Business

    This paper will basically provide a book review of a particular chapter and explain how the contributions by the book has had an effect and how does it leaves an impact to bring the NGOs, government and corporate world in line with the social uplift that we talk about. The name of the book is Terms of Endearment Business, NGOs and sustainable development. Chapter number five which is based on Complementary resources has been chosen for this book review in order to narrow down the scope of this paper.

    The paper will first give an overview of the entire book, what it actually talks about, what are the key issues that are discussed and then it will explain what it talks about in chapter number five. During the discussion of chapter number 5, the book will present analysis of how the book contributes to present new ideas and strategies with which NGOs can help out businesses to reap benefits as well as get a license to operate ethically keeping in mind the environmental issues and its Corporate Social Responsibility (Welford 2000)(Macintosh 1992).

    The paper will also talk about the developments that have been made in recent years regarding this fact and prove how far the author has been able to successfully impart his knowledge to the corporate and social world.

Book Overview
    This book basically talks about the how the business will be conducted or should be operated in the future keeping in mind the environmental and social issues that all of us are already aware of. The author emphasizes that the corporate world has to realize what is more important other then the profit making and profit maximizing goals that the businesses have. The book outlines the stakeholders that are involved in the key decisions which can either contribute positively to a society or that can destroy a society. As we experience globalization, the need of business evaluating the way they are currently conducting their operations is getting even more important. The directions and the line of thinking have to be revised because of the fact that the basic concept of globalization is that the whole world is now connected. It is not about one society or one nation any more. It is about the whole world as a global village. Businesses are crossing borders due to advancements in communication technology and the decreased barriers of entry into new markets, and thus, they must also realize how their responsibilities have also increased. It is not the business only which can play an important part in the development of the global society, but, a deadly or previously adverse combination of NGOs with a business can actually make this happen that both of these stakeholders maximize their own benefits while contributing to the development of the society at the same time (World Business Council For Sustainable Development 2003).

    The book also presents many examples regarding how both the Civil Society organizations or the NGOs and the business can join hands to make a difference for the whole society. Both of these stakeholders have their own expertise. A business is necessary for generating economic activity in a society and so is a civil authority or NGO whose purpose is to provide effective, productive, healthy and clean business practices for the society so that the society is kept safe from unethical ills. It emphasizes that if both the stakeholders join hands for the cause, then the society will end up earning a positive and increasing social and economic benefit at the end.

Introduction to Chapter 5
    Now this particular chapter starts off with an amazing example in which the author presents to entities of which one is a NGO and the other one is a huge business. The business is a multibillion dollar power utility company and the NGO is a Conservation Law Foundation. The author presents a perfect match for the society derived from the adverse goals or objectives of the two entities. According to the author, the goals of both the parties are totally different in their essence, but, when they are mixed together in light of the total net benefit it will cause the society, the two organizations prove to be a deadly combination. Both of these organizations, in a joint venture, placed a bid for the regions largest power utility facility. No matter how many multi billion dollars a company has, it is not easy for it to bid and account for all the legal requirements, formalities and laws to be followed by an organization single handedly. On the other hand, for a region that big, an NGO, no matter how big the size it may have, may not and must not have the expertise to actually make sure that all the dry electricity generation plants are shut down for the society to have a efficient power supply system in which resources are utilized in the most effective and productive manner while not causing any harm to the environment. Thus, it is proved that both the stakeholders have opposite motives and stakes in the project. However, when we look at the reason for a joint bid, we see that both of the organizations have made use of each others expertise in pursuit of their own goals and targets. The NGO make use of the businesss expertise in managing and operating the largest power supply facility, whereas, the NGO contributes its legal advice and efforts in shutting down the inefficient power supply and generation units in order to conserve the resources (Lawrence, Weber,  Post 2004).

