Businesses operate in a globalized economy characterized by numerous challenges, vast imbalances between the have’s and have not’s, but also many exciting new business opportunities. Issues that are priorities for the development community from job creation and gender equality to climate change and corruption are increasingly on the radar screens of CEOs as they impact business operations. Although not traditionally responsible for addressing development problems, it is in the private sector’s interest to become an active part of the solution.

At the same time, opportunities for business exist not only in reaching huge potential consumer markets, but in engaging the poor as producers and ultimately empowering them to improve their own socioeconomic standing. Many companies are now experimenting with new business models designed to tap into the $ 5 trillion global consumer market represented by the estimated 4 billion people living at the base of the economic pyramid (BoP) - surviving on incomes less than $ 5 a day. However, this market should not be viewed from a purely ‘consumer’ vantage point, as there is great potential in also engaging the BoP population in wealth creation, as producers.

The aim of this block is to provide an overview of global trends and the linkages between business and development agendas, thus helping the participants to better understand the external environment in which businesses operate.

In this block you will:

• Explore current global trends, imbalances and opportunities and how they affect businesses;
• Gain insights into the development agenda and its priorities;
• Develop a deeper understanding of the potential business opportunities represented by the 4 billion BoP market as well as the challenges of operating in high risk business environments;
• Discuss strategies for gaining a better understanding of the needs of the poor and the informal markets in which they operate so as to find ways to provide them with access to products, services, and markets;
• Identify the hierarchy between consumption and wealth creation.

The private sector is increasingly embracing the importance of the world’s four billion poor as a viable market opportunity and is experimenting with business models targeting low-income markets. However, to improve competitiveness and to raise profitability when engaging the poor as producers and/or consumers, a business often needs to rethink its current corporate strategy. Even an established corporate social responsibility policy is not sufficient for successfully expanding business in such markets. Alignment of the corporate strategy, to the poverty agenda can result in a gain for the company and may in turn help to ensure maximum benefits for the poor. More productive corporate engagement also requires identifying the gaps in existing market institutions, which may be acting as barriers to growth.

This block will explore how business models that address poverty through market-based solutions can engage the poor. Using recent examples from multinational and local companies, participants will discuss lessons of corporate experience in pursuing innovative strategies.

In this block you will:

• Explore how business can effectively operate within existing market institutions and build capacity for improvement;
• Learn from real-life business experiences on how to successfully operate in emerging markets and move from the traditional consumer concept to a productive consumer approach;
• Debate the role that the private sector can best play in promoting the development agenda, including wealth creation and the associated benefits;
• Clarify the roles of both local and multi-national companies in connecting factor and product markets in reinforcing job creation opportunities;
• Take home key concepts needed to align corporate strategy with the development agenda.

Businesses operating in high risk industries and countries often encounter corruption when engaging in major commercial projects or long term ventures. At the same time, corruption undermines local development, diverting resources from intended recipients, and typically adversely impacting the poorest most dramatically. Promoting good governance and implementing effective anti-corruption programs in high risk environments is far from straight forward as the pervasive presence of corruption and its permeation of all sectors of society often renders unilateral solutions ineffective and unsustainable.

This block will especially focus on collaborative anti-corruption mechanisms that align business efforts with government and civil society responses. Albeit difficult to implement, such collaborative responses can help to “level the playing field” by addressing corruption challenges from both the supply and demand side.

In this block you will:

• Acquire a deeper understanding of the total costs of corruption in both business and development terms, and the risks of engaging in corrupt practices;
• Examine real-life dilemmas that business executives face in promoting good governance practices and implementing anti-corruption programs in high-risk environments;
• Explore practical anti-corruption tools, and learn ways to complement firm level anti-corruption systems by collaborating with industry peers and stakeholders, including government agencies and civil society organizations, to create a business environment with a reduced risk of corruption;
• Gain insights into how international organizations, such as multilateral development banks and foundations, can be a useful partner and resource in tackling corruption.

Effective measurement of development results and impact is a pressing challenge for the private, public and NGO sector alike. In the face of complex and dynamic development challenges, measuring performance is critical to track, evaluate, and ensure appropriate balance between corporate, legal and social obligations. Performance measurement can also help companies to capture economic, social, cultural and environmental impacts, prevent anti-businesses sentiment when engaging with the poor, and ensure transparency and accountability. Although it can be time and resource intensive, effective performance measurement can offer tools and resources to assist the private sector and its core stakeholders to identify new and innovative opportunities for inclusive and sustainable business development. These tools and resources can also aid companies in continuously assessing the impact of existing business strategies, as well as in building a system to act comprehensively, inclusively, effectively, and flexibly.

In this block you will:

• Discuss with leading international experts, champions from industry and its stakeholders on how to successfully integrate development performance measurement into corporate strategies;
• Identify opportunities to use performance measurement to innovatively engage key stakeholders in development activities, open new market opportunities and address transparency and accountability;
• Debate how to best capture economic, social, cultural, and environmental impacts and address issues of profitability and fairness and how to facilitate a proper balance between corporate, legal and social obligations;
• Develop insights into measuring cross-sectoral interactions and interventions, as well as improvements in market institutions.