For three days in December, more than 1000 people from 60-plus countries converged in San Francisco to attend the World Resources Institute's 'Eradicating Poverty through Profit: Making Business Work for the Poor' conference. Representing a wide range of stakeholders from business, the private sector, and civil society, participants explored the relationship between business activity and economic development. Can companies, pursuing their core ‘business’ objectives deliver important ‘development’ benefits? Are low income communities ‘real’ markets? Plenaries and workshops examined how business is, today, interacting with poor people – as customers, as suppliers, and as partners in the cocreation of products and services.

The conference explored private sector solutions to poverty with keynote addresses and other presentations, panel discussions, sector or interest-specific workshops, and exhibits. See below for summaries, videos and presentations from the sessions. For the list of attendees, click here. For the complete program check here.

Conference Summary

A comprehensive 16-page summary of the conference can be found here.

A full 45-page conference summary, which includes the summaries of each of the 9 Track Sessions, can be found here.

Plenary Sessions

Framing the Issues for Practical Corporate Engagement: Myths, Realities, and Necessary Strategies
C.K. Prahalad, Harvey C. Fruehauf Professor of Business Administration & Professor of Corporate Strategy and International Business, Stephen M. Ross School of Business, University of Michigan and Chief Executive Officer, The Next Practice
Video

A Perspective from the IT Sector
Carly Fiorina, Chairman and Chief Executive Officer, Hewlett-Packard
Video

Building a Foundation at the Bottom of the Pyramid: Access Innovation and Growth
Christopher Rodrigues, President and Chief Executive Officer, Visa International
Video / Powerpoint

Values-Based Guidelines: Building the Case for “BOP Principles”
James A. Harmon, Chairman of World Resources Institute, former Chairman of Export-Import Bank of the US
Video

A Perspective from the Telecommunications Sector
Arun Sarin, Chief Executive Officer, Vodafone
Charlotte Grezo, Director of Corporate Social Responsibility, Vodafone
Video

A Perspective from the Agricultural Sector
J. Erik Fyrwald, Group Vice President, DuPont Agriculture & Nutrition
Video / Powerpoint

Committing to the BOP: How we made the decision and how we implemented it
C. K. Prahalad, Harvey C. Fruehauf Professor of Business Administration & Professor of Corporate Strategy and International Business, Stephen M. Ross School of Business, University of Michigan and Chief Executive Officer, The Next Practice
Yogesh C. Deveshwar, Chairman, ITC, Ltd.
Nachiket Mor, Ph.D. , Executive Director, Corporate Banking, ICICI Bank Ltd.
Video

Toward a Base of the Pyramid Protocol
Stuart Hart, S.C. Johnson Chair of Sustainable Global Enterprise and Professor of Management, Johnson School of Management, Cornell University - PPT
Scott Johnson, Vice President- Global Environmental & Safety Actions, S.C. Johnson & Son, Inc.
Video / Powerpoint

Petroleum, Profits and Poverty – A Changing Philosophy of Community Engagement
Peter J. Robertson, Vice Chairman of the Board, ChevronTexaco
Video

Governments as Enablers of Private Sector Solutions
Alan Larson, Under Secretary of State for Economic, Business and Agricultural Affairs, U.S. Department of State
Mark Malloch Brown, Administrator, United Nations Development Programme
His Excellency Dipak Patel, Minister of Commerce, Trade and Industry, Republic of Zambia
Video

Whither Technology? Probing the Bleeding Edge of Technology and its Applications in the Service of Business Engagement with Low-Income Consumers
Craig Mundie, Senior Vice President and Chief Technical Officer of Advanced Strategies and Policy, Microsoft
Video / Powerpoint

The Private Sector as the Enabler for the Public Sector Agenda
Herman Mulder, Senior Executive Vice President and Co-Head of Group Risk Management, ABN AMRO
Video / Powerpoint

Financial Models for Success
Robert Annibale, Global Director, Citigroup's Microfinance Group
Eduardo Bazoberry, General Manager, Prodem Private Financing Fund S.A.
Elizabeth Littlefield, Director, Chief Executive Officer, Consultative Group to Assist the Poor (CGAP), World Bank
Jacqueline Novogratz, Chief Executive Officer, Acumen Fund
Matthew Gamser, Director, Organizational Learning, Development Alternatives, Inc.
Video

Business Models for Success
Allen Hammond, Vice President for Special Projects and Innovation, World Resources Institute
Louis C. Boorstin, Manager, Grassroots Business Organizations, International Finance Corporation
Paul Meyer, Chief Executive Officer, Voxiva
Richard Sandbrook, Independent Senior Advisor, United Nations Development Programme
Holly Wise, Director, Global Development Alliance, U.S. Agency for International Development (USAID)
Video

