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This paper aims to highlight how initial business models can be converted into a larger-scale solution for tapping into the emerging base-of-the-pyramid markets.

This study uses a qualitative, multi-case research design with 20 organizations tapping into the water market at the base-of-the-pyramid.

This paper explores three business models innovations: fostering value-in-context, allowing for modifiability and embracing organizational ambidexterity.

Due to our qualitative research approach, generalizability of our findings is limited.

The description of the three business model innovations offers guidance for executives to make their business models financially more sustainable in base-of-the-pyramid markets.

The water sector represents one especially interesting sector to examine business model innovations. For, among social goods, safe water remains a huge challenge to date where 700 million people remain without access to an improved water source.

Previous business model discussion in base-of-the-pyramid markets focuses on commercial goods. The authors focus on water as a social good. They demonstrate that the existing recommendations that business models in base-of-the-pyramid markets should be inclusive, complex, collaborative and scalable are mandatory, but not sufficient. In addition, business models should foster value-in-context, allow for modifiability and embrace organizational ambidexterity.

Dubious investment schemes by unlisted companies are alluring individual investors at the base of the pyramid to invest money and lose them. The purpose of the abstract is to identify the factors that induce the people at base-of-pyramid (BoP) to invest in fraudulent schemes.

Open-ended interviews of people at the BoP from areas in and around Kharagpur town in West Bengal were conducted. Through open coding, codes, categories and themes were generated.

Interpersonal trusts form the central feature of investment fraud. The personal relationship among the community members helps these schemes thrive. False hopes of higher returns within a short span combined with constraints of accessing banking services is another motivation for the people at the base of the pyramid to fall prey to these schemes. With limited education, they find these investment avenues convenient providing scope to the perpetrators of fraud to exploit them. To curb these dubious schemes to flourish and exploit the people at the BoP, financial inclusion on a large scale is required. Moreover, the government should take steps to educate the mass at the base of the pyramid.

This study offers new insights on the victims of investment fraud in India those belonging to the economically weak groups and lower income groups comprising together as the BoP) of the society.

The purpose of this paper is to analyze the evolution of the corporate social responsibility (CSR) pyramid conceived by Archie B. Carroll. Anchored by theoretical and empirical evidence, this paper proposes a new model of analysis: the “CSR Spinner.”

To propose this new model, the authors are presenting a conceptual paper.

As a result of the analyses conducted in this paper, the authors propose the “CSR Spinner” model. This model which contemplates four dimensions (ethical, economic, legal and philanthropic) has in its structure a center bearing and three lobes that are derived from the center. In the center of the “CSR Spinner,” the ethical dimension is positioned and in the lobes are the other dimensions. In the “CSR Spinner,” the ethical dimension has the role of giving the model dynamism, defining both the direction and speed with which the lobes rotate, thus generating total CSR.

The “CSR Spinner” is original, as it consists of a new way of conceiving of the CSR pyramid.

As a knowledge instrument that allows the manipulation of reality, that is, to think, analyze, understand and predict this reality, the “CSR Spinner” model has the potential to provide advances in research on CSR. Because it proposes a theoretical refinement, this model still needs to go through a process of theoretical and empirical validation.

The “CSR Spinner” model has pragmatic connotations that can help corporate management adapt to various national and international contexts.

The “CSR Spinner” model represents an advance over the CSR pyramid, because of the model’s characteristics of dynamism, flexibility and adaptability across all types of organizations and within various national and international contexts.

This paper aims to investigate the viewpoint of undergraduate Management students at a Brazilian public university regarding the notion of corporate social responsibility (CSR). It theoretically articulates the notion of CSR and the formal education perspective to discuss managerial education.

Stude nts in the Management program were surveyed for their opinion on the notion of CSR. Data were collected through triangulation by combining the application of questionnaire and documentary research. There were 241 valid questionnaires, and this is the size of the sample. Data were analyzed by using the SPSS software (version 20), descriptive statistics and non-parametric tests.

Results reveal that, for undergraduate Management students, the most important CSR dimensions are, in hierarchical order, the philanthropic, the ethical, the legal and the economic. Thus, one can notice an inversion of the original CSR pyramid proposed by Carroll (1991).

The main limitation is the conduction of research in the context of a single public university.

Results indicate a change in how CSR is understood, the philanthropic dimension becoming the main factor for the establishment of organizational goals.

Considering that undergraduate Management students are the future members of the corporate world and decision-makers in society, these results indicate the stance these future professionals will take when confronted by dilemmas involving CSR.

