Introduction

The Base of the Pyramid Protocol™ working group was guided by the vision of an inclusive capitalism, one in which the corporate sector prospers by engaging local communities in the co-creation of business models that simultaneously generate economic, social and environmental value. The resulting Protocol represents a collaborative effort to articulate a radically different approach to business development that might better serve the diversity of needs and values of people across the globe, in particular, those who have been by-passed or actively exploited by globalization. This latter group comprises the Base of the Pyramid (BoP).

The Protocol that follows is a process-based framework by which a corporation can acquire a deep understanding of local needs and perspectives and then develop sustainable business models in partnership with BoP communities. The Protocol, which is written from the perspective of the corporation, is divided into three interdependent phases, each with specific business outcomes:

• Opening Up – Launch non-business specific immersion guided by two-way dialogue and humility to co-identify local needs, capabilities and business opportunities
• Building the Ecosystem – Generate a diverse network of partners to advance ideas for mutual value creation and to support the co-creation of a business plan
• Enterprise Creation – Formalize a business venture by pilot testing, evaluating, and scaling-out business experiments that generate triple-bottom-line value for all constituencies

The concept that unifies the Protocol is that of mutual value creation – each phase is designed to simultaneously generate value for the corporation, the local community anthe other constituencies affected by the project. Therefore, each phase is modeled as a set of processes and activities that comprise a mutual value chain in which some activities contribute to local value creation while others generate value for the MNC. In addition, the key content dimensions for each mutual value chain are given by a “4 Ps” model at the conclusion of each section. The 4 P’s include:

• People and Preparation – key people within the MNC needed for the project and the necessary training and skill-sets that they require
• Partners – key people outside of the MNC and from the local BoP community that need to be materially involved in the effort
• Places and Structures – organizational systems and infrastructure that need to be put into place
• Performance – dimensions that an MNC might utilize to evaluate its performance

Although the Protocol document is narrated sequentially, beginning with Opening Up in applying the Protocol and ending with Enterprise Creation, a corporation may enter the Protocol process at any phase, depending on existing skill sets, capabilities and relationships with the BoPcommunity. These pre-requisites are identified in the Overview section for each phase.

To better ensure that the Protocol achieves its objective of generating mutual benefit, a set of business principles is expected to guide the MNC’s engagement with the BoP community. These business principles are stated at the beginning of the Protocol in the form of Operating Guidelines and a Code of Conduct.