Balancing Profit and Purpose – feat. Skylark

We recently spent some time chatting with Jo Haywood, Founder and CEO at Skylark, a Bristol based video content and marketing agency on a mission to help sustainable and ethical brands communicate their purpose to the world through video.

The purpose of our series “Balancing Profit and Purpose” is to feature fellow B Corporations, to hopefully inspire many more to join the movement. We showcase those companies that meet rigorously verified standards of social and environmental performance, those that use business as a force for good. As a collective, B Corps are accelerating a global cultural shift to redefine success in business and build a more inclusive and sustainable economy.

Chris @ ADLIB: For some background information, who are you as a business and what makes your business offering unique?

Jo: Skylark Media is a video content and marketing agency based in Bristol. Last year we became B Corp certified which was a huge milestone for the business! What makes us unique? We’re a small agency of 9 that’s making a big impact in sustainability. We make video content and animation for businesses that want to communicate positive environmental and social solutions to the world. We also produce a YouTube series, Skylark Originals, which helps with environmental solutions that people can fix at source.

Chris @ ADLIB: What got you interested in joining the movement to balance Profit and Purpose and what has been your journey so far?

Jo: I studied biology at university and have always been passionate about the environment, so since getting into video production, the projects I’ve been involved in have always been linked to sustainability. I started out as a producer/director for the BBC and Discovery Channel, making science documentaries such as Stephen Hawkings’ Universe and the climate change series, Fast Frozen Future. After taking time out to raise children, I started Skylark Media in 2005.

Over the years we’ve built a steady client base, largely made up of green or greening companies. When the B Corp movement began, it was a no-brainer to work towards it. Skylark has always been purpose-driven and has integrated that into everything we’ve done. Because of this, there was very little we had to change to work towards the certification, we just had to focus on gathering evidence to support our claim. Having said this, B Corp has been a huge milestone for us, and I’m proud to say that we’re able to put people and planet at the heart of what we do. 

Chris @ ADLIB: In your case, what does it mean for your workers, customers, community, and environmental considerations? 

Jo: B Corp isn’t just a stamp of approval that shows we meet the highest standards of social and environmental performance. It also makes us accountable for our actions as a business, and how we treat our team, customers and the wider community. Once you receive your certification it doesn’t stop there. Behind the scenes we are continually assessing ways in which we can improve our practices and impact on the planet. We set targets such as AdGreen’s Carbon Calculator to measure our emissions for TV commercials and our team regularly undertake Giki Scores to help improve their impact on a personal level. We’re transparent about this too – our sustainability policy is published on the website. In the past year alone, our team has enjoyed the introduction of a bonus scheme and deep learning through training investment. We are also committed to working with our customers to spread the B Corp message; implementing new ways in which we can work together.