Bottom Of Pyramid Research Articles

An Investigation of Bottom of Pyramid Consumers’ Motivation for Participating in Value Co-Creation

This research investigates the core drivers for bottom of pyramid (BOP) consumers’ motivation for participating in value co-creation (VCC) projects with firms evaluating the influence of each of the drivers considering the heterogeneity nature of the BOP. Ethnographic observations and interviews were used to conduct the research in Zimbabwe. A key finding is the impact of the heterogeneity of the bottom of pyramid on the eight drivers that are identified and evaluated in terms of their influence, thereby providing a more holistic understanding of BOP consumers participation in VCC. This research’s findings have shown that digital technologies can be employed as a valuable complementary tool that firms and BOP consumers could effectively use to facilitate value co-creation. A key practical finding is the emergence of the concept of a Green Kiosk. This is a one stop resource which acts as a community building center, cultural renewal center, place of education and knowledge and point of access to other services such as telecommunication services. Evolving balance of power in the relations between the BOP and firms is outlined.

Packaging-influenced-purchase decision segment the bottom of the pyramid consumer marketplace? Evidence from West Bengal, India

This study explores whether consumer segments can be formed by the Bottom of the Pyramid (BoP) consumers based on their perception towards various packaging attributes while making Packaging Influenced Purchase decisions (PIP) for buying Fast-Moving Consumer Goods (FMCG) products. Along with facilitating targeting for marketers, this study aims to contribute significantly to the literature of ‘BoP consumer behaviour’ where a visible research gap exists. FMCG, being a low-involvement market by nature, most of the purchase decisions are made under time pressure. So, packaging being the point of interaction between products and consumers, has huge potential to influence purchase decisions. A sample of 1530 BoP consumers has been considered from West Bengal, a state of India with high Human Poverty Index. Along with clustering techniques, Self-Organizing Map (SOM) has been applied for validation and visualization. The result shows existence of clear segments along with the variability of influences of the packaging attributes.

Legitimacy building of digital platforms in the informal economy: evidence from Indonesia

Purpose This study aims to investigate how digital entrepreneurs develop platforms business models under an unregulated market and what approach they take to address informal economy (IE) activities. Design/methodology/approach The author used a qualitative method by interviewing sixteen respondents, including founders, Chief Executive Officers, and managers of digital-driven start-ups in Indonesia. I then analysed the interviews into several codes and themes for further discussion. Findings This study reveals distinctive approaches performed by startups within three-level institutions, namely, users, market and regulation. Each level represents digital entrepreneurs’ unique behaviour, which the author described as collective, narrative and compliant. Research limitations/implications This paper demonstrates that digital entrepreneurs leveraging informal sectors contribute to the process of formalisation. However, the author emphasise less on how it impacts informality and who receives incentives. Practical implications This study suggests appropriate strategies for entrepreneurs who build and develop a platform beyond immature setting and unveils different directions to comprehend their legitimacy building. Social implications This study also elucidates political implications such as how the dynamics between regulators’ response and entrepreneurs’ reaction shape the new regulative environment. An idea of self-regulate – entrepreneurs as actors instead of a subject of regulation – might be suitable to reflect how they overcome the bottom of the pyramid using technology innovation. Originality/value While previous studies focused primarily on sharing economy, this study provides a different array of discussion on the digitalisation of the informal economy in emerging markets.

Heart Failure Syndrome With Preserved Ejection Fraction Is a Metabolic Cluster of Non-resolving Inflammation in Obesity.

Heart failure with preserved ejection fraction (HFpEF) is an emerging disease with signs of nonresolving inflammation, endothelial dysfunction, and multiorgan defects. Moreover, based on the clinical signs and symptoms and the rise of the obesity epidemic, the number of patients developing HFpEF is increasing. From recent molecular and cellular studies, it becomes evident that HFpEF is not a single and homogenous disease but a cluster of heterogeneous pathophysiology with aging at the base of the pyramid. Obesity superimposed on aging drives the number of inflammatory pathways that intersect with metabolic dysfunction and suboptimal inflammation. Here, we compiled information on obesity-directed macrophage dysfunction that coincide with metabolic defects. Obesity-associated proinflammatory stimuli facilitates heart and interorgan inflammation in HFpEF. Furthermore, diversified mechanisms that drive heart failure urge the need of studying pervasive and unresolved inflammation in animal models to understand HFpEF. A broad and system-based approach will help to study major translational aspects of HFpEF, since no single animal model recapitulates all signs of differential HFpEF stages in the clinical setting. Here, we covered experimental models that target HFpEF and emphasized the advances observed with formyl peptide 2 (FPR2) receptor, a prime sensor that is important in inflammation-resolution signaling. Dysfunction of FPR2 led to the development of spontaneous obesity, impaired macrophage function, and triggered kidney fibrosis, providing evidence of multiorgan defects in HFpEF in an obesogenic aging experimental model.