Track Sessions

Track 1 - Getting Started in Doing Business with the Poor: Learning Journeys of Leading Companies from the World Business Council for Sustainable Development’s Sustainable Livelihoods Project - Summary (PDF)

Session 1: Experiences of national and multinational corporations from around the globe
Cameron Rennie, Director, Sustainable Livlihoods, World Business Council for Sustainable Development
Faye Yoshihara, S.C. Johnson
Scott Johnson, Vice President, Global Environmental & Safety Actions, S.C. Johnson
Cecile Churet, Program Officer, Sustainable Livlihoods, World Business Council for Sustainable Development

Session 2: Experiences from World Business Council for Sustainable Development Regional Network Members
Martin Eweg, Principal Agricultural Extension Specialist, South African Sugarcane Research Institute
Sharat Dhall, Unilever

Session 3: Gearing Up - Tools to assist managers in designing their own SL business models; guidance in thinking about appropriate financing strategies, collaboration with development organizations and on working in cluster with other companies to harness synergies and maximize benefits to the communities.
Fanny Calder, Associate Fellow, Chatham House
Anders Nordstrom, Senior Project Manager, ABB
Barbara Dubach, Vice President, Sustainable Development Coordination, Holcim
Rakesh Khanna, Development Alternatives, Inc.

Track 2 - Financial Services - Summary (PDF)

Session 1a: From rags to cashmere: The BOP success of Khan Bank Mongolia
Matthew Gamser, Director, Organizational Learning, Development Alternatives Inc.
J. Peter Morrow, Chief Executive Officer, Khan Bank
Sukhbold Sandag, Branch Executive, Khan Bank – Powerpoint

Session 1b: Achieving breakthroughs in the scale of microfinance: Emerging lessons from an HP-led pilot in Uganda
Janine Firpo, Director, Global Multisector Initiatives, Hewlett-Packard – Powerpoint1 / Powerpoint2
James Dailey, Technical Project Manager, Grameen Technology Center - Powerpoint
Roy Jacobowitz, Vice President, Accion International
Beth Porter, Vice President, Technical Operations, Freedom from Hunger - Powerpoint

Session 2a: South Africa's Financial Sector Charter: How the private sector is organizing to bank the unbanked
Gerhard Coetzee, Director, Development Finance, ECIAfrica Pty Ltd - Powerpoint
Jonathan Dixon, Chief Director, Financial Sector Policy, National Treasury, South Africa
Lincoln Mali, Director, Convenience Banking, Standard Bank - Powerpoint
Bheka M Manana, General Manager, Africa & Emerging Market – FBS, ABSA Bank
David Porteous, Managing Director, Recap International LLC

Session 2b: Migrants & Remittances: Products and business opportunities in host and sending countries
Cerstin Sander, Principal Consultant, Bannock Consulting Ltd.
Robert Annibale, Global Director, Citigroup's Microfinance Group - Powerpoint
Nachiket Mor, Ph.D., Executive Director, Corporate Banking, ICICI Bank Ltd. – Powerpoint1 / Powerpoint2

Session 3a: India's banks & microfinance: Public and private financial institutions joining up to reach rural customers
Sukhwinder Arora, Financial Sector Development Advisor, Department for International Development UK
N. Balasubramanian, Deputy Managing Director, Small Industries Development Bank of India - Powerpoint
Geoff Davis, Chief Executive Officer, UNITUS
Nachiket Mor, Ph.D., Executive Director, Corporate Banking, ICICI Bank Ltd. - Powerpoint1 / Powerpoint2
Moumita Sen Sarma, Vice President, Head - Microfinance, India, ABN AMRO Bank - Powerpoint

Session 3b: Credit bureau development in Latin America: New financial services for the poor
Robin Young, Senior Development Specialist, Development Alternatives, Inc.
Monica Hernandéz de Phillips, Executive Vice President, Banco Solidario - Powerpoint
Luis Armando Montenegro Monterrosa, Superintendent of the Financial System, El Salvador - Powerpoint
Rodolfo O. Ploder, Group Executive, Equifax Latin America - Powerpoint

Track 3 – Connectivity - Summary (PDF)

Session 1: Innovative business and service models with cellular platforms
Allen Hammond, Vice President for Special Projects and Innovation, World Resources Institute
Peter Bladin, Director, Grameen Technology Center
Nobuhle Chonco, Senior Manager, Vodacom Community Services – Powerpoint
Ramon Isberto, Head, Public Affairs, Smart Communications, Inc.
Charlotte Grezo, Director of Corporate Social Responsibility, Vodafone

Session 2: Innovative business and service models with IT platforms
Allen Hammond, Vice President for Innovation and Special Projects, World Resources Institute
Deepak Amin, Co-founder and Chief Executive Officer, Covelix, Inc.
Amir Alexander Hasson, President, United Villages, Inc; Co-Founder, First Mile Solutions, LLC - Powerpoint
Keith Kegley, Director, Emerging Markets Services, Microsoft MSN Division
John Sherry, Anthropologist, People and Practices Research, Intel Corporation
Dan Shine, AMD

