Employee Immersion Experience Brings Deeper Understanding of the Importance of Corporate Partnership

Within a grid of dirt plots, made ready for planting, a Zambian farming family has gathered to welcome a group of international guests. After a round of introductions and a brief demonstration, employees from the The Toro Company (TTC), line up along the crop rows, helping the family prepare each plot for planting. Together they tilled, raked and planted onion, spinach and carrot, making sure to space each seedling correctly before watering the plants with buckets filled from the well.

Nearby, another group met with and interviewed a farmer, Abson Hangoma, who uses drip irrigation technology. “How long have you had the drip?” “How has it affected your farming?” “Would you recommend this to other farmers?”

At the end of the day, a lively discussion compared what it was like to farm and water fields with traditional tools versus using more advanced technologies. With TTC being a global leader of irrigation solutions, the durability of irrigation equipment and local availability within the supply chain were also discussed.

The visit was designed to immerse the employees from TTC, one of iDE’s longest running corporate partners, within the Zambian rural experience and provide an opportunity for TTC to learn about iDE’s human-centered design (HCD) methodology. A problem-solving tool, HCD helps develop a deep understanding of the needs and challenges of the communities where iDE implements programs. HCD is central to the work of iDE because no one-size fits all when it comes to ending poverty. It is also a technique practiced by customer-centric organizations including TTC, a leading worldwide provider of innovative solutions for the outdoor environment including turf and landscape maintenance, snow and ice management, underground utility construction, rental and specialty construction, and irrigation and outdoor lighting solutions.

Christian Hall, TTC design engineer, said developing innovative solutions that serve the needs of TTC’s customers was critical to the organization’s continued success. “As an engineer, it is a crucial aspect of my job to understand the customer and understand the end user. Using human-centered design is something that can help us all be better at our jobs.”

Representing nine different departments across five global locations, the TTC team spent four intensive days alongside iDE staff in Zambia’s Chibombo district, visiting agricultural supply stores owned by Farm Business Advisors (FBAs), interviewing input suppliers and members of village savings and loans groups, and participating in a community-led nutrition cooking class. While participating in various hands-on activities, members of the TTC team conducted discovery interviews, asking questions about running farms as businesses in the face of climate change and other challenging circumstances.

For the past decade, TTC has been a valuable partner for iDE in supporting our mission to power entrepreneurs, championing iDE’s work and strategic priorities. With support from benefactors like TTC, iDE was able to achieve its audacious ‘20 Million More’ goal, reaching a lifetime cumulative global impact of more than 40 million people. Corporate partners like TTC are essential to helping iDE create this impact and implement its programs around the world. These types of field visits allow participants to see first-hand the impact of their donations, support, and partnerships, creating a better understanding of the work that iDE does on the ground. After participating in this design immersion in Zambia, several TTC participants said they not only had a deeper understanding of how the iDE’s market-based approach worked, but also felt a deeper connection to the organization and pride in their company’s partnership with iDE.

Tiffany Brand, TTC’s senior sustainability manager, said that by participating in this experience she sees a clear connection between the work of iDE and TTC’s own sustainability commitments, especially as iDE launches a 10-year strategy of powering one million women entrepreneurs to drive prosperity for 100 million people. 

“From climate resilience to women’s entrepreneurship, I see so much alignment between iDE and our own corporate commitments to the UN Sustainable Development Goals,” said Brand. “After being here in Zambia and meeting iDE clients, I am personally confident that iDE can achieve this new goal.”

After 10 years, TTC remains one of iDE’s most engaged “all-in” corporate partners. This is the third employee immersion trip of its kind, but TTC’s partnership with iDE goes far beyond this hand-on engagement activity. In addition to these trips, TTC has helped fund high-impact projects across our global programs, partnered with iDE on various campaigns, social media collaborations, event sponsorships, and provided fundraising matches to boost annual giving. As the partnership has grown over that time, TTC demonstrates an understanding of the value of providing funding that allows the organization the flexibility to set priorities based on the needs of their programs and country offices. 

“iDE’s partnerships with various stakeholders are so important to the work that we do, including private-sector partners like The Toro Company,” said Sylvester Kalonge, iDE Zambia’s country director. “Whether its funding or program implementation, partnerships help us to create market-linkages and opportunities for entrepreneurs that are critical to the growth of their businesses. And as the group has seen for themselves, it’s these entrepreneurs who are making a difference in uplifting their communities and The Toro Company partnership helps us to enable that impact.” 

Marnie Wells, The Toro Company Foundation president, said she’d learned a great deal about the impact of the work of iDE in Zambia and gained a better understanding of TTC’s vital role as a financial supporter of the organization. “I knew the importance and the value of this partnership,” Wells said. “But being here and seeing if for myself, I now know it in my heart to be true.

If your company is interested in partnering with iDE, reach out to Hannah Moorhouse at partnership@ideglobal.org.