DHARMIC VALUES IN BUSINESS AND LEADERSHIP
Contributed By - Sri Devi Bulusu
In my previous column, I wrote about how M-PESA became a successful business model through empowering micro-consumers. In the current column, let us look into how micro-suppliers could be empowered as a part of creating shared profit among different participants of the value chain.
ITC’s e-Choupal
ITC’ Limited’s ‘Sab Saath Badhein: Inspiring stories of inclusive growth’ videos (available at https://iris.itc.in/v1/index.php/a/910EMC6O?Kcdyjp) are some of my favorites.ITC’s contribution to inclusive and sustainable business in India are conspicuous by initiatives likee-Choupal that brought about significant social impact through wiring rural India. 'Choupal' is Hindi for 'gathering place': the virtual meeting place for farmers for give-and-take of information and as an e-commerce hub.
Traditionally, after harvest, farmers bring their produce to regional market places in several small lots, where the produce is auctioned by brokers to the traders and agents of the processing companies in an open auction method. The whole process is carried out a few times into the next set of auctions until the larger and final sale is done. With the multiple layers of middle men involved in the transactions and with the pertinent market information blocked from the farmers by the middle men for their own benefit, farmers end up getting into loss or minimal profit. ITC's e-Choupaleffectively addressed these issues - lack of transparency in transactions, blocking of timely information to the farmers, commissions to the middle men who added very little or no value to the process.
Through e-Choupal,farmers can transact directly with a processor and can get better price for their produce.ITC's empowerment plan includes providing Internet kiosks to farmers in villages. The farmerscan access in their local language real-time information on the weather, market prices, best farming practices, etc. With the availability of complete information at the right time, farmers are empowered to make the right selling choices for their produce. As a direct marketing channel virtually enabling price discovery, 'e-Choupal' eliminates inefficient intermediation and multiple transaction layers.
(Reference for image: http://www.itcportal.com/businesses/agri-business/e-choupal.aspx)
e-Choupal today is the world's largest rural digital infrastructure. The initiative now comprises about 6,100 kiosk installations covering over 35,000 villages and serving over 4 million farmers. Currently, the 'e-Choupal' website www.echoupal.com provides information to farmers across the 10 States of Madhya Pradesh, Haryana, Uttara Khand, Uttar Pradesh, Rajasthan, Karnataka, Kerala, Maharashtra, Andhra Pradesh and Tamil Nadu. Thewin-win initiative offers shared benefit to both the micro-suppliers i.e. farmers and ITC. Farmers benefit through enhanced farm productivity and higher selling prices. ITC benefits from the lower net cost of procurement having eliminated costs in the supply chain that do not add value.e-Choupal is forging ahead with aggressive agenda for the next years: to spread to 15 states, 20,000 kiosks and 100,000 villages impacting 10 million farmers.
In the next column we will look into more on the significance of e-Choupal in the Indian context.
About the author: Sri Devi Bulusu has over one and half decades experience in leading global technology teams. She is passionate about delivering effective solutions through business strategy and program management. She holds double MBA (with Royal Thai Government Fellowship) from School of Management, AIT Thailand and ESCP-EAP, UK and Masters in corporate law from ASU. Sri Devi is an ardent believer in spirituality as an essential component for meaningful business and leadership.