Jamie Anderson

Serving the world's poor: innovation at the base of the economic pyramid

Purpose – The purpose of this paper is to test the hypothesis that there are common challenges and approaches in serving low‐income customers in developing markets, and that these can be articulated and refined to get better business results.Design/methodology/approach – This article derives from research on serving customers at the bottom of the economic pyramid in industries such as fast‐moving consumer goods (fmcg), financial services, telecommunications, construction, health care and home appliances. A two‐year research project was undertaken to test the hypothesis that there were common challenges and approaches in serving bottom of the economic pyramid customers, and that these could be articulated and refined to get better business results. Field visits were made to China, Egypt, India, Mexico and the Philippines, and in‐depth interviews took place with companies that had succeeded in serving customers living in poverty. Companies were identified from the existing body of literature, observation an...

M‐banking in developing markets: competitive and regulatory implications

Purpose – Mobile banking (M‐banking) involves the use of a mobile phone or another mobile device to undertake financial transactions linked to a clients account. M‐banking is one of the newest approaches to the provision of financial services through information communication technology (ICT), made possible by the widespread adoption of mobile phones even in low income countries. Emerging mobile banking (m‐banking platforms) in developing markets enable two sided markets, bringing together mobile handset users with other mobile users and commercial partners. It is the argument of this paper that the emergence of m‐banking platforms has the potential for spill‐over effects, and that these spill‐over effects will require regulatory authorities to develop appropriate policy responses.Design/methodology/approach – This article derives from research on the m‐banking strategies of mobile network operators (MNOs) in developing markets, and the regulatory responses to these strategies. Field visits were made to ...

The Last Frontier: MARKET CREATION IN CONFLICT ZONES, DEEP RURAL AREAS, AND URBAN SLUMS

By operating in war zones, urban slums, and deep rural areas, companies could not only achieve growth and profits, but could also improve the economic and social conditions of these impoverished regions. Yet how can a company operate in areas with unstable security, poor infrastructure, and little or no formal legal frameworks in place? To do so successfully, companies need to go beyond transactional alliances or legalistic business partnerships with local partners. Instead, they need to develop community buy-in and long-term personal relationships based on trust with “unorthodox” local inhabitants—the ones offering them security and protection rather than technology and business assets. Such deep social embeddedness is not cost-free. To prevent it from derailing their success, companies need to nurture and grow their local partners beyond their specific needs.

Creativity is Not Enough: ICT Enabled Strategic Innovation

Purpose – To show how information and communication technologies (ICTs) could help a company implement radical new strategies.Design/methodology/approach – Generalizations are made based on 20 case studies of companies that strategically innovated in their industries by introducing radical new business models. Several of these cases are used in the paper to highlight the points made.Findings – The paper shows that ICT enables firms to: reach consumers that most competitors cannot serve profitably; offer radically new value propositions to consumers that other firms cannot deliver in a cost‐efficient way; and put in place value chains that no other firm could do efficiently. ICT also allows strategic innovators to scale up their business models quickly and so protect themselves from competitive attacks.Originality/value – This paper shows that coming up with a radical business model that breaks the rules of the game in an industry is easy! The difficult part is to implement such radical strategies in the m...

Serving the Poor - Drivers of Business Model Innovation in Mobile

Purpose – The purpose of this paper is to explore the opportunities and challenges of serving low‐income consumers in developing markets with mobile telecommunications.Design/methodology/approach – Field visits were made to Africa, India, Mexico and the Philippines, and in‐depth interviews took place with companies that had succeeded in serving low‐income consumers.Findings – The paper provides insights about the importance of various elements of a mobile operator business model. The paper suggests that serving the poor is just as much about motivation as about issues such as affordability and availability.Research limitations/implications – Since this research is field‐based and examines only a small sample of firms, only tentative propositions can be offered on what the answers to the research questions are believed to be.Practical implications – The paper suggests that managers need to go beyond traditional approaches to serving the poor, and take into account the unique institutional context of many d...

GOOD BUSINESS MAKES POOR CUSTOMERS GOOD CUSTOMERS

Would your company like to add thousands, if not millions, of new customers? Jamie Anderson, Martin Kupp and Sandra Vandermerwe believe that serving the worlds poorest people in developing markets can be both profitable and socially rewarding — if its done right. As it turns out, whats good for business in developed countries also applies to emerging markets.

Developing a route to market strategy for mobile communications in rural India

Purpose – The purpose of this paper is to explore the challenges of reaching low‐income customers in developing markets.Design/methodology/approach – Semi‐structured Interview.Findings – The paper suggests that managers need to go beyond traditional approaches to serving the poor, and innovate by taking into account the unique institutional context of developing markets.Research limitations/implications – Single interview.Practical implications – The experience of Hutchison Essar in India provides some important lessons for mobile network operators (MNOs) and other firms in other developing markets who are hoping to serve the rural poor: Hutchison has recognized the value of corporate and non‐corporate partners. The company has proactively established relationships with individual entrepreneurs, and has provided has provided development support to other partners such as distributors. The company has recognized the value of leveraging existing local institutions, and has seen gaps in local infrastructure o...

The Digital Revolution is Over: Long Live the Digital Revolution!

Many businesses are now involved in the digital marketplace. Yet Jamie Anderson and Gianvito Lanzolla argue that the new reality of numerous companies offering overlapping digital products means that it is critical for managers to understand digital convergence and to observe the imperatives for remaining competitive.

The shark is dead: how to build yourself a new market

British artist Damien Hirst is both controversial and successful. Martin Kupp, Jorg Reckhenrich and Jamie Anderson suggest that his innovative approach to life and work demonstrate strategies useful to organizations.

Expanding globally with local vision: foreign market entry and the value chain

Purpose – In this paper it is argued that value chain structure, that is the way that skills and activities are divided between different firms within an industry, often evolves in a locally specific way and this has serious implications for the global expansion of firms. It is argued that for managers to be successful with global expansion they must consciously consider both the division of activities in the value chain of the new market, and the degree to which their own skills and capabilities can readily compliment or interface with those of local partners and suppliers.Design/methodology/approach – Data was collected and case studies developed on firms that have faced challenges related to value chain structure when undertaking foreign market entry. The study followed directives for case‐based research, and was based upon multiple sources of evidence: archival data, industry publications, interviews and direct observation. The study conformed with Yins recommendations for developing construct validi...