NextBillion.net - Development Through Enterprise - Eradicating Poverty through Profit

CK Prahalad Releases Two New Case Studies

Wed, 04 Nov 2009 12:30:00 +0000

Authored by: Moses Lee

According to Thinkers 50, a biennial ranking of business gurus, C.K. Prahalad is the most influential management thinker in the world. This is the second straight time that Prahalad has topped the list.

"C.K. Prahalad's influence on the business world is immense," said Des Dearlove, co-creator of the ranking, in a statement. "He coined the term 'core competencies' in the 1990s, which set the strategy agenda for a generation of managers. More recently, his work on The Fortune at the Bottom of the Pyramid has shown the role business can play in tackling world poverty."

Now C.K. Prahalad has released two new BoP case studies: Jaipur Rugs and Bharti Airtel.

Jaipur Rugs: Beginning with the purchase of two rug looms in 1978, Jaipur Rugs CEO, N.K. Chaudhary has built the largest hand knotted rug export company in India, employing 40,000 people across seven states in north India. The Jaipur Rugs business model has successfully connected rural poor with markets of the rich, through the development of a global supply chain, built around mobilizing human capability and skills at the grassroots level and finding steady jobs for rural men and women in the most depressed parts of India. Mr. Chaudhary has defined his leadership style in this way: "Leadership means losing oneself. The more someone loses himself, the more he can understand about society. The more I lose my ego, the more I can see the talent in my people and the society."

Bharti Airtel: This case study on India's wireless giant shows how the firm exemplifies many of the tenets set forth in Prahalad's book, The New Age of Innovation. Case A presents the history of India's wireless telecommunications industry and the unique challenges faced by operators in that environment. It also gives the background on Airtel, introduces its leaders, and describes some of the biggest challenges facing the company. Case B presents varied strategies that Airtel has pursued to become one of the most profitable wireless telecommunications companies in the world, despite the fact that it operates in one of the poorest countries on Earth. Airtel changed the industry by moving away from such standard metrics as Average Revenue Per User (ARPU) and has employed alternative measurements for success. It has also relied heavily on outsourcing non-core functions and designed unique Value-Added Services for its varied customer base.

To read and purchase the cases, visit The William Davidson Institute's website,GlobaLens or click on the following direct links:

Note: Prahalad has a number of other case studies on the way. Check back on NextBillion or follow Globalens on Twitter @globalens

Innovative Approaches to Access: NGOs Explore Opportunities in Water

Tue, 03 Nov 2009 18:30:00 +0000

Authored by: Emily J. Smith

Almost fifty per cent of the developing world's population - 2.5 billion people - lack improved sanitation facilities, and over 884 million people still lack access to safe drinking water. The Clean Water Roundtable was recently held at the Haas School of Business, at University of California Berkeley to explore sustainable solutions to clean drinking water opportunities in the developing world. By bringing academics, NGOs, foundations, corporations and venture capitalists together, participants explored and identified technologically and culturally viable, scalable solutions to developing clean water systems and what is needed to overcome existing impediments.

One afternoon panel titled "What Water Opportunities are Non-Profits Looking for in the Developing World?" included panelists Keith Stamm, from Water.org, Raul Gauto, from Avina, and Stephanie Maurissen, from CARE. The three organizations are each taking a unique approach to increasing access to clean water in the developing world.

Avina's vision is that thousands of excluded communities self-organize through equalitarian and democratic processes to manage their own distribution and sanitation of water. CARE aims to establish and scale up a trust fund to innovate financial mechanisms and technical assistance to water providers in El Salvador, and Water.org is focusing on combining microfinance with water and sanitation credit in southern India - building capacity at the community level and creating support groups to take loans. In addition, they are funding MFIs to enter the water space and develop financial mechanisms for water specific programs.

Continue reading this story...

Impact Reporting and Investment Standards - Comment Now!

Mon, 02 Nov 2009 23:00:00 +0000

Authored by: Margot Brandenburg and Sarah Gelfand

The idea that for-profit investment can have positive social and environmental impact has been talked about for some time, and is increasingly being put to practice. This phenomenon of Impact Investing has the potential to complement philanthropy and government in addressing to some of the planet's most deeply entrenched challenges, including climate change, agricultural productivity, shelter, and health, among others. By tapping the global capital markets, impact investing can unlock financial resources to address these challenges at a scale that government and philanthropy cannot match.

