Nandini Nayar ’11Journal #1
I’m halfway into my internship with the business consulting team at Intellectual Capital Advisory Services (Intellecap), one of very few firms that have consulting, investment banking, and publications under one roof. Each of these services targets social enterprises, corporations, or others who seek to engage with the bottom of the pyramid through for-profit approaches. The firm is based in Hyderabad, arguably the center of social enterprise in India.
I’m currently staffed on a project to consult a corporation in selling LPG (liquefied petroleum gas) cylinders to low-income customers in Nigeria, through microfinance institutions (a bit of a mouthful, I know). LPG is far more efficient, clean, and safe than existing fuel sources in rural areas. Unfortunately, very few developing countries have comprehensive or profitable models for LPG delivery, given the costs of rural outreach and distribution. At first, I didn’t know the first thing about LPG, Nigeria, or what microfinance institutions could have to do with it all. Neither could I fathom how we could produce our first deliverable without on-the-ground research. I then discovered what some intellectual capital could do. Through a combination of research on existing case studies, and brainstorming on a whiteboard, we generated some supply-chain options that the team will test on the ground in Nigeria next week.
My experience has not been limited to this project — background research on various other topics has made me appreciate the flurry of activity in the for-profit, social enterprise space. But just as important, it has been a real eye opener as far as the challenges go. Digging further into the business models of the successful social enterprises we read about, has made me realize how few of them have actually achieved the all-important scale and sustainability, and what the barriers are. Let’s hope that the sector continues to learn from successful models on how to grow in a sustainable manner.
