Code of Ethics

How we use business for good

As a Certified B Corp, Solve is committed to using our business as a force for good. The B Impact Assessment is an objective, third-party toolkit that ensures our company meets the highest verified standards of social and environmental performance, transparency, and accountability.

When we first became a Certified B Corp in 2019, we signed the community’s Declaration of Interdependence:

• We envision a global economy that uses business as a force for good.
• This economy is comprised of a new type of corporation – the B Corporation –
• which is purpose-driven and creates benefits for all stakeholders, not just shareholders.

As B Corporations and leaders of this emerging economy, we believe:

• That we must be the change we seek in the world.
• That all business ought to be conducted as if people and place mattered.
• That, through their products, practices, and profits, businesses should aspire to do no harm and benefit all.
• To do so requires that we act with the understanding that we are each dependent upon one another and thus responsible for each other and future generations.

Corporate digital responsibility

As a digital company, we understand that Solve is uniquely positioned to influence how technology and design can be used for good. By adhering to emergent corporate digital responsibility principles, we can positively impact society and the planet in ways unique to our industry and business model.

Governance

Ethical corporate governance practices are the cornerstone of our company’s commitment to using business for good. To honour this commitment, Solve will:

• Use our skills to benefit society and human well-being: we acknowledge that all people are stakeholders in technology
• Pursue returns for all stakeholders, not just shareholders: we will create multiple forms of value and share this value with our networks
• Support regenerative and distributive design in our operations and our work
• Avoid harm and negative consequences in our work, including unjust physical or mental injury, destruction or disclosure of information, or damage to property, reputation, and the environment
• Be honest, trustworthy, and transparent, as well as fair and actionable
• Respect the work required to produce new ideas and give credit where it is due
• Respect privacy and honour confidentiality for all stakeholders
• Strive for the highest quality in everything we do
• Maintain high standards of professional competence, conduct, and ethical practice
• Prioritise collaboration: utilise peer and stakeholder review in our work, processes, and internal practices
• Embrace principles of continuous learning, organisational agility, and design thinking
• Evaluate systems and their impacts on potential risks
• Articulate, encourage acceptance of and evaluate the fulfilment of environmental and social responsibilities by all team members

Environment

Without a healthy environment, it is impossible to create a just society or shared prosperity for members of that society. Everyone is responsible for caring for and nurturing the planet we call home. This is not a responsibility we take lightly. To honour our ecological commitment, Solve will:

• Apply sustainability principles to our work
• Strive for net-zero emissions in our company operations
• Power our products and services with renewable energy whenever possible
• Maintain a healthy work environment with ecological features, such as composting and living plants
• Consider the systems-level implications of our work and, when possible, design ecologically-friendly solutions that include the planet as a stakeholder
• Promote positive systems change when possible
• Grow at an intentional pace: life creates conditions conducive to life
• When possible, apply regenerative and circular economy principles to our work: restore ecosystems rather than simply “do less harm”

Customers

We greatly value our customer relationships. Our clients are, after all, the reason we exist.

We commit to working with clients who share our values as a Certified B Corp and mission-driven organisation. The company seeks projects that improve social and environmental standards, enhance the quality of life, and actively contribute to a better future. We screen prospects on a case-by-case basis.

Our customers are a huge part of our journey. Inspiring businesses to consider greener, more conscious options is so exciting! As creatives, we have the power to open minds and spread awareness. By being a B Corp certified company, we start to embed our green thinking into our clients’ businesses. Many have now started the shift towards using their business for good.
Here is how we incorporate clear ethics into our customer relationships:

Privacy and security

To honour stakeholder privacy and the security of the systems we design and build, Solve will:

• Respect the privacy of client and user data by adhering to guidelines set forth by The General Data Protection Regulation (EU), and others
• Maintain a baseline hardening against security attacks by identifying potential risks, keeping software up-to-date, and alerting clients whenever we discover a known threat

Collaboration and transparency

To maintain great customer relationships that are mutually beneficial and based on trust and transparency, Solve will:

• Prioritise honesty and transparency in all communications
• Value collaboration and co-creation to more efficiently execute projects
• Include customers and end users in our research, design, and testing processes
• Measure success and value: quantifiable solutions are easy to understand. We strive to create value across the spectrum

Screening of existing clients

The above principles should not just apply to new clients. We should always aim to ensure that our ongoing client relationships are healthy and aligned with our values and needs as a team. In addition to keeping an eye on the above principles, we should also regularly check the following for existing clients:

• Do we enjoy working with them and do they treat us with respect?
• Are we the right fit for them and able to fulfill their needs?
• Are they generally profitable?

