Telecentre Sustainability: Opportunities and Challenges Ahead - TIS Talks 2012 Summary

Jimena Betancourt

[email protected] @jimebeta

Good bye to the talk Hello to Technology, Innovation and Sustainability

First mover advantage (ICT access)

Digital Divide MDGs

Government funding available Government and NGO driven

A movement is born

New players: Rapid growth of mobile solutions

MDGs Funding shifts towards propositions with different value added (rise of

entrepreneurship and innovation in the field) “BoP businesses demonstrate financial viability and socio – economic –

environmental returns. Multi-stakeholder initiatives are driving innovation

Addressing sustainability becomes the norm Leapfrog private sector investments

Environment of disruptive actors from all sides: (Donors, entrepreneurs, private sector, social sector, investors)

In a rapidly changing environment

By leveraging key competitive advantages:

Leverage capabilities to aggregate demand Leveraging human, social and organizational capital

Capitalize on the brand’s reputation in the communities and among stakeholders

Leverage its position and knowledge in ‘high growth markets’ - BOP and beyond

Leverage networks (all types, at all levels)

When staying updated requires adding value to the telecentre proposition

By tackling communications and information

technology opportunities:

Benefit from the advancement of BOP focused businesses (lessons, models, products and services)

User centered innovation Use of available technologies

Build data-collection expertise MDGs

What are the next 20 years going to look like?



Addressing :

Organizations are unable to execute commercial transactions. … How to build channels? Is Social

enterprise an enabler? How to stay up-to-date with innovations and disruptions

in our environment? Do we need a research and development engine? A think thank for telecentre

sustainability? Avoid wheel reinvention

Ensure widespread knowledge of opportunities Collaboration--instead of competition--as the norm when

working with mobile solutions

By preparing our organizations to operate in a demanding

and rapidly-changing environment

Improve management Improve operations

Invest in human resource development/ focus on human capital and its capacity Reshaping models and institutions around sustainability and self finance


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Building Knowledge

Finding Solu2ons and Partners

Planning and Managing for Technology, Innova2on, and Sustainability

THREE PHASES:

PHASE 1

• Learn from networks that have achieved sustainability

• Explore social innovation and social enterprise as paths for sustainability for telecentre networks

• Learn from proven business models leveraging ICT for markets at the Base of the Pyramid

Goals:

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Non market oriented sustainability

Four strategies for sustainability

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Non market-oriented sustainability

Challenges in introducing business models in telecentres

Perception among the telecentre practitioners (most initiatives run under subsidized model with donor money) Market distortion at field level and dominance of FREE services at the user level Balancing profit vs. social cause, especially at local level Lack of resources for innovation and prototyping Low level of awareness among stakeholders Conceptual limitations among the telecentre practitioners Lack of availability of ‘success models’ / case studies

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Setting the vision with strategy

Targeting the untapped BoP market for growth and service packaging

Integration of inclusiveness in the business model

Positioning telecentres as a hub for social and commercial services

Resilience

Building partnerships with development agencies, and the private sector

Combination of mobile and PC-based services

Addressing the Challenges

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Telecentre Convergence Social – commercial Close to community – Remote Not always updated in ICT -Updated Mgmt skills undeveloped – Management skills updated Skilled people contributing Towards service portfolio,

Intense use of mgmt tools and data to understand and map capabilities of 2070 telcentres Mid and long term planning - Become content provider - Partnerships with government Proactive marketing

Model to enable = Sales agent No warehouse hassle No invoice Best fit: Distant Learning, software donations channel ( TSG )

Partnership Intensive For ICT training and others ( Microsoft, IBM, Ticket Restaurant Deep unerstanding and knowledge of network

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Non Market-oriented sustainability

Sustainability factors Innovation ICT advocacy

Network with multi-stakeholder approach

Skilled HR Strategic alliances Focus on “priority” communities

Partnership intense to move ICT forward Red de telecentros de Colombia (Colnodo provides the network with projects) – Collaboration and knowledge-sharing Only ICT training / open to explore

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Sustainability factors Innovation

Community generated content

Marginalized & isolated Visibility

Knowledge oriented Service development

Community portals (100)

Social Capital ( 60+ volunteers that provide professional consulting

services)

Knowledge Hubs

Empower disadvantaged

communities by transforming

selected ICT access points / telecentres

into knowledge hubs that are

connected at the regional and global

levels

Moving forward… Revenue from core communication applications. Generating revenue from diverse fees and services. Gradual growth of other revenue sources. Identification of information and communication needs of the users.

Think thanks and business accelerators on innovation, BOP & social enterprise.

Telecentres have a highly competitive position in the the social enterprise market and BoP arenas Innovation needs direction Good evidence on what works and what doesn’t How are telecentres going to look in 20 years from now ? How is knowledge being managed? How to direct innovation in the movement? Are core capabilities for the information generation being capitalized on?

