On CK Prahalad and his impact on social entrepreneurship

Posted on April 19, 2010 by Raj Melville

I, like many others, was saddened to hear of the untimely passing away of Prof. C. K. Prahalad. His career spanned over three decades during which time he introduced several innovative business ideas that quickly became mainstream. Perhaps his most widely influential work was his last book on “The Fortune at the Bottom of the Pyramid” where he outlined his take on how corporations could profitably service the very large market that consists of the bottommost economic strata. You can read more at
http://blog.ambientengines.com

Filed under: BOP, India, Poverty, Social Ecosystem, Social Entrepreneur, bottom of the pyramid, creative capitalism, social Innovation | Tagged: , , , , , , , , , , | 1 Comment »

Assured Labor – creating a mobile marketplace for jobs in emerging markets

Posted on April 10, 2010 by Raj Melville

In the fall of 2007, a group of young potential entrepreneurs struggled with a problem facing over half the developing world. As developing economies grew and provided new jobs, the infrastructure to communicate and broadcast the potential opportunities for employment was unable to keep up. The influx of migrant workers into urbanized centers provided a rich pool of available talent but the mechanisms for disseminating job needs were still rooted in the 19th century. The team seized on this opportunity to leverage the almost ubiquitous presence of cell phones in the developing world to provide a communications and matchmaking platform for employment. By providing an easy to use mobile platform connecting jobseekers with job opportunities, Assured Labor is providing a frictionless job placement approach that benefits employers and employees alike. Assured Labor is a prime example of the new wave of social entrepreneur bringing a for-profit business model to address some of the challenges facing the poor in developing countries. Read the complete post at
http://blog.ambientengines.com

Filed under: Information Technology, Latin America, Social Business, Social Ecosystem, Social Entrepreneur, bottom of the pyramid, mobile technology, social Innovation | Tagged: , , , , , , , , , , , , , , , , , , | Leave a Comment »

Vijay Mahajan of BASIX on risks and results in microfinance

Posted on April 4, 2010 by Raj Melville

A good article that touches on some of the issues in my last post is a recent interview of Vijay Mahajan on the Credit Suisse website. In the interview Mr. Mahajan points out to some of the prerequisites for microfinance to pull people out of poverty. He also highlights the need to match investment growth in this sector to the available management capacity in order to avoid a bubble in the sector. Here are some extracts from his interview. Read the rest of the post at http://blog.ambientengines.com

Filed under: BOP, India, Social Business, Social Ecosystem, Social Entrepreneur, bottom of the pyramid, micro-finance, microfinance, social Innovation, sustainable development | Tagged: , , , , , , , , , | Leave a Comment »

Grameen and Continuum partner to address talent gap in microfinance

Posted on March 25, 2010 by Raj Melville

Last week I had the opportunity to attend a panel discussion at Continuum, the design consultancy, on “Building Leadership in the Microfinace Sector”. The presentation and discussion centered around some very preliminary findings based on an initial field trip and set the stage for more detailed field research to be conducted later this year. I have outlined some of their observations at the meeting and my reaction to what I heard. Read the details at http://blog.ambientengines.com

Filed under: Social Business, Social Ecosystem, Social Entrepreneur, bottom of the pyramid, micro-finance, microfinance, social Innovation | Tagged: , , , , , , , , , , , , , , | 2 Comments »

Using cell phones to change the world

Posted on October 16, 2009 by Raj Melville

Jhonatan Rotberg, was sent to MIT by Telmex, one of Latin America’s largest telcos, and teaches NextLab where he tries to bring cellular technology to the other 90 percent of the world. One of the labs startups, CelEdu, offers cellphone-based games and quizzes to teach basic literacy skills in India. Ranjani Saigal from the TIE Social Entrepreneurs Group helped connect CelEdu students to Tara Aakshar. Read the entire article at http://blog.ambientengines.com

Filed under: BOP, Information Technology, Poverty, Rural Development, Social Business, Social Ecosystem, Social Entrepreneur, bottom of the pyramid, international development, mobile technology, social Innovation | Tagged: , , , , , , , , , , , , , | Leave a Comment »

Why you need to go beyond the numbers to view rural poverty

Posted on July 11, 2009 by Raj Melville

In the past decade, much progress has been made in India and people have been justifiably proud of the improving economic situation. While most observers point to the top line numbers that show the number of people living below the “poverty line” has been consistently decreasing, by focusing on just these aseptic numbers, they fail to understand and capture the continuing anguish in the rural countryside.

Filed under: BOP, India, Poverty, Rural Consumer, Rural Development, Rural Education, Sanitation, Schools, bottom of the pyramid, water and sanitation | Tagged: , , , , , , , , , | Leave a Comment »

Reply to comment about Rural Indian Consumer

Posted on May 13, 2009 by Raj Melville

Responding to a comment on my recent blog post on “The Increasing Focus on the Rural Indian Consumer” I decided to write a longer response outlining what needs to be done to really address increasing rural income in India.

Filed under: Agricultural Development, BOP, India, Poverty, Rural Consumer, Rural Development, Rural Education, Rural Entrepreneur, Social Business, Social Ecosystem, Social Entrepreneur, bottom of the pyramid, international development, social Innovation, sustainable development | Tagged: , , , , , , , , , | 4 Comments »

The Blue Sweater a book by Acumen Fund founder Jacqueline Novogratz

Posted on May 11, 2009 by Raj Melville

I had gotten a copy of Acumen Fund founder, Jacqueline Novogratz’s, book “The Blue Sweater” a couple of months ago and had kept promising myself that I would read it. Once I started reading I was hooked. Before I knew it I had plowed through the entire volume. This is an extraordinary and powerful book.

Filed under: BOP, Health, Information Technology, Investment, Philanthropy, Social Business, Social Ecosystem, Social Entrepreneur, bottom of the pyramid, international development, micro-finance, social Innovation, sustainable development, venture philanthropy | Tagged: , , , , , , , , , , , , , , , | 2 Comments »

The Increasing Focus on the Rural Indian Consumer

Posted on May 6, 2009 by Raj Melville

I have been in India for the past week and one of the trends I have noticed is the increased focus on the rural market. Perhaps it is the ongoing elections or maybe the global recession, but companies across the board seem to have a renewed emphasis on targeting the rural consumer. Here are a few key facts that seem to stand out.

Filed under: Agricultural Development, BOP, India, Investment, Poverty, Rural Consumer, Rural Development, bottom of the pyramid, micro-finance, microfinance, mobile technology, sustainable development | Tagged: , , , , , , , , , , , , , , | 3 Comments »

ForSE 2008 – Speakers and Panels for conference

Posted on September 28, 2008 by Raj Melville

We have a terrific line up of speakers and panels for ForSE 2008 on October 10th at Boston University. See the list below. Do make sure you have registered as there are very few seats left.
To register go to: http://www.bu.edu/forse

Filed under: Conference, Education, Food, Information Technology, OLPC, Philanthropy, Poverty, Service, Social Business, Social Ecosystem, Social Entrepreneur, environment, micro-finance, mobile technology, non-profit, social Innovation, sustainability, sustainable development | Tagged: , , , , , , , , , , , , , , , , , , , , , , | Leave a Comment »

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