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: microfinance, micro-finance, sustainable development, BOP, Social Business, microcredit, social entrepreneurship, BASIX, Vijay Mahajan, Credit Suisse | Leave a Comment »
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: BOP, Center for Creative Leadership, Continuum, Grameen Foundation, Human resources, micro-finance, microfinance, mid-level managers, Shorecap Exchange, Social Business, social Innovation, Social Investment, Sustainable ventures, talent, yunus | 2 Comments »
Posted on October 14, 2009 by Raj Melville
An Investors perspective of Microfinance – Over the past years, microfinance has grown increasingly prominent and found its way into the common vernacular. As microfinance has become increasingly mainstream, major investors have started to take positions in microfinance companies. What are the potential returns and social impacts that investors see in this segment? More details at http://blog.ambientengines.com
Filed under: Conference, Social Ecosystem, Social Entrepreneur, micro-finance, microfinance, social Innovation | Tagged: Babson college, Boston, Conference, ecosystem, Investment, investors, micro-finance, microcredit, microfinance, Social Ecosystem, Social Entrepreneur, social entrepreneurship, social Innovation, Social Investment | Leave a Comment »
Posted on October 13, 2009 by Raj Melville
Our annual conference on Social Entrepreneurship – ForSE 2009: Forum for Social Entrepreneurs will be held on Friday October 23. This time we are working together with Babson College’s Net Impact Undergrad organization to host it at Olin Hall on Babson College’s lovely Wellesley campus.
Filed under: Conference, Investment, Micro-enterprises, Philanthropy, Social Business, Social Ecosystem, Social Entrepreneur, Venture Capital, creative capitalism, micro-finance, microfinance, non-profit, social Innovation, sustainable development, venture philanthropy | Tagged: Social Entrepreneur, Social Ecosystem, social Innovation, microfinance, Conference, micro-finance, Boston, sustainable development, ecosystem, Social Business, sustainability, Social Investment, venture philanthropy, MIT, social entrepreneurship, non-profit, Sustainable ventures, Accion, universalgiving, Babson college | Leave a Comment »
Posted on June 24, 2009 by Raj Melville
Couple of months ago we had the privilege to host Mr. N. Srinivasan in Boston. Mr. Srinivasan is the author of the ‘Microfinance in India: State of the Sector Report 2008’, was Chief General Manager of India’s National Bank for Agriculture and Rural Development (NABARD) where he served for 25 years. Here are excerpts from an interview and Mr Srinivasan’s open letter to the Indian Government.
Filed under: Investment, Micro-enterprises, Social Ecosystem, micro-finance, microfinance, sustainable development | Tagged: microfinance, micro-finance, sustainable development, yunus, India, microcredit, savings, NABARD | Leave a Comment »
Posted on June 16, 2009 by Raj Melville
For the first time TIECON EAST – TiE Boston’s annual conference on entrepreneurship and innovation – had a dedicated track on Social Enterprise. The three panels for the track were all well attended. Here are some excerpts from an article I wrote for Lokvani about the sessions.
Filed under: Agricultural Development, Conference, Food, Health, India, Information Technology, Investment, Micro-enterprises, Rural Development, Social Business, Social Ecosystem, Social Entrepreneur, environment, international development, micro-finance, microfinance, mobile technology, social Innovation, sustainability | Tagged: Social Entrepreneur, Social Ecosystem, Health, Conference, Rural Development, Agricultural Development, micro-finance, Boston, sustainable development, Social Business, sustainability, Social Impact, India, internet, microcredit, Information Technology, mobile technology, Sustainable ventures, Food Supply, TIECON | Leave a Comment »
Posted on June 9, 2009 by Raj Melville
Bala Vishwanath, an IIT and IIM alum, saw an opportunity to multiply the social impact of every dollar, quit his job and worked to setup www.UnitedProsperity.org United Prosperity helps provide loan guarantees that enable poor entrepreneurs to borrow from Microfinance Institutions to build their enterprises in developing countries.
Filed under: India, Micro-enterprises, Philanthropy, Social Business, Social Ecosystem, Social Entrepreneur, bottom of the pyramid, international development, micro-finance, microfinance, social Innovation, sustainable development | Tagged: Social Entrepreneur, Social Ecosystem, social Innovation, microfinance, micro-finance, sustainable development, yunus, Social Business, Social Impact, Philanthropy, Social Investment, India, microcredit, Kiva, United Prosperity | 1 Comment »
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: Acumen Fund, BOP, Health, Information Technology, international development, micro-finance, Philanthropy, Social Business, Social Ecosystem, Social Entrepreneur, social entrepreneurship, Social Impact, social Innovation, Social Investment, Sustainable ventures, venture philanthropy | 2 Comments »
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: BOP, Coca Cola, eJeevika, GE, India, micro-finance, mobile technology, Poverty, rural BPO, Rural Consumer, Rural Development, Social Impact, sustainable development, Wall Street Journal, WIPRO | 3 Comments »
Posted on April 22, 2009 by Raj Melville
Speaking at the Legatum Center’s Lecture series at MIT, Jacqueline Novogratz described the innovative work of Acumen fund and how it helps build social solutions through its venture philanthropy.
Filed under: Health, India, Investment, Micro-enterprises, Poverty, Sanitation, Social Business, Social Ecosystem, Social Entrepreneur, Water, international development, micro-finance, social Innovation, venture philanthropy | Tagged: Social Entrepreneur, Social Ecosystem, social Innovation, Health, microfinance, micro-finance, Water, international development, Social Business, Acumen Fund, Social Impact, Philanthropy, social entrepreneurship, Sustainable ventures | Leave a Comment »