Session 3: Innovative business and service models with an off-grid platform, including handhelds, POS terminals, stand-alone kiosks, smart cards
Allen Hammond, Vice President for Innovation and Special Projects, World Resources Institute
Deborah Arnold, Vice President, Product and Market Integration, VISA - Powerpoint
Eduardo Bazoberry, General Manager, Prodem Private Financing Fund SA – Powerpoint1 / Powerpoint2
Anand Tawker, General Manager, e-inclusion and Emerging Market Solutions, Hewlett-Packard

Track 4 – Energy for Economic Vitality - Summary (PDF)

Session 1: Success Stories
David Jhirad, Ph.D., Vice President for Science & Research, World Resources Institute - Powerpoint
Christine Eibs-Singer, Chief Operating Officer and Deputy Executive Director, E+Co - Powerpoint
Damian Miller, Director Rural Operations, Shell Solar - Powerpoint
Fabio Luis de Oliviera Rosa, President, Institute for Development of Natural Energy and Sustainability (IDEAAS)
Robert Freling, Executive Director, Solar Electric Light Fund (SELF)

Session 2: Scaling Out
David Jhirad, Ph.D., Vice President for Science & Research, World Resources Institute - Powerpoint
Sarah Adams, Manager, Access Programme, Electricite de France - Powerpoint
Hari Sharan, Ph.D., Co-Chairman, DESI Power - Powerpoint and Final Paper (PDF)

Session 3: Scaling Up
David Jhirad, Ph.D., Vice President for Science & Research, World Resources Institute - Powerpoint
Louis C. Boorstin, Manager, Grassroots Business Organizations, International Finance Corporation - Powerpoint
Christopher O'Brien, Vice President, Strategy and Government Relations, Sharp Solar Systems Division - Powerpoint
Bruce Kahn, Smith Barney Citigroup
Damian Miller, Director Rural Operations, Shell Solar - Powerpoint

Track 5 – Consumer Products - Summary (PDF)

Session 1: What is known about markets at the Bottom of the Pyramid? What are the business model implications?
William Kramer, Senior Fellow, World Resources Institute
Guillermo d’Andrea, Professor of Business Administration, IAE – School of Business, Universidad Austral - Powerpoint
Sean Gallagher, Research Analyst, World Resources Institute - Powerpoint
Ricardo Neves, Author, Marketing and Strategy Consultant - PDF
Alejandro Stengel, Senior Director, Booz Allen Hamilton - Powerpoint
Faye Yoshihara, Pontes Consulting

Session 2: Listening to the Bottom of the Pyramid
Valeria Budinich, Vice President, Full Economic Citizenship Initiative, Ashoka
Inez Murray, Market Research Director, Women’s World Banking - PDF
Xavier Guy Richard, Director of Companies, Amazon Caribbean Guyana
Darrel Rhea, Chief Executive Officer, Cheskin
David Green, Founder, Project Impact/ARAVIND
Fabio Rosa, Founder, Institute for Development of Natural Energy and Sustainability

Track 6 – Partnering Strategies - Summary (PDF)

Session 1: Deconstructing partnerships: case analyses of extractive industries in Africa
Richard Sandbrook, Independent Senior Advisor, United Nations Development Programme
Anders Henning Nordstrom, Senior Project Manager, ABB - Powerpoint
Simon Lowes, Manager of Community Engagement, International Relations, ChevronTexaco - Powerpoint
Kristi Ragan, Director, Global Business Solutions, Development Alternatives, Inc.

Session 2a: Reconstructing partnerships: Experiences in Latin America
Matt Jeschke, Manager, CSR Services, Business for Social Responsibility
Barbara Dubach, Vice President, Sustainable Development Coordination, Holcim
Andreas Eggenberg, AMANCO Guatemala
Clotilde Fonseca, Fundacion Omar Dengo - Powerpoint
Kate McKee, Director, Microenterprise Division, U.S. Agency for International Development

Session 2b: Economic diversity through partnerships: BP and SBP’s Psi Tanzania
Jennifer Barsky, SustainAbility
Merrick Dunster, Regional Social Investment Manager BP Southern Africa (Pty) Ltd
Corin Mitchell, Director, Operations, SBP

Session 3a: Making partnerships work in the 21st century
Jane Nelson, Senior Fellow, Director, Corporate Social Responsibility Initiative, Kennedy School of Government, Harvard University, and Director, Business Leadership and Strategy, Prince of Wales International Business Leaders Forum
Joi Corrado, Corporate Social Responsibility, American Water
Martin Fisher, Approtec
Jesse Moore, Director, Private Sector Development, CARE Canada
Pamela Passman, Vice President, Global Corporate Affairs, Microsoft

