Milk & Honey - 2023 impact report review

👍🏻 3 things I like...

1. USING THEIR SKILLS TO HAVE AN IMPACT

Businesses can usually have the biggest impact when they use their superpowers! Their skills, networks and assets.

Milk & Honey are working to bring more diversity into the PR industry. And they provide pro bono support to small charities through their Purpose Academy programme – upskilling those charities so they can deliver more impactful campaigns.

2. CRITERIA FOR WHO THEY WILL / WON’T WORK WITH

They don’t work with “polluting, high carbon businesses” but they “will work with those striving to transition”.

I like this qualification – because I’ve met businesses in “bad” industries that have brilliant leaders who do want to change … and need help. I have some questions about this (see below) but am very supportive of the concept. It’s too easy to have a blanket “no” whereas the biggest impact might be delivered through supporting a business to transform.

3. FIVE CLEAR, MEASURABLE PLEDGES

It’s easiest to make progress when everyone is crystal clear on where you want to get to. Milk & Honey set give pledges in 2020 which are unambiguous, specific and measurable.

❓3 questions it raises

1. HOW DID THEY IMPROVE THEIR B CORP SCORE?

They talk about having improved their B Corp score by 70 points, which is pretty phenomenal!

I’d love to understand the approach they took and how they decided what to prioritise. 

And what were the key internal enablers that made it possible to achieve this step-change?

2. HOW DOES GOVERNANCE AROUND HIGH CARBON CLIENTS WORK?

They say their Board “monitors high carbon clients” – I’m curious to understand the governance processes in place.

They also talk about being willing to work with businesses that are genuinely committed to a sustainable transition. I’m wondering how they assess this ‘genuine commitment’?

3. WHAT DENT DO THEY WANT TO MAKE?

Reading their impact report and website, I wasn’t clear on the dent they want to make on the world.

They’re clearly doing a lot of good things – but I wasn’t sure whether these were being driven by an impact vision and strategy / theory of change or by the B Impact Assessment?

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You can read the report for yourself here and let me know what you think.

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