Editor's Choice

The Editor’s Choice blog is a monthly review of a top resource or report in inclusive business.  There are so many resources, documents, tools, reports, videos out there, it can be hard to know where to start.  We choose one that we like and tell you why we like it and who else should find it useful.   Until the end of 2017, Editor’s Choice blogs were written by Caroline Ashley as Hub Editor.   Going forward, they are written by a range of guest editors, both from the core team and from beyond.

Editor's Choice, May 2011: Partnering for Inclusive Business in Bangladesh

Partnerships
Bangladesh
South Asia
5. May 2011

Businesses and NGOs are pushing beyond their traditional comfort zones as they develop new ways to partner with each other for inclusive business. This month’s Editor’s Choice is a new overview, written specifically to help NGO and company staff think through their options and approaches.

►Partnering for Inclusive Business in Bangladesh was produced to accompany a training series for companies and NGOs in Bangladesh, but the common sense principles – of trust, transparency and equity – are not country specific.

While there are many excellent toolkits and guides on partnering, few focus specifically on partnerships as one mechanism for developing inclusive business. Yet a range of inclusive business practitioners have highlighted how important partnerships are, to bring the skills or networks that business does not have on its own. So this short overview starts to fill that gap.

The overview covers the basics: what is inclusive business, why is partnering important in inclusive business, what is the difference between simply a transactional relationship and a ‘partnership’? Case studies demonstrate the role of partnerships within inclusive business. It then provides some tips for good partnering behavior and common challenges to avoid.

This brief is much less detailed than the in-depth toolkits (which are listed for further help), and as such serves as a great introduction for those who find themselves considering or developing partnerships but are in unfamiliar territory. It was co-produced by the Business Innovation Facility, Care Bangladesh, and The Partnering Initiative of the International Business Leaders Forum.

Editor's Choice, May 2011: Partnering for Inclusive Business in Bangladesh

For a full list of Editor’s Choice reviews since 2010 click here.