Skip to main content
SpringerLink
Log in
Book cover

Sustainability in a Digital World pp 225–239Cite as

Technology Adoption at the BOP Markets: Insights from Turk Telekom’s Focus on Inclusive Business

  • Chapter
  • First Online:

Part of the book series: CSR, Sustainability, Ethics & Governance ((CSEG))

Abstract

The post 2015 agenda on sustainable development has emphasized the role of science, technology and innovation in promoting sustainable development (Chandran et al., Tech Monitor 14–19, 2015; Dosi and Freeman, in Dosi et al. (eds), Laboratory of economics and management (LEM), Sant’Anna School of Advanced Studies, Pisa 1988; Fagerberg et al., in Hall and Rosenberg (eds), Handbook of the economics of innovation, North Holland, 2010). The chapter examines Turk Telekom’s “Life is Simpler with Internet” initiative, which is an inclusive business activity that has contributed to both company’s sustainable market development and also to sustainable development goals in the Turkish context. By targeting to bridge the digital divide that persists in Turkey, the initiative depicts how Information and Communication Technology (ICT) is capable of reducing particular types of market separations between consumers and producers at the BOP, and thus facilitating market development at BOP (Tarafdar and Singh, Proceedings of SIG GlobDev 4th annual workshop, Shanghai, 2011). Considering the fruitful outcomes of this project, and business and social impact that could be created through the proliferation of ICT in BOP markets, the authors recommend companies to employ long-term, iterative efforts of awareness creation, knowledge and skill development and technology appropriation to reap the desired benefits.

This is a preview of subscription content, log in via an institution.

Chapter
USD   29.95
Price excludes VAT (USA)
  • Available as PDF
  • Read on any device
  • Instant download
  • Own it forever
eBook
USD   39.99
Price excludes VAT (USA)
  • Available as EPUB and PDF
  • Read on any device
  • Instant download
  • Own it forever
Softcover Book
USD   54.99
Price excludes VAT (USA)
  • Compact, lightweight edition
  • Dispatched in 3 to 5 business days
  • Free shipping worldwide - see info
Hardcover Book
USD   84.99
Price excludes VAT (USA)
  • Durable hardcover edition
  • Dispatched in 3 to 5 business days
  • Free shipping worldwide - see info

Tax calculation will be finalised at checkout

Purchases are for personal use only

Learn about institutional subscriptions

References

  • Al-Tabbaa O, Leach D, March J (2014) Collaboration between nonprofit and business sectors: a framework to guide strategy development for nonprofit organizations. Voluntas 25(3):657–678

    Article  Google Scholar 

  • Anderson J, Billou N (2007) Serving the world’s poor: innovation at the base of the economic pyramid. J Bus Strategy 28(2):14–21

    Article  Google Scholar 

  • Bartels R (1968) The general theory of marketing. J Mark 32(1):29–33

    Article  Google Scholar 

  • Blok V, Sjauw-Koen-Fa A, Omta O (2013) Effective stakeholder involvement at the base of the pyramid: the case of Rabobank. Int Food Agribus Man 16(A):39–44

    Google Scholar 

  • Brugmann J, Prahalad CK (2007) Cocreating business’s new social compact. Harv Bus Rev 85(2):80–90

    Google Scholar 

  • Burrell J (2008) Problematic empowerment: west African internet scams as strategic misrepresentation. Inform Technol Int Dev 4(4):15–30

    Article  Google Scholar 

  • Calton JM, Werhane PH, Hartman LP, Bevan D (2013) Building partnerships to create social and economic value at the base of the global development pyramid. J Bus Ethics 117(4):721–733

    Article  Google Scholar 

  • Chandran VGR, Kwee NB, Yuan WC, Kanagasundaram T (2015) Science, technology and innovation for inclusive development: reorganizing the national and regional systems of innovation. Tech Monitor, Jan–Mar:14–19

    Google Scholar 

  • Cheung DKK, Welford RJ, Hills PR (2009) CSR and the environment: business supply chain partnerships in Hong Kong and PRDR, China. Corp Soc Resp Env Ma 6(5):250–263

    Article  Google Scholar 

  • Davis FD (1989) Perceived usefulness, perceived ease of use and user acceptance of information technology. MIS Quart 13(3):319–340

