‘You’ve got to undo a lot of the way that you operate’: Dig Agency CEO on achieving B Corp status
Independent creative shop Dig Agency has become one the largest creative agencies in the industry to achieve B Corp status, after more than a year of work to put into place the certification’s rigorous standards, Mumbrella can reveal.
The agency, which currently sits at upwards of 50 staff, engaged a B-Corp consultant to walk it through the process, which led Dig to settle on five key B-Corp pillars, diversity and inclusion, equality, education, wellness and sustainability, founder and CEO Paul Rhodes told Mumbrella.
While B Corp certification is becoming increasingly popular amongst international agencies, with globally renowned creative firm Wieden + Kennedy having held the status since 2021, Rhodes suggested that the scarcity of B Corp certification in the Australian agency scene is likely due to the sheer volume of work required to achieve it.
“It’s a busy environment anyway, with talent issues and the impacts of Covid, and there’s a lot of rigor that goes into becoming certified,” he said. “You’ve got to undo a lot of the way that you operate.”
He added that getting certified can also be a big cost- in the realm of hundreds of thousands of dollars – that the business must be willing to invest in.
Dig managing director, Lisa Ramsey, acknowledged that the process is much easier for an independent in one market to do, compared to a global business.
“I imagine that for the global networks doing this, which they do office by office, Sydney is not on the top of the list,” she laughed.
Paul Rhodes, founder and CEO at Dig
“There’s a lot of agencies that talk the talk, and this really forces you to look inwards at yourself and to be really honest about how you’re doing on a range of things, like female leadership, quality and mental health. It forces you to actually deliver on it, and not just say that you’re delivering on it,” continued Ramsey.
For the agency to genuinely “live and breathe” the values of B Corp, Rhodes said it was critical for the team to “carry some responsibility” and ensure it is upheld on a day-to-day basis.
Conveniently, talent at Dig have fully embraced the agency’s purpose drive, and Ramsey said it has even improved the business’ retention rate.
Lisa Ramsey, managing director at Dig
“I don’t think you can underestimate how much pride our teams have in this. It’s really changed how they feel about our business,” she said. “Particularly because we work in an industry that’s about selling stuff. It makes people feel good about what we do as an agency and our values.”
Rhodes added: “I think it is fundamentally, if you go back to what young people are looking for in their work environment and culture, it’s incredibly important given we are a people business.”
Dig Agency has offices in Melbourne and Sydney, with a client roster that includes RACV, Mondelez, 3M, Mitre 10, Australian Liquor Marketers, IGA Supermarkets, Ego Pharmaceuticals and government clients.
Have your say