A social venture, working to address mass unemployment in rural India, inspired a new initiative set up by three Executive MBA students from Saïd Business School. Inclusive Ventures Limited (IVL) is creating sustainable jobs for underprivileged rural communities in a number of locations around the world. The initiative is inspired by the experience and success of RuralShores, an Indian social venture which provides skills and employment to more than 5,000 people in 25 centres in India, servicing 30+ client firms and government departments.
The partnership with IVL will follow the RuralShores’ model and invest in up to 5 centers across rural India. IVL and RuralShores will also explore opportunities for IVL to invest directly into RuralShores when such possibilities arise and to expand the model outside India.
The Oxford Executive MBA students visited RuralShores in March, on an annual study trip to India, as part of their EMBA programme. The visit was led by Professor David Upton of Saïd Business School, a leading expert in international operations management and outsourcing. ‘Businesses are keen to outsource many of their ‘back-room’ functions for greater cost efficiencies, and this demand for skilled, outsourced work can be utilised to create rewarding and sustainable jobs in remote locations’ said Professor Upton. ‘This new initiative is building upon the insights and experiences of RuralShores in India in creating rural jobs, and is applying their model in other settings, including rural locations in the UK. This is a terrific example of how we can learn lessons from developing countries for application in the developed world.’
Click here to learn more about IVL.