice. 

B Corp: B Corps are a collective of thought leaders who are committed to challenging the world’s problems and using business as a force for good on all levels.

B Corp-ish: These are companies that are doing good (would be considered in the nice guy category). Really trying to make a difference and for one reason or another they haven't actually joined the B Corp movement but they are a B Corp movement adjacent and we love them.

Nice Guys **: These are companies that really want to be better. They don’t know how to get there and/or haven’t figured out how to align their impact with their revenue-generating activities. Typically they are focused on philanthropy, volunteering or on the corporate citizenship side. 

Dinosaurs **: Companies that have no intention of bettering their practices either because they don’t believe they need to be better or they feel like we’re out of time anyway.  

Trojan Horsing **: This is when folks work from within a company. They are inside a company, inside a machine, and they are working to make change internally in that company.

Regenerative Badass Companies **: These are companies that have a clear impact business model, they can draw a very, very clear alignment between their purpose and their revenue-generating activities.

Activist Companies **: These are the companies that are doing the work. They are educating consumers and they are educating other companies. We may think of an activist as someone that stands on the frontlines and says no to something. But real activist companies are on the frontlines of late-stage capitalism, and they are saying yes to the new economy.

Greenwashing: Greenwashing is when companies pass themselves off as environmentally progressive when in fact they’re just slapping some trees on their marketing and calling it a day.

Green blushing: Companies that remain silent about the positive impact they are creating and the methods they are employing to get the job done. Either out of fear they’ll be labeled as greenwashers, or because they don’t believe in “boasting”, these companies don’t share the amazing work they are doing.

Documentary Brands **: Documentary brands are the companies that are communicating their impact over time. They're documenting their process as they become world-saving companies. They are focused on those long term societal changes, and they are taking their consumers, competitors, government - anybody who will listen to their story - on this journey towards a new economy. 

Triple Bottom Line: Businesses committed to measuring their social and environmental impact while continuing to gain profit.

Purpose Driven Business: A company that takes its mission statement and stands for something bigger than its products and services.

B Lab: A non-profit organization that oversees the global movement of people using business as a force for good.

Impact Business Model: This is the most critical piece of becoming a B Corp certified company. Impact business model means that you are moving into that regenerative badassery space where you can draw a very clear alignment. You can demonstrate an alignment between your purpose, or what you say you're in business to do, and your revenue-generating activities. You're making a difference and making money as a result.

So now that you know the foundational terms of a B Corp.

Here’s a list of terms related to how a business is measured for their company's impact.

Impact Metrics: Metrics are a powerful antidote to greenwashing and give proof behind your claims of impact

Impact Report: Impact reports that tell your annual story of impact - from your B Corp metrics to the UN SDGs, and everything in between

Impact Design: It’s important for companies to focus on intentional design within their products and services. We're not making a widget and hoping somebody needs to use it. We are making a widget in the hopes that we help someone solve a problem. So impact design is the idea of having an eyes wide open approach to looking at what a company does today. Impact design is really the process of intentionally creating alignment between your revenue-generating activities and the problems that you want to solve: climate change, social inequity etc.

Theory of Change: A method that explains how a given intervention leads to a specific system change. It’s an exercise in which a company is very self-reflective and tries to understand the alignment between their inputs, their activities, their outputs, and then those outcomes and that big global societal shift.

CSR: Corporate Social Responsibility is a self-regulating business model that helps a company be more socially accountable to itself, stakeholders and the public. 

Impact Leadership: Individuals who aim for a higher goal in creating a long-lasting change in creating a better planet (Socially and environmentally).

Impact Literacy: Being able to 'see' the impact around you, and notice the ways that individuals and organizations can take small actions towards big social and environmental change.

Here’s a list of how we support companies when they are aiming for B Corp Certification.

Manifesto Development: A guiding document that succinctly encompasses why you exist and how you affect the future for the good of the world. This is not a brand guide - it’s a rallying cry, your call to action for stakeholders to join you on the right side of history.

Strategic Plan: We define your 2030 goals, then identify the key steps you can take in the next 1, 3 and 8 years to achieve your bold goals.

Stakeholder engagement: The process by which a company or organization involves the people who may be affected by decisions they make in regard to business activities.

BHAG’s: Big Hairy Audacious Goals. A term coined by Jim Collins in his book “Built to Last: Successful Habits of Visionary Companies” is meant to inspire people to take action for long term goal setting. 

Internal Capacity Planning: Designing, developing and implementing strategies to support your existing team to integrate an eye for impact.

Now that you understand the mission of the impact industry is to use business as a force for good, how does that translate to the world of business? The international community has been working towards identifying climate change goals, especially in the past few months. The IPCC Report (Intergovernmental Panel on Climate Change) recently published a damning report literally screaming at the world that if we don’t accelerate our actions towards saving this planet, our efforts will be wasted on “would've and should've”.

Here’s a list of terms we’ve shared on our website and LinkedIn page that refers to the international efforts for positive impact.

1% for the planet: Is an organization founded by two friends who realized their responsibility to protect the planet. They give 1% of their sales back to the environment. 

Conscious consumer: Conscious consumerism means buying products from businesses that align with your values. It’s about investing your money in companies that are getting their hands dirty and changing the world for the better.

COP26: United Nations Climate Change Conference 26 

Ethical Consumerism: The spending on green and fair-trade products.

UNSDG’s: United Nations Sustainable Development Goals

IPCC : Intergovernmental Panel on Climate Change

We have to say kudos to you for diving into these terms - they’re a bit meaty. But now that you know your way around this space, you can easily jump in on that conversation with another impact wizard expressing your purpose-driven ideas for a triple bottom line. 

As this space continues to evolve, so will our list so if you ever want to check back in on a term you know where to find it!

Please note anything listed with a ** beside, is a Decadeism that we use to discuss specific terms.