Arbusta was a social enterprise in the ICT sector, recognized for both the quality of its services and for employing disadvantaged youth. It had more than 300 employees at its headquarters in Buenos Aires and in its offices in Rosario, Montevideo and MedellÃn. By 2020, after six years of building Arbusta, each of its three founders was focusing on an important issue for the organization: i.e., close attention to customer relations, develop the talent of each person at Arbusta, and find better ways to structure Arbusta as a space where social and economic aspects coexisted. Through their testimonies and others from collaborators and clients, the case describes the evolution of this social enterprise. The dilemma faced by the three founders of Arbusta was about how to grow: should Arbusta specialize in a basic service such as testing or should it expand its range of services to include the development of the company's human talent?
This case describes how a small business venture started by five friends turned, over a 20-year span, into a company with sales of USD 49 million and a renowned, sustainable and innovative business model that had a high social and environmental impact. It also illustrates impact entrepreneurs' calling and motivation, as well as the dilemmas and challenges faced in order to stay true to their principles as the business grows and consolidates. The key question confronting these entrepreneurs at the end of the case is whether Guayakà should continue to grow at its current pace, or whether it should moderate its growth in order for its founders to gain a better understanding of the negative environmental impacts that the business creates and to find ways to manage those impacts.
Founded in 1951 in Argentina, Arcor Group consolidated as an industry leader in the manufacturing of food, candy, crackers, cookies, chocolates, and ice-cream for consumers in over 120 countries across all five continents. This case focuses on the process carried out by Arcor Group to introduce and institutionalize sustainability in its management and strategy, describing how the process unfolded and highlighting the challenges that were faced, particularly revolving around the decisions that the company had to make to integrate sustainability to its day-to-day business management and to engage employees in this endeavor in late 2010. "Creating Business Value: Arcor Group and Sustainability" includes two documents: the case itself and its epilogue, which provides information on later developments.
Epilogue to case US0007. Founded in 1951 in Argentina, Arcor Group consolidated as an industry leader in the manufacturing of food, candy, crackers, cookies, chocolates, and ice-cream for consumers in over 120 countries across all five continents. This case focuses on the process carried out by Arcor Group to introduce and institutionalize sustainability in its management and strategy, describing how the process unfolded and highlighting the challenges that were faced, particularly revolving around the decisions that the company had to make to integrate sustainability to its day-to-day business management and to engage employees in this endeavor in late 2010. "Creating Business Value: Arcor Group and Sustainability" includes two documents: the case itself and its epilogue, which provides information on later developments.
This document contains updated information on the case study published in 2009 under the title of "Gas Natural BAN´s Strategy for Low-Income Sectors" from data collected during the last quarter of 2013. Upon case discussion closing, this document may prove relevant to familiarize students with the initiative and the relationship between Gas Natural BAN (currently Gas Natural Fenosa or GNF, for its Spanish acronym) and Fundación ProVivienda Social (Foundation for Social Housing, henceforth FPVS, for its Spanish acronym) during the period 2007-2013.
This case focuses on Gas Natural BAN's network expansion project to provide natural gas to five low-income neighborhoods in the suburban area of Buenos Aires. It shows how a business model evolved to serve low-income sector (henceforth, LIS) customers, and, more particularly, it describes how the company partnered with a local CSO, Fundación Pro Vivienda Social (Foundation for Social Housing, henceforth FPVS), and learned how to work with these communities in a project carried out in Moreno's Cuartel V. Starting with the project carried out with FPVS, the company had begun to pursue natural gas network expansion projects for LIS neighborhoods with a business approach that differed from the scheme used with conventional customers. At the juncture depicted by this case, the company needs to set the guidelines for its natural gas network expansion strategy targeting LIS neighborhoods. Gas Natural BAN's experience with FPVS, though viewed as successful by the company, registered some inefficiencies that prevented its large-scale application and led management to look for new options to pursue its LIS strategy. As a result, the FPVS collaboration model and its potential for optimization were questioned. It was also questionable whether the scheme used by FPVS in Moreno's Cuartel V would be applicable to other neighborhoods with different conditions. This teaching case deals primarily with the development of inclusive business models based on cross-sector collaborations involving companies, nonprofits and citizens. It may be used in graduate courses on Business and Society, Corporate Social Responsibility or Business Strategy including BOP issues.
The case analyzes a successful economic initiative (Red Shield), whose profits help support a legendary religious institution (The Salvation Army) while creating social value for low-income sectors through the sale of used goods. The main focus of the case is on its growth strategy, since Red Shield must increase its financial support of the Salvation Army. In late 2007, the protagonist of the case took over as Director of the Red Shield and was expected to suggest alternatives to boost revenues in order to provide for the organization's sustainability in Argentina. The new Director faces the dilemma over what to do and he contemplates different growth options taking into account the opportunities presented by the context. The final decision remains open and students are invited to evaluate diverse strategic alternatives proposed by the Director of the Red Shield. This case may prove adequate for undergraduate, graduate, and MBA strategy and marketing courses.
