The not for profit sector is increasingly part of mainstream business education. There are professorships in social enterprise, MBA options on working for a charity and MBA projects based on not for profit organisations.

A team of five MBA students at Cambridge’s Judge Business School was invited by the Fairtrade Foundation to look at the business case for introducing low-carbon energy sources and improved energy efficiency to tea producers in Kenya.

The business school approached the foundation suggesting that students could do a consultancy project for the charity. Chris Davies, director of producer partnerships at the Fairtrade Foundation, says: “The timing was serendipitous. The huge increases in fuel costs mean that businesses in the developing world need an alternative, clean energy to survive.

“We wanted a feasibility study and business plan for introducing low-carbon energy sources and improved energy efficiency, but it is difficult for a charity to finance research projects. Here were clever. experienced people keen to take on the challenge.”

Sian Herschel, with a background in international trade, Liz Ryan, a consultant with experience in Africa, and Kate Colarulli, who had worked in the American not for profit sector, were inspired by a talk about the work of the Fairtrade Foundation to base their MBA project on an aspect of the charity. Two more team members were needed and Kevin Kerr and Axel Meiling, both with engineering backgrounds, joined the team.

The consulting project was scheduled for four weeks over Easter after an initial conversation with Fairtrade last year. The team started researching and following up contacts in government and NGOs to get an overview of renewable energy, carbon trading and the Kenyan tea industry. They spent five days in Kenya visiting plantations to understand the production process and distribution network.

Kerr, who had worked as a petroleum engineer in Australia, did an energy audit. “It was crucial to do this on site,” he says, “as a significant level of knowledge only emerged during conversations with the local plant operators and technicians.”

He found that the key challenge in developing the final recommendations was to achieve the right level of detail. “We wanted them to be practicable but not so specific to Kenyan tea producers that they could not be applied to other producers elsewhere.”

The time constraints were also a challenge but the team was well prepared, says Herschel. “Before our brief visit to Kenya we had built up a level of expertise and had a good idea of what we were going into. On arrival we split up to cover a lot of ground.”

The study found that energy-saving methods and financially viable alternative energy sources could reduce dependence on the national grid. Davies was satisfied with the findings and impressed with the delivery. “My concern was that bringing in an external consultant can be time-consuming, but the team was incredibly efficient at translating our brief meetings into a work programme, and I liked its can-do, entrepreneurial approach.”

For the MBA team, working on the project brought its rewards. Herschel says: “I gained experience in the renewable energy area and learnt that you can have a large impact with small investment.” Kerr realised “the importance of human relations in implementing strategic plans”.

Fairtrade, Davies concludes, had the benefit of a consultancy team with an international background which brought a fresh, unbiased view, along with rigorous research and access to the latest management thinking.

Growth of the not for profit sector boosts professionalism

Many MBA students have a highly developed sense of giving back to the community, which is reflected in formal and informal ways, including volunteering schemes. Academic chairs are also being created to enhance the professionalism of workers in the not for profit sector.

More than 250 new MBA students at the Tuck School of Business in America spend time working with charities in their area, learning how their business knowledge can make a difference. They may then volunteer to do pro bono consulting to the organisations throughout their programme.

While MBA volunteers give their time and management experience to charities, the not for profit sector is now seen as an area where professionalism and rigorous management is as important as in the commercial sector.

Reims Management School is among the academic establishments that have recognised this, by introducing a chair in management of non-profit organisations and social business.

Closer links between academia and the voluntary sector have been forged at Henley Business School, part of Reading University, where 10 per cent of students come from a non-profit background. The college has a Centre for Voluntary Sector Management, the director of which, Professor Stephen Lee, is a former chief executive of the Institute of Fundraising.

Increasingly, the not for profit sector and the business world acknowledge that they can learn much from each other, not only through voluntary work but also as part of management education.