This investigation is original in Brazilian context, for it identifies students’ opinion on CSR using a questionnaire whose development was based on the CSR pyramid.

The purpose of this chapter is twofold. First, to investigate how multi-domestic, multinational corporations (MNCs) can develop business models that are appropriate to “Bottom-of-the-Pyramid” (BOP) settings. Second, to address how they can apply elements of BOP business models across their operations. We use the case of the entry of the Norwegian mobile telecom MNC Telenor into India as the empirical context. Prior to India, Telenor had operated successfully in Asian emerging economies by adapting its business model to local conditions. However, it had only operated in the upper income tiers of these countries. In India, its late entry meant that for the first time in its history it had to move beyond these upper income tiers and develop a business model suited to BOP. We apply an economic model terminology as a means to gauging the degree of business model innovation Telenor undertook. Telenor succeeded in its development of a BOP business model by working in close partnership with local firms. Although Telenor in India was operating at BOP, a number of the resultant innovations were deemed by Telenor to be transferable to top-of-the-pyramid operations across Telenor. In order to succeed in developing BOP business models MNCs must go beyond local responsiveness and engage closely with local partners. However, transference of elements of BOP business models to other parts of the MNC is contingent on there being a centralized integrating capability.

The purpose of this paper is to find an optimized thin-film amorphous silicon solar cell design by numerically optimizing the light trapping efficiency of a pyramid-structured back-reflector using a frequency-domain finite element Maxwell solver. For this purpose short circuit current densities and absorption spectra within the investigated solar cell model are systematically analyzed. Furthermore, the authors employ a topology simulation method to accurately predict the material layer interfaces within the investigated solar cell model. The method simulates the chemical vapor deposition (CVD) process that is typically used to fabricate thin-film solar cells by combining a ballistic transport and reaction model (BTRM) with a level-set method in an iterative approach. Predicted solar cell models are far more realistic compared to solar cell models created assuming conformal material growth. The purpose of the topology simulation method is to increase the accuracy of thin-film solar cell models in order to facilitate highly accurate simulation results in solar cell design optimizations.

The authors perform numeric optimizations using a frequency domain finite element Maxwell solver. Topology simulations are carried out using a BTRM combined with a level-set method in an iterative fashion.

The simulation results reveal that the employed pyramid structured back-reflectors effectively increase the light path in the absorber mainly by exciting photonic waveguide modes. In using the optimization approach, the authors have identified solar cell models with cell periodicities around 480 nm and pyramid base widths around 450 nm to yield the highest short circuit current densities. Compared to equivalent solar cell models with flat back-reflectors, computed short circuit current densities are significantly increased. Furthermore, the paper finds that the solar cell models computed using the topology simulation approach represent a far more realistic approximation to a real solar cell stack compared to solar cell models computed by a conformal material growth assumption.

So far in the topology simulation approach the authors assume CVD as the material deposition process for all material layers. However, during the fabrication process sputtering (i.e. physical vapor deposition) will be employed for the Al:ZnO and ITO layers. In the framework of this ongoing research project the authors will extend the topology simulation approach to take the different material deposition processes into account. The differences in predicted material interfaces will presumably be only minor compared to the results shown here and certainly be insignificant relative to the differences the authors observe for solar cell models computed assuming conformal material growth.

The authors systematically investigate and optimize the light trapping efficiency of a pyramid nano-structured back-reflector using rigorous electromagnetic field computations with a 3D finite element Maxwell solver. To the authors’ knowledge such an investigation has not been carried out yet in the solar cell research literature. The topology simulation approach (to the best of the authors’ knowledge) has previously not been applied to the modelling of solar cells. Typically a conformal layer growth assumption is used instead.

The purpose of this paper is to evaluate how healthy food options recommended by the Mediterranean diet pyramid are actually consumed and advertised.

Three types of food consumptions in Greece are compared, the diet recommended by the Mediterranean diet pyramid, the actual consumption as was presented by the Data Food NEtwortking project and the advertising expenditure spent in the food sector. Data are presented in the form of a “food advertising pyramid”, equivalent to the food choices pyramids.

Comparison of the “food advertising pyramid” with the Mediterranean food pyramid reveals that the two pyramids have a somehow reverse relationship, meaning that the recommended for frequent consumption “healthy” food categories of the Mediterranean diet pyramid (placed at the base of the pyramid such as cereals, fruits and vegetables) were the least advertised by the food industry, and the less “healthy” options (dairy and sugary products) were the most advertised. This trend was more evident in advertisements targeted to children. An exception was the high advertising of yoghurt, a probiotic product considered to be a healthy food option.