Understanding the Motivation Complexity of Grassroots Ecopreneurs at the Base of the Pyramid (BoP)

This qualitative study focuses on the factors that motivate grassroots ecopreneurship at the base of the pyramid. Extant research suggests that GEs at the base of the pyramid (BoP) primarily engage in necessity-driven ventures. However, this study demonstrates that GEs’ motives to launch new ventures appear to be multifaceted. Moreover, the GEs’ motivation does not appear to be linear or sequential but rather simultaneous. We also observed an interlinkage of environmental and economic motives. These interlinkages were observed in GEs who diversified their investments into related and unrelated areas. Socio-ethical motives, the GEs’ concerns toward other members of the community, and a desire to create social value beyond private value are also additional unique observations. Our findings also indicate that GEs at the BoP were strategically aligned with highly supportive, collaborative networks of private and public institutions, which contributed to them establishing and sustaining viable businesses.

A Socio-Ecological Perspective on Poverty Alleviation and Environmental Protection at the BOP

Base-of-the-pyramid (BOP) scholarship and practice have traditionally focused on poverty alleviation efforts, while concerns for environmental degradation within BOP business models have received far less attention. We bridge this gap by proposing a socio-ecological perspective to understand whether a product’s low environmental impact enhances BOP users’ product adoption, thereby reinforcing the poverty alleviation goals of BOP projects. Owing to the relevance of apt menstrual hygiene management to both socio-economic outcomes of BOP women and to environmental conservation, this study examines the case of sanitary napkins uptake. Results from a discrete-choice experiment involving 164 BOP women (n = 1148) in two Indian slums show that sanitary products’ biodegradability is the most important attribute affecting women’s preferences towards menstrual hygiene management solutions, which also significantly interacts with socio-economic and socio-cultural characteristics of women and their community. Our findings highlight the possibility for BOP business models to establish positive synergies between the apparently competing goals of environmental protection and poverty alleviation, renew the call for co-creation approaches in designing BOP solutions that are situated in a socio-ecological framework.

A Relational View on the Role of Intermediaries in Poverty Setting Supply Chains

There is significant impact of various external stakeholders on firms’ global operations and supply chain decisions. In areas of extreme poverty, known as Base of the Pyramid (BOP) markets, there can be institutional voids in labor, capital, regulatory, product and contracting markets exacerbated by the informal nature of these markets. In these challenging settings, acquiring information and local legitimacy is difficult. For understanding how intermediaries can serve as instruments of public policy and influence the adoption of sustainability issues in global supply chains, extensive qualitative data was collected via expert interviews and field visits with multiple intermediaries and focal firms operating in BOP markets. Drawing on the relational view and distinguishing between material and support flows in supply chains, the findings suggest that strong ties with public, private and hybrid intermediaries can enable BOP businesses to achieve economic and social viability through four pathways: formalization, legitimacy for vulnerable stakeholders, social capital development, and acquisition of complementary resources through the extended network of intermediaries. Public intermediaries fill in structural holes in the support ecosystem and bridge links between BOP businesses. By funding these support organizations, governments can influence global supply chains and their operating environment.

Robin Hood Pricing? Bottom of the Pyramid, Product Variety, and Performance

Small packs are ubiquitous in resource-constrained, bottom-of-the-pyramid (BOP) markets. Firms can sell small packs at a discount, premium, or uniform price relative to large packs, and each pricing strategy entails important tradeoffs. How firms balance these tradeoffs and set prices for BOP products remains an understudied empirical question. Using granular data from Nielsen on prices and sales of all shampoo products in India, we find evidence of price discounts for smaller packs. Firms offering greater product variety outside BOP offer larger discounts on BOP products. Furthermore, we find that operating in BOP markets is associated with better performance outside BOP markets. Evidence highlights the use of redistributive pricing strategy and suggests that some firms do well outside BOP markets by doing good in BOP markets.

