Message from go2HR CEO Krista Bax

December 18, 2020

When I first joined go2HR as the CEO back in April 2020, BC’s tourism and hospitality industry faced a dire, uncertain situation, and businesses across the province were working tirelessly to respond to the new and everchanging pandemic environment. I tossed the normal playbook for executive transition out the window and jumped right in.

Over the past nine months, I have witnessed firsthand the incredible resiliency of BC’s tourism and hospitality industry and its response to the pandemic. The tourism and hospitality industry is tough. It is agile. It is responsive. It is full of talent. And it is one of the most tightly connected industries I’ve ever had the privilege to be a part of. It’s been a challenging, rewarding, inspiring ride to date.

As a leader, I value relationships and collaboration. go2HR is a small organization with a mandate to support 19,000 tourism and hospitality operators across the province. By working in lockstep with industry stakeholders, associations, organizations, and governmental bodies, we can achieve more together than individually.

I have worked in a lot of industries in the past which were considered the economic backbone of British Columbia. As a newbie, I needed to dig into what tourism really meant for the province, and it was eye-opening. This industry is a major economic driver, is in every community in BC, and offers a wide range of jobs and careers for a diverse cross-section of individuals. Tourism and hospitality businesses are the cornerstone of many communities and we will do all that we can to rebuild a safe, strong, skilled workforce to support businesses to weather this storm.

2020 was a big transition year for go2HR and the team worked hard to support operators around the province to respond to the pandemic. We delivered a host of supports such as working with the industry to develop safety protocols for specific sectors, building out a dedicated COVID-19 safety and HR webpage, providing various webinars on safety protocols, conflict resolution, customer service, HR, mental health, online training and more, and served as the HR expert for BC’s Tourism Resiliency Program. We also began renewing organization’s strategic direction to be more focused, relevant and have greater impact. Thank you to those that have contributed your thoughts. I am excited about the opportunities ahead.

2021 has some light down the road and at the same time, it looks to be a daunting year. I look forward to continuing working with our talented team and collaborating with you as we move through the recovery and rebuilding.

In closing, I would like to thank those organizations that have invited me into your community and has asked our team to contribute to your efforts. It is truly energizing to be around such dedicated people. It helps me gain further perspective on this great industry and the businesses and people who are truly the backbone of the tourism and hospitality industry.

As this is a new communication developed to support our important industry partners, I would like to take this moment to invite you to share this with someone who you think could benefit from it.

Season’s greetings to you and yours – and here’s to gaining some ground back in 2021.

Sincerely,

Krista Bax
CEO, go2HR