1.

2.

3.

Building Knowledge

Finding Solu2ons and Partners

Planning and Managing for Technology, Innova2on, and Sustainability

THREE PHASES:

PHASE 2 •  Identify partners to develop distribution channels of

ICT products and services such as e-health, distance education, telecommunication solutions and many more •  Identify system management solutions based on

open source applications

•  Identify solutions to lower hardware cost

•  Identify partners to develop applications for greater impact in the communities served by telecentre networks

Goals:

PHASE 2 Distribution Channels ICT Innovation Hubs Value-added channels Operations and Management

Approach:

Distribution Channels Channels of solutions for socio-economic development &

poverty alleviation What solutions?

How to build know-how re: channel development? How to perform “due diligence” for potential providers?

Is the use of mobile a market enabler? What is the sector-specific knowledge for market

development (agriculture, education, health, financial solutions)

What would a telecentre franchise look like? What constitutes a “good deal” with a supplier?

Distribution Channels ICT Innovation Hubs Value added channels Operations and Management

Distribution Channels ICT Innovation Hubs Value-added channels Operations and Management

ICT Innovation Hubs

Idea Labs (environment for prototyping)

(Telecentre + mobile) led by consumer-driven innovation

Focus on core capabilities and building strategic partnerships to fill in gaps

How to develop for the movement? How to develop with the movement?

How to build know-how re: (Telecentre + mobile) ? How to communicate the know-how?

How to perform due diligence on potential suppliers?

Is the use of mobile an enabler for greater impact?



Value-added channels

Content and services Knowledge / User-generated knowledge

How to build data collection capabilities? What data collection products can be developed for government, development agencies, donors

and investors?




Operations and Management Preparing our organizations to operate in a

demanding and rapidly-changing environment

Improve management

Improve operations Invest in human resource development/ focus

on human capital and its capacity Reshaping models and institutions around

sustainability and self finance

Distributions Channels ICTInnovation Hubs Value added channels Operations and Management

Distributions Channels ICT Innovation Hubs Value added channels Operations and Management

PHASE 3 • Effec2ve fundraising • Tools for effec2ve planning and managing of social enterprises

Goals:

Resource Movilization Funding eco – system Sustainability and self financing in funder’s agendas How to finance social innovation? How to finance social enterprise? “There are areas of interest for telecentres that will allow them to participate in scalable and global inititives… It is key to build expertise & to develop services with proven demand… Telecentres should move away from basic ICT training and move towards strategic areas to create solutions to global issues.

Effective Resource Mobilization

How to stay tune with innovations and disruptions in our environment? Do we need a research and development engine? A think thank for telecentre sustainability? Telecentres have a highly competitive position in the the social enterprise market and BoP arenas. Innovation needs direction. Good evidence on what works and what doesn’t. How are telecentres going to look in 20 years from now ? How is knowledge being managed? How to direct innovation in the movement? Are core capabilities for the information generation being capitalized on? What solutions? How to build know-how re: channel development? How to perform “due diligence” for potential providers? Is the use of mobile a market enabler? What is the sector-specific knowledge for market development (agriculture, education, health, financial solutions) What would a telecentre franchise look like? What constitutes a “good deal” with a supplier? How to develop for the movement? How to develop with the movement? How to build know-how re: (Telecentre + mobile) ? How to communicate the know-how? How to perform due diligence on potential suppliers? Is the use of mobile an enabler for greater impact? How to build data collection capabilities? What data collection products can be developed for government, development agencies, donors and investors?

Good bye to the talk Hello to Technology, Innovation and Sustainability

What should the TIS Talks prioritize now ?

Knowledge and Sharing.

Research and Sharing

Know How Distribution Channels

Know How Innovation Hubs

Training with regional focus in resource movilization and strategy for sustainability

Incubation of solutions ( acelerator )


Research = innovation, social enterprise, resource mobilization, solutions (p&s),

Expertise Communicate

Research and Sharing


Knowledge and sharing.

Expand TIS Talks content Specialized content

Communicate


Training with regional focus in resource movilization and strategy for sustainability

Knowledge development at regional level Support with proposal design. Support with integration of value added proposition and

sustainability strategy . Donor Management and orientation

Knowledge management at global network level


Know How Distribution Channels

Know How Innovation Hubs

Design and implement pilots with potential partners (TIS partners and others)

Pilots: action based research implementing distribution channels

Innovation Hubs Needs networks with entrepreneurial culture Needs management capacity and planning


Incubation of solutions ref: management system solutions . Vital Innova

Identify solutions Incubation of ideas and products from the talent that

gravitates the telecentre (hackers, programmers, designers, telecentres managers)

Incubation of solutions

We want to hear from you https://www.surveymonkey.com/s/Wanttohearfromyou

Thank you!

Jimena Betancourt [email protected] @jimebeta