How B Corps Can Advance Economic Mobility Through Mentorship Programs

As we celebrate B Corp Month and the community of businesses working to make a positive impact on people and the planet, B The Change highlights programs and practices designed to engage additional voices and develop future leaders. Learn more about three B Corp mentorship and apprenticeship programs that provide new opportunities and create lasting impact. 

Before candidates can even be considered for a position at most marketing agencies, they need the right qualifications — typically a college degree. So how does a company that wants to diversify its workforce go about doing so when the cost of higher education and other systemic factors create barriers for would-be marketers? 

For Certified B Corporation Two Octobers, the answer is an apprenticeship program that provides those interested in digital marketing paid positions that end in credentials. The results include a chance for the apprentice to move into a professional field otherwise inaccessible and an opportunity to move up the economic ladder; for the company, it can mean new perspectives that add value. “Having more diverse team members helps us service our customers better because we can connect with the audiences our clients are trying to reach,” says Two Octobers Co-CEO Kris Skavish.

Mentorship and training programs like that at Two Octobers are one way that businesses can address growing economic inequality and shrinking economic mobility. Those are among the reasons why mentorship is among the Collective Action Impact Topic requirements of the draft standards for B Corp Certification. This encourages B Corps to pass along valuable knowledge that can help people increase their earnings and move up the economic ladder. On a collective scale, mentorship and apprenticeship programs help the B Corp community advance a more inclusive and equitable economy. 

Below, discover how Two Octobers and fellow B Corps Ella’s Kitchen and Luke’s Lobster are connecting workers with resources and skills that provide a foundation for income and career growth. 

Two Octobers Apprenticeship Expands Opportunities in Digital Marketing

Denver-based marketing agency and B Corp Two Octobers runs an apprenticeship program registered with the U.S. Department of Labor, providing paid positions that end in credentials and include structured on-the-job learning and mentorship with supplemental education. 

The apprenticeship program recognizes that the marketing profession in the U.S. struggles with diversity. Hispanic or Latino and African-American people comprise 14.4% of advertising and marketing professionals while representing 31.9% of the population. Two Octobers Co-Founder Nico Brooks writes that to fix this disparity, targeted opportunities must be created. 

“Given that most professional jobs require experience, these are not problems that can be solved by blinding resumes or changing your recruiting practices,” Brooks writes. “As the statistics show, the pool of experienced candidates is biased. The only way to change the numbers is to create new opportunities for underrepresented groups.”

The apprenticeship removes barriers to entry into digital marketing by requiring no previous work or college experience. Furthermore, by working with local Workforce Centers, Two Octobers is able to direct its recruiting efforts toward communities typically underrepresented in marketing jobs. These Workforce Centers are government agencies that work with job seekers and companies on workforce demands throughout the country.

Two Octobers’ apprenticeship for digital marketers was approved in October 2020, and the company has since hired two apprentices, both of whom completed their programs after about three years. The apprenticeship has a defined set of objectives, and apprentices work with their supervisor/mentor to train on those skills — though it is truly a team effort. 

“The skills include things specific to digital marketing, as well as professional skills like communication, organization, and critical thinking,” Two Octobers Co-CEO Kris Skavish says. “Our entire team contributes to their training over time, which gives them different perspectives on how different skills apply to different tasks, different clients, and different situations.”

The program has added value to the business in multiple ways. Employees report that they are passionate about training team members and that contributing to the career growth of apprentices makes them feel great about their jobs and working at Two Octobers. Additionally, diverse team members have contributed ideas to the team that may not have come up otherwise, such as a Spanish-language ad for a tourist destination in Denver that was suggested by an apprentice who is a native Spanish speaker. “This hadn’t been previously considered by the client, and they were excited to implement it and reach a wider audience,” Skavish says. 

Ella’s Kitchen Mentorship Program Nurtures Skills and Connection

UK-based B Corp and baby food brand Ella’s Kitchen is part of a coalition of B Corps that offers a mentorship program to employees. The program, now in its fourth year, is a collaborative effort that includes Ella’s Kitchen, Cook, Riverford, Vivo Barefoot, and Lily’s Kitchen and matches mentees with mentors based on their career goals. 

