The Business Solution to Poverty, Paul Polak and Mal Warwick
The Business Solution to Poverty, Paul Polak and Mal Warwick
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The Business Solution to Poverty
Designing Products and Services for Three Billion New Customers

Author: Paul Polak and Mal Warwick

Narrator: William Hughes

Unabridged: 7 hr 18 min

Format: Digital Audiobook Download

Published: 09/09/2013

Synopsis

The nearly three billion people living on two dollars a day are not just the worlds greatest challengethey represent an extraordinary market opportunity. The key is what Paul Polak and Mal Warwick call Zero-Based Design: starting from scratch to create innovative products and services tailored for the very poor, armed with a thorough understanding of what they really want and need, and driven by what Polak and Warwick call the ruthless pursuit of affordability. Polak has been doing this work for years, and Warwick has extensive experience in both business and philanthropy. Together, they show how their design principles and vision can enable unapologetic capitalists to supply the very poor with clean drinking water, electricity, irrigation, housing, education, health care, and other necessities at a fraction of the usual cost and at profit margins comparable to those of businesses in the developed world. Promising governmental and philanthropic efforts to end poverty have not reached scale because they lack the incentives of the market to attract massive resources. This book opens an extraordinary opportunity for nimble entrepreneurs, investors, and corporate executives that will result not only in vibrant, growing businesses but also a better life for the worlds poorest people.

Reviews

Goodreads review by John on June 08, 2015

This is a book that cries out to those of all ages who want meaning and purpose in their life. The goal is simple—bring out of poverty those 2.7 billion people who live on $2 or less per day. As the authors graphically and specifically point out—this is far from easy. But, think about it, what in li......more

Goodreads review by Sydney on July 12, 2022

This book was informative, but the language was outdated and at times offensive. I think that the authors need to be careful not to be so supercilious towards the different peoples mentioned in this book. The book can be helpful, but certainly should not be the only resource used when trying to help......more

Goodreads review by Zahedul on July 09, 2016

Paul Polak, founder of iDE, a renowned INGO, shares his philosophy for alleviating poverty. The book champions the market development approach, as opposed to charitable and philanthropic initiatives. Based on his wealth of experience implementing myriad initiatives over the last 25 years, Paul disse......more

Goodreads review by Richard on November 11, 2020

I have always liked the idea of doing good and making money at the same time. And I have also always liked the philosophy of the old saw about teaching the man to fish instead of giving him a fish, so I found the basic idea of this book very appealing. And I liked the way that the author presented c......more

Goodreads review by Nicholas on March 04, 2023

I am definitely more convinced that business is not only a viable solution to fighting poverty, but maybe the primary solution to fighting poverty. Designing for customers with an income of less than $2-a-day is an extremely hard task that has immense potential upside for these customers and busines......more

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