Contact me to explore whether B Corp Certification is right for your business, or connect with me on LinkedIn.
As a Northern Beaches and Sydney-based trained B Consultant recognised by B Lab AANZ, an interior designer and an educator, I’m passionate about empowering businesses to create a better world for people and the planet. I am committed to a vision where business serves the greater good, benefiting people and the environment.
My company, Good4Business, is a Certified B Corporation founded on the belief that business can be a force for good by continuously improving their social and environmental impact.
“I combine my expertise in measuring impact with a talent for motivating and inspiring individuals to help businesses improve their practices and make a positive difference. Together, we can build a future where business is a force for good by coaching you through the B Impact Assessment process and supporting your organisation’s journey to B Corp Certification.”
I’ll guide you through the B Corp process, resulting in improved performance in financial growth and efficiency, staff retention and engagement, customer satisfaction and governance.
I have experience in all aspects of B Corp Certification, business development and growth, including strategy, operations, marketing, IT systems management, and change management. I am also a TRACE-approved Carbon Accounting Practitioner, equipped with advanced skills in measuring and reducing carbon emissions.
I have an extensive background in start-ups, e-commerce, digital innovation and systems thinking. This enables me to guide your organisation’s business practices to help improve your triple bottom line: planet, people and profit.
I am a Greatest Good Advisory Board member and a Design Institute of Australia NSW Branch Councillor.
I founded Devise Decor, a luxury interior design company specialising in bespoke solutions for commercial fit-outs, residential renovations, new builds, and boutique hotels. I also own KathyJoyce.com.au, which features Ideas Worth Exploring, my passion project: a book review site.
I started out on the Northern Beaches, as a child I explored the bush and creeks around Narrabeen Lakes, often setting off for the day with my bestie in our sturdy thongs and a bag of mixed lollies, ready for our quest for exploring.
In the 1970s, water came from the tap, and hats and sunscreen were not even mentioned. When we were not bushwalking, we could be found on Collaroy Beach, delighting in big surf days when waves smashed the rock pool. We could hang on to the chain barrier while the force of the wave pummeled us into the pool. During this time, I developed a love for waterways and our native bush.
Holidays were spent on a family cotton farm in Wee Waa (north-west NSW) and in a beautiful and stately 1865 farmhouse. Interior design magazines ignited a passion for beauty in my surroundings. At this time I knew that I wanted to create beautiful spaces, a time before I knew the name of the profession, Interior Design.
My first interior design experiences were in commercial design, where I quickly realised I wanted to work directly with the customer to fully understand them and their family’s needs.
Barbara Roberts Interior Design was an early employer, and Barbara Roberts herself was a mentor who guided me through a range of commercial and residential projects. One memorable project I worked on was a highly customised marble foyer at Gowrie Gate, Potts Point, still standing the test of time and in use today. Barbara also ignited an enthusiasm for the business.
I have a passion for travelling the world, this is where I learnt about people and the world, travelling with Intrepid Travel in its early days. They have stayed with the same business model—small tours led by local tour leaders who stay and eat locally to support communities.
The real adventure started when I travelled solo and spent extended time in Thailand, China, Russia (via the Tran-Siberian train), Morocco and Europe, including living in London and France, before returning to Sydney.
Learning about different cultures when travelling by myself at this time was one of the best things I have ever done, and it forms the foundation for my commitment to making a positive social and environmental impact.
More recently, riding a motorcycle through the Himalayas and South Africa, I have explored our world on two wheels. Nothing beats the sense of freedom and exhilaration!
I first started my interior design consultancy, Devise Décor, and thoroughly enjoyed building the business. Later, I established a collective with building, architecture, and graphic design companies called 123 Edgcliff Rd in Woollahra.
One of my proudest projects was partnering with the Manly Women’s Shelter to repurpose my clients’ perfectly good furniture and furnishings for women in crisis accommodation, providing them with dignity and preventing these items from going to landfill.
Additionally, I have a long-standing association with Musket Cove Island Resort, where circularity and sustainability are fundamental values.
