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Benefits of Cross‐sector Partnerships in Markets at the Base of the Pyramid
Author(s) -
Schuster Tassilo,
Holtbrügge Dirk
Publication year - 2014
Publication title -
business strategy and the environment
Language(s) - English
Resource type - Journals
SCImago Journal Rank - 2.123
H-Index - 105
eISSN - 1099-0836
pISSN - 0964-4733
DOI - 10.1002/bse.1780
Subject(s) - pyramid (geometry) , order (exchange) , business , face (sociological concept) , marketing , industrial organization , test (biology) , customer base , finance , sociology , paleontology , social science , biology , physics , optics
In this paper we analyze whether cross‐sector partnerships enable companies to respond to the specific conditions at the base of the pyramid (BOP). We develop three hypotheses in which we argue how cross‐sector partnerships support companies to face unfamiliar conditions in these markets. We test the developed hypotheses against the data of 103 companies operating in BOP‐markets. The results show that companies rely on organizations from the civil society sector in order to meet customer needs. Partners from the business sector are supportive when responding to restrictive market conditions. Institutional partnerships should be considered when companies aim at responding to the regulatory environment. We outline theoretical and managerial implications and reflect some limitations of the study. Copyright © 2013 John Wiley & Sons, Ltd and ERP Environment.