However, unlike mainstream investors, impact investors are not supported by established institutions-such as regulators, industry networks and service providers-to help them make investment decisions. A first step toward a more efficient impact investing industry is to establish a common vocabulary and framework for defining, reporting, and tracking the social and environmental performance of impact investments. This will bring transparency and credibility to the sector and enable critical industry infrastructure like performance benchmarks, investment databases, and rating systems that serve to further stimulate additional investment into impact enterprises and funds.

Developed by Rockefeller Foundation, Acumen Fund, and B Lab, the Impact Reporting and Investment Standards (IRIS)-which you've read about here before-address this need. Similar to the way that the International Financial Reporting Standards (IFRS) dictate a standard for reporting financial performance, IRIS provides a model for reporting on social and environmental performance.

Use of standardized terminology and metrics can improve the integrity of non-financial performance reporting and give investors a more accurate understanding of the value of their impact investments. These standards also prevent the (false) side-by-side comparison of companies and funds on the basis of metrics that may share the same name but have different underlying meanings; for example, the metric 'jobs created' may include seasonal or part-time jobs for one organization, but apply to only year-round full-time jobs for another.

IRIS is not an exhaustive set of indicators. As such, aligning data with IRIS is not intended to preclude an organization from tracking and reporting on metrics outside of IRIS, it only requires that these metrics be given names that do not risk confusion with the standard ones.

For example, a company that tracks the number of clients with incomes less than, say, $8/day - is only required to define this metric as such, and not refer to it with a name like 'poor clients' for which a different standard definition exists in IRIS.

Common reporting standards streamline and simplify the reporting requirements of organizations that would otherwise face competing and sometimes inconsistent requests for information from investors and donors. Most importantly, IRIS helps impactful enterprises attract more capital from investors committed to using social and environmental performance metrics to inform their investment decisions.

A few months ago, the newly-formed independent nonprofit called the Global Impact Investing Network (where Sarah works) became the institutional home for IRIS. The Global Impact Investing Network and all the IRIS partners believe that IRIS must be developed as a non-proprietary public good if it is to achieve widespread adoption and overall success.

To the same end, we are collecting public feedback on preliminary IRIS performance indicators and their definitions prior to the launch of the next version of IRIS, which is planned for early 2010. A first open comment period last spring generated more than 200 comments from more than 50 organizations. The second open comment period is currently underway through November 13.

We encourage you to visit the IRIS website where you can leave comments about the indicators and their definitions and propose new ones. If you'd like to get more information about IRIS and more detailed instruction about how to leave feedback on the website, you can sign up for webinars running this week-the first is tonight at 9pm EST-by clicking the link here.

BRAC’s TUP Program: When Base of the Pyramid Approaches Might Not Work

Mon, 02 Nov 2009 13:59:54 +0000

Authored by: Rob Whiting

Photograph above: A northern Bangladeshi (Netrokona) tea stall owner who started his business with a $260 loan from ASA, another prominent Bangladesh MFI.

BRAC, a Bangladesh-based NGO, is just giving stuff away to the poor. One of the world's largest and most innovative poverty alleviation organizations has decided that aid, and not profit, is the way forward to help the very poorest.

As an intern this past summer at BRAC, I was told this in our orientation right before the program coordinator happily proclaimed BRAC to be a social business (think sustainable). The coordinator said that 80% of BRAC's funds are self-generated and that its goal is to become fully sustainable.

BRAC is no foreigner to market-based approaches to poverty. It was one of the pioneers in microfinance (banking for the bottom of the economic pyramid); it has established BRAC Dairy to sell milk to the poor; and its successful chain of handicraft stores sells the cultural products of villagers to wealthy urbanites. It seemed odd that with all its experience in business applications, BRAC was turning to a handout. Not only that, but this program was funded entirely by donations. What led them to the conclusion that BoP methods just wouldn't cut it? And could this be sustainable?

Continue reading this story...

Development Officer

Mon, 02 Nov 2009 08:18:30 +0000

Organization: E+Co

Location: Amsterdam, NL

E+Co’s office in Amsterdam is seeking a highly motivated Development Officer to build on E+Co’s success and drive a fundraising strategy that will allow E+Co to reach its full potential.