    Article  Google Scholar 

  • Del Baldo M (2013) Corporate social responsibility, human resource management and corporate family responsability. When a company is “The best place to work” Elica group, the hi-fi company. Ekonomska istraživanja – Econ Res Special Issue 26:201–224

    Article  Google Scholar 

  • Dey BL, Binsardi B, Prendergast R, Saren M (2013) A qualitative enquiry into the appropriation of mobile telephony at the bottom of the pyramid. Int Market Rev 30(4):297–322

    Article  Google Scholar 

  • Dhir A, Moukadem I, Jere N, Kaur P, Kujala S, Yla-Jaaski A (2012) Ethnographic examination of studying information sharing practices in rural South Africa. In: Paper presented at the 5th international conference on advances in computer-human interactions. www.academia.edu/1405296/Ethnographic_Examination_for_Studying_Information_Sharing_Practices_in_Rural_South_Africa. Accessed 20 Jan 2013

  • Dosi G, Freeman C (1988) Technical change and economic theory. In: Dosi G, Freeman C, Nelson R, Silverberg G, Soete LL (eds) Laboratory of economics and management (LEM). Sant’Anna School of Advanced Studies, Pisa

    Google Scholar 

  • Duran-Encalada JA, Paucar-Caceres A (2012) A system dynamics sustainable business model for Petroleos Mexicanos (Pemex): case based on the global reporting initiative. J Oper Res Soc 63(8):1065–1078

    Article  Google Scholar 

  • Fagerberg J, Srholec M, Verspagen B (2010) Innovation and economic development. In: Hall B, Rosenberg N (eds) Handbook of the economics of innovation, vol II, North Holland, pp 833–872

    Google Scholar 

  • Fisher K, Geenen J, Jurcevic M, McClintock K, Davis G (2009) Applying asset-based community development as a strategy for CSR: a Canadian perspective on a win–win for stakeholders and SMEs. Bus Ethics 18(1):66–82

    Article  Google Scholar 

  • Franceys R, Weitz A (2003) Public private partnerships in infrastructure for the poor. J Int Dev 15(8):1083–1098

    Article  Google Scholar 

  • Freeman C, Soete L (1997) The economics of industrial innovation, 3rd edn. MIT Press, Cambridge, MA

    Google Scholar 

  • G20 Inclusive Business Framework (2016) http://www.ifc.org/wps/wcm/connect/f0784d004a9b1f2ea5f0ed9c54e94b00/Attachment+G+-+G20+Inclusive+Business+Framework_Final.pdf?MOD=AJPERES. Accessed 20 Dec 2015

  • Galea G, McKee M (2014) Public-private partnerships with large corporations: setting the ground rules for better health. Health Policy 115(2–3):138–140

    Article  Google Scholar 

  • Gatune J (2010) Africa’s development beyond aid: getting out of the box. Ann Am Acad Pol Soc Sci 632:103–120

    Article  Google Scholar 

  • George G, McGahan AM, Prabhu J (2012) Innovation for inclusive growth: towards a theoretical framework and a research agenda. J Manage Stud 49(4):661–683

    Article  Google Scholar 

  • German L, Schoneveld GC, Pacheco P (2011) Local social and environmental impacts of biofuels: global comparative assessment and implications for governance. Ecol Soc 16(4):29–43

    Google Scholar 

  • Hahn R, Gold S (2014) Resources and governance in “base of the pyramid”-partnerships: assessing collaborations between businesses and non-business actors. J Bus Res 67(7):1321–1333

    Article  Google Scholar 

  • Hammond A, Kramer WJ, Tran J, Katz R, Walker J (2007) The next 4 billion market size and business strategy at the base of the pyramid. World Resources Institute, Washington, DC

    Google Scholar 

  • Hart SL (2005) Capitalism at the crossroads: the unlimited business opportunities in serving the world’s most difficult problems. Wharton School Publishing, Upper Saddle River

    Google Scholar 

  • Hoejmose S, Brammer S, Millington A (2012) “Green” supply chain management: the role of trust and top management in B2B and B2C markets. Ind Market Manag 4:609–620

    Article  Google Scholar 

  • Horst HA, Miller D (2006) The cell phone: an anthropology of communication. Berg Publishers, Oxford

    Google Scholar 

  • Idemudia U (2009a) Assessing corporate-community involvement strategies in the Nigerian oil industry: an empirical analysis. Resour Policy 34(3):133–141

