Project
Description & Activities
Summary
The objective of the Base of the Pyramid Protocol Project is to
generate insight into the processes by which firms can identify and
develop sustainable new products and business models in partnership with
Base of the Pyramid (BoP) communities. To that end, the project will
establish and test a "protocol" for deeply understanding the needs,
perspectives and capabilities of BoP communities in a manner that
provides them and the corporation with lasting value. The protocol is
envisioned as an inclusive, "open-source" effort that embraces diverse
perspectives and experiences in an on-going conversation to expand our
understanding of how corporations and BoP communities can work together
for mutual gain.
Project Outcomes
The key project outcomes and deliverables include:
-
A robust research
protocol that will facilitate a range of companies' efforts to
develop knowledge and capabilities necessary for serving BoP markets
and consumers.
-
An understanding
of how to engage in the co-design of sustainable business models
that meet the needs of present and future generations of BoP
markets.
-
Insight into the
design and marketing of sustainable products and services at the
BoP.
-
Case studies and
teaching materials for classroom use.
-
An action-oriented
executive education program for leaders and managers of corporations
interested in the opportunities found at the Base of the Pyramid.
Activities
This two-year project has four distinct phases, as follows:
-
Phase I.
The first phase of this project, which was completed in the fall of
2004, brought together 35 experts
across disciplines and sectors in an intensive 3-4 day
design workshop held at the Johnson
Foundation's Wingspread Conference Center in Racine, WI. The focus
of the design workshop was the drafting of a prototype BoP protocol.
-
Phase II.
The project is currently in Phase II, in which the project team is
consolidating the findings and insights that emerged from the
protocol design workshop. Once the initial draft is completed, the
project team will publish the protocol as a joint product of the
workshop participants. The project team will then prepare the
protocol for pilot testing.
-
Phase III.
During the summer of 2005, the Project Team will design and conduct
the Field Test Workshop using a
major initiative of one of the Sponsoring Corporations as the "live"
test case. A separate Workshop Report containing the "lessons
learned" from the field test will be prepared and made publicly
available.
-
Phase IV.
The project team will collaborate with Sponsoring Corporations,
where appropriate, to adapt the BoP Protocol to their particular
context and needs. Attention will be given to the issues and
challenges associated with the implementation of this tool in
diverse corporate, market, and cultural settings. The project team
will also strive to organize follow-on action-learning executive
education sessions using the model piloted in the field test
workshop.
|
