Georgina Campbell Flatter

ABSTRACT
In July 2017, MAX (Metro African eXpress) was paving the way for an ecommerce boom in Lagos, Nigeria by creating the city’s first reliable same-day delivery service. MAX used an on-demand mobile platform to match delivery requests with highly vetted and trained motorcycle couriers. This growing, loudly-branded fleet of 66 contract drivers was making 500 deliveries per day, creating new opportunities for small businesses. Cofounder Tayo Bamiduro was eager to scale, but how? Should… Show more

ABSTRACT
In July 2017, MAX (Metro African eXpress) was paving the way for an ecommerce boom in Lagos, Nigeria by creating the city’s first reliable same-day delivery service. MAX used an on-demand mobile platform to match delivery requests with highly vetted and trained motorcycle couriers. This growing, loudly-branded fleet of 66 contract drivers was making 500 deliveries per day, creating new opportunities for small businesses. Cofounder Tayo Bamiduro was eager to scale, but how? Should MAX continue expanding within Lagos, or was it time to branch out? And should the company continue to focus on its core motorcycle delivery and taxi services, or should it dedicate resources toward converting its proprietary mapping standards and driver licensing into new products?
LEARNING OBJECTIVE
To generate class discussion on the challenges and opportunities entrepreneurs and startups face when scaling an early-stage success in an emerging market; consider the costs and benefits of saturating current market versus expanding to new markets, and of researching and diversifying a product line vs. pushing it out more widely.
COULD BE TAUGHT IN THE FOLLOWING COURSE(S)
strategy; leadership; entrepreneurship; emerging markets; international development; transportation; logistics Show less

ABSTRACT
Soko’s “virtual factory” of 2,300 artisanal workshops distributed around Nairobi, Kenya produced brass, horn, and bone jewelry for a discerning global market. The firm combined a mobile platform with state-of-the-art machine learning algorithms to match the most qualified artisans with the right production jobs and perform remote quality checks on completed products. The company had grown quickly, increasing the annual income of its artisans by up to five times and helping dozens of… Show more

ABSTRACT
Soko’s “virtual factory” of 2,300 artisanal workshops distributed around Nairobi, Kenya produced brass, horn, and bone jewelry for a discerning global market. The firm combined a mobile platform with state-of-the-art machine learning algorithms to match the most qualified artisans with the right production jobs and perform remote quality checks on completed products. The company had grown quickly, increasing the annual income of its artisans by up to five times and helping dozens of people move out of slums. Yet Soko struggled with the variability of its retail market, and cofounder Ella Peinovich wanted to scale up year-round operations to provide sustainable work for all Soko’s artisans. Could Peinovich increase Soko’s sales while maintaining her commitment to quality goods for Soko’s customers and decent jobs for its artisans?
LEARNING OBJECTIVE
To generate class discussion on the challenges and opportunities entrepreneurs and startups face when scaling an early-stage success in an emerging market; consider the costs and benefits of saturating current market versus expanding to new markets, and of researching and diversifying a product line vs. pushing it out more widely.
COULD BE TAUGHT IN THE FOLLOWING COURSE(S)
strategy; leadership; entrepreneurship; emerging markets; international development; manufacturing Show less

ABSTRACT
Sanergy was installing 100 new toilets per month in the slums of Nairobi, Kenya, but David Auerbach’s team still had a long way to go before reaching their targeted economies of scale (at which point they could provide sanitation services to all Nairobi slum residents at less than one-fifth the cost of a running-water sewer). Now that Sanergy’s for-profit arm was finally generating revenue, it was time to consider the next steps to grow the company. Economies of scale in collection… Show more

ABSTRACT
Sanergy was installing 100 new toilets per month in the slums of Nairobi, Kenya, but David Auerbach’s team still had a long way to go before reaching their targeted economies of scale (at which point they could provide sanitation services to all Nairobi slum residents at less than one-fifth the cost of a running-water sewer). Now that Sanergy’s for-profit arm was finally generating revenue, it was time to consider the next steps to grow the company. Economies of scale in collection and conversion processes would allow Sanergy to sell waste-converted products to farmers at greater volume and profit, but first they had to install many more toilets, which in turn demanded additional funds.
LEARNING OBJECTIVE
To generate class discussion on the challenges entrepreneurs and startups face when scaling an early-stage success in an emerging market; consider costs and benefits of saturating the current market versus expanding to new markets, and of researching and diversifying product line vs. pushing proven product line more widely.
COULD BE TAUGHT IN THE FOLLOWING COURSE(S)
strategy; leadership; entrepreneurship; emerging markets; sustainability Show less