    Article  Google Scholar 

  • Idemudia U (2009b) Oil extraction and poverty reduction in the Niger delta: a critical examination of partnership initiatives. J Bus Ethics 90:91–116

    Article  Google Scholar 

  • Ismail T, Masinge K (2011) Mobile banking: innovation for the poor. United Nations University, UNU-MERIT working paper series. http://collections.unu.edu/eserv/UNU:419/wp2011-074.pdf. Accessed 14 Feb 2016

  • Karnani A (2007) The mirage of marketing to the bottom of the pyramid: how the private sector can help alleviate poverty. Calif Manage Rev 49(4):90–111

    Article  Google Scholar 

  • Kuriyan R, Ray I, Toyama K (2008) Information and communication technologies for development: the bottom of the pyramid model in practice. Inform Soc 24(2):93–104

    Article  Google Scholar 

  • Liao SH, Chang WJ, Lee CC (2008) Mining marketing maps for business alliances. Expert Syst Appl 35(3):1338–1350

    Article  Google Scholar 

  • Lin HY (2012) Cross-sector alliances for corporate social responsibility partner heterogeneity moderates environmental strategy outcomes. J Bus Ethics 110(2):219–229

    Article  Google Scholar 

  • London T (2008) The base-of-the-pyramid perspective: a new approach to poverty alleviation. Acad Manage Proc 1:1–6

    Article  Google Scholar 

  • London T, Rondinelli DA, O’Neill H (2006) Strange bedfellows: alliances between corporations and nonprofits. In: Shenkar O, Reuer JJ (eds) Handbook of strategic alliances. Sage, Thousand Oaks

    Google Scholar 

  • Lundvall B, Vang J, Joseph K, Chaminade C (2009) Bridging innovation system research and development studies: challenges and research opportunities. In: 7th Globelics conference, Senegal

    Google Scholar 

  • Marquez P, Reficco E, Berger G (2010) Socially inclusive business: engaging the poor through market initiatives in iberoamerica David Rockefeller center for Latin American Studies. Harvard University Press, Cambridge, MA

    Google Scholar 

  • Nielsen AE, Thomsen C (2011) Sustainable development: the role of network communication. Corp Soc Resp Env Ma 18(1):1–10

    Article  Google Scholar 

  • Prahalad CK (2005) The fortune at the bottom of the pyramid: eradicating poverty through profits. Wharton School Publishing, Upper Saddle River

    Google Scholar 

  • Prahalad CK (2010) The fortune at the bottom of the pyramid: eradicating poverty through profits. Pearson Education, Upper Saddle River

    Google Scholar 

  • Prahalad CK, Hart SL (2002) The fortune at the bottom of the pyramid. Strategy Bus 26:1–14

    Google Scholar 

  • Rangan K, Quelch J, Herrero G, Barton B (2007) Business solutions for the global poor: creating social and economic value. Jossey-Bass, San Francisco

    Google Scholar 

  • Reynoso J, Kandampully J, Xiucheng F, Paulose H (2015) Learning from socially driven service innovation in emerging economies. J Serv Manage 26(1):156–176

    Article  Google Scholar 

  • Rivera-Santos M, Rufin C, Kolk A (2012) Bridging the institutional divide: partnerships in subsistence markets. J Bus Res 65(12):1721–1727

    Article  Google Scholar 

  • Rogers EM (2003) Diffusion of innovations, 5th edn. Free Press, New York

    Google Scholar 

  • Rotter JP, Airike PE, Mark-Herbert C (2014) Exploring political corporate social responsibility in global supply chains. J Bus Ethics 125(4):581–599

    Article  Google Scholar 

  • Sanneh ES, Hu AH, Njai M, Ceesay OM, Manjang B (2014) Making basic health care accessible to rural communities: a case study of Kiang West district in rural Gambia. Public Health Nurs 31(2):126–133

    Article  Google Scholar 

  • Schuster RT, Holtbrügge D (2014) Benefits of cross-sector partnerships in markets at the base of the pyramid. Bus Strat Environ 23(3):188–203

    Article  Google Scholar 

  • Shivarajan S, Srinivasan A (2013) The poor as suppliers of intellectual property: a social network approach to sustainable poverty alleviation. Bus Ethics Q 23(3):381–406

