Business Call to Action » Events

B2B Partnerships: Creating Opportunity through Strategic Alliances

mediag — Mon, 23 Jan 2012 17:58:38 +0000

In today’s marketplace, collaboration and partnership between companies can be highly beneficial. Vodafone and Movirtu are part of a new wave of companies that leverage Business-to-Business (B2B) partnerships to improve access to products and services in base of the pyramid communities, promote value chain efficiencies, and improve the enabling environment for inclusive business.

Register today to learn about how Vodafone, the world’s largest telecommunications provider, is promoting more efficient pharmaceutical value chains and building its business in The Gambia through collaboration with Pfizer. Movirtu, a mobile service provider, will also discuss how B2B partnerships are helping the company promote its cloud-based mobile phone platform in base of the pyramid markets in Africa and Asia.

Join the Business Call to Action, Business Action for Africa and Business Fights Poverty for a lively discussion with Vodafone and Movirtu about the role of B2B partnerships in creating new market opportunities. Accenture Development Partnerships, a market leader in developing strategic alliances, will provide an overview of new trends and opportunities in the inclusive B2B space.

Featured Speakers:
Anastasia Thatcher, Senior Manager, Accenture Development Partnerships
Axel Nemetz, Head of mHealth Solutions, Vodafone Global Enterprise
Jean-Philippe Labat, Vice President Global Sales, Movirtu
Discussion moderated by Susan Chaffin, Programme Manager of the Business Call to Action

Watch the webinar presentations:

Full presentation

Access individual presentations:

Anastasia Thatcher | Axel Nemetz | Jean-Philippe Labat

Access the PowerPoint presentations:

Anastasia Thatcher | Axel Nemetz | Jean-Philippe Labat

Fourth High-Level Forum on Aid Effectiveness Private Sector Forum

mediag — Mon, 21 Nov 2011 13:27:02 +0000

Public-Private Co-Operation for Broad-based, Inclusive and Sustainable Growth

Approximately 2,000 delegates will review global progress in improving the impact and value for money of development aid and make new commitments to further ensure that aid helps reduce poverty and supports progress in meeting the Millennium Development Goals. The Private Sector Forum (PSF) will take place alongside the thematic and high level sessions and will provide an opportunity for governments, business and other stakeholders to engage in in-depth discussions on the role of the private sector in development and aid effectiveness, with particular focus on what is needed to build an enabling policy environment and on lessons learnt from Public-Private Partnerships. BCtA member company Noha Nyamedjo will speak at the event.

mHealth: Changing Health Care at the BoP

mediag — Wed, 16 Nov 2011 22:51:30 +0000

Mobile technology is transforming the face of health care in low-income communities around the globe. A driving force behind this change is new and innovative business models that harness mobile technology to decrease the cost of care and create new applications that improve health care outcomes. Companies such as Sproxil and Dimagi are helping to transform health care in developing countries by providing access to critical health and information services for underserved communities through mobile technology.

Join the Business Call to Action (BCtA), Sproxil and Dimagi for a webinar discussion about mHealth solutions and how they are improving health care outcomes for people living at the base of the pyramid (BoP). Jonathan Jackson, CEO of Dimagi, will demonstrate how his CommCare application is connecting rural communities in India to health clinics and hospitals for improved health care outcomes. Mohamed Haider, Vice President of Sales at Sproxil, will discuss how his company has developed an application that helps weed out fake drugs.

The webinar discussion will focus on mHealth trends and opportunities that will likely emerge in the near future, barriers to the growth of this sector, and the role of partnerships in scaling up these initiatives.

Missed the Webinar?

Watch the webinar presentations:

Jonathan Jackson

View the PowerPoint presentations:

Jonathan Jackson | Mohamed Haider

2011 mHealth Summit

mediag — Fri, 11 Nov 2011 01:41:29 +0000

The 2011 mHealth Summit is the world’s largest mobile health event. This year’s event will focus on the business, end-user, and policy perspectives of mHealth, fostering in-depth dialogue to identify and accelerate cross-cutting value chains and sustainable mHealth business models from around the globe. The summit will also provide a dedicated focus to the healthcare research and evaluation needs of mHealth, facilitating the development and commercialization of empirically-supported solutions.

Conference sessions will explore, examine, and debate the ways mobile technology will transform health care delivery, research, business and policy for the 21st Century in underserved communities in the US and abroad, including the developing world. Download Agenda.

Creating New Market Opportunities: Making Inclusive Business Work in Vietnam

mediag — Tue, 11 Oct 2011 16:46:28 +0000

The Business Call to Action (BCtA), SNV, the Vietnam Chamber of Commerce and Industry (VCCI), and International Business Leaders Forum (IBLF) will sponsor an interactive workshop to explore how companies operating and investing in Vietnam are addressing the challenge of integrating inclusive business models into operations. The event will provide examples of successful inclusive business ventures and give participants the opportunity to discuss the challenges and solutions associated with integrating these models. It is an opportunity to discuss best practices in inclusive business with leading companies, experts, donor organizations and practitioners, and to explore potential areas of collaboration for future endeavors. Download the Agenda.

Unleashing Potential: Agribusiness and the Smallholder Farmer

mediag — Thu, 25 Aug 2011 02:45:47 +0000

Around the globe, there are about 500 million smallholder farms. The majority of these farmers are living in poverty, barely making enough to scrape by. For companies operating in the food/beverage and related sectors, sourcing from these farmers presents both tremendous growth opportunities, but also new challenges in terms of business model adaptation and supply chain innovation. Join BCtA, the Global Business School Network, the UN Global Compact PRME network and Columbia Business School for a discussion on how businesses are profitably investing in smallholder farmers for a more food secure future.

