The Journey to Becoming a Certified B Corp: Governance of The Baja Hotel
Photo by Lesley Robb.
This article was originally posted on Medium in collaboration with Conscious Brands on November 14, 2023.
The Baja Hotel’s Flourishing Transformation Through Governance
In a world where businesses increasingly recognize their responsibility to create positive social and environmental impact, becoming a certified B Corp has gained significant traction. B Corp certification is a prestigious recognition that showcases a company’s commitment to aligning its purpose and principles with sustainable practices. This article explores the transformative journey of the Baja Hotel and its decision to become a certified B Corp, focusing on the governance pillar. This journey was facilitated using the Flourishing Business Canvas as a guiding framework.
The Decision to Pursue B Corp Certification
The Baja Hotel embarked on the path to B Corp certification to deepen its commitment to measuring and improving its social and environmental impact. The Flourishing Business Canvas was a foundation for setting goals, identifying stakeholders, aligning its practices with its core values and gaining clarity on a far-future vision. Through the canvas, the Baja Hotel recognized the importance of measuring and managing their performance to make a positive difference. The Baja Hotel has been working towards achieving operational transparency that aligns with its purpose, and becoming a B Corp is the next logical step in this transformation. By becoming a B Corp, the hotel gains global credibility and welcomes stakeholders who share similar values to become part of the community of businesses making a positive impact in their communities and the world.
The Role of Governance
The governance pillar of B Corp certification ensures that a company’s mission and principles are integrated into its practices and calls for accountability and transparency. The Baja Hotel recognized the significance of aligning its governance with its values, which became a pivotal aspect of its journey. Let’s dive into the details of their governance transformation:
Corporate Structure and Ownership:
The Baja Hotel is a corporation incorporated in Mexico.
The current ownership took over in the fall of 2023.
The hotel has 23 employees, serving 50 rooms.
2. Purpose-Driven Enterprises:
The Baja Hotel identified purpose-driven enterprises among its stakeholders, such as cleaning services, food services, operators, local tourist operators, artisans and more.
These enterprises were previously underserved, primarily due to inadequate compensation and limited access to amenities.
3. Mission* and Engagement:
The Baja Hotel’s mission focuses on sustainable hospitality, meaningful relationships, and positive change.
The commitment is to serve a specific target beneficiary group and prioritize social and environmental impact.
4. Ethics and Transparency:
The hotel has a written code of ethics and a whistleblower policy.
They have not yet conducted an ethics-focused risk assessment but have set it as a goal for the future.
5. Financial Transparency:
The Baja Hotel shares financial information with employees during quarterly meetings and has a financial literacy program available to all staff.
They have not started sharing financial statements publicly but plan to do so regarding impact.
6. Submission for Certification:
The Baja Hotel has committed to amend its incorporation articles to consider all stakeholders.
By adopting a shareholders’ resolution, they aim to align their governance with their values.
Connecting it Back to the Canvas
Through working with the B Corp Assessment framework, the Baja Hotel continuously connected its journey back to the Flourishing Business Canvas. For example, hosting regular circle sessions (or round tables) with the hotel staff and the community is integral in achieving an inclusive and equitable approach to governance. As seen in the canvas discussions, active listening and learning took priority once again while completing the governance portion of the assessment–demonstrating how complementary the frameworks are in taking immediate and long-term action to meet the Baja Hotel’s sustainable and regenerative goals. The canvas also set the stage for creating our impact-driven mission, reflected in the assessment.
The Journey Ahead
The Baja Hotel has completed the governance pillar of the B Corp certification journey by assessing and improving its governance practices to align with its values. This is just one of the five pillars that companies must address to become a certified B Corp. Next, they will focus on the worker pillar, including financial security, health and wellness, and employee engagement.
*Mission: Welcome to Baja Hotel, where we are committed to providing our guests with a regenerative and transformative experience. We believe in co-existing with our host community and deeply value indigenous voices and all stakeholders. Our mission is to foster local environmental and cultural impact and set a new standard for responsible tourism. We actively practice reciprocity and listening in service of our community. We invite you to join us on this healing journey.
Final Thoughts
Becoming a certified B Corp is a transformational journey that requires a company to align its purpose and principles with its practices. The Baja Hotel’s decision to pursue B Corp certification reflects its commitment to creating a positive social and environmental impact. Using the Flourishing Business Canvas as a guiding framework, the hotel has taken significant steps in this transformative journey, ultimately becoming a force for social and environmental progress in hospitality. If you are interested in pursuing B Corp Certification, let’s chat! Swell Impact can guide you through the certification or re-certification process.
Rob Sinclair is the founder of Conscious Brands, a firm that helps organizations transition from shareholder governance to stakeholder-driven organizations. Lesley Robb is the founder of Swell Impact, a firm specializing in branding and sustainability strategies for the tourism sector. Together, they openly explore holistic business models by prioritizing play over perfection and co-creating community.