The findings of this paper could be useful to nutritionists and national health authorities who should take into consideration the impact of food advertisement upon their strategy for healthy nutrition and prevention of obesity in childhood.

This paper aims to develop frameworks to support implementation and competitive leveraging of distinct sustainable supply chain operations. This derives from conceptual definition of the dynamic capabilities required to support Hart’s (1995) natural-resource-based view resources in the supply chain.

This conceptual study uses qualitative content analysis to extract capabilities from review and analysis of literature related to natural-resource-based view (NRBV) and sustainable supply chain management. Intercoder reliability assessments support conceptual development of such capabilities into dynamic capability frameworks.

Specific interrelations between each NRBV resource and corresponding supply chain strategies are conceptualised. From this, capabilities are categorised to corresponding resources, dynamic capabilities activities and internal–external focus. This results in definition of 107 dynamic NRBV capabilities.

Contributions are threefold: distinct frameworks for competitive sustainable supply chain management is offered; the NRBV benefits from enhanced practical guidance via the definition of its dynamic capabilities, addressing the theory-practice gap; and understandings of dynamic capabilities and their role in both the NRBV sustainable supply chain management is advanced.

This paper offers four frameworks to allow firms to tailor sustainability strategies to suit their needs and guide competitive leveraging. Definition of capabilities offers practical guidance to operationalise NRBV resources.

This is the first holistic interpretation of NRBV capabilities and explicit application of dynamic capabilities. This forms the basis of a broader research agenda for the NRBV in sustainable supply chain management.

This paper aims to propose a framework for evaluating the performance of reverse value chain activities in the clothing industry operating at base of the pyramid. Specifically, the research explores firm and supply chain factors influencing clothing reverse value chain activities with a focus on developing economies.

The study adopted an explorative technique using direct observations and semi-structured interviews to collect information from eight companies and two traders. Internal resources and value chain capabilities were examined using theoretical underpinnings of resource-based view, transaction cost economics and base of the pyramid.

The paper identified multiple benefits of offshoring reverse value chain activities to the developing countries (at the base of the pyramid). Low operation cost, skilled manpower, business knowledge and location are found to be internal success factors. While favourable government legislation and domestic recycling markets are important external factors contributing to the success. Developing economies such as India contribute to firm performance by integrating, transforming, acquiring and co-creating the resources at base of the pyramid. Further, it was found that to achieve higher assets specificity, a few companies have opened their own shops in African countries, while others have opened sourcing branches in Canada or the USA to ensure good quality of raw materials. Collaboration and coordination among different value chain partners minimise cost and increases profitability. Innovation in the process such as clothes mutilation for recycling has created new business opportunities.

Information was collected from only eight organisations and two traders from India. Future scholars may extend the research to generalise the findings by documenting similar phenomena.

The proposed framework can serve a basis for the practitioners to evaluate firm performance, and the insights can be used to achieve sustainability by engaging producers, employees, consumers and community using base of the pyramid approach.

The study provides unique insights into the prevalent export and re-exports phenomena of used clothing. The resource-based view, transaction cost economics and base of the pyramid strategy underpinned together to develop a framework for understanding reverse value chain activities of clothing.

The market-based approach to catering for the poor mainly focusses on companies making profits while helping the poor enhance their lives. This concept presented the possibility of there being a ‘fortune’ to make at the Bottom of the Pyramid (BoP) market that was an opportunity for both businesses and consumers. The notion of the BoP market has been widely studied using urban and rural contexts as distinct classifications; yet many argue that the opportunity does not in fact exist in the rural BoP markets. In this chapter the authors examine the prospects in the rural BoP in Sri Lanka through a qualitative study using insights provided by industry practitioners who operate at the BoP level. Findings show that a large percentage of the income of multinational companies is derived from rural BoP markets. Compared to the urban sector, the rural BoP market indicates relatively higher disposable income and is viewed as an attractive market segment by industry practitioners. The findings also show that rural BoP people have more resources and skills than their urban counterparts, although the former commonly have lower levels of education. Moreover, the youth segment in both the urban and rural BoP markets was found to heavily consume social media. The authors conclude their discussion by providing several key proposals for organisations looking to seize opportunities in this market.