What Support Means to the Bean – Our Updated Guiding Principles

In late summer of this year, we introduced our updated Mission, Vision, and Guiding Principles which serve as the foundation for our new strategic plan. While the core of our mission and vision have not changed, we introduced updated guiding principles that better reflect our current program and sentiments.  

The principle of Support is a pillar of our organization. While we still believe we serve women, as in “serve more women, better,” we believe support better reflects the basis for our decisions. Our principle of Support statement reads: 

We are a social enterprise that believes it is a basic human right to live a stable, healthy life. We support the women we serve in creating a foundation of lasting change by connecting them with resources to improve their job readiness, life skills and overall well-being. 

Speaking of driving, a great way to picture this updated guiding principle is with a car as the metaphor. When we act on the premise of service, we’re in the driver’s seat while our participants give directions from the passenger’s seat. In contrast, support means we’re putting women in the driver’s seat of their own lives, and Women’s Bean Project is in the passenger’s seat with the resources and knowledge to guide them when they ask. This coincides better with our lasting principle of Empowerment, which hinges on participants taking control of their own situations and gaining self-sufficiency in their own ways. 

For the Bean Project’s model to be successful, our guiding principles must extend beyond the program. That’s why our customers and donors are so essential to our business. Sales support the creation of jobs, which in turn ensures job training, fair wages, and resume-building skills for the women in the program. Donations support the creation of program classes and counselling that ensure basic needs stabilization, sober community building, and soft skills training. 

While we support the women in our program, we also recognize the importance of supporting community members like you. Please share with us how can we support your experience with Women’s Bean Project as a customer, donor, or volunteer. What resources can we provide? What processes could we change to make us more accessible, helpful, and complete? Give us your feedback by Contacting Us and filling out the surveys you receive in your email inbox.  

And as always, thank you for your support.