E+Co is an investment company for clean energy enterprises and projects, with investments in over 20 developing countries. Our investee companies provide access to energy to end users who are without clean, affordable and reliable access to energy. Stichting E+Co in the Netherlands is part of E+Co Inc., a non-profit company registered in the USA.

E+Co’s mission is to promote sustainable development and increase the quality of innovative and environmentally sound energy by providing services and financing to modern energy entrepreneurs in Africa, Asia and Latin America. E+Co supports enterprises that are on the frontline of socioeconomic development, job creation and environmental sustainability.

With eight global offices, E+Co is the leading practitioner of the enterprise-based approach for access-to-energy in emerging markets. Our business model combines tools, training, services and capital to create local energy businesses. E+Co is a recognized leader in energy enterprise development – connecting organizations, programs, and human and financial resources worldwide to the private projects and enterprises required for a sustainable energy future in developing countries. E+Co emphasizes the need of impacts reporting by monitoring the social, environmental and financial impact of our investments.

E+Co’s operational income is a combination of portfolio income and fees with grants, donations and contracts. For its investments E+Co attracts funds from banks, foundations, institutions and individuals.

Between 2009 and 2013, E+Co expects to invest over $100 million, via approximately 250 investments, bringing modern energy to 17 million people. Until now E+Co has made more than 250 investments in clean energy enterprises. E+Co’s investments are currently providing access to modern energy to 4.8 million people, avoiding over three million metric tons of greenhouse gases per year. In 2008, E+Co approved 79 new investments totaling $17.8 million.

Development Officer Fundraising

to secure operating and investment capital for E+Co.

Tasks and Deliverables include:

Identify and pursue funding opportunities for investment capital and operating capital from private and public financiers. Potential financiers include development banks; private banks; international, multilateral and government programs; foundations; family offices and the carbon market. Activities may include the following:
1. Identify potential financiers and nurture the relationships;
2. Prepare materials and present information, seeking input from other E+Co staff as needed;
3. Prepare and review funding proposals, in close cooperation with other E+Co staff.

Programs from public institutions, including tenders and requests for proposals will be specifically explored.

Assist the Director Europe in relationship management with various existing European funders. This includes facilitating information exchange for reporting purposes and preparing reports to funders/investors.
General representation and promotion of E+Co in Europe. This includes attending and presenting at specific meetings and seminars.

Requirements:

Experience of minimum 5 years in:

Track record in successfully preparing proposals for financing incl. grants and programs;
Conceptually strong in financial innovation and ‘thinking outside the box’; Experience in program development and relationship management;
Experience in the financial sector (banks and donors);
Network of potential financiers preferably in Europe and Southeast Asia.

Also:

Strong involvement with small and medium enterprises and entrepreneurship, preferably in developing countries;
Thorough understanding of the concepts of “triple bottom line”, “corporate social responsibility” and “sustainable development”;
Demonstrated understanding of tenets of social investing;
Affinity with the energy-theme and with ‘modern energy’;

Profile:

MSc in finance or economics or an MBA or similar.
Self propelling, result-oriented;
Motivated to work in mission driven international organization;
Capable of maintaining long-distance working relationships and of working in a small team;
Excellent working skills in English;
Positive attitude, collaborative philosophy, flexibility and a sense of humor.
Demonstrated experience in public speaking and formal presentation making;
MS Office fluency

LOCATION: Amsterdam, the Netherlands; international travel in Europe and occasionally to Africa, Asia, Latin America and USA

COMPENSATION: E+Co offers a competitive salary and benefit package.
CONTACT: If you feel that your experience base and interests qualify, please submit a cover letter, resume to developmentsearch@eandco.net by November 15th, 2009. Your submission will be acknowledged. If E+Co wishes to learn more, you will be contacted by email no later than December 5^th , 2009. Please do not follow-up with E+Co staff or board members.

E+Co is an Equal Opportunity Employer

NextBillion.net - Development Through Enterprise - Eradicating Poverty through Profit

CK Prahalad Releases Two New Case Studies

Innovative Approaches to Access: NGOs Explore Opportunities in Water

Impact Reporting and Investment Standards - Comment Now!

BRAC’s TUP Program: When Base of the Pyramid Approaches Might Not Work

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