    There are basically three stakeholders at the end. The Business, the government and the civil society which are responsible for the positive development of the whole social and environmental system. However, according to the author, when goals and perspectives of all the three are merged and joined together, many discrepancies and conflicts arise due to differences in perspectives and motives. Still, in recent trends, we see that the number of collaborations that we look today is increasing due to the fact that the net outcome for all these three stakeholders is eventually positive in the long-run. Neither of the three finds itself or its goals neglected. Most of the motives are met, the business gets to earn profit, the government agencies are happy that resources and laws are taken into consideration and the civil society representatives that are usually the NGOs are happy that the civil society is taken on board before all the strategic and critical decisions are made regarding a certain issue (Bendell 2004).

    Now, according to the author, getting it realized by the corporate giants to assume their own responsibility towards the society is not only difficult but it will also take a lot of time then usual to make them understand how then can take help from the civil and government authorities in order to do their own benefit along with the benefit of the society as well. Therefore, for the time being the author puts emphasis on the NGOs going out and convincing the corporate world and showing them what benefits they can reap. The author has based the discussion of the chapter in the corporate world that will actually be able o reap benefits and subsides the advantages that the NGOs can reap for the time being. In simple words, the book urges the NGOs to go and look from the eyes of the corporate and the business world and then tell them the story about benefits and success factors that they will not be able to achieve otherwise in absence of the NGO assistance or joint collaboration.

Risk Management and Reduction
    NGOs spend most of the time researching for newer and better ways in order to see what will be better for the society with minimum use of the resources. They look at things from different perspectives and different criterions are met before a research result is achieved. The result is totally based on environmental and legal laws and has a total net benefit for the society. Whereas, if we look at the business research methodology, we see that they are mostly concerned with profit maximization and revenue maximization. Yet, there is one critical factor that has to be inferred from the authors ideas. This one critical factor is the common idea behind the goals of both the entities. An NGO will be successful if it uses as much less environmental resources as possible, and, at the same time, a business will also be more profitable if it uses lesser inputs. Yet, through unethical means, if the business is able to reduce costs even lesser or if it is not using resource appropriately due to monopolistic conditions, then, the entire research and investment can fail if the legal authorities get hold of the business activities. Now, the concept of risk and cost reduction is both concerned with the businesss survival in this case. Thus, the solution is the incorporation and integration of the civil authorities in the research and development decision so that the business gets to use the research that the NGOs have done which are up to the mark of legal requirements and at the same time reduce costs as these researches and methodologies employ much lesser resources as it is actually the basic target and goal of the entire research (Welford 2000)(Macintosh 1992).

    Moreover, businesses spend a lot in educating public regarding their new product or service. For example, in developing countries, Proctor and Gamble used to run programs for the importance of cleanliness particularly regarding washing hands. The reason is the fact that the more the public knows the importance of a certain problem, the more it will be motivated to buy a product that serves as a remedy. Therefore, now, what Proctor and Gamble and many other companies such as Unilever have done is to come up with joint ventures with local NGOs who know how to aware people and on whom people trust blindly. These organizations also have their motives to address cleanliness issues in the general public and so it is the best chance for them as well to educate the public along with prescribing a remedy as well. Thus it is simple and clear what a joint venture between the two parties can mean for the overall benefit of the society. the NGO will make sure that people know how important it is while making sure at the same that the product and quality promised is delivered, while, the business will use the expertise of the NGO to educate consumers and generate revenues.

    Moreover, many businesses which are working with NGOs to add value to the social and civil life are given incentives such as non-tax status. Shell Pakistan currently has a program called Shell Taameer in which it lends out loans on very flexible and easy installments to those poor people who have a business idea and who want to become entrepreneurs but they do not have the funds. Now the NGOs help the company to bring up such deserving people and the company lends them money. The company is then able to save all the percentage of Tax that these new entrepreneurs pay to the government as it is actually helping them develop an economic activity (Van, Arts  Leroy 2000).

