Organizations increasingly face the challenge of reconciling market and social demands, particularly when integrating competing institutional logics. Third-party certifications often function as reflective tools to align values and actions. However, many organizations abandon these certifications, a phenomenon we term "value alignment forbearance" (VAF)—a deliberate interruption of the value authentication process that decouples actions from stated identities. We propose a framework to explain VAF, focusing on two key factors: (1) the organization's level of hybridity, or the extent to which it integrates social and economic values, and (2) its impact focus, which can be directed internally (towards employees and governance) or externally (towards the community, customers, and the environment). A survival analysis of a global dataset of B Corps that decertified between 2006 and 2021 supports this framework, showing that higher hybridity and an internal impact focus reduce the likelihood of VAF. Moreover, these factors interact to create a virtuous cycle that strengthens commitment to a hybrid mission.