More for Less: Evidence from Cost Reduction Management Trainings for Micro-Enterprises

Management trainings have shown to be effective in improving business outcomes. However, the impact on severely resource-scarce micro-enterprises which usually operate in Bottom of the Pyramid (BoP) markets remains unexplored. This is surprising, given their distinct need for cost reduction programs in this environment. We address two important questions: First, what is the impact of cost reduction management trainings on business outcomes of micro-enterprises? Second, which businesses are helped most by improving cost reduction management skills? Based on a randomized controlled trial in Zambia, this study finds that cost reduction management trainings improve several business practices. However, we only observe an effect on business profits for micro-entrepreneurs which are equipped with higher levels of capabilities and complementary. This implies that the effectiveness of management trainings is contingent on the available resources of micro-entrepreneurs in the emerging economy context.

Development models and patterns for elevated network connectivity in internet of things

The technology of networking allows IoT devices to connect to other cloud-based devices, applications and services. To provide safe and dependable communication across diverse devices, the Internet relies on defined protocols. Standard protocols describe rules and formats which devices employ in network building and management and in data transmission. Networks are created as a technology “stack.” At the bottom of the pile lies a technology like Bluetooth LE. While other technologies, like IPv6 (the logical device for network traffic adjustment and routing), are more up to the stack. Applications which operate above these layers, such as queuing technologies, utilize technology at the top of the stack. The IoT is supposed to overrun the planet. The Internet of Things. Efficient assistance for their modeling is needed to investigate and comprehend the emerging conduct of linked objects. At the center of IoT are flexible and adaptive link patterns between objects, which may naturally be modeled on rudimentary channel-based coordination, the connection failure likelihoods, performance and waiting time, as well as the consumption of resources. The latter is particularly significant because the power and computing budgets of the items are drastically reduced.

Germinating seeds in dry soil: examining the process of frugal innovation in micro- and small-enterprises at the base of the pyramid

PurposeThis study aims to examine the process of frugal innovation (FI) in micro- and small-enterprises (MSEs) at the base of the pyramid (BOP) through the analytical lens of business models.Design/methodology/approachA case study was conducted with 30 MSEs from three different industries in a very poor region in Brazil.FindingsThe findings indicate that, in cases where FI is intense and dynamic, the start of the FI process is based on the reinterpretation of fashion trends and influences from the business ecosystem while the consolidation of FI in MSEs occurs through the reconfiguration of resources. Additionally, this study shows that FI depends on conditions other than the production of frugal products for BOP consumers.Research limitations/implicationsThis study points out that the presence of end-of-life non-BOP raw materials distributed by large distributors in the case of fashion products, along with the interaction between MSEs at the BOP and these distributors, trigger FI and are profitable for both. For non-fashion products with long life cycles, there is no demand for innovation.Originality/valueThis study addresses the research void present in the literature on FI by presenting the process of FI and the conditions that leverage or stagnate FI in MSEs at the BOP, as well as how business models are shaped by these conditions.

Research on the heat exchange characteristics of the deeply buried pipe type of energy pile

Energy piles are a kind of building energy-saving technology that uses shallow geothermal materials. This article combines the existing ground source heat pump (GSHP) and inside buried pipe energy pile (IBP-EP) technology to develop a new type deeply buried pipe energy pile (DBP-EP) technology. It proposes construction technology based on postdrilling deeply buried pipe perfusion energy piles. Experiments and numerical studies on the heat exchange characteristics of DBP-EPs are carried out. The results show that the upper pile has a larger thermal radius and a higher heat exchange rate per linear meter than the lower deep wall. For models with the same heat exchange depth, the overall heat exchange of DBP-EP is higher than that of the GSHP. And the heat exchange rate per linear meter of the DBP-EP increases more significantly than that of the IBP-EP. By designing deep well heat exchange at the bottom of the pile, not only can the high thermal conductivity of the concrete of the pile foundation be fully utilized, but the overall heat exchange can also be effectively improved. This new type energy pile can be designed according to the heat exchange requirements to realize the efficient and economic utilization of geothermal resources.

