K-Grow: Nexus of outsourcing, education & entrepreneurship

We will outsource digital work to collectives of women in regional communities in developing countries. These collectives will be paid full-time for part-time work. The "unworked" hours will be used for the women to train and be mentored to create their own small business.

By the end of this year, we will need to employ at least 15 full-time contractors to help with admin work at our primary business but rather than send this work anywhere we asked ourselves who can benefit most from a year's full-time work, paid at rates close to US minimum wage, and given time and location freedom to finish their task based work? After looking at the UN Sustainable Development Goals, and reading Small Is Beautiful by E.F. Schumacher we knew who could benefit most: Women in regional areas of developing countries.

We want to use the concept of "mobile technology" to allow women to be "mobile" with their time and location for work.

We're aware that there are many barriers and challenges ahead but we believe that by creating meaningful work for women in regional areas, allowing them freedom and flexibility to complete their work anywhere and anytime, providing access to the technology needed, and paying them to complete training that will enable them to create their own ongoing business with appropriate technology that's independent of international trade, or rapid changes in foreign technology will allow women to fully participate and prosper in the economy.

Ideally, we'd like to establish these projects as small collectives so that workers can support each other. If the pilot proves successful we may be able to source other relevant work that can be outsourced which will allow more women to receive an income and education leading to their own small business and financial independence.

Woman in regional areas of developing nations are unable to access technology to create an income which fits with their availability and responsibilities. This inability then hinders their chance to get education and training which would help them further participate in the economy. It's a negative cycle that we want to remedy.

It's getting more common for workers in developed nations to have flexible working schedules, which, is afforded by the use of technology, so we want to extend this right to people who need it most. 

There are countless documents pushing for women to have greater access to education, work, and entrepreneurship that show when women have financial independence entire communities are uplifted (IMF , UN SDSN & more).

We want to provide one years paid employment with good conditions to at least 15 women who would not normally have access to work.

We want to train these women to become self-reliant small business owners that have products/services that support their local community.

The workers we employ, their families, and the community they live in will all benefit from increased training, in flows of wealth, and improved access to telecommunications.

It will either be deployed from us or a partner who is experienced in the target region. Payments will be made online, so too education and training. 

Measure staff training and payments. - We will employ at least 15 people.

Track mentorship progress of workers/students though the program and the graduation rate. - Have at least 15 people trained to start and operate their own small business.

Monitor results through a follow up program. - See at least 15 people successfully operating their own local business.

Our program is not unique, it's fair. Small Is Beautiful refers to "appropriate technology" --technology that's already familiar and accessible to people, like smart phones.

We're not trying to create a revolution we're just showing that it's possible for people in underserved areas to benefit from flexible work conditions so they can undertake training which will allow them to create simple local based businesses that are not technology dependent. 

Regional areas in developing countries need more bakers and teachers and repair businesses than they need biotech engineers who need the latest and greatest computer to get their work done.

Our solution is purely human centred. Technology is just the enabling tool to empower our future workers to establish themselves in human based businesses. 

Our idea is about providing people with paid and meaningful work, it's about training and paying people to set up their own people-based businesses.

We will work with local partners to find suitable workers then our work, training, further education, payment and monitoring will all be deployed through smart phones and the internet which we will provide.

This project is already up and running as a profitable business. We can run the profit generating side of the business without contributing towards the development of the contract workers and profit more but we don't want to.

So regardless whether Solve is involved or not our business will proceed and we will be self-sustaining. Solve's involvement will just fast-track our ability to find partners and develop programs to help train, educate, and mentor workers into becoming self-sufficient business owners.

The technology our core company is based upon and maintaining a competitive advantage in this market.

Unexpected local and cultural behaviour we cannot forecast until we're on the ground.

Us having the resources and expertise to not just manage the profit generating part of the project but the education, training, and mentorship (likely why we'd partner with someone).

We're an advertising agency at heart, but we're trying to shift our skills and the revenue we generate over to helping people.

We understanding advertising and communications, we understand planning and executing but what we need help to connect with organisations that help people, we need help to understand new systems, we need guidance on how to navigate making things happen which actually affect real people.

Through the Solve platform we have connected with Kiteka who are the first all-female, all-mobile digital outsourcing network. They enable female entrepreneurs in Uganda and beyond to access the global digital economy by providing smartphone technology, training, and connections to international businesses in need of intelligent digital outsourcing.

Existing online marketplaces for freelance work like Upwork.