About Us - Overview
Adopt a Business was first developed in 2002 by a team of IESE Business School students led by Matthew Farmer as a way in which companies could make a contribution to the developing world that made business sense. It was an answer to the question "can we create a business that makes a positive social impact?"
The motivations for the team were:
- desire to make a positive contribution to the developing world
- belief that business could be a force for good
- personal experiences of living and working in developing countries
In 2003, the founders of Adopt a Business collaborated with Zurich Financial Services who had been involved in establishing and managing the highly successful India Programme - a programme first developed in 1993 which sent UK-based managers to work in India as part of their management development and the Company’s commitment to helping the global community.
This collaboration resulted in the development of a product called the Outzone Experience. Adopt a Business has subsequently gone on to develop a broad range of products and services that bring organizations, individuals and partners driving social value in the developing world closer together for mutual benefit.