How Sedex supports companies on their B Corp certification journey
Isis Bliah
Senior Sustainability Strategist
1 Dec 2025
About 5 mins
Building better business through verified supply chain data
As more businesses work toward B Corp certification, many discover that the biggest challenge is not intention, it’s evidence. The updated B Corp standards require companies to demonstrate responsible practice through clear, credible and verifiable data across their operations and supply chain.
At the same time, regulatory frameworks such as the Corporate Sustainability Reporting Directive (CSRD), the ISSB standards, and supply chain due diligence laws including the EU CSDDD, UFLPA, and the UK Modern Slavery Act, place growing expectations on companies to understand and manage risks across their value chains.
Against this backdrop, organisations need structured supplier information, reliable data and independent verification. This can be difficult to achieve across complex supply networks, and it’s where Sedex helps companies move from commitment to credible evidence.
The 2025 B Corp framework marks the biggest change in nearly two decades
The 2025 standards represent the most significant change in B Corp certification in nearly 20 years. Instead of a flexible points-based score, all companies must meet mandatory expectations across seven Impact Topics, including governance, workers, environment, and customers.
One of the most notable changes is the introduction of a dedicated requirement for supply chain and value chain management. Previously, supplier practices were considered indirectly or within optional sections. Now they are central to certification.
Businesses must show how they:
- identify and assess risks to workers across their supply chain
- collect and manage data on labour rights, pay, wellbeing and representation
- verify conditions through independent assessments
- demonstrate continuous improvement and responsible sourcing
- engage suppliers in corrective actions and long-term improvement
This shift reflects a wider movement: companies are now accountable not only for their own actions, but for the impacts of the partners they work with. For many organisations, this demands new systems, processes and ways of working with suppliers.
Meeting the new B Corp standard requires better supply chain data and the removal of internal siloes
Turning this new standard into reality requires companies to look much deeper into their supply chains than ever before. Gathering, managing and verifying social data across hundreds or even thousands of suppliers is a complex process, especially for global businesses.
Data is often scattered across departments:
- Procurement may track supplier contracts,
- sustainability teams may hold audit reports, and
- compliance teams may manage risk assessments separately.
These silos make it difficult to create the single, consistent evidence base that B Lab now requires. In many cases, suppliers themselves lack the tools or understanding to report on labour conditions or worker wellbeing in a structured way.
Without aligned, verifiable data, B Corp certification becomes slower and more complex. Evidence gaps can undermine an otherwise strong submission.
This is why many organisations adopt Sedex as part of their B Corp strategy. Sedex provides a single platform for supplier engagement, data management, risk assessment and verification.
How Sedex supports B Corp certification
Sedex’s platform is built around the same principles that underpin the new B Corp framework: transparency, accountability and continuous improvement in human rights and labour standards.
Data collection and supplier engagement
- B Corp certification expects companies to show how they collect and manage information on workers’ rights, wages, hours, and wellbeing across their value chains.
- Sedex’s Supplier Self-Assessment Questionnaires (SAQs) make it easier for suppliers to provide consistent data on these indicators, along with policies on discrimination, grievance mechanisms and worker representation
Risk identification and assessment
- To achieve the B Corp certification, companies must show that they understand and manage social risks within their operations and supplier base.
- Sedex’s risk tools help companies understand where the greatest human rights risks exist in their operations and supply chains. Insights based on geography, sector and product type allow teams to prioritise attention where it matters most.
Verification and evidence
- B Lab places high value on verified evidence.
- SMETA audits provide an independent assessment of labour, health and safety and business ethics, giving companies verified proof of conditions at supplier sites. These audits form robust, defensible evidence for B Corp certification and demonstrate continuous improvement over time.
Reporting and transparency
- The B Corp verification process requires companies to submit structured evidence and data summaries that support their claims.
- Sedex dashboards turn complex supplier data into clear visuals and progress reports. This helps organisations communicate performance internally and externally and present structured evidence during B Lab’s verification process.
By integrating Sedex into their B Corp strategy, companies can overcome internal data silos, strengthen supplier engagement and build the credible evidence foundation that the 2025 standards demand.
Beyond certification: building a culture of continuous improvement
Using Sedex provides long-term value far beyond the certification process. Companies gain:
- A single source of truth for social and human rights data
- Stronger supplier relationships and improved engagement
- Clear visibility of risks and opportunities for improvement
- Alignment across sustainability, procurement and compliance teams
- A structured approach for meeting global due diligence laws
Sedex helps organisations move from “meeting the standard” toward embedding responsible sourcing into everyday practice. The core intention of the B Corp movement.
The bottom line: Sedex makes B Corp certification achievable and credible
- The 2025 B Corp framework is the first major update in nearly two decades and introduces mandatory requirements, including a new focus on supply chain and human rights management.
- Meeting these expectations requires high-quality data, supplier engagement and independent verification across global supply chains.
- Sedex provides the tools, insights and evidence that companies need to succeed, from supplier data collection to audit verification.
- With Sedex, organisations can meet the new B Corp standards confidently while building stronger, more responsible supply chains.
Start your B Corp journey with confidence. Speak to our team today to learn how Sedex and SMETA provides the tools and evidence your supply chain needs to succeed.
