What to know about third party auditing

Modified on Mon, 12 Oct at 8:38 AM

Introduction
B Impact and B Impact audit section?
B Lab and Assurance Providers – roles and responsibilities

Introduction

After you have completed your self assessment, you will need to submit it for audit through the Submission page in B Impact and and request an audit through the audit section. Learn more about what you can expect from your Year 0 audit for B Corp Certification.

To safeguard independence and credibility, B Lab does not conduct audits, make certification decisions, or issue certificates. Instead, an independent third-party assurance provider is responsible for auditing and certifying your company to confirm that it meets the B Lab Standards. B Corp Certification is based on the ISO17021-1 standard for auditing and certification of management systems, and B Lab approves and oversees all independent assurance providers. Learn more about B Lab’s assurance partners and how they were selected.

B Impact and B Impact audit section?

B Impact and the B Impact audit section are two separate platforms used in the certification process. While you use B Impact for completing certification setup, your self-assessment, signing certification agreements and publishing your B Corp profile, you’ll complete your audit-related activities on the B Impact audit section.

The B Impact audit section is the third party platform that B Lab, assurance providers, and companies use to track all information related to the auditing process. This is where the audit for B Corp Certification takes place.

Activities conducted in this platform include:

Requesting an audit
Scheduling audits
Receiving the audit report and corrective action report
Receiving certification decisions and status updates (e.g., active, suspended, or withdrawn) from the assurance provider
Uploading information to close nonconformities (e.g., submitting corrective action reports)
Managing communications, such as changes in the scope of certification or upcoming assessments

Providing all relevant documentation for the self-assessment in B Impact will reduce the need to upload more evidence in the audit section and ensure that all necessary documentation is available to the audit team in order to move to the next steps of the audit when you have confirmed your readiness to do so. For more details, see What to expect from your initial B Corp Certification audit.

B Lab and Assurance Providers – roles and responsibilities

Assurance Providers

Read B Lab’s Certification Requirements for Assurance providers in full here, and see their roles and responsibilities at a glance below.
Achieve and maintain approval to provide auditing and certification services to B Lab Standards.
Conduct business as per the requirements of this document.
Conduct the following activities, in accordance with this document: plan and conduct audits, report on the outcome of the audit, manage nonconformity review and closure, conduct quality review of audit reports, make certification decisions, and issue or reissue certificates in the case of positive certification decisions.

B Lab

Develop the B Lab Standards and oversee the implementation of the assurance system, including approval and oversight of third-party assurance providers. The B Lab team does not act as an auditor, undertake certification audits of companies, make certification decisions, or issue certification certificates.
Review and update the B Lab Standards and guidance to ensure they remain relevant and fit for purpose. B Lab is responsible for communicating such developments to companies and assurance providers.
Set requirements for assurance providers and their auditors to provide auditing and certification services to B Lab Standards, and to oversee their implementation.
Process prospective and recertifying B Corp applications to ensure companies meet the B Lab Standards Foundation Requirements, and to review their B Corp certification scope.
Assign assurance providers to eligible companies to undergo B Corp certification audit(s).
Develop and operate B Impact to receive prospective and recertifying B Corp applications and self-assessments.
Offer assurance providers and auditors relevant training and support on the B Lab Standards and Certification Process Requirements.
Develop and enforce requirements around B Corp certification claims and issue licence agreements to certified B Corps for B Corp logo usage.
Oversee the quality, integrity and credibility of the certification processes.
Publish relevant information about B Corps’ certification status on the B Lab website.
Administer the B Lab Complaints Policy.
Monitor, evaluate and publicly report on the impacts of B Corp certification.
Engage industry and other stakeholders to build awareness of the value of B Corp certification.
Make training and learning services available to assurance providers, companies and other stakeholders.

B Lab takes data privacy seriously and ensures that the transfer of data complies with our Privacy Policy and Terms of Use. As part of the transfer of data, you will receive a B Lab agreement which outlines the use of your documentation and evidence provided by our third party auditor.

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