Reflections On The 2013 Business Call To Action Annual Event

I have been working since 2005 to develop inclusive business models in the Madagascar vanilla industry, so I was thrilled to receive an invitation to attend the 2013 Business Call To Action (BCTA) Annual Event on September 19 in New York City. An excellent overview of the full event, which was held in conjunction with the United Nations Global Compact Leaders Summit, has already been posted for the Practitioner Hub community by Tatiana Bessarabova here.

For me, attending the BCTA event was inspiring for several reasons that I would like to share briefly. I understand that I risk wading into overly simplified territory by just focusing on these basic points, but it can be useful to step back and reflect on the common sentiments that bring us together.

1. This is a more extensive and organised effort than I realised

My company is still small - in the start-up phase by most business standards. We work on building effective models, forming necessary partnerships, experimenting and observing. It can be isolating at times, as newer businesses often feel understaffed and short on capital. We do not always have time to look up and see the bigger picture. We are not always able to stay abreast of changes in the broader communities that we are a part of domestically or internationally.

Attending the BCtA event, it seemed that this experience is shared by many business leaders who are trying to develop new models in their industries, even for people working in large, established enterprises. We all have the need to come together sometimes to support our ideas, and each other, in community. I had a limited understanding of the breadth and depth of the “Inclusive Business movement” until attending the BCtA event. There is power in community and in telling stories of approaches that are working. I left the event feeling strong even though our business is still relatively new. I left knowing we are part of a large and growing community even though we sometimes feel like a small island in an ocean of business-as-usual.

2. If not now, when? If not us, who?

I recently had a conversation with a respected colleague, who agreed that much more engagement with small-holder vanilla farmers in Madagascar is necessary to maintain sustainable levels of production and to ensure that rural communities receive more benefits from the production of this high-value spice product. Then she made a comment that has stuck in my head. “Your business is too small and has too little capital to change this system significantly. Large companies must work with tens of thousands of farmers to source large quantities of vanilla beans during an often frantic annual collection season. They do not have time to engage with farmers in this way.”

A striking theme throughout the BCTA event was that a commitment to inclusive business practices must be made a core component of the business philosophy and planning process in order for it to be effective and successful. We cannot wait to find the solution outside of our regular operations. If we are too busy “doing what we do” to try a different approach, it is a self-fulfilling proposition. Each person must ask “if not now, when? If not us, who?” If, as Myles Horton suggested, "We make the road by walking”, then we need to start walking. In some cases, we may even need to start by crawling. But we can be sure the road we wish to travel will not appear under our feet if we continue walking down some other path.

3. These ideas are real and can create powerful change

The presenters at the Summit offered numerous case studies of inclusive business models that are working in a multitude of industries in many different countries. Businesses around the world are demonstrating that BOP-focused models can be effective and profitable, while also being inclusive of poor and disadvantaged populations. But such models have an even greater power. They prove that change is possible by becoming a tangible example. They challenge us to recalibrate our assumptions, and they set a new standard for others around them. They transform industries by creating “new normals”. They offer inspiration, and that is something that takes on a life of its own with the power to transform the world as we know it.

I left the BCtA event knowing that our small company is part of a growing international community of inclusive business practitioners and those who partner with them to support their efforts. I look forward to my ongoing work with renewed inspiration, and I am excited for the next opportunity to get together.