Nikita Mishra
Feb 4, 2025

Assembly achieves B Corp in six APAC markets

EXCLUSIVE: The agency sets sustainability targets to expand certification to India, MENA, and North America next.

Photo: Richard Brosgill
Photo: Richard Brosgill

Stagwell's media agency, Assembly, has a B Corp Certification across six Asia Pacific markets: Hong Kong, Singapore, Mainland China, Taiwan, South Korea and Japan. The certification, awarded by nonprofit B Lab, evaluates companies on their governance, environmental practices, employee wellbeing, and community engagement.

Richard Brosgill, Assembly’s APAC CEO, spoke to Campaign about the certification process, a demanding but necessary step toward aligning the agency’s practices with growing industry and societal expectations. “We’re seeing more demand for accountability, not only from regulators but also from clients and employees,” he said. “Achieving B Corp Certification allowed us to take a hard look at our operations and establish systems to drive meaningful change.”

As part of the certification process, Assembly committed to cutting energy, water, waste, and carbon emissions by 5% year-on-year across its APAC offices. These reductions are being tracked and verified by third-party consultants to ensure transparency. The agency also monitors travel-related emissions and offsets them by purchasing carbon credits through Earthly. To tackle waste, Assembly has partnered with sustainability-focused groups like The Loops to track recycling progress and improve waste management.

Internally, Assembly has rolled out mandatory 'Sustainability in Media' training for employees, ensuring they understand their role in reducing carbon emissions and supporting clients on their sustainability journeys. The agency has also implemented an Environmental Preferred Purchasing Policy, which encourages decisions that reduce carbon emissions and support local suppliers.

The certification process is known for being rigorous, requiring companies to make continuous tangible changes across all areas of their business. Brosgill acknowledged the challenges but said the effort was worth it: “This is about more than optics. It’s about accountability. Once you commit to this, you’re held to a higher standard, and that’s how it should be.”

Globally, Assembly has partnered with the Earthshot Prize, an initiative founded by Prince William to support environmental innovation. Assembly provides pro-bono campaign support to Hong Kong-based nonprofit Mother's Choice, as well as market research and data analytics to help expand the prize’s reach and impact.

Brosgill noted that while the certification is a milestone, it also requires ongoing accountability. “This isn’t a one-time achievement. The certification requires annual reviews and ongoing commitments, which means the process of improvement never really stops,” he said.

The network is now looking to expand its certification efforts to other regions, including North America, India, and the Middle East. At the same time, it is scaling initiatives like the Clean Media Lab, which aims to help clients measure and reduce the carbon footprint of their media campaigns.

Source:
Campaign Asia

Related Articles

Just Published

16 hours ago

Dentsu prioritises media in new growth plan ...

Dentsu has allocated $328 million to rebuild the business in 2025, with a further $295 million to be invested over the next three years.

23 hours ago

Creative Minds: Sally Anderson is always asking ...

Meet Australian creative Sally Anderson who moved to Beijing over a decade ago to take on the challenge of shaping a new generation of brands.

1 day ago

OMG taps Dentsu exec for Malaysia CEO position

EXCLUSIVE: Winnie Chen-Head steps into Eileen Ooi's shoes, who was elevated to PHD APAC chief executive in September 2024. Chen-Head’s appointment is effective March 2025.

1 day ago

2025 salary benchmarks: Marketing, creative, comms

MCG Talent unveils its salary benchmarks for industry roles in Hong Kong and Singapore, with junior talent equipped with AI expertise expected to be given more opportunities this year.