Corporates and Entrepreneurs: An Unlikely Pairing in Solving for a Sustainable Future

Corporates and Entrepreneurs: An Unlikely Pairing in solving for a sustainable future

“Entrepreneur” and “Corporation” may sound like a bit of a juxtaposition when used together in the same sentence. People tend to think of entrepreneurs as quick-thinking and high-energy, exploring opportunities while taking risks daily. Conversely, operating at scale and driving efficiencies across operations and value chains typically define larger companies.

So what do these two disparate players have in common? A closer look reveals that corporations and entrepreneurs are, in fact, interdependent. Both need the other to thrive. Companies need smaller enterprises to provide niche products and local relevance, while small entrepreneurs often depend on large companies for reliable contracts and sustained demand for their goods and services.

Businesses are regularly born out of an entrepreneurial spirit – from a single entrepreneur with a vision. This vision is then turned into a scaled and operationalized business bringing products to markets, but also providing services and employment to communities. How should corporations continue to foster a culture of entrepreneurship both internally and externally? Championing shared values grounded in the pursuit of a sustainable future for both the individual and the collective emerges as the best way to find solutions and create broader stakeholder value. ?

Sustainable Innovation: Entrepreneurship as a Key Enabler

Where there is one area of interdependence that stands out is that both players increasingly find their most significant common ground in innovation. Entrepreneurs used to bring new solutions to solve old problems but now with the growing complexity of the world and the impact of climate change, we now need solutions for future challenges - leveraging modern technology and industry transformation to direct additional resources or information towards the issue at hand. While start ups may be driven by their own passions to make a difference and commercial interests, they are also contributing to value or reducing costs and risks in the corporate ecosystem. It is fair to say that entrepreneurs often encounter roadblocks when trying to scale their ideas into corporate value chains- and it is time to focus more on this opportunity for a more sustainable future.

While the points of friction between an entrepreneur and a corporation may be present in day-to-day operations, utilizing innovation on both sides can lead to a middle ground for finding solutions. For example, an entrepreneur may find it challenging to fulfill large company orders and face increased pressure from the corporation to keep their prices low. This could lead to late deliverables, incomplete fulfillment, and difficulty balancing many corporate clients. In these situations, each player must understand the circumstances of the other and apply that context toward strategic collaboration.??

In fast-changing times, companies have learned that there is much to gain from thinking and acting like an entrepreneur. Championing entrepreneurship from a corporate perspective means promoting the same values and spirit of an entrepreneur, understanding that the challenges an individual faces on the ground to do their job is a challenge that the company shares, and subsequently working together to find a solution.??

There is a genuine need for strategic collaboration between entrepreneurs and corporations due to a marked shift in the understanding that neither corporations nor governments alone can find solutions to society’s most pressing problems.

Resiliency and Value Creation: The Best of Both Worlds

The insight that we need innovation and collaboration with entrepreneurs in equal measure to address both commercial and sustainability challenges underpins the AB InBev ambition to championing entrepreneurship across our value chain. Our company purpose is “To dream big to create a future with more Cheers!”. Entrepreneurship connects this purpose to our strategic ESG agenda through creating shared prosperity for our communities, for the planet and for our company. Such prosperity is wealth that is shared, growth that is inclusive, and ‘wins’ for the world that are truly worth celebrating.

The commercial case for an Entrepreneurship Focus

The AB InBev business case for supporting entrepreneurship is strong. With material ties to the longevity of the business, each player within the company’s entrepreneurship landscape is key to our commercial success. Protecting our route to market, enhancing the local license to operate and securing strong relationships within local communities are just a few of the many reasons to continue investing on this front.

From seed to sip, small entrepreneurs are a natural comment of a beer value chain. With thousands of small scale and commercial farmers providing the key ingredients to millions of small retailers selling our products to consumers on a daily basis – this symbiotic relationship between a global brewer and small entrepreneurs are symbolic of the positive impact of the beer value chain: it is inclusive, it is local, and it is natural. Leveraging all the resources within our corporate ecosystem – investments, multilateral partnerships, and new technologies to name a few – to catalyze transformative change within our entrepreneur communities is a natural and organic progression of our business.

Climate week is our time to ask the important questions across all our stakeholders to secure a better future for us all. We believe adding the strengthening of the relationship between corporations and entrepreneurs is one innovation that requires more attention in our striving for a more prosperous and sustainable future.

Andre Fourie is VP Sustainability and Urvashi Banerjea Global Manager: Entrepreneurship at 安海斯 - 布希英博