Describes the situation brought about by the severe economic and political crisis that swept Argentina at the end of 2001. The local situation had been gradually deteriorating since 1998, when the country slipped into an increasing recession and poverty indexes started climbing consistently. The crisis peaked when the federal government decided to freeze all bank accounts, further unnerving the general population. Fundacion Pro Vivienda Social (FPVS) began to feel the repercussions of the crisis: client numbers became stagnant in 1999, and its regular portfolio could no longer afford new loans. As the recession deepened, FPVS clients found it hard to make the required payments on their loans. The organization faced financial distress, and Raul Zavalia Lagos had to meet with its administrative council to discuss alternative solutions. Focuses on Lagos' role as social entrepreneur, describing his family background, previous experience, and ability to lead the FPVS project and build a network with a series of actors who provided the necessary funding, advice, and contacts. Also explains how FPVS started to respond in 1998 to the worsening local social and economic conditions by developing alternative programs to appeal to new borrowers. As these initiatives proved ineffective, the foundation turned to consider other projects, based on the demands voiced by the communities where it operated.
A family-owned business, Acindar was one of the most important steel companies in Argentina. After the 2001-2002 Argentine economic crisis, it yielded its controlling stake to a new investor--Belgo Mineira, a Brazilian company of Austrian origin. Arturo Acevedo Jr., the founder's grandson, kept his managerial position as company CEO and president. Acindar Foundation, through the initiative of the company's founder Arturo Acevedo (grandfather) and in its capacity as corporate social policy enforcer, engaged in comprehensive educational, health, and environmental activities for 40 years. Depicts the changes resulting from the incorporation of the new shareholders to the company and how they reflected on the foundation's management and the corporate HR area. The triggering factor was an initiative to develop a corporate volunteer program similar to the one Belgo Mineira had implemented in Brazil--a project that integrated foundation, corporate, and HR management efforts at each production plant.
Describes the collaboration between Junior Achievement Argentina and Coca-Cola Argentina and the development and implementation process of a customized educational program focused on environmental issues implemented at schools by Junior Achievement Argentina. Junior Achievement Argentina is exploring the possibility of exporting the program to other countries to generate additional revenues, but there is an exclusivity agreement with Coca-Cola Argentina for program delivery. Allows for the analysis of collaborations between NGOs and private companies, where "customized" educational projects help to meet the companies' strategic needs. Also, describes the joint work process involved, while tackling the "ownership" issues that crop up in programs developed and financed by a single company, and explores how to balance the needs and interests of private companies and NGOs.
McKinsey is an international consulting company that operates in 43 countries. Fundacion Compromiso is an nonprofit entity that provides training, counseling, and technical assistance to improve the management and impact of other nonprofit entities of Argentina. A third organization, Ashoka Association, supports social entrepreneurs and has a global alliance with McKinsey. Ashoka's intermediation is responsible for a cooperation program through which McKinsey applies its central skills to provide technical assistance to Fundacion Compromiso. The objectives of this activity are to evaluate one of Fundacion Compromiso's most important programs and establish a long-term growth strategy for this nonprofit entity. However, following the technical assistance work developed by McKinsey is a dramatic change in Argentina's social, political, and economic situations, which limit the agreed-on strategic plan, forcing Fundacion Compromiso to reconsider its growth strategy.
Autopistas del Sol (AUSOL) was a company that had originated in a partnership constituted in 1994, when it was selected, through a public bidding process, to build and manage two of the main highways in the city of Buenos Aires. The SES Foundation was a nonprofit organization informally founded in 1998 and created by a group of professionals focused on developing informal educational programs for the social integration of poor youngsters. One of its outstanding programs was Community Study Groups (CSG), an initiative it carried out with AUSOL to boost schooling in two of the neighborhoods surrounding one AUSOL-managed highway. The case takes place in late 2001, a few months before the onset of the crisis that impacted Argentina. Focuses on the potential changes and risks entailed for the CSG program by AUSOL's decision to try to look for other sponsoring companies for the program. Although this strategy aimed to ensure program continuity, it also brought about a series of dilemmas for both organizations.
La Nacion was one of the oldest and most prestigious newspapers in Argentina. The Red Solidaria (Solidarity Network) was a volunteer organization founded in 1995 that had succeeded in using mass media to raise funds for various institutions and individuals who needed high-cost medical treatments abroad. Describes the relationship of a news reporting company, traditionally responsive to public welfare and community issues, and a volunteer organization that had engineered new community awareness mechanisms to respond to urgent family or individual needs. The founder of Red Solidaria gradually built ties with various sectors at La Nacion to develop several news "products," which eventually led to a joint venture: the solidarity ads, published daily on the back of the newspaper's classified ads section. NGOs used the new ads to request donations, and individuals used them to offer volunteer work.