Stratégies d'Impact: What's happening with the FT120?

Following on from the 2022 study "Raison d'être et société à mission: où en le FT120?" WEMEAN unveils the 2023 edition "Impact Strategies: Where's the FT120?", aiming to offer a broader panorama of French Tech startups' commitment to social and environmental impact.

In this study :

  • FT120 key impact figures ;
  • Testimonials from FT120 leaders committed to impact issues ;
  • FT120 overview ;
  • An inventory of the social and environmental commitments of FT120 startups.

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Editorial

10 years after the creation of French Tech, and at a time when the entire global tech sector is going through a major funding crisis, are FT120 startups managing to stay on course for impact?

 

In 2022, WEMEAN published its first study of FT120 startups, entitled "Raison d'être et société à mission: Où en est le FT120?

From mission-based company status to B Corp scores, the aim of this study was to take stock of the appropriation of the PACTE law (2019) and B Corp certification by FT120 startups. However, these angles of analysis do not exhaust the countless ways in which people can make a commitment to social and/or environmental impact, and the aim of this 2023 edition is to offer a broader panorama of the commitment of French tech nuggets.

Our methodology

To analyze the raison d'être of FT120 startups, we examined each company's articles of association. In the absence of any mention in the articles of association, the website and additional documents, notably CSR/extra-financial performance reports, were checked to identify non-statutory declarative purposes.

For the sake of completeness, we have also listed the startups that have obtained B Corp® certification. Overall scores and scores by sub-category were extracted from the B Corp® community website.

 

Going beyond the Pacte law and B Corp certification, we have distinguished two types of inspiring commitments:

  1. Core business initiatives: Adapting the business model or expanding to new audiences to increase social or environmental impact.
  2. Initiatives linked to internal practices: Practices aimed at making the company's operations more responsible, independently of its core business, which can be replicated in other sectors.

In addition, interviews were conducted with some FT120 managers to gain a detailed understanding of their approach to social and environmental issues, and the steps they have taken to address them.

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