Benefit Corporation Impact Report

Since 2016, Italy has been the first sovereign State in the world to introduce legislation on Benefit Corporations as a new legal form of enterprise.

Benefit Corporations (SB) are the evolution of the very concept of doing business and aim for a more advanced, resilient economic model capable of generating value for both shareholders and stakeholders, integrating into their corporate purpose the aim of having a positive impact on people and the territory, on a par with the objectives related to the company’s own profits.

The Vision is to stimulate healthy competition among all companies, assessing and measuring them according to a common standard. Pursuant to and for the purposes of Article 1, paragraphs 376 to 384, of Law no. 208 of 28 December 2015, companies that intend to become Benefit Corporations define within their corporate bylaws the so-called common-benefit purposes that they will pursue in a responsible, sustainable and transparent manner.

Benefit Corporations are also required to report annually on the company’s activities, including the assessment of the impact generated, measured through recognized Impact Assessment methods.

In November 2021, CEP Srl amended its bylaws, becoming a Benefit Corporation.
In line with our way of doing business, this step made public our desire to contribute to people’s well-being and to the protection of the territory through initiatives aimed at increasing our positive impact on them.

Indeed, Benefit Corporations mark a significant conceptual advancement and a paradigm shift compared to the traditional model of capital companies, generating Value for the territory and the community, placing the interests of our Stakeholders on a par with those of the company.

Thanks to the change in its bylaws, CEP Srl’s corporate purpose now incorporates important common-benefit aims that positively influence company strategy and management. These are aspects that distinguished our Company even before the transition to Benefit Corporation status. Today, however, thanks to this status, our commitment to pursuing specific common-benefit purposes, through transparent Governance based on ethical principles, is made known and recognized by Italian law.

This new entrepreneurial approach represents a response to the global challenges our society faces, such as climate change and economic and social inequality.

Indeed, we recognize a genuine interconnection between the company and the socio-environmental system of which we are part.

On 5 October 2023, we published our first Impact Report for the year 2022, which incorporates our commitment to Sustainability and the assessment of our impact in environmental, social and governance terms, also in relation to reference Benchmarks by Sector, Size and Country, through the use of the B Impact Assessment.

Through this tool, which is internationally recognized for assessing the impact of organizations, it was possible to observe that our company’s assessment scores above the average of these Benchmarks, thus confirming that it is on the right path toward its own sustainable development.