In October 2007, together with FSG Social Impact Advisors, IFC, and the International Business Leaders Forum, Harvard University's CSR Initiative hosted a leadership dialogue on the role of the private sector in expanding economic opportunity in developing countries. More than 100 leaders from business, government, civil society, and international development agencies participated in the dialogue, including corporations from seven industry sectors and representatives of the WBCSD-SNV Alliance.
Through a series of panels and industry and cross-industry working groups, participants analyzed existing initiatives and generated practical ideas, recommendations, and proposals for advancing the economic opportunity agenda. A brief report (12 pages) summarizes some of the key points and follow-up actions that emerged from the dialogue.
Three common themes emerge from the collection of ideas and proposals:
- The need for intermediation to fill the gaps in the market environment – for example, to get information flowing, build skills and technical capacity, facilitate access to finance, broker relationships, and help operating norms and standards coalesce
- The potential for greater cross-industry collaboration, both in filling these intermediation needs and in stimulating inclusive business model innovation
- Collaboration, especially across non-traditional partners, is still emerging as a management discipline, and it requires much experimentation, analysis, and evaluation
Harvard University's CSR Initiative is also rolling out a series of papers on this topic. An introductory paper (48 pages) explores 4 key strategies companies can use to expand economic opportunity:
- creating inclusive business models – involving the poor as employers, entrepreneurs, suppliers, distributors, retailers, customers, and sources of innovation in financially viable ways
- developing human capital – improving the health, education, experience, and skills of employees, business partners, and members of the community
- building institutional capacity – strengthening industry associations, market intermediaries, universities, governments, civil society organizations, and grassroots groups who must all be able to play their roles effectively within the system
- helping to optimize regulatory and policy frameworks – shaping the regulatory and policy frameworks and business norms that help determine how well the economic opportunity system works and the extent to which it is inclusive of the poor
For more information, please contact Beth Jenkins, Director of Policy Studies, Harvard’s John F. Kennedy School of Government.
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