“People come to the scheme with a wide range of goals, from career development and learning new technical skills to project management insights, resilience-building, and more,” Global Head of Impact Chris Jenkins says. 

The program kicks off with an annual introductory session open to all employees. This session gives everyone the chance to hear directly from past mentors and mentees about how the program works and the benefits of participating. To support the B Corp community’s overall work for diversity, equity, and inclusion, the program is open to employees at every stage of the career ladder. Ella’s Kitchen puts in extra effort to let those in the earlier stages of their careers know that they are welcome. 

Following the introductory session, applicants to the program choose whether they’d like to be mentors or mentees. Virtual training sessions provide participants with information and tools about building meaningful, supportive relationships, and questionnaires gather details about participants’ current roles, experiences, and responsibilities and what they hope to gain from the program.

“Once applications are in, we carefully match mentees with mentors across the brands based on their goals, roles, and experience levels — making sure that each mentee is paired with someone who is best placed to support their growth,” Jenkins says. 

When the program launched in 2021, it started with 11 mentor-mentee pairs. The program has grown extensively since then, with the latest cohort boasting 45 mentorship pairings. But Jenkins emphasizes it’s not just employees who have benefited, with Barners — employees who work in the Ella’s Kitchen barns — gaining new opportunities; it’s the business, too. 

“So far, more than 25 of our Barners have taken part, and we’ve seen firsthand the benefits of mentorship,” Jenkins says. “At least six Barners have earned promotions or transitioned into new roles within the company, thanks to the guidance and support they received.”

The program has also cultivated lasting relationships. More than half of the participants continue their mentor-mentee relationships long after the program ends — impacting the B Corp community as a whole. “These connections strengthen the B Corp community, helping to create a network of support that extends beyond Ella’s barns, all with a joint vision of using business as a force for good,” Jenkins says. “This program shows just how powerful purpose-driven business can be, with the sharing of knowledge, ideas, and experiences driving the growth of both our people and our business.”

Luke’s Lobster Opens Doors to Maine’s Lobster Industry

Restaurant chain and B Corp Luke’s Lobster launched its Lift All Boats project in 2022. The mentorship program provides students in Maine without traditional access to the working waterfront an entry point into the state’s heritage lobster industry. 

Luke’s Lobster Co-Founder Ben Conniff discussed the Lift All Boats project in Forces for Good, a podcast from B Lab. He says the permitting system for lobstering is complex and tends to lock out those who don’t have a family lineage in the industry. For example, Conniff says if you want to get a commercial fishing license, you have to start a student program before turning 18 and complete 1,000 hours on a lobster boat under the mentorship of a licensed fisherman — before you turn 20 if you don’t go to college or 23 if you do.

“No one who is not related to a fisherman right now knows this,” Conniff says. “That means you have this whole population of folks who are BIPOC, immigrants, and who otherwise just have barriers that keep them from being a current part of the fishery who will never get that opportunity unless somebody goes out and educates them about what it takes, and then lends a hand to take them through that student process and teach them how to fish.” 

In addition to this logistical knowledge, Maine’s student lobster license program requires access to mentorship, gear, a boat, and other resources that are typically only available to current anglers or industry insiders. The Lift All Boats project provides access to those resources to students who want to work in the industry but aren’t equipped, a move designed to increase diversity in what has been an insular industry. 

So far, 32 students have spent their summer lobstering under the mentorship of teacher/fisherman Wiley Muller, lobsterman Steve Train, and Luke’s Lobster co-founders Luke Holden, Jeff Holden, and Conniff, according to the project website. As part of the program, students spend 50-plus hours each summer on the water and the docks learning how to set and haul traps, maintain gear, and operate a boat safely. The students are able to sell their catch directly to Luke’s Lobster at its buy station in Portland, Maine. In addition, other members of Luke’s senior management team and the company’s partners at Island Institute provide mentorship on business and financial management. 

Apart from bringing in needed young trainees to the lobstering industry, Conniff says the program and the diversification it provides strengthen the industry in other ways. “When an industry lacks diversity — whether in perspective, experience, or background — that industry is inevitably going to be less successful at navigating new challenges because everybody thinks the same way and comes from the same experience,” Conniff says. “They just don’t have as wide a range of ideas and ways to respond to challenges.”