Favela da Rocinha
The Management and Marketing Strategies in Latin America course was an excellent capstone in terms of generation and improvement of knowledge as well as application of several business tools learned during the GPMBA program. All the company visits gave me a unique chance to learn how their strategies and actions are closely linked to cultural, economic, financial, and global factors. Furthermore, the groups could directly verify all the findings derived from their group study with each company, which served as a real-life check to conclusions and suggestions made by each group. Finally, I also learned a lot from the exposure to different cities, countries, and cultures as well as from the diversity of our own group. – Andre Batista
Rio de Janeiro reflected the friendliness of a non-confrontational population despite huge disparities in income distribution. Its natural beauty creates a relaxing environment enjoyed by tourists and locals all year round. The city also portrays the concept of the so-called “jeitinho brasileiro”, a special talent to come up with creative solutions to overcome obstacles. Nonetheless, Rio shows clear signs of an unbalanced country. The “favelas”, clusters of rudimentary houses built without infrastructure in the cliffs of beautiful mountains, are a great example of such disparity. Usually, poor people that need to stay close to the city reside in those places. But there are also drug dealers that control the distribution of narcotics from the “favelas” to the entire city.
But setting aside the social problem, the “favelas” are a great example of a well-run organization. The drug dealers have full control of the “favelas” by providing protection and assistance to local residents, and run a rudimentary but efficient communication network using kites in order to signalize non-welcome visitors. This setting, in addition to the difficult labyrinth created by the house constructions, provides a perfect protection against the local police, which is easily kept away most of the time. – Andre Batista
Overall, this academic and business trip not only provided me with the opportunity to apply all important business tools learned during my MBA program, but also to visit the researched companies and directly obtain a feedback from them. But above all, one of the most important lessons came from the exposure to different countries and cultures, its differences and similarities. – Andre Batista