Session 3b: Microfinance & Partnerships
Bob Fitch, Managing Director, Enterplan Limited
Arturo Condo, Associate Dean, Central American Institute of Business Administration (INCAE)
Robert Davis, Senior Vice President, Program Services, Freedom from Hunger
Janine Firpo, Director, Global Multisector Initiatives, Hewlett-Packard
Nick Hughes, Head of Social Products and Enterprise, Vodafone Group Services Ltd

Track 7 – The Policy Dimension - Summary (PDF)

Session 1: Eliminating red tape through public-private partnership engagement
Benjamin Herzberg, Investment Climate Unit, World Bank - Powerpoint
Natwar Gotecha, Chief Executive Officer, Founding Member, Tanzanian Investor Council - Powerpoint
Amela Malicbegovic, Head, Association of Central Bosnia Entrepreneurs - Powerpoint

Session 2: Developing mortgage markets
Steven Bernstein, Senior Advisor, U.S. Treasury Department and Director, White House Initiative on African Mortgage Markets
Sally Merrill, Senior Associate, The Urban Institute - Powerpoint
Alex Pollock, Fellow, American Enterprise Institute
Phillip Thigpen, President, 1789 Capital Advisors

Session 3: Improving the business climate
E. Anthony Wayne, Assistant Secretary of State for Economic and Business Affairs, U.S. Department of State
His Excellency Dionisio Borda, Minister of Finance, Republic of Paraguay
George Manu, Chief Executive Offiver, Creative Squares Ltd
His Excellency Alwi Shihab, Welfare Minister, Republic of Indonesia
Axel Peuker, Manager of the Investment Climate Unit, Private Sector Development Vice Presidency, World Bank

Track 8 – Asset-Building among the Poor: Effective Strategies in the US and Developing World Markets - Summary (PDF)

Session 1: Market-based approaches to eradicating poverty: New roles for NGOs
John Weiser, Principal, Brody Weiser Burns Consultants
Terri Feeley, Executive Director, SFWorks
Michele Kahane, Former Program Officer, Ford Foundation; Director, Special Projects, Center for Corporate Citizenship at Boston College
Paul Rice, Chief Executive Officer, TransFair USA

Session 2: Breaking out of silos: Sharing best practices across national boundaries, economic sectors, and institutional boundaries
Eliot Jamison, Partner, Origo Inc.
Jeremy Hockenstein, Digital Divide Data
Mona Masri, Citibank
Mauricio Medina Gala, Citibank
Branca Minic, Director, Workforce Development, Manpower
Carlos Nomoto, Vice President for Educational & Sustainable Development, ABN AMRO Brazil

Track 9 – Capital Investment - Summary (PDF)

Session 1: Financial intermediaries: A key to successful deployment of capital in emerging markets
Amber Nystrom, Social Fusion
Paul Fletcher, Actis
Peter Johnson, Partner, Developing World Markets
Bob Patillo, Founder, Gray Ghost Capital
Jan Piercy, Advisor, ShoreBank Corporation

Session 2: Harnessing synergies: social and environmental interventions and the bottom line
Robert Rubinstein, Brooklyn Bridge/Triple Bottom Line Investment Conference
Noah Beckwith, Aureos Advisors - Powerpoint
T. David Hodgkinson, Special Advisor, ASEAN China Investment Fund
Sara Olsen, Founding Partner, SVT Consulting - Powerpoint

Other Sessions

Session 1: MNC business laboratory: Two global companies explore low-income markets - Summary
Stuart Hart, S.C. Johnson Chair of Sustainable Global Enterprise and Professor of Management, Johnson School of Management, Cornell University
George D. Carpenter, Director of Corporate Sustainable Development, Proctor & Gamble
Ted London, Director, Base of the Pyramid Learning Laboratory, Adjunct Assistant Professor, University of North Carolina at Chapel Hill
Paul V. Tebo, Former Corporate Vice President, Safety, Health, and Environment, DuPont

Session 2: Social Entrepreneurship, the BOP, and Economic Development - Summary
Valeria Budinich, Vice President, Full Economic Citizenship Initiative, Ashoka
Mercedes Canalda de Beras-Goico, Executive Director, Dominican Association for the Development of Women (ADOPEM) - Powerpoint
Arturo Garcia, Founder, Red de Agricultores Sustentables y Autogestivos (RASA)
David Green, Founder, Project Impact/ARAVIND - PDF
Fabio Rosa, Founder, Institute for Development of Natural Energy and Sustainability - PDF

Session 3: Poverty, Profits, and Pushing Water Uphill: A Reality Check for Business and NGOs - Summary
Kurt Hoffman, Director, Shell Foundation
Sachin Kapila, Group Biodiversity Advisor, Shell Foundation
Damian Miller, Director of Rural Operations, Shell