2026*
B Corp impact report
A lot can change in a year. Some of the biggest steps we've taken in 2026 have come from listening, learning and being willing to do things differently.
The software testing and QA industry has changed a lot over the years. As more companies have become part of larger groups, we're proud that Zoonou remains independent and employee-owned. It means we can do things our own way, making decisions based on what matters to us, our employee-owners and our clients.
It isn't always easy, particularly in the current economic climate. But there's something pretty special about being part of a company where we all have a stake in its future.
Being a B Corp is another important part of who we are. It's not just about having the right policies or processes in place, but making sure they shape how we work and the decisions we make. We're not perfect, and we don't have all the answers, but we're willing to challenge ourselves and make positive changes where we can.
And we've done plenty of that in 2026.
We've worked on how we recruit and support our team, found new ways to involve employee-owners in decisions, continued to support local organisations and taken steps to better understand our environmental impact. Some of those changes are small; others have taken a lot of work behind the scenes. But together, they're helping us build the kind of company we want Zoonou to be.
We've also been preparing for our B Corp recertification in 2027, getting to grips with B Lab's new standards and reviewing where we're doing well and where we need to improve. Learning from B Lab and other B Corps has helped us understand the changes and share ideas along the way.
There's still plenty to do, and the new standards will challenge us in different ways. But we're looking forward to seeing what we can achieve. For now, we're pleased to share what we've been up to this year.
2026 at a glance
- 16.5%
- Reduction in carbon emissions (2024–25)
- 75
- Hours of pro bono support for good causes
- 2
- Recognitions for a more inclusive workplace
- 131
- Hours volunteering in our local communities
- £5,500+
- Raised for our chosen charities
- 174
- Hours supporting local schools and students
Doing things our own way
This year, we've found new ways to involve employee-owners, make our commitments part of everyday work and share our experiences with other businesses.
Putting our commitments into practice
We made B Corp impact goals, employee ownership and ISO standards standing items at Board meetings, ensuring they're regularly discussed alongside other company priorities.
But these commitments aren't just for the Board.
We also brought B Corp impact and employee ownership into personal development conversations, giving employee-owners the chance to reflect on what they mean and how they'd like to get involved. We explored this further through our Being an Employee Owner workshops, where discussions about what ownership looks like in practice are helping shape our future Co-Owner Charter.
Learning from others, sharing what we know
We were proud to see Ashleigh shortlisted for the EOA Employee Owner of the Year award and later share our experiences on a panel at the employee ownership conference. Closer to home, we co-hosted the first Sussex EO Exchange meetup, bringing together employee-owned businesses from across the area.
We also welcomed local MP Josh Babarinde to Zoonou for Better Business Day, where we discussed the Better Business Act, our B Corp journey and employee ownership.
Taking a considered approach to AI
As AI changes how software is built and tested, we've been considering what that means for our people, clients and the way we work. We brought together employee-owners from across Zoonou to explore where AI can add value, how to use it responsibly and where human judgement remains essential.
We've since introduced an internal AI policy and continue to develop our approach to testing and assuring AI-enabled systems, while keeping professional expertise and accountability at the heart of our work.
A better place to work
This year, we've focused on making Zoonou a more accessible, inclusive and supportive place to work, from how we recruit new people to how we respond to the different needs of our team.
Making recruitment more accessible and inclusive
In 2026, we achieved Disability Confident Employer (Level 2) status after making changes to create a more inclusive recruitment process. We expanded where we advertise roles to reach a wider range of applicants, introduced anonymised CV reviews and made interviews more structured, with consistent questions and a scoring matrix.
We're proud to have become an RNIB Visibly Better Employer. As part of the process, our management team completed sight loss awareness training, while RNIB reviewed our Careers pages and recruitment process against the needs of people with visual impairments. As a company that helps clients improve digital accessibility, it's important that we apply the same thinking to our own practices, too.