Program Objective
The objective of the Ghana Climate Innovation Center (GCIC) is to establish
local institutional capacity to support Ghanaian entrepreneurs and new
ventures involved in developing profitable and locally-appropriate solutions to
climate change mitigation and adaptation. Through its programs, activities
and financing, the GCIC and its network of partners and stakeholders will
provide a country-driven approach to solving climate, energy and resource
challenges… Show more

Program Objective
The objective of the Ghana Climate Innovation Center (GCIC) is to establish
local institutional capacity to support Ghanaian entrepreneurs and new
ventures involved in developing profitable and locally-appropriate solutions to
climate change mitigation and adaptation. Through its programs, activities
and financing, the GCIC and its network of partners and stakeholders will
provide a country-driven approach to solving climate, energy and resource
challenges and support economic development through job creation. The USD
17.2m program will provide targeted support, mentoring, training and funding
facilitation to up to 100 companies in Ghana over 5 years. Show less

North American porcupines are well known for their specialized hairs, or quills that feature microscopic backward-facing deployable barbs that are used in self-defense. Herein we show that the natural quill’s geometry enables easy penetration and high tissue adhesion where the barbs specifically contribute to adhesion and unexpectedly, dramatically reduce the force required to penetrate tissue. Reduced penetration force is achieved by topography that appears to create stress concentrations… Show more

North American porcupines are well known for their specialized hairs, or quills that feature microscopic backward-facing deployable barbs that are used in self-defense. Herein we show that the natural quill’s geometry enables easy penetration and high tissue adhesion where the barbs specifically contribute to adhesion and unexpectedly, dramatically reduce the force required to penetrate tissue. Reduced penetration force is achieved by topography that appears to create stress concentrations along regions of the quill where the cross sectional diameter grows rapidly, facilitating cutting of the tissue. Barbs located near the first geometrical transition zone exhibit the most substantial impact on minimizing the force required for penetration. Barbs at the tip of the quill independently exhibit the greatest impact on tissue adhesion force and the cooperation between barbs in the 0–2 mm and 2–4 mm regions appears critical to enhance tissue adhesion force. The dual functions of barbs were reproduced with replica molded synthetic polyurethane quills. These findings should serve as the basis for the development of bio-inspired devices such as tissue adhesives or needles, trocars, and vascular tunnelers where minimizing the penetration force is important to prevent collateral damage. Show less

Abstract
This paper provides a systematic examination of the use of a Grand Innovation Prize (GIP) in action – the Progressive Automotive Insurance X PRIZE – a $10 million prize for a highly efficient vehicle. Following a mechanism design approach we define three key dimensions for GIP evaluation: objectives, design, and performance, where prize design includes ex ante specifications, ex ante incentives, qualification rules, and award governance. Within this framework we compare observations… Show more

Abstract
This paper provides a systematic examination of the use of a Grand Innovation Prize (GIP) in action – the Progressive Automotive Insurance X PRIZE – a $10 million prize for a highly efficient vehicle. Following a mechanism design approach we define three key dimensions for GIP evaluation: objectives, design, and performance, where prize design includes ex ante specifications, ex ante incentives, qualification rules, and award governance. Within this framework we compare observations of GIPs from three domains – empirical reality, theory, and policy – to better understand their function as an incentive mechanism for encouraging new solutions to large-scale social challenges. Combining data from direct observation, personal interviews, and surveys, together with analysis of extant theory and policy documents on GIPs, our results highlight three points of divergence: first, over the complexity of defining prize specifications; secondly, over the nature and role of incentives, particularly patents; thirdly, the overlooked challenges associated with prize governance. Our approach identifies a clear roadmap for future theory and policy around GIPs. Show less