    Article  Google Scholar 

  • Simanis E (2010) Needs, needs everywhere, but not a BoP market to tap. In: London T, Hart S (eds) Next generation business strategies for the base of the pyramid: new approaches for building mutual value. FT Press, Upper Saddle River

    Google Scholar 

  • Tarafdar M, Singh R (2011) A market separations perspective to analyze the role of ICT in development at the bottom of the pyramid. In: Proceedings of SIG GlobDev 4th annual workshop, Shanghai, 3 Dec 2011. https://www.researchgate.net/profile/Ramendra_Singh3/publication/265351953_A_Market_Separations_Perspective_to_Analyze_the_Role_of_ICT_in_Development_at_the_Bottom_of_the_Pyramid_A_Market_Separations_Perspective_to_Analyze_the_Role_of_ICT_in_Development_at_the_Bottom_of_the_Pyramid/links/55b7068808aec0e5f43803b6.pdf. Accessed 12 Feb 2016

  • Tasavori M, Zaefarian R, Ghauri PN (2015) The creation view of opportunities at the base of the pyramid. Entrep Region Dev 27(1–2):106–126

    Article  Google Scholar 

  • UNDP (2008) Creating value for all: strategies for doing business with the poor.http://www.rw.undp.org/content/dam/rwanda/docs/povred/RW_rp_Creating_Value_for_All_Doing_Business_with_the_Poor.pdf. Accessed 20 Aug 2015

  • Urquhart C, Liyanage S, Kah MM (2008) ICTs and poverty reduction: a social capital and knowledge perspective. J Inform Technol 23(3):203–213

    Article  Google Scholar 

  • Venkatesh V, Bala H (2008) Technology acceptance model 3 and a research agenda on interventions. Decis Sci 39(2):273–315

    Article  Google Scholar 

  • Venkatesh V, Davis FD (2000) A theoretical extension of the technology acceptance model: four longitudinal field studies. Manag Sci 46(2):186–204

    Article  Google Scholar 

  • Vidal-Leon C (2013) Corporate social responsibility, human rights, and the world trade organization. J Int Econ Law 16(4):893–920

    Article  Google Scholar 

  • Walsham G (2010) ICTs for the broader development of India: an analysis of the literature. Electron J Inform Syst Dev Countries 41(4):1–20

    Google Scholar 

  • WBCSD and SNV (2010) Inclusive business: creating value in Latin America. WBCSD and SNV, Geneve and The Hague. http://www.wbcsd.org/Pages/EDocument/EDocumentDetails.aspx?ID=43&NoSearchContextKey=true. Accessed 10 July 2015

  • Webb JW, Kistruck GM, Ireland RD, Ketchen DJ (2010) The entrepreneurship process in base of the pyramid markets: the case of multinational enterprise/nongovernment organization alliances. Entrep Theory Pract 34(3):555–581

    Article  Google Scholar 

Download references

Author information

Authors and Affiliations

  1. Kemerburgaz University, Istanbul, Turkey

    Dicle Yurdakul

  2. Koç University, Istanbul, Turkey

    Seda Müftügil Yalçın & Zeynep Gürhan-Canlı

Authors
  1. Dicle Yurdakul
    View author publications

    You can also search for this author in PubMed Google Scholar

  2. Seda Müftügil Yalçın
    View author publications

    You can also search for this author in PubMed Google Scholar

  3. Zeynep Gürhan-Canlı
    View author publications

    You can also search for this author in PubMed Google Scholar

Corresponding author

Correspondence to Zeynep Gürhan-Canlı .

Editor information

Editors and Affiliations

  1. Fresenius Business School, Munich, Germany

    Thomas Osburg

  2. FranklinCovey Leadership Institute GmbH, Grünwald, Germany

    Christiane Lohrmann

Rights and permissions

Reprints and permissions

Copyright information

© 2017 Springer International Publishing AG

About this chapter

Cite this chapter

Yurdakul, D., Yalçın, S.M., Gürhan-Canlı, Z. (2017). Technology Adoption at the BOP Markets: Insights from Turk Telekom’s Focus on Inclusive Business. In: Osburg, T., Lohrmann, C. (eds) Sustainability in a Digital World. CSR, Sustainability, Ethics & Governance. Springer, Cham. https://doi.org/10.1007/978-3-319-54603-2_19

Download citation

Publish with us

Policies and ethics

Search

Navigation