Contributor

Jay Coen Gilbert

Cofounder, B Lab

B Lab is a nonprofit organization that serves a global movement of people using business as a force for good. Its vision is that one day all companies compete not only to be the best in the world, but the best for the world and as a result society will enjoy a more shared and durable prosperity. B Lab drives this systemic change by: 1) building a global community of Certified B Corporations who meet the highest standards of verified, overall social and environmental performance, public transparency, and legal accountability; 2) promoting Mission Alignment using innovative corporate structures like the benefit corporation to align the interests of business with those of society and to help high impact businesses be built to last; 4) helping tens of thousands of businesses, investors, and institutions Measure What Matters, by using the B Impact Assessment and B Analytics to manage their impact -- and the impact of the businesses with whom they work -- with as much rigor as their profits; and 4) inspiring millions to join the movement through compelling story-telling by B the Change Media. Prior to B Lab, despite having no game, Jay co-founded and sold AND 1, a $250M basketball footwear and apparel company based outside Philadelphia. Jay led AND 1’s product and marketing and was AND 1’s CEO during its period of most rapid growth and decline. Jay is a Henry Crown Fellow of the Aspen Institute, former President of the Boards of the Philadelphia chapter of KIPP Philadelphia Schools, a growing cluster of high performing public charter schools, and Investors’ Circle and a board member of Social Venture Network, leading national networks of social entrepreneurs and early stage social investors. Jay grew up in New York City before heading west to Stanford University, graduating with a degree in East Asian Studies in 1989. Prior to AND 1, Jay worked for McKinsey & Co and several organizations in NYC’s public and non-profit sectors. Between AND 1 and B Lab, Jay enjoyed a sabbatical Down Under and in Monteverde, Costa Rica with his yogini wife Randi and their two children, Dex, 18, and Ria 16. They live in Berwyn, PA.