I also founded a product design company, where I was responsible for designing, manufacturing, and bringing a new product to retail, commercial, and wholesale markets.
I have been a lifelong learner, always exploring different ideas through reading and taking courses. I have recently graduated Master’s in Business Administration, with a specialty in Entrepreneurial Management and was recognised on the Dean’s List.
Aside from studying business I am also an accredited interior designer, a member of the Australian Institute of Company Directors and consider myself a governance nerd. I also enjoy philosophy, art, culture, and design thinking and am eternally curious.
My family includes my husband who encourages my passion for design, business and exploring the world. Our daughters are 21 and 22, and both are committed to sustainable fashion design in their business practices and studies.
I also have a Jack Russell, a Rottweiler and a cat, Angel Belle, who rules the house like the queen she is. And a worm farm, which is the best!
To me, it is common sense. Business is responsible for most of our GHG emissions and provide the best chance to achieve Net Zero emissions by 2030, with SMEs making up over 90% of all businesses and employing most people. The B Corp movement envisions a world where business is used as a force for good ™.
When a business use the B Corp – B Impact Assessment to measure their social and environmental impact they are on a journey to make a holistic review of their business and its practices. This framework is the best way to evaluate a whole business, create a benchmark and plan to make incremental improvements to help all of a businesses stakeholders, including the environment.
The people who inspire me are the circle of women who have guided me at various times in my life with love and kindness, including my childhood friend and climate scientist, the late Rebecca Harris, who lost her battle with breast cancer in 2021 and inspired my commitment to make a positive impact on people and the planet.
My family inspire me to be better and do better. To be a better role model to my daughters to pursue adventure travel, expand their minds through lifelong learning and contribute meaningfully to our world. My husband inspires me through his belief and support of all my business and life pursuits.
My clients who fall in love with their businesses again as they go through the B Corp Certification journey inspire me because they are connected, motivated and empowered to make positive improvements to their business’s and ultimately contribute to a better world.
My business values are:
Creativity | Compassion | Drive
What I think of the world:
Our world is a vast and beautiful place but humans are its greatest risk. Mother Earth has everything it needs to continue on without us. If we humans want to remain relevant we need to listen to Mother Earth. Respect our planet and its people. At a minimum achieve the SDGs by 2030, which we are very sadly on track to not achieve any ☹
I have a sweet spot for:
I have a sweet spot for riding motorbikes and I’ve been on trips to the Himalayas and South Africa and New Zealand (South Island).
In my down time you will find me:
Reading fiction at night and non-fiction in the morning. Painting (roses are my latest challenge!) Swimming, Stand Up Paddle Boarding and walking the Jack Russell (they need lots of walking!) My guilty pleasure is Scandinavian Noir, such as The Bridge.
3 books I think that are worth reading:
The Artists Way by Julia Cameron: For those times when we need to connect with our creativity again.
Possible: Ways to Net Zero by Chris Goodall: I love this book because it lays out the path to Net Zero and substantiates it with hard facts and data.
The Poetry Pharmacy by William Sieghart: Dip in and out of this book as life demands and you need emotional sustenance.
My favourite life quote:
“Let the beauty of what you love be what you do.” – Rumi
My big business dream:
My business dream is to have a team of professionals to help me connect, motivate and empower people to become sustainable business advocates who influence organisations to make positive change.
My big personal dream:
To write a book on sustainable business and create artwork in my beachside shack on the far NSW South Coast. To take daily walks along the ocean followed by a swim and bask in the sun while drinking good coffee.
I have an interest in helping women:
Create sustainable businesses where women can be financially secure and personally fulfilled by doing meaningful work.
Where I see myself in 10 years:
In ten years, I envision a world where my role as a B Corp Consultant is no longer needed because all businesses have embraced the principles of purpose-driven, sustainable practices that benefit both people and the planet. I see myself collaborating with a dedicated team of sustainable business experts during the week and retreating to a beachside shack on weekends. I plan to enjoy annual holidays in Australia and abroad, cherishing moments with family and friends.