Sabina Lacmanović

Department of Organization, Entrepreneurship and Law, Juraj Dobrila University of Pula, Faculty of Economics and Tourism “Dr. Mijo Mirković”

Croatia

sabina.lacmanovic@unipu.hr

ORCID 0000-0003-2827-1307

The comparative analysis of B Corp Impact Report results in higher education organizations

Marinko Škare

Department of Economic Theories, Juraj Dobrila University of Pula, Faculty of Economics and Tourism “Dr. Mijo Mirković”

Croatia

mskare@unipu.hr

ORCID 0000-0001-6426-3692

Abstract. This study conducts a comparative analysis of B Corp Impact Report results for 15 currently certified higher education institutions (HEIs) to assess their performance in five stakeholder-focused impact areas, identify key improvement opportunities, and determine their commitment to socio-economic objectives and initiatives. The research employs an exploratory case-based analysis using secondary data, including B Impact Assessment (BIA) reports, disclosure materials, impact/sustainability reports, website data, and media reports. The overall BIA scores of the analyzed HEIs range from 80.7 to 117.4, with an average of 94.56. The highest impact is observed in the customers and workers areas, followed by community, governance, and environment. HEIs are primarily committed to objectives and initiatives related to students, employees, the community, and the environment. Disclosure materials reveal improvement opportunities associated with institutional program leadership and systems, faculty qualifications, program information accuracy, and labor issues. The analysis provides valuable insights into the measurement, reporting, initiatives, and organization of benefit-oriented for-profit HEIs, which could serve as benchmarks for for-profit and non-profit education sectors. The study contributes to the academically unexplored area of B Impact reporting in the higher education industry. It offers a foundation for future primary research exploring motivations, benefits, management, progress, and effects of B Impact measuring and reporting in HEIs.

Received: February, 2024

1st Revision: October, 2024

Accepted: December, 2024

DOI: 10.14254/2071-8330.2024/17-4/15

JEL Classification: M14, G34, I20

Keywords: B Corp Certification, B Impact Assessment, higher education institutions, stakeholder impact areas, socio-economic objectives, exploratory case analysis