Articles by Scott Anderson
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Tuesday
October 4
2011With Video: From Strawberries to Solar Lamps, Why Profit is the Only Way to Scale
In a wide-ranging discussion with The Economist Columnist Matthew Bishop at the ANDE Annual Conference 2011, Paul Polak, serial entrepreneur and BoP thought leader, said SMEs need to think BIG. Polak used to say don’t bother if you don’t plan to reach one million customers. Today, he thinks in terms of 100 million. Watch the full video discussion.
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- Investing
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Friday
September 30
2011Friday Roundup ? 9/30/11: The IFC’s 7 Business Models for Inclusion, Are There More?
The International Finance Corporation took a close look at its investment portfolio and found seven common traits of successful inclusive businesses. In its recently released report, Accelerating Inclusive Business Opportunities, the IFC highlights those models - from micro distributions to smallholder procurement. Did the IFC miss any?
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Friday
September 23
2011Friday Roundup – 9/23/11: Microcredit Rethought
This week Muhammad Yunus told NextBillion writer Sadna Samaranayake if he could do it all over again, he would not have let the "profit-makers" join the microcredit movement. But would there have been a movement without hard-nosed margin seekers in the first place? For the next few weeks, we’ll be taking a closer look at microcredit.
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- microfinance
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Interviews
Monday
September 19
2011NextThought Monday: Creative Ways to Boost Youth Entrepreneurship
The risks of investing in young entrepreneurs are well known: inexperienced managers, murky business plans, overly optimistic views of the market, etc., etc. Youth Business International (YBI) recently issued Closing the Gap, a report that pulled together several case studies showing how the finance gap can be bridged for young entrepreneurs.
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- youth
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Friday
September 16
2011Friday Roundup – 8-16-11: An MD, Mathematician Leads Gates? Health Initiative
The Gates Foundation this week announced it would tap Dr. Trevor Mundel, the global head of development at Novartis AG, to lead the Gates Global Health Program. Mundel’s charged with finding the most effective (and cost effective) drugs, vaccines and medical devices for the developing world. Clearly he’s someone who understands how to manage scale.
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Friday
September 2
2011Friday Roundup ? 9/2/11: SOCAP11 and Getting the Poor on the Grid
It’s the calm before the (exciting) storm that is SOCAP11, which begins Tuesday. This week we’ve been highlighting just a few of the many professionals and issues sure to highlight World Cup of Impact Investing. Plus, India’s massive biometric program to bring millions into the formal economy. Should the poor be forced onto the grid?
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Friday
August 26
2011Friday Roundup ? 8/26/11: Profits Without Social Compromises
Much literal and virtual ink has been spilled this week on the blurring of lines between what constitutes nonprofit and for-profit in the social space. Of course many for-profits are, not by choice, shoehorned into nonprofit status. While nonprofits, witnessing the success and efficiency of profit seeking social ventures, have changed course.
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Friday
August 19
2011Friday Roundup – 8/19/11: (With Video) Young World Inventors, Give ?Em A Hand
YoungWorldInventors.com is heading up a project to share stories of inventors working across multiple cultures, countries and languages, but all of whom share the same goal: Deploying technology to tackle social problems. Their stories can’t be told by themselves. They need an audience that will pony up for the price of, say, two movie tickets.
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