Systems design & risk

We understand that some systems are outside our control. We commit to several important systems design practices to maintain adaptability:

• Continually assess risk and evaluate resilience in the face of ongoing disruption
• Support bottom-up, open-source, peer-to-peer knowledge commons
• Include diverse stakeholders in our process to be certain we are designing the most inclusive and accessible systems, products, and services possible
• Release early and often, prototyping with real users whenever possible
• Use care when modifying or retiring systems; better yet, plan for end-of-life from the beginning

Team

We have created a workplace where we connect as humans, not just co-workers. Emotional intelligence is key to success, and we nurture this at Solve. We have always felt strongly about supporting our teams’ wellbeing, be it mental or physical.
Ultimately, we believe that body and mind are so entwined that if we nurture one, the other will benefit! We support our team’s mental health and overall wellbeing with a variety of in-office and out of office staff perks…

To prioritise team needs, we commit to the following practices:

Jedi principles

Justice, equity, diversity, inclusion. We commit to incorporating these principles into all our work.

• We are an anti-racist organisation.
• We will not tolerate discrimination in any form.
• We will support civil rights and JEDI-forward legislation and, when company resources allow, actively campaign against violations of these rights.
• Our shared values guide decision-making, and stakeholder goals supersede individual interests and agendas.

Quality of life

Quality of life is paramount to maintaining a productive, healthy environment and delivering high-quality work. We commit to the following:

• Create ongoing opportunities for learning and professional growth
• Pay everyone on our team a living wage
• Offer schedule flexibility and other practices to nurture wellbeing
• Support team interests outside of the workplace in as much as company resources will allow

Community

Solve was born from travelling the world and fresh air thinking of having Cornwall, UK as an inspirational base. We’re proud to call Cornwall home, known for its creativity, beauty and panoramic sea views. We also know that much work is needed to protect our surrounding environment.

We lead by example by introducing more inclusive and charitable practices. We support local business where possible. This includes working with local companies, suppliers and social activities for the team. We especially enjoy supporting and collaborating with fellow B Corps where we can.

Solve commits to ethical stakeholder community-building in the following ways:

• Foster education and public awareness of technology, design, digital marketing, sustainable business practices, and their potential consequences (unintended or otherwise)
• Provide equitable educational benefits through events, content, and public speaking
• Respect the privacy and confidentiality of community members

Ethical marketing and advertising

Honesty is our guide in all sales, marketing, and advertising. We will make only complete, factual, and truthful statements about our company and its services. We will also work with our clients to ensure information integrity in the communications and technology which we create on their behalf.

All advertising and marketing claims must be substantiated and must include all information and disclosures necessary to make them accurate and complete.

• We must take care to ensure all disclosures are written in a manner that is easily understood by the intended audience.
• We must never disparage our competitors or make unfair comparisons between a competitor’s services and our own.
• With new laws and regulations and increased political and media focus, it is critical to know the latest requirements on disclosures, privacy, and other legal constraints in this area.

Inspiration

We have pulled inspiration from organisations we admire and respect to create this Code of Ethics:

• Mightybites
• The Association for Computing Machinery’s Code of Ethics and
• Professional Conduct
• The Sustainable Web Manifesto
• The Open Source Way
• The Design Justice Network Principles
• The UN Global Compact’s Ten Principles
• The U.N. Sustainable Development Goals, serve as a framework to ground our work and our agency overall

Please feel free to use or modify this Code of Ethics for your own organisation.