Technology-enabled knowledge management for community healthcare workers: The effects of knowledge sharing and knowledge hiding

The objective of this study is to explore different facet (dark and bright sides) of technology-enabled knowledge management (KM) for rural lay healthcare workers who belong to the bottom of pyramid (BoP) population in India. Data were collected through multiple rounds of engagements and semi-structured interviews with 37 Accredited Social Health Activists (ASHAs). Findings indicate the existence of spirals of value that are shaped by KM practices in such settings. Technology-enabled KM through knowledge-sharing is supporting an upward spiral of value creation at three different levels, i.e., the micro-level in the form of empowerment of ASHAs, the meso-level in the form of better healthcare for the rural Indian population, and the macro-level in the form of an effective public health policy outcome as envisioned by the government. Contrary to the technology-enabled KM through knowledge-sharing, technology-enabled KM through knowledge-hiding is eroding value resulting in failed attempts to use technology and reduced self-efficacy of ASHAs at the micro level. Technology-enabled KM through knowledge-hiding at the macro level is promoting stratification and marginalization within rural communities in India. Study leaves key implications for healthcare researchers, policymakers and businesses.

The sharing economy at the base of the economic pyramid: How access‐based services can help overcome ownership risks

AbstractThe sharing economy provides short‐term access to products without the risks associated with ownership. While extant research primarily examined it in the context of affluent consumer segments, the sharing economy may offer opportunities for consumers at the base of the economic pyramid, where ownership risks prevent access to products that could create societal benefits. Drawing from risk perception theory, we examine how access‐based services, as an alternative to ownership, can mitigate perceived risk dimensions. An experimental study reveals that, in contrast to consumers with higher income, low‐income consumers perceive access‐based services to entail less financial risk, resulting in a greater inclination to access a good than to own it. In a second study, we explore these differences by comparing access with a risk mitigation strategy. We find that at the base of the pyramid, access is perceived to entail less financial risk than both ownership and ownership with a warranty. The results indicate the importance of the sharing economy for addressing the limited availability of resources for alleviating poverty. Based on our findings, we derive implications for consumers and service providers at the base of the pyramid, and discuss how the COVID‐19 pandemic may be detrimental to the identified opportunities.

Broaden the Pathway to Inclusive Entrepreneurship: A Transaction Cost Proposition

Abstract Since entrepreneurship was conceptualised as a panacea for achieving inclusive growth in the “base of the pyramid” (BoP) regions, various ways have been explored to leverage this powerful tool, such as helping potential entrepreneurs build the resource base and capabilities. However, given the severe resources constraints in the BoP regions, such a goal is difficult to achieve. Besides, due to the high demands on personal competence, only a few people can benefit from this method, which fails to solve the problem of social exclusion in the BoP regions. Therefore, we aim to find a better way to leverage entrepreneurship to tackle the problem of the BoP regions by calling for more attention to the inclusiveness of entrepreneurship. Based on data of inclusive entrepreneurs in Zhejiang, China, we construct a three-stage model for inclusive entrepreneurship. We also apply Transaction Cost Economics to look for determinants that foster inclusive entrepreneurship and validate our main assertion that decreasing transaction cost significantly helps to increase the inclusiveness of entrepreneurship, and different phases of inclusive entrepreneurship (i.e., opportunity inclusiveness, participation inclusiveness, and sharing inclusiveness) are influenced by different sets of determinants of transaction costs.

New perspectives on supply chain resilience

New perspectives on supply chain resilience

E-Commerce at the Bottom of the Pyramid: Remodelling Perspectives of Rural Consumer Behaviour by Pragya Singh, Indrajit Ghosal and Bikram Prasad. New Delhi: Anu Books, 2020 (ISBN: 978-81-947224-1-0)

