Page 23 - SMART2021_Symposium DRAFT

P A L A B A N A F I S H E R I E S

Thriving During a Pandemic

A Student Multidisciplinary Applied Research Team (SMART) Project

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2
Alexander Baldyga , Aliou Jabari Gambrel , Isabelle Noelsaint 3

Team Leader: Ndunge Kiiti 4

Faculty Advisor: Ralph Christy 5

Introduction

Research Objective

To determine the impact of COVID-19 on Palabana Fisheries and assess the company’s resiliency

SMEs in Zambia Pisciculture in Zambia

SMEs are a driving

factor of growth for the

Zambian economy 42% 6 th largest

of GDP depends In 2017, 13,000 producer of fish Value to small-scale

on an export- in Africa farmers:

based economy jobs were created 1. Employment

by small-scale fish

farms 125,000 t Pisciculture

produced in Industry 2. Nutrition

2018, of which

29% were 3. Income

90% of SMEs farmed Supply Chain

operate unofficially, but

there has been

government initiatives to

SMEs in Zambia mostly consist encourage growth and Fingerlings Table Size Fish Feed

of simple services that are investment

aimed at low-income consumers

Company Overview

Palabana Fisheries

Palabana is located 22 km from Lusaka, Zambia

Background Business Model:

➢ Established in 2013 by Sammy Williey Ensure food and economic security

➢ 10-acre tilapia fingerling producer for all Zambians, especially the youth

➢ Less than 30 employees

Mission & Services Provided

Become leading supplier of fingerlings to small, medium, and large-scale fish farms
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2 Provide pond excavation to create new pisciculture businesses

Establish farm installation and management training to support local farmers in Chongwe and
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surrounding districts

Research Process

Methods & Analysis

We consulted and integrated the following sources and framework:
THE ORM

Interviews with Palabana Academic Articles Case studies

Assurance

Government database NGO database Multimedia Agility

Planning Organizational Resilience Adaptive Culture Vision
Primary method of analysis: The Organizational Resilience Maturity (ORM) tool Governance Leadership

1. Emphasizes a direct link between frontline workers and managers Development

2. Promotes unified culture to identify vulnerabilities and address them

Findings & Implications

Governance Company Situational Performance

External resources and connectivity:

Government contracts and stable

Before COVID-19 During COVID-19

Palabana Fisheries network of buyers and suppliers

2020: 28-38 Zambian kwacha/kg Price 2021: 58-60 Zambian kwacha/kg

Corporate social responsibility:

Strong brand recognition in region 2020: ~300,000 fingerlings per month Production 2021: ~1,000,000 fingerlings in January
Governance Planning Agility Stable operational processes Received government financial support External support Received no support

Planning

Daily pond monitoring and ongoing Implications for Palabana

training programs

Business Assurance: Improving crisis management preparedness (e.g., developing digital training
Agility

Leadership Resilience materials to standardize employees’ familiarity with farm tasks)

Sammy’s self-efficacy, sense of community, and Adaptive workforce:

entrepreneurial hustle are foundational to Seamless transition and adaptation Business Development: Increasing staff engagement through mentorship and clear path to
References

Palabana’s success to COVID-19 protocols promotion

Acknowledgements Affiliations References

1 School of Hotel Administration *Penang, M. (2018). CGIAR Research Program on Fish Agri-Food Systems and Lusaka, Zambia: Department of
We are grateful to Sammy Williey
2 College of Arts & Sciences Fisheries.
and his team at Palabana for
3,4,5 Charles H. Dyson School of Applied *Harrison, T. P., Houm, P. J., Thomas, D. J., & Craighead, C. W. (2013). Supply chain disruptions are inevitable—get
their inspiration and insights. READI: resiliency enhancement analysis via deletion and insertion. Transportation Journal, 52(2), 264-276.
Economics and Management
Thanks also to the SMART *Gracey, A. (2020). Building an organisational resilience maturity framework. Journal of Business Continuity &

Program for making this possible. Emergency Planning, 13(4), 313-327.