Mariano Vargas, COO of the Beneficiadora Santa Eduviges family business, visited INCAE on July 01 to participate with Executive MBA students in a class of the course Creating value with values. Mariano was the protagonist of the "living case" of this Costa Rican company, which produces, processes and sells specialty coffees inside and outside of Costa Rica. The case was arranged by Strachan Chair of Philanthropy and Social Investment and directed by its director, the teacher Andrea Prado.
Every year, Costa Rica exports more than a million bags of gold coffee to different destinations around the world, always standing out for its characteristics of flavor, smell, texture and body, as unique features within the world supply. For Mariano Vargas, a member of the fourth generation of the Vargas family, being part of the legacy of coffee growers of the Santa Eduviges Mill has motivated him to stay in business, and has driven him to carry the name of Costa Rica higher and higher in some of the most demanding coffee tastings in the world.
In order to share his experience with INCAE's Executive MBA students, Mariano visited the campus on July 01, to carry out a "live case" where he shared three challenges that Beneficiadora Santa Eduviges faced during 2019. In that At the time, Mariano and his team were looking for ways to increase soil productivity, optimize operations during the harvest period, and diversify the markets the company served. The general challenge of the case was to define strategies to guarantee the sustainability of the business in the long term. The students discussed possible recommendations as a group, which they then shared with Mariano in a plenary session facilitated by Professor Prado. Finally, Mariano shared with the students the decisions he made to face these challenges.; thus giving real-time feedback to students about their recommendations.
“Bringing a young entrepreneur like Mariano Vargas allows students to learn innovative practices with a high social and environmental impact that leaders of the region promote in their companies. The live case allows them to identify with someone who a few years ago was in the same position as Mariano is a graduate of INCAE's Executive MBA. We hope that you will remember this experience from the positions you assume when you leave INCAE, and be inspired to exercise responsible leadership” expressed Prof. Andrea Prado, director of the Strachan Chair.
For his part, Mariano left the students as advice:
Not all entrepreneurs are entrepreneurs, and not all entrepreneurs are entrepreneurs... It is important to surround yourself with objective people who manage to land your speech, to whom you can comment on an idea and who can validate a hypothesis without having to sin in failed attempts
LIVE CASES
The “living cases” methodology promotes a discussion around a challenge that a company or organization has faced. The objective is that students can propose solutions to face this challenge. After listening to the recommendations made by the group, the protagonist of the case reveals what was done, what actually worked and what didn't. This allows creating a dynamic learning space with concrete and real examples, as well as receiving feedback in real time on the recommendations given.
The Strachan Chair was founded by the businessman, philanthropist and former INCAE Rector, Harry W. Strachan. It is funded by the Strachan Foundation and friends of Bain Capital, with the aim of promoting social investment strategies. Periodically, the Chair organizes live cases with entrepreneurs in the region that are generating social and environmental impact, so that they can share their experiences and learnings with INCAE students.
