Transferability for Scale:A Guide for Scaling Social Business

Rizwan TayabaliSupported by Ashoka Globalizer

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Adapted from

The PATRI Framework for Scaling Social Impact

© Rizwan Tayabali, 2014

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The PATRI framework takes you step by step through all the aspects of diligence needed to understand whether or not scaling is feasible

for you and if so, to produce an effective scaling plan that you can follow during implementation.

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PATRI Framework

IPurpose

IIApplicability

(Viability)

IIITransferability

IVReadiness

VImplementation

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An overview of the complete PATRI Framework, is provided in a

linked presentation called ...

“PATRI Framework for Scaling Social Business”

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PATRI Framework

Caveats1. The following guide is specifically targeted at social

businesses and therefore places an emphasis on financial viability along with impact i.e. It is designed for organisations that create their impact through the use of business models.

2. The PATRI Framework is focused on scaling rather than incremental growth. If you are simply aiming to set up operations in another location or enter another market, then the framework will still offer you value, but some aspects of it may only be applicable a bit further down the line.

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The 1st step of the Framework is to define purpose and targets, without which you have no

useful basis for planning or design.

If you haven’t already got clarity around these, more support is provided in a

linked presentation called ...“Defining Purpose: A Guide To

Scaling Social Business”

Purpose

The 2nd step of the Framework, is to understand whether or not your model will be applicable at

scale, and if not, how you could adjust it to make it more relevant and viable.

If you haven’t already considered applicability, support is provided in a

linked presentation called ...“Applicability at Scale: A Guide To

Scaling Social Business”Applicability

(Viability)

Once you’ve ensured that your model will be both applicable and viable at scale,

you can focus on improving its ability to be replicated or delivered by others.

This guide thus focuses specifically on the 3rd step of the Framework, which is to

make your model systematic and transferable for use in scaling, either by your own teams

or by external partners.

Transferability

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Transferability essentially refers to having systematic ways of working that allow you

to grow, develop, evolve or replicate methodologies and processes in a quality

controlled fashion.

ApplicabilityTransferability

It is a critical foundation for the replicability needed in scaling, and for ensuring a

standardised level of quality and impact.

Systematising your processes will also improve efficiency and effectiveness in delivery.

ApplicabilityTransferability

The reason for focusing on systematisation before organisational readiness is that you will gain significant internal efficiencies and quality improvements with this exercise, even if your

organisational constraints eventually cause you to limit or choose not to proceed with scaling.

ApplicabilityTransferability

Key Factors

Core Components

Critical Programmes

Chronological Priority

Impact Monitoring

Quality Control

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Transferability

The first step is to codify your model and how it generates impact.

To do this you will need to have a good understanding of how the various pieces fit together, and in what order, to create

a lasting impact.

ApplicabilityTransferability

Core Components

Start by identifying all the different elements of your model that

directly drive impact and revenue.

These are your core components.

Transferability

Core Components

If you haven’t done so already, map these outin order of dependency to visualise how your

model works, both in terms of generating revenue as well as impact.

This is the underlying blueprint of your model.

Transferability

Core Components

What you will then need is to develop systematic guidelines, processes and policies for each of these core components in order to

ensure that they can be executed in a standardised and efficient way.

Transferability

Core Components

At this stage it should be enough to focus on a minimum level of practical documentation to

enable your internal teams to deliver consistently.

Transferability

Core Components

If and when you do eventually get to the stage of implementing scaling with third parties, you could consider improving the materials to a

quality that can be used as a manual for others.

Transferability

Core Components

Once you’ve codified how the model works, you will be able to identify which programs

or activities can be dropped, replaced or transformed if necessary, and which ones

are non-negotiable.

Transferability

Critical Programmes

These non-negotiables are the most critical aspects of your impact methodology, and must

be replicated or implemented in order to ensure that scaling continues to deliver the

impact you are aiming for.

Transferability

Critical Programmes

Understanding the chronological priority of how these components must be set up, is critical if you plan to set up branches in different places, or are expecting others to franchise or start-up

and replicate what you do elsewhere.

ApplicabilityTransferability

Chronological Priority

What you primarily need to know is where and how to start in a new environment, and

then how that team should evolve over a sensible timeframe until it gets to an

optimal operating size.

Transferability

Chronological Priority

Note that if you are planning a hub and spoke model where you have a centralised support

infrastructure, the nature of set-up will differ from a model where you expect a higher level of autonomy for operations in different places,

and even more so where you expect total independence in delivery across the network.

Transferability

Chronological Priority

As your reach increases, so will the challenge and complexity of monitoring impact.

Transferability

Impact Monitoring

Monitoring your impact is absolutely critical to knowing whether or not your strategies are in

fact making the difference you planned for, and ad hoc approaches become very difficult and

costly on a large scale.

Transferability

Impact Monitoring

A simple, standardised and repeatable process of periodic benchmarking is what you will need

to monitor impact at scale.

Transferability

Impact Monitoring

If you’ve done your pre-scaling analysis to reasonable level of robustness, you could

simply improve on the process you used to set the baseline for your targets, and then track

against those on a periodic basis.

Transferability

Impact Monitoring

Many scaling pathways also involve working with others, so your impact monitoring

processes and systems may also need to enable and support others to contribute as a collective.

Transferability

Impact Monitoring

In any event you are likely to need technologyto support the collation, storage and sharing of impact data, along with dedicated teams that

capture learning for continuous improvement.

Transferability

Impact Monitoring

Standardising your model may not be enoughto ensure consistency, especially if your scaling

approach involves other players.

Transferability

Quality Control

It is therefore worth developing a systematic monitoring and control methodology to ensure

a consistent level of quality in delivery.

Transferability

Quality Control

The promise of financial return when scaling business models offers leverage in terms of

quality-control, particularly if you plan to use partners or third parties.

This is particularly so when franchising.

Transferability

Quality Control

Use your targets, operating manuals and policies to develop monitoring systems and

KPIs, MOUs, contracts or service level agreements as necessary, and optionally even

training for your new teams or partners to ensure the consistency and quality you require.

Transferability

Quality Control

Once you have standardised your methodologies and processes, you can begin to focus on whether or not your organisation and

people are ready for scaling.

ApplicabilityTransferability

A guide to the next step of ensuring that your organisation and teams are capable of

supporting scaling is provided in a linked presentation called ...

“Readiness to Scale: A Guide forScaling Social Business”

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Readiness

©Rizwan Tayabali, 2014

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