Social impact is the next frontier for serious investors
By Bonnie Chiu, Managing Director, The Social Investment Consultancy (TSIC). TSIC is a global network of social impact consultants that has worked with over 500 organisations across five continents, advising investors, foundations, and corporates on ESG strategy, impact measurement, and the deployment of capital for social good.
For years, the ESG conversation has been dominated by climate: carbon footprints, net zero pledges, Scope 3 emissions. Now, the agenda is expanding. Recent reports suggest that health and social impact have overtaken climate as the top priorities for investors. This is not because the climate crisis has been solved, but because social impact is increasingly recognised as a measure of long-term value and business resilience.
The UK's B Corp community, the largest in the world, brings together more than 3,000 businesses already demonstrating what this looks like in practice.
Why social impact matters to investors
After years of greenwashing scandals and hollow commitments, investors are increasingly looking beyond aspirational claims. They want concrete evidence, robust governance, and a clear picture of how companies treat their people, support the communities they depend on, and build resilience into their business models.
This is where social impact becomes a business issue, not simply a values statement. Businesses that pay fair wages, invest in their workforce and take their social footprint seriously are better placed to retain talent, build stakeholder trust and navigate disruption. Meanwhile, consumers, particularly younger buyers, are increasingly making purchasing decisions based on values alignment. Companies that fail to close the gap between what they say and what they do risk reputational damage that can ultimately reach the balance sheet.
The data suggests that responsible business practices and strong performance need not be at odds. 93 per cent of UK B Corps that were active during the COVID-19 pandemic remain active today, compared with 84 per cent of UK businesses overall. In the last year, UK B Corps also saw a 20 per cent increase in turnover, almost seven times higher than the 3 per cent recorded by SMEs overall. These figures do not prove that values drive performance, but they make it harder to argue that a responsible business model is a drag on it.
At The Social Investment Consultancy (TSIC), we have been a certified B Corp since 2015, when we became one of just 62 founding B Corps in the UK. Certification has taught us to confront difficult questions about how we pay people, who we exclude and where our supply chain falls short. These are increasingly the same questions serious investors are asking.
From claims to evidence
Understanding social impact demands more than good intentions. Measurement needs the same discipline as financial or climate reporting: clear outcomes, reliable data and board-level accountability. Credibility comes from transparency, not perfection. Being honest about where you fall short is more valuable than presenting a polished story that nobody believes.
This is why the evolution of the B Corp movement is worth watching. B Lab has introduced new standards that move away from a flexible points model towards mandatory minimum requirements across key areas, including climate action, fair work, human rights, and equity and inclusion. Companies must meet defined requirements in these areas, with certification independently verified by a third party. In an era of heightened scrutiny, that assurance helps distinguish a claim from a credential.
As the leader of a B Corp, I know this accountability can be uncomfortable. Recertification prompted us to examine our own practices, from pay and governance to the gaps between our commitments and how we actually operated. The new standards make those gaps harder to paper over.
At TSIC, we are also working to strengthen the infrastructure behind social impact measurement. We are building integrated systems that help organisations measure, report and improve social performance in ways capital markets can act on. Our partnership with Rimm Sustainability combines human-centred expertise with the technology needed to scale this work.
The next frontier is ownership
Certification answers an important question: how does a business operate? It offers insight into how a company treats its people, how it is governed and the standards it commits to. But increasingly, impact-oriented investors must also ask who owns a business and its assets, and who shares in the value they create.
Two businesses can have similar commitments to social and environmental responsibility while taking very different approaches to ownership, decision-making and the distribution of value. Whether a business is employee-owned, community-owned, cooperatively run or accountable to external shareholders can shape who benefits from its success and how its assets are used.
For investors, this means looking beyond how a business operates to how it is owned. Who holds the assets? Who has a say in how they are used? And who benefits when their value grows? These questions are an important part of understanding a business's wider social impact.
As a B Corp ourselves, we see certification as a strong foundation for that conversation, not the end of it.
Where this leaves investors
Social impact is not a softer alternative to environmental rigour. It is an essential part of understanding how businesses perform and endure over the long term. Independently verified certification, mandatory standards and more disciplined measurement give investors better tools to assess it. The next test is ownership: not only how businesses operate, but who shares in the value they create.