Removing English as a barrier to economic and career mobility for immigrants, refugees, and speakers of other languages — now nearly 1 in 5 workers in the U.S. — is a core goal of EnGen. The English upskilling platform company is a newly certified B Corp headquartered in Bethesda. Fortune 500 companies, regional employers, adult education providers and government institutions who want to improve their talent pipeline rely on EnGen to help them provide economic mobility, civic participation, and a better quality of life for adult English learners. The company was launched by Dr. Katie Brown in November 2020 after being in development for two years. The term “English upskilling,” according to EnGen, refers to equipping people with the career-aligned language skills needed to accomplish specific job tasks. For example, a forklift operator needs not just the technical skills to operate the machine, but also the language skills to communicate and understand safety or maintenance issues related to the task — especially if someone was communicating a real-time emergency.
EnGen reports that the US economy is experiencing a significant worker shortage across multiple sectors. This worker shortage is in part due to COVID and the fact that the Baby Boomer generation is expected to retire by 2030. The US is not funneling enough new workers into the workforce to combat this labor shortage. EnGen helps meet this need by including immigrants, refugees, and speakers of other languages as part of the solution. As the U.S. currently serves the needs of just 4% of adult English learners, access to high-quality language instruction is a systemic obstacle for this population of workers to accelerate their potential and fill open roles. Scaling high-impact, career-aligned English language training is the key to resolving this growing, constant challenge. In a recent survey of EnGen learners, 95% reported improved confidence in using English, 92% improved their English proficiency, and 87% achieved a career goal as a result of English upskilling, like a pay raise or promotion.
EnGen became a B Corp in 2022 with the “singular focus… to drive learning outcomes so that EnGen can efficiently and effectively remove English as a barrier for the learners [it] serves, enabling them to access family-sustaining wages, participate fully in their workplaces and communities, and advocate for themselves and their families.” EnGen shares that becoming a B Corp and securing B Labs certification keeps them accountable to reach this goal. The certification is also a tool to communicate to their stakeholders that EnGen’s social and environmental impact and outcomes are as important to them as more traditional business and financial metrics.
EnGen said that their “social mission is [their] company mission.” Even before EnGen was B Corp certified, the company offered free English upskilling to all of their employees and family members, and they also offered a professional development budget to all of their employees. EnGen is able to meet B Labs’ environmental standards because the company is fully-distributed, which keeps its carbon footprint low. EnGen also considers its environmental impact when choosing products for gifts, marketing, and events.
EnGen is dedicated to using business as a force for good and has made the commitment to uphold the certification and encourage the growth of the B Corp movement. For companies seeking B Corp certification, they advise that it “requires time, honest self-reflection, and buy-in from your organization’s leadership and governance.”
About the Author: Eve London is the B Local Mid-Atlantic (BLMA) Summer Intern and an Environmental Studies and Political Science student at Dickinson College, where she is also the Vice President of the Marketing Club. She has been interested in supporting the B Corp community since writing her International Baccalaureate (IB) extended essay on the movement. She more recently presented to her peers about greenwashing and sustainable business practices with a focus on B Corps for her Baird Sustainability Fellowship practicum. Her passion for the environment began when she was part of the Environmental Leaders Program at Bethesda Green, led by B Corp champion and BLMA Partnerships Chair, Kim Goddu-Alexander. BLMA is lucky to have Eve as our an engaged and committed team member.