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  • January–February 2018
  • Article
  • Harvard Business Review

Inclusive Growth: Profitable Strategies for Tackling Poverty and Inequality

By: Robert S. Kaplan, George Serafeim and Eduardo Tugendhat
  • Format:Print
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Abstract

More than a billion people in the developing world remain in extreme poverty and outside the formal economy. Traditional CSR programs have done little to alleviate the situation and rarely produce transformative change.
Instead of trying to fix local problems, the authors argue, corporations need to reimagine the regional ecosystems in which they participate. They should search for systemic, multisector opportunities; mobilize complementary partners; and obtain seed and scale-up financing from organizations with a mission to alleviate poverty. They should also align the various stakeholders around the new strategy, using proven tools such as a co-created strategy map.
These principles are informed by the authors’ experience with several successful inclusive-growth projects. An initiative in Uganda is bringing small maize farmers into the mainstream regional economy, while a training program in El Salvador is giving unemployed youths the skills to work in the country’s growing service sector.

Keywords

Inclusive Growth; Sustainability; Social Impact; Business Strategy; Shared Value; Impact Investing; Inequality; Corporate Governance; Balanced Scorecard; Strategy Execution; Economic Growth; Developing Countries and Economies; Poverty; Equality and Inequality; Corporate Social Responsibility and Impact; Strategy; Investment

Citation

Kaplan, Robert S., George Serafeim, and Eduardo Tugendhat. "Inclusive Growth: Profitable Strategies for Tackling Poverty and Inequality." Harvard Business Review 96, no. 1 (January–February 2018): 127–133.
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About The Authors

Robert S. Kaplan

Accounting and Management
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George Serafeim

Accounting and Management
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More from the Authors

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More from the Authors
  • Societal and environmental issues are pressing and companies must transform if they intend to remain competitive By: Ethan Rouen and Georgios Serafeim
  • Accounting for Product Impact in the Telecommunications Industry By: George Serafeim and Katie Trinh
  • Accounting for Product Impact in the Water Utilities Industry By: George Serafeim and Katie Trinh
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