Background
Acumen is a microfinance institution that provides analysis and recommendations for businesses toward their investments, capital, and social impact. The company has used the RCT model for the investor-driven recommendations concerning the social impact made by Acumen’s clients. According to the company’s investigation, the convenient analytical tools and evaluation models had little effect on social investment and did not represent the full spectrum of possible implications or issues that businesses and communities might face.
The Lean Data model was developed by Acumen as the solution to the discovered analytical roadblocks and recommendation pitfalls. This model is based on the accurately developed survey techniques that collect data from communities affected by business so that the survey outcomes can show how products, services, and investments affect people’s welfare and value-added demands (Cole et al. 4). What is more, the new methodology shows how companies can improve their social responsibility and deliver more value-added products and services to their consumers. In this case, Acumen introduced a significant change that allows communities and businesses to collaborate and contribute to each other’s sustainability.
Problem Identification
The development of Lean Data methodology has become a resourceful project for Acumen; namely, it has accomplished its objectives and achieved desired outcomes. Furthermore, Acumen conducted several successful evaluations and “sprints,” which proved that the model functions well and can provide insights about the business’ real impact on consumers’ welfare and quality of life (Cole et al. 9). Nonetheless, the company has been facing a new dilemma as Lean Data results should be transformed into change strategies and recommendations, which is not an easy task.
The prior RCT model allowed Acumen to conduct an evaluation based on investors’ perspectives, making emphasis on numeric data, financial reports, and market activity. Lean Data offers an identical view; however, from a consumer-centric perspective, companies show results and areas of impact and the driving forces are to be discovered (Cole et al. 10). As a result, Acumen should decide whether Lean Data is an appropriate tool for further integration and use or it should become a supplemental tool to support traditional analytical models.
Alternatives
The first alternative for Acumen is to replace the prior methodologies and rely on Lean Data as the only reliable tool for social impact measurement. This option is based on the evidence collected by the company, where the survey and analysis outcomes proved to have an in-depth and in-breadth application to evaluate business social responsibility and impact on consumers’ welfare (Cole et al. 7). Moreover, Lean Data displays the field evidence collected from consumers, making it a more consumer-oriented and potent tool, which assists companies in managing their capital and social footprint.
The second alternative is to abandon Lean Data and focus on the investor-centric tools to offer numeric evidence directly aligned with finance and strategic changes. The rationale for this choice is that companies will obtain straightforward data on how they perform regarding social responsibility (Cole et al. 8). Moreover, the investor-oriented approach may appeal to companies’ stakeholders as any change or issue is aligned with financial performance.
The third alternative is to apply a combined analytical approach where Lean Data shows issues from consumers’ perspectives, while RCT interprets these findings in a manner that investors may prefer more. In this case, Acumen can deliver an extended report to its clients, showing both consumer and investor-centric positions. On the contrary, such a decision may require a new prototype and a testing period.
Recommendations
The recommended option is the first one due to its flexibility and accuracy. The third option cannot be selected as the combination of the new and traditional methods may cause issues and complexity in data interpretation. What is more, no evidence is given that Lean Data and RCT can be easily merged. The second option is a step back for Acumen as the initial idea of Lean Data was to replace RCT and other investor-centric methodologies. As a result, the utilization of Lean Data should support Acumen’s intentions to represent social footprints from consumers’ perspectives and indicate to companies their problematic fields with value-added capital investment.
Economic growth depends on the value-added production created by a company. Value-added goods and services form the basis that is used to support the economy of enterprise, territorial communities, and human development. The development policy should be put in place in order to create conditions and incentives for value-added products and to ensure the efficient functioning of the enterprise’s economy.
However, the economic policy does not specify the preconditions, measures, and mechanisms of value creation as a component of the companies’ finance performance at different levels (Cole et al. 9). In this case, the utilization of Lean Data should support the economic growth and development of Acumen’s clients through the identification of possibilities to increase the number of value-added products.
Reflection
Acumen’s case study and Lean Data method show the shift in trends within the business environment. The replacement of investor-driven approaches to produce goods and services indicates that companies are more concerned about their sustainability and social responsibilities. Acumen’s experience and findings show the importance of consumer-centric strategies so that communities and companies can establish beneficial relations and contribute to each other’s enhancement and growth.
Work Cited
Cole, Shawn, et al. “Acumen and Lean Data 2018.” Harvard Business School, no. 9-218–086, 2018, pp. 1–23.