INCLUSIVE BUSINESS MODELS

An initiative to create, realise and further develop inclusive business models, stimulating bottom and top of the pyramid collaboration

Inclusive businesses aspire to engage the poor in the value chain, which comes with various challenges. Therefore, developed a 5-step-to-scale approach, where we help companies overcome these challenges.

Why scale inclusive business models collaboratively?

Inclusive businesses must scale to meet needs of the millions of people that are at the Base-of-Pyramid (BoP). At the same time, these inclusive businesses must stay financially self-sustaining. In order to do that they must adapt their business models and involve key partners in the scaling process.

Checklist
Are you an inclusive business?

Inclusive businesses must scale to meet needs of the millions of people that are at the Base-of-Pyramid (BoP). At the same time, these inclusive businesses must stay financially self-sustaining. In order to do that they must adapt their business models and involve key partners in the scaling process.

5 Steps to scale inclusive business collaboratively

We developed a 5-step approach to help companies overcome the challenges they face when aspiring to scale or become an inclusive business. With this five-step plan as a basis, several inclusive businesses have already been helped, and so we hope to guide many more.

Scientific bases

Our five step plan is based on academic research and literature.

Cases

Komodo Water

Organization name Komodo Water Organization type Social Enterprise (part of the Tinamitra Mandiri Group, Jakarta) Date of incorporation 2010 Country of operation Indonesia Link to Netherlands Funding partly from the Netherlands (ENDEV programme), support from Dutch...

People’s Pension Trust

People’s Pension Trust (here after: PPT) provides pension products mainly for informal sector workers in Ghana. While these workers comprise approximately 85% of the population, informal sector workers are traditionally not well protected by the Ghana social security...

Energy Talent Company

Energy Talent Company (ETC) develops energy talents for the global market starting from Africa. They source, recruit, and train outstanding individuals to meet the increasing demands of talent in the energy industry. ETC use modern-day, up-to-date learning...

FrieslandCampina WAMCO’s Dairy Development Program

FrieslandCampina WAMCO's Dairy Development Program This case emerged from our explorative research on inclusive business models. We have not applied the 5-steps plan on this case, but it serves as an example since the framework could be applied here. FrieslandCampina...

ELAGA

ELAGA Organization name ELAGA Organization type Date of incorporation 2012 Country of operation Burundi Link to Netherlands Project of RvO & collaboration with Wageningen University Size Medium Industry Agriculture Sustainability type Social, environmental Profit...

Flying Food

The Flying Food project Organization name Flying Food Consortium Organization type Consortium Date of incorporation 2013 Country of operation Uganda, Kenya Link to Netherlands Several Dutch partners involved Size No own staff Industry Food products Sustainability type...

Yayasan Bumi Sasmaya (YBS) & Mantra

Yayasan Bumi Sasmaya (YBS) & Mantra Organization name: Mantra Organization type: Consultant company Date of incorporation: 2016 Country of operation: Indonesia Link to Netherlands: Collaboration with Dutch universities and students Size: 15 Industry (GICS):...

RESCO

RESCO RESCO (Renewable Energy Service COmpany) started as a program from the Dutch NGO Hivos, to improve energy access in remote areas of the Indonesian Island Sumba. RESCO became an independent social enterprise in 2016. Their value proposition involves the provision...

Africa Improved Foods

Africa Improved Foods This case emerged from our explorative research on inclusive business models. We have not applied the 5-steps plan on this case, but it serves as an example since the framework could be applied here. Africa Improved Foods (AIF) is established in...

About

Businesses’ inclusive efforts do not always turn out to be inclusive. Inclusive businesses aspire to engage the poor in the value chain for the benefit of both. They develop new business models to create opportunities for Base-of-Pyramid (BoP) communities’ social and economic wellbeing while keeping a for-profit nature. To do so, multiple stakeholders – governmental authorities, non-governmental organizations, BoP communities, financial institute, companies, etc. – must be involved. Yet it often turns out to be challenging to align stakeholders’ conflicting interests and balance their unequal relationships. This may increase the coordination costs to a point that a business no longer finds it economically viable. Also, the conflicts that arise between stakeholders may lead to further inequality rather than promote inclusion. Thus, businesses may ultimately fail to deliver opportunities for inclusion despite their aspiration.

Our objective is to make collaborative business model innovation for inclusive business more effective, while simultaneously building up a body of scientific knowledge.

First, we developed a straightforward, practical and versatile tool to support key stakeholders in collaborative business model innovation for inclusive business. Herewith, we aim to alleviate poverty in Base-of-Pyramid (BoP) communities across the globe by integrating them into the value chain as equal business partners. We also encourage inclusive business development in small, medium-sized and large companies’  in multiple industries. Further, we assist inclusive business consortia that build bridges between these companies and BoP communities as well as other stakeholders involved.

Second, we aim to contribute to the project members’ scientific domains. Therefore, we investigate when which elements of the individual stakeholders’ business models must be aligned to promote inclusion. Also, we examine which current theoretical frameworks best explain successful collaboration in an inclusive business context.

We take an action research approach which aims to provide not just solutions to the immediate challenge, but also learnings that contribute to scientific knowledge and theory. Therefore, the approach fits nicely to our objectives. The approach implies that we use scientific methods to study the challenges of inclusive business together with those who experience them directly. Thus, we work closely with inclusive businesses, Base-of-Pyramid (BoP) communities and other stakeholders in the research process.

Become inclusive and improve the world

by | Apr 25, 2022 | Media Homepage | 0 Comments

By Dion Hulleman, The Next Organization Nowadays, the attention to diversity and inclusivity in society is increasing. Organisations aim to offer an inclusive and...

Webinar: how to scale inclusive businesses collaboratively in a BoP context?

by | Mar 8, 2022 | Media Homepage | 0 Comments

On June 24 2021, we organized an online webinar to share what we learned in our research project about scaling inclusive business models collaboratively in...

The influence of native capability on the impact of inclusive business models in the BoP context

by | Feb 11, 2021 | Media Homepage | 0 Comments

By Britt Wiefferink Inclusive businesses have to become truly embedded in the local context to reduce poverty in BoP communities. Therefore, Hart and London (2005,...

Startups alone do not solve poverty in Africa

by | Nov 2, 2020 | Media Homepage | 0 Comments

By Mathilde Miedema     Recently, the Nobel Prize for Economics 2019 was awarded to three economists for their research into tackling extreme poverty in developing...

Acting as a steward for inclusive business

by | Oct 8, 2020 | Media Homepage | 0 Comments

By André Nijhof LendaHand is a typical example of an inclusive business. It aims to service financial transaction between people with and without money. How? By showing...

A path to prosperity: agricultural development in Ethiopia

by | Feb 14, 2020 | Media Homepage | 0 Comments

By Pascal Benincasa Model farmers and cooperatives are key to success for agricultural extension projects in the developing world. Model farmers are farmers elected as...

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