Communication Is Key to Feeding the World's Poor
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Communication Is Key to Feeding the World's Poor

DESIGN, DELIVERY AND EMBED, THIS IS THE INNOVATION FORMULA FOR PIO, BOCCONI ALUMNUS AND MANAGER AT THE WORLD FOOD PROGRAM

 
Do not spend less, but spend better. Make each dollar donated produce the biggest possible impact in the fight against world hunger. This is the job briefing of Giovanni Pio, 39, MBA from SDA Bocconi and Head of Global Change Management at the World Food Program of the UN, the largest humanitarian agency in the world. WFP collects $6 billion in voluntary contributions every year and has 15,000 employees, to distribute 3.5 million tons of food every year, giving sustenance to 90 million people a day.
 
➜ How is change management in this type of organization implemented?
Helping the recipient countries maximize every single dollar they receive. The UN also works in emergency and war contexts, so it has complex and often articulated procedures. Our job is to make them as linear and efficient as possible, by working on core operations with a strategic approach, without ignoring the financial aspect.
 
➜ What are the right steps?
A process that goes through three phases: design, deliver, and embed. Basically, starting from best practices, we measure acceptable levels of risk and evaluate opportunities for improvement and innovation. With a careful internal communication process, we introduce a culture of change at all levels of the organization. One important aspect is not just focusing on what needs to be changed, but investigate how to change efficiently, in a short time and with limited resources.
 
➜ Sometimes it is not easy to accept change.
We all seek win-win solutions that are as optimal as possible for everyone. In this, communication is key, to make people understand the direction and need of change. Communication takes time and resources and is often neglected, while it is fundamental that it be integrated in the process from the beginning.
 
➜ Is change management different in the public sector with respect to private companies?
In the private sector it is easier for top-down decisions to be accepted, thanks to company incentives mechanisms. Conversely, for change to be successful in the public sector, there must be maximum sharing with all and maximum support by all right from the start. It's the sharing of objectives and the shared sense of embracing the final goal that produce positive results. In the public sector, monitoring and evaluating final results is all the more important.
 
➜ Organizations develop and the humanitarian response changes. How has WFP evolved?
In the past, we limited ourselves to distributing food. Today, moving food around the world has become more complex and expensive. We are therefore shifting to different forms of aid, such as cash transfers and vouchers, through the provision of prepaid cards, which are charged with funds ($30-40 per month) that can be spent by the recipient on various items, not just for food. In this way the dignity of the individual is better safeguarded, and social transfers create a positive effect on the local economy (through the macroeconomic multipier) and this promotes faster economic recovery.
 
➜ In this evolution process, what role was played by innovation?
A major role on several fronts. Today anybody can donate a meal via an app (Share the Meal); we can monitor the position of our vehicles (and the load they carry) and the movements of the populations being helped; we can develop hydroponic crops locally, and provide a more accurate mix of calories to the people targeted for aid, according to their real needs.
 
➜ Can world hunger ever be defeated?
Today, 795 million people in the world don't eat enough food. A figure that has dropped by 216 million since 1990, but is still equivalent to 1/9 of the world's population. Ending hunger in the world is possible. It is necessary to reduce food waste, develop wealth transfer arrangements, continue to innovate, and reduce the technology gap of developing countries.


by Andrea Celauro
Translated by Alex Foti


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