New Product Development
    Apart from cost reduction and risk management, an NGO can help a business decide what the community most urgently wants. From the business perspective, we see that a business looks at NGOs as the reasons for all the issues that come up and raise problems for the companies regarding their products and services that might be harming the environment or the society in some way. However, if we look at this optimistically like many companies have already done in these past few years, we see that the issues that these NGOs come up with can be one of the best sources to infer the consumer demand of products and services in the future. For example, many pharmaceutical companies have started joint ventures in research and development for new products basing their research on the information provided by these NGOs of how they plan the society in the near future and what problems will they be emphasizing upon. Thus, the businesses subsequently come up with compatible services and products that are aligned with the goals and targets of these NGOs and again the total net gain for the society is positive and incremental. Also, when developing a new product, NGOs can also guide these companies of what legal changes and policies are anticipated in the near future so that a short term perspective of cost reduction may not prove to be fatal for the new product of the company if the new regulations hold the product violating the legal and ethical requirements. In developing products especially in the developing world, NGOs seem to have more information than any other resource about the niche issues that the society is facing. When company designs a policy, it is an overall target market oriented policy, but, NGOs can help these companies to target specific niches in order to cater to needs of not only a few or narrow consumer base, but, to encompass as much as it is practically feasible and possible.

New market development
    One of the similar works that we have seen in light of the authors ideas is the book named Fortune lies at the bottom of the pyramid. Now this book talks about the trillion dollars market that is still untapped by big MNCs in the developed and under developed world because they dont have their products that satisfy the needs of this particular market. However, when we look at the case of India, where a large size of population is living under the poverty line, many MNCs are selling their products even to these customers as well in lesser quantities. The NGOs have brought them concept of Sachetization in which large bottles of shampoos are now transformed into small packets that may be used for one was only (Lawrence, Weber,  Post 2004). They are easy to store, easy to purchase, raise the hygiene level of the lower income class level and most importantly from the eyes of the business, more profits due to lesser quantity. This is how NGOs are able to open new markets for the businesses if both work hand in hand using each others strengths and overcoming weaknesses as well.

    Moreover, another example from the developing world can be taken from the government NGOs who have helped pharmaceutical companies producing contraceptive measures to curtail the growth rate of population in these companies. Both the NGOs and the business have been able to benefit from this joint effort. The NGOs know how to educate people, people trust them, and they know the critical areas and the low profile streets where as the business knows how to produce these measures and provide quality products that are in range of these low incomes class consumers.

Human Resource Development
    It is important here to understand that all the stake holders involved in the development of our society have to work with each other to get the desired results. They have to understand each others needs so that they can come up to each others expectation. Without applying the concepts of how to satisfy stakeholders, the whole program of joint ventures between the three cannot actually work. For example, going back to the example of contraceptive measures, we see that the NGOs know what the consumers want and the business knows how the product will perform. Thus, both of them have to educate and develop each others human resource and integrate them in the whole process. Unless the NGO representative knows what the contraceptive medicine will do and how it will work, why would anyone trust him Similarly, unless the product design team knows what sort of a product does a specific target needs, how will they be able to design a product for them and think while standing in the consumers shoes Therefore, developing each others human resource is the best way to come up with the synergy that is being discussed in this paper (Bendell 2004).

    Apart from all the major perspectives that we have talked about above, we see that one of the major problems that businesses face is the problem of competition. However, if we go back to the first example when an NGO and a Business joined hands for the largest power supply service, will it be correct to say that this joint venture will actually prove to be a barrier to entry for the competitors of the business Certainly yes. Same is the case with all other businesses. They might not be able to be the first in the market but, many businesses have strike the first in category strategy to cut market share and competition from their competitors to enjoy the sole service providers in the industry.

    Although we have talked about joint ventures and collaborations between the three stakeholders, but, it is important to keep in mind that this does not clearly means that the trends of mergers and acquisitions come up the stage. Either in the part of the business or the NGO, this scenario will be really hurtful for the society at large. One of the reasons is the fact that there will be a huge loss in the expertise that each entity has and secondly, the essence of operations will be lost from one of the parties if the other one takes it over. For example, if a business takes over an NGO, then will it not be focusing on profit maximization again rather than equally thinking for the society and the business at the same time. The answer is simple and obvious.