WATCH EVENT VIDEO: PART 1 | PART 2 | PART 3

Overcoming Barriers to Growing Pro-Poor Inclusive Business Ideas & Models

mediag — Fri, 12 Aug 2011 14:26:27 +0000

The Business Call to Action and Accenture Development Partnerships are hosting a breakfast event in South Africa on inclusive business. Leading South African corporates and development sector organizations will be present, providing an opportunity to learn from and engage with others interested in seeing more business innovations that improve lives. We will be focusing more on the “how” than the ”why” of inclusive business or pro-poor business implementation.

The session will be facilitated by Adrian Ristow, Africa Outreach Associate for the UN Business Call to Action (BCtA) and Trip Allport, ADP Lead for Southern Africa.

For more information, contact Adrian Ristow.

Enhancing Value through Inclusive Business Strategies

mediag — Thu, 04 Aug 2011 19:36:43 +0000

Business Call to Action (BCtA) will bring together BCtA members and selected partners for an invitation-only breakfast event that will focus on strategies that enhance the value of inclusive business models. The event will give senior-level company representatives the chance to network with experts and practitioners in this space, identify new models and opportunities for innovation, and explore areas for potential collaboration. Business Fights Poverty is providing online community support for the event.

Download the Agenda.

Videos:

Opening Address: Sigrid Kaag, Assistant Secretary-General and Assistant Administrator, UN Development Programme (UNDP) delivers opening remarks.

BCtA Company Commitments: Sameer Hajee, CEO, Nuru Energy; Enrique Coronado, CEO, Por ti Familia; and Neal Lesh, CSO, Dimagi announce commitments to the BCtA.

High-Level Panel: Encouraging, Expanding and Scaling Up
Inclusive Business in Support of the MDGs
– Georg Kell, Executive Director, UN Global Compact
– Ted London, Director of the Base of the Pyramid Initiative, University of Michigan Ross School of Business
– Christine Montenegro McGrath, Vice President of Sustainability and Latina Cohorts, Kraft Foods
Discussion moderated by Jane Nelson, Director, Harvard University’s CSR Initiative.

See Photos from the event.

Webinar: Bringing Markets Closer to Farmers: MCX’s Gramin Suvidha Kendra Initiative

mediag — Tue, 02 Aug 2011 15:00:17 +0000

Access to agricultural information can help transform lives and allow growers to boost productivity and income. Multi Commodity Exchange‘s (MCX) Gramin Suvidha Kendra Initiative provides smallholder farmers with up-to-date market data, crops prices, crop protection products, and weather reports. Business Call to Action and Business Innovation Facility (BIF) invite you to this case study approach will delve into the details of how MCX’s model is being implemented, including challenges and solutions. An expert respondent will then compare the MCX model to other approaches for covering the last-mile distribution and draw out lessons.

Moderated by Amanda Gardiner, Acting Programme Manager, Business Call to Action

FEATURED EXPERTS
Sarita Bahl, Vice President Group Corporate Social Opportunities, MCX

Nisha Dutt, India Country Manager, BIF and Associate Vice President, Intellecap

Location: webinar

MCX Disclaimer: Multi Commodity Exchange of India Limited is proposing, subject to market conditions and other considerations, a public offer of equity shares by way of an offer for sale and has filed a Draft Red Herring Prospectus (“DRHP”) with the SEBI. The DRHP is available on the websites of SEBI at www.sebi.gov.in and the book running lead managers at www.edelcap.com, http://www.online.citibank.co.in/rhtm/citigroupglobalscreen1.htm and www.morganstanley.com/indiaofferdocuments. Investors should note that investment in equity shares involves a high degree of risk and for details in relation to risk factors, please see the section titled “Risk Factors” in the DRHP.

This advertisement may not be published or distributed in the U.S., Canada or Japan and is not an offer or solicitation of an offer for sale of securities in the U.S. These securities have not been and will not be registered under the U.S. Securities Act of 1933, as amended, and may not be offered or sold in the U.S. absent registration or an exemption from registration under such act.

Webinar: Mainstreaming Inclusive Business

mediag — Mon, 25 Jul 2011 16:00:42 +0000

Businesses that deliver both social and commercial returns have the potential to substantively reduce poverty. Inclusive business models allow companies to use their core business in achieving this. As more companies adopt these innovative approaches, leading business schools around the world are trying to develop curricula teaching the fundamentals of inclusive business.

The Global Business School Network and co-host Business Call to Action (BCtA), with the Aspen Institute and Principles for Responsible Management Education (PRME) anticipate an interactive discussion about the fundamentals of inclusive business strategies. Barclays and Vodafone will share how they’ve been able to incorporate these innovative models into core operations to generate new revenues and reach new market segments.

Featured Experts

William Derban, Head of Community Relations, Barclays Africa

Laura Crow, Sustainability Analyst, Vodafone Group

Moderator:

James H. Johnson Jr., Director, Urban Investment Strategies Center at Frank Hawkins Kenan Institute of Private Enterprise;
Willam R. Kenan Jr. Distinguished Professor of Strategy and Entrepreneurship , University of North Carolina Kenan-Flagler Business School

This webinar is by invitation only.