We Did It Again! B Corp Certified (x3)

Since 2016, Cricket Design Works has been proudly sporting the B Corporation badge. We're certified to be more than just your average agency — we're in it for the greater good. And we've just aced our third recertification! 🎉

They say you get better with age, but keeping up with B Corp standards isn’t for the faint of heart: B Lab (the certification arm of B Corporation) has updated them 6 times in their 17 years in the biz. But we appreciate the challenge to be our best. With each round the bar gets raised in terms of five categories: environmental, governance, community, worker and customer standards. And… we continue to clear it, even though it’s harder every time. 

We’d be remiss not to mention that we’re also aiming big with our work. Much of what we’ve done in the last year has aligned with U.N. Sustainable Development Goals (SDGs).

SDG 4: Quality Education
Our roster of education non-profits runs deep. In the past year, we’ve worked at all levels of education, from pre-K through post-grad institutions. That includes non-profits doing advocacy and policy work; government departments of education; institutions of higher ed; and k-12 public and charter schools. Here’s a sample of our work:

• We have helped our friends at EdNavigator shift their business model to focus on supporting families through pediatric partnerships and continue to design and create content for the Busy Family's Guide to School.

• Last fall we designed a report for the Annenberg Institute at Brown University called Rising Numbers, Unmet Needs, which analyzes the influx of ELL learners in the Commonwealth of Massachusetts.
  

• As a build partner for the Texas Education Exchange, we've been wearing all the hats: contributing everything from branding, information graphics and video production to UX/UI design support for three applications, while also overseeing the human-centered design process across The Exchange. Our team has developed the branding and created a common design system to support the seven applications that are currently part of platform. All of these education applications will support districts across the state — especially rural school districts.

• We continue to do marketing/brand/design work for Education Analytics, Rural Schools Collaborative, Howard Hughes Medical Institute Biointeractive Program, BranchEd Alliance, McKinsey's Education Group, School Board Partners and the University of Wyoming College of Education. Plus we’ve just kicked off a new project with Tennessee’s State Collaborative on Reforming Education (SCORE).

SDG 11: Sustainable Cities and Communities
We’re proud to be the brand and design partner for social services organization Community Action Coalition of South Central Wisconsin, and to work with social think tank High Road Strategy Center at UW-Madison.

SDG 15: Life on Land
We make our mark by offering branding and design services for clients like Wisconsin Land & Water, Natural Resources Foundation of Wisconsin, Midwest Organic Services Association and local organic CSA Gwenyn Hill Farm.

Becoming a B Corp wasn't a cakewalk, but man, was it worth it. Sure, there were hurdles and a whole lot of learning curves, but it has paid off big time. Not only do we get to attract and keep awesome talent, but it's also a major selling point for snagging cool projects. Partners dig that we're all about making a positive impact while kicking butt in the design world.

Speaking of clients, teaming up with us isn't just a smart move — it's a value-add across your organization. We continue to offer top-notch brand and design services, with many opportunities for you to receive pro bono contributions. You can take heart knowing that our values — placing people at the center of the work — are in sync with yours.

Given that March is B Corp month, we’re oh-so-excited to send two Cricketeers — Director of Operations Meena DeFilippis and UX/UI Designer Megan Garner — to Vancouver for the annual B Corp Conference. They’ll be soaking up the insights and bringing back some inspo to keep us on top of our game.

So if you're curious about getting your organization on the B Corp bandwagon, our door’s always open. Let's make some waves together and show the world that businesses can be cool and conscious at the same time. 🌟