“Zoonou has demonstrated strong readiness for inclusion, with well-developed, reasonable adjustment practices and an accessible, WCAG-aligned careers page. I look forward to continuing our work with Zoonou and I encourage anyone, especially those with a protected characteristic, to explore Zoonou’s careers page and learn more about the opportunities available.”
- Roy Imeson, Employment Advisor, at the RNIB
Listening and acting on feedback
We introduced quarterly pulse surveys alongside our annual employee survey, giving employee-owners more regular opportunities to share their views and help shape improvements.
One example was our values awards at the summer away day. Previously, senior management selected the winners, but our team wanted the chance to recognise each other. This year, everyone could nominate and vote, and for the first time, members of senior management received awards too!
We also took part in the Flexa employee survey, with 82% of our team responding. We scored 85% for collaboration and family-friendly working and were shortlisted among the top 10 most family-friendly companies in the 2026 Flexa Awards.
Supporting different working needs
We recognise that people have different needs and responsibilities outside work, so we consider flexible and adjusted working arrangements individually, whether that means changes to working hours, patterns or location. In 2026, 18% of the team had individual flexible or adjusted working arrangements in place.
We also introduced an enhanced carers' leave policy, giving employee-owners with caring responsibilities five additional days of paid leave.
Doing good beyond our day jobs
From supporting local schools and charities to sharing our specialist skills with organisations doing good work, we've continued finding ways to make a difference beyond our day-to-day projects.
Supporting our local communities
We spent 54 hours supporting local schools and welcomed students into Zoonou for 120 hours of work experience, giving young people opportunities to learn about working in technology.
Employee-owners also took part in beach cleans along the Eastbourne coastline and SpecialEffect's One Big Walk. And together, we've raised over £5,500 for our chosen charities: SpecialEffect, Eastbourne Foodbank and Sussex Wildlife Trust.
Sharing our expertise
This year, we partnered with ComplyEd, a growing education technology company on a mission to give school leaders more time back. As they prepared to bring their platforms to more schools, we contributed 75 hours of pro bono testing, accessibility advice and training.
Our support helped the team identify improvements, make informed decisions about what to prioritise and build confidence in the next stage of development. Read more about the project here.
"As a start-up, we wouldn't necessarily have had the resources to commission this level of independent specialist support at this stage of our development. Having that expertise available to us has been a fantastic opportunity and something we're genuinely grateful for."
- Joanne Clarke, Chief Executive Officer at ComplyEd
Reducing our impact on the planet
We published our Carbon Reduction Plan, committing to reduce our greenhouse gas emissions by at least 50% by 2030, compared with our 2023 baseline, and reach net zero by 2050.
Understanding our footprint
Our latest figures show a 16.5% reduction in reported emissions between 2024 and 2025, across Scopes 1, 2 and 3. We're continuing to monitor our emissions to understand where further improvements can be made.
We also introduced an electric vehicle scheme with Octopus, offering employee-owners access to EV leasing and discounts on home solar panels and heat pumps. We're also working towards ISO 14001 certification to strengthen how we measure, manage and improve our environmental performance.
Looking ahead
With our B Corp recertification coming up in 2027, we're looking at what we've achieved, what we've learned and where we want to do better.
We'll continue helping employee-owners better understand how Zoonou operates, what influences decisions and how we can all contribute to its success. That includes developing a company performance dashboard, building on our employee ownership workshops and finalising our Co-Owner Charter.
We'll also take a closer look at diversity and inclusion, introducing voluntary monitoring to help us understand where we can improve. On the environmental side, we'll set annual carbon reduction milestones, explore an independent review of our approach and formalise how we reuse, refurbish, donate and recycle IT equipment.
Beyond Zoonou, we'll continue building the Sussex EO Exchange community, bringing employee-owned businesses together to share experiences, learn from each other and develop practical resources.
A huge thank you to our employee-owners, clients and partners for being part of our journey this year. We're proud of what we've achieved together, and excited to see what 2027 brings.
Thanks for reading!
*This report covers the period from October 2025 to October 2026.