Marketing infrastructure includes all those facilities and amenities needed for the smooth conduct of marketing in the economy. The infrastructural facilities in development are as necessary as foundations of a building. The existence of adequate marketing infrastructure are important not only for the performance of various marketing functions and expansion of the size of the markets but also for the transfer of appropriate price signals leading to improved marketing efficiency. The availability of different infrastructures affects the choice of technology to be adopted, reduces the cost of transportation, produces powerful impetus to production and also affects income distribution in favour of small and marginal farmers by raising their access to the market. The agriculture sector needs heavy investment for creation of basic infrastructures necessary for the overall economic development. In a developing country like India, marketing infrastructures play a pivotal role in fostering and sustaining the tempo of rural and economic development. Marketing is as critical to better performance in agriculture as farming itself. Though the role of infrastructure is the key element of any development programme yet their role in distribution and marketing is the supreme. India's growth both as agriculturally and horticultural advanced country may get derailed if various marketing infrastructural constraints are not removed. Many of the regions of the country still suffer from the existence of infrastructural problems that they threaten to torpedo the region's agricultural and horticultural development efforts. In this paper an attempt has been made to examine the status of different agricultural marketing infrastructures, their geographical spread in the different states of India and also the policy measures for strengthening of these infrastructural facilities. Besides this other marketing infrastructure, which has been set up in the specialized form of organization, has also been just mentioned for information.

Remote (Dis)engagement: Shifting Corporate Risk to the ‘Bottom of the Pyramid’

ABSTRACTUntapped markets are often deemed institutional voids, terra incognita ripe with economic possibility. The conversion of institutional voids into viable markets has become the ambition of many corporations today, which view marginal and under‐served areas such as urban slums as opportunities to achieve the dual aims of market growth and poverty reduction, particularly through ‘bottom of the pyramid’ (BoP) programmes. This article examines how firms manage institutional voids and the consequences of these approaches for workers through a case study of a BoP ‘route to market’ programme designed by a global food manufacturer in Kibera, Africa's largest slum, located in Nairobi. Instead of engaging with Kibera by upgrading informal markets or generating formal employment, the corporation focused on harnessing existing informal systems through composite arrangements of NGOs, social networks and informal enterprises, a strategy the authors term ‘remote (dis)engagement’. The article describes the logics and outcome of this strategy of formal engagement with informal markets, concluding that the BoP business model depends on ‘gig practices’ of flexibility, irregular work and insecurity to realize the much‐heralded ‘fortune at the bottom of the pyramid’.

Personal initiative, entrepreneurial self-efficacy and social entrepreneurial venture creation

ABSTRACT The addition of new social entrepreneurial ventures to the economy is vital for economic growth and development. However, little is known about the role of entrepreneurial self-efficacy and personal initiative in creating social ventures that solve social problems at the bottom of the pyramid. This study examines the mediating role of personal initiative on the relationship between entrepreneurial self-efficacy and social entrepreneurial venture creation. With a quantitative methodological approach, hypotheses were statistically tested using structural equation modelling. This study incorporates Personal Initiative Theory and Social Cognitive Theory into an applied theoretical framework that explains the factors that influence social entrepreneurial venture creation. Drawing on a sample of 243 owner managers in Community Based Organisations in Kampala, our results show that personal initiative partially mediates the relationship between entrepreneurial self-efficacy and social entrepreneurial venture creation. The study contributes to social entrepreneurship literature using evidence from Uganda, a developing country in Sub Saharan Africa.

Transformations of micron-sized PbTe surface structures induced by low energy ions

Formation and transformation of micron-sized structures on PbTe crystal surfaces under impact of low energy Ar+ ions is studied. New phenomena occurring due to interaction of energetic ions and atoms forming the main crystallographic planes of solid crystalline compounds, namely the transformation of ion-induced conical structures into pyramidal ones and the formation of facets of the micropyramids with well-ordered ripples during the process of transformation are revealed. We show that conical-pyramidal transformations occur on any PbTe sputtering surface, but the shape of pyramidal structures depends on the surface crystallographic orientation. If the pyramid originates from the ion-induced conical structure on PbTe target of (100) orientation it has the tetrahedral shape and its facets are covered with pronounced well-ordered ripples arranged in parallel to the base of the pyramid and closed at its edges. We show that: (i) micro-sized conical structures ion-induced on PbTe surface are transformed into pyramidal ones due to the tendency of the PbTe compound to the easy cleavage along crystallographic planes of high reticular density; (ii) the well-ordered ripples on the facets of the tetrahedral pyramids forming from conical structures appear due to self-organization of {111} and {110} crystallographic planes shaping pyramidal facets.