86 Grupo Ficohsa in Honduras

Team 20 Poster

Team Reflection

Grupo Ficohsa, a financial institution in Honduras, employs innovative practices focused on sustainability and community support, emphasizing three core pillars: education, entrepreneurship, and financial inclusion. These pillars align with United Nations Sustainable Development Goals (SDGs) such as “No Poverty” (SDG 1), “Zero Hunger” (SDG 2), and “Reduced Inequalities” (SDG 10) (THE 17 GOALS | Sustainable Development, n.d.). Programs like “De Mi Tierra,” Fundación Ficohsa, and “Mujeres Adelante” bring these pillars to life, reflecting an impactful integration of sustainability and resilience. Karla Simon’s genuine focus on sustainable development in Honduras inspired us, as her vision to embed corporate social responsibility within a financial institution is encouraging in a field often criticized for prioritizing profit over people. Seeing Ficohsa’s commitment to uplifting vulnerable communities and fostering social responsibility has reshaped our perspective on sustainability within finance. Often, we think that sustainability is the responsibility of companies, but in reality, we can all contribute, by volunteering and offering our own small efforts, we support the larger goals companies work toward. Ficohsa’s view of people as more than numbers or accounts, but rather as valued individuals, is a reminder that people should support one another, a value not often highlighted in Honduras. It’s truly admirable.

Grupo Ficohsa’s model illustrates the “triple bottom line” of profit, people, and the planet (Milne & Gray, 2013). By investing in sustainable agriculture, and education, they showcase how financial services can extend beyond profit, positively impacting societal well-being and environmental resilience. Ficohsa’s approach challenges the assumption that financial corporations focus solely on profit. Their investment in community well-being, specifically with projects like De Mi Tierra, positions them as a model for financial entities that can operate sustainably while supporting underserved communities. The many alignments with the SDGs that the institution has were surprising to see, especially in a developing country like Honduras, where resource constraints are significant. Group Ficohsa challenges common assumptions about what businesses prioritize as these types of financial corporations are generally thought of as ones who merely focus on maximizing profit. Karla and the company’s commitment to the SDGs really inspired us to become more aware about not only what other companies can improve to have a beneficial impact in their community, but also what we as individuals can do. We hope that companies like Grupo Ficohsa can inspire other financial corporations to include sustainability as one of their core principles, hopefully shifting the industry into one that more regularly promotes environmental and social well-being having more of a positive impact in the world.

Ficohsa has been a great example of how a company can contribute to the SDGs holistically. It needs people like Karla Simon in society who are eager to engage and develop sustainability further with a meaningful impact on society and the environment. With all the knowledge we gained throughout the course and the project, we can analyze a company’s attitude towards corporate social responsibility and implement practical measures to promote sustainability holistically. This experience will benefit us as it has provided us with the tools and background experience to work in a cross-cultural environment with various people. Since we are business students hoping to branch out into the corporate world in a few years, this experience has benefitted us as future business people. This experience taught us about important skills such as accountability. This exercise correlates to the concept of the accountability cube as discussed by Brandsma & Schillemans (2012); the accountability cube has three main phases: the information provided, the intensity of discussion, and the reach of sanction (Brandsma & Schillemans, 2012). Throughout the COIL experience, we implemented these phases to keep us in check and accountable to our team. We held intense and thoughtful discussions every week to discuss our thoughts and opinions surrounding the United Nations Sustainable Development Goals about Ficohsa. The framework of the accountability cube was also able to keep us in check when it came to taking accountability towards each other, as we were all aware our actions, both positive and negative, could affect our team, so it was essential to stick to the predetermined timelines, this was important remember as “the accountability cube helps to measure the intensity of the accountability process and helps to locate accountability deficits” (Brandsma & Schillemans, 2012). Overall, the Aim2Flourish story experience and COIL experience were able to teach us the importance of working as a team because, as a team, we must rely on and support each other to solve tasks effectively.

The COIL project allowed our team to apply key learnings from our courses in practical ways, especially in intercultural communication and organizational behavior. Working across different time zones tested our time management and communication skills, helping us develop a stronger understanding of international collaboration.

We structured our project by assigning roles based on each member’s strengths: Amber and Nelly focused on storytelling, Maram and Aljawharah designed the poster, while Natalia and Jaime handled the interview with Ficohsa. By dividing tasks clearly, everyone knew their responsibilities, which helped us maintain a balanced workload. We used Telegram to communicate between meetings, making it easier to stay updated despite our different schedules.

Our flexibility and adaptability were key to our success. Although scheduling meetings and receiving quick responses was challenging due to time differences, setting clear deadlines and distributing work equally helped us overcome these obstacles. This structure ensured that everyone could contribute effectively, keeping our project on track.

However, managing time zones alongside midterm exams and other priorities proved difficult. Finding meeting times and focusing on the project amidst other responsibilities required patience and understanding. Through these challenges, we learned the importance of respect, open-mindedness, and adaptability in intercultural teamwork—skills that will benefit us in future international projects.

Individual Reflections

Amber Davie 

By completing the COIL activity, I have developed my time management, problem-solving and organizational skills. Working in a cross-cultural environment through various time zones has been an exciting and challenging experience. I have had the opportunity to work with students in both Spain and Saudi Arabia, which I would not have otherwise had the chance to do. I contributed to my team effectively by taking charge of the story section of the assignment along with Nelly and then helping to divide up the other roles among my group mates. Although this was a rewarding experience, as it allowed me to work with people from various backgrounds and perspectives and learn about different viewpoints, it also presented some challenges. The communication portion during our team meetings went well as we were all able to decide on the distribution of roles for each section of the project and thoroughly discuss our interview and the company to gain a better understanding of the companies. The challenges typically involved communication between team meetings; due to the time zone differences, it was often challenging to discuss the project and ask group members questions as they would not see it or be able to respond for quite a while due to the time zone differences. Another challenge our group faced was the busy time of the school year. Most of us are in the middle of our midterm exams and have other priorities, making it difficult to find good times for team meetings or devote a considerable amount of time to the project. Overall, our project went well, and I enjoyed meeting students from different countries and being exposed to other cultures. I hope my team and I can keep in touch, as I enjoyed meeting and working with everyone.

Nelly Krach

Participating in the COIL activity enriched my intercultural competences. I am very glad that I could work with different personalities from Canada, Spain and Saudi Arabia. I learned to be more patient, flexible and adjust my expectations regarding international group work. We managed to do our meetings regularly despite the fact that we are living in different time zones. Between the meetings we communicated through Telegram which was sometimes difficult to get answers quickly due to the time differences. To be more efficient, we split up the group work so everyone of us had more or less an equal part to do for the project which worked out well. Not only the group work was interesting to me, but also our company Ficohsa that we have chosen has broadened my horizons and confirmed the importance of the SDGs. I am living in Switzerland and I realized that we can consider ourselves lucky and fortunate to be able to live in such a well-developed country while other countries in the world have to struggle with poverty and other challenges. For my future professional path I will keep the SDGs in mind and do my part to contribute to them. All in all, I can recommend the COIL experience to everyone. It is helpful for everyone’s future career for dealing in different business contexts. Someone can only benefit from this experience and apply the learnings to future challenges.

Jamie Borja

Taking part in the COIL activity has allowed me to learn several things. It was a very new experience for me but I am glad that I took part in it since not only has it helped me develop some important skills, but it also taught me about how much of an impact a company can have on real world issues if they make an effort in attempting to solve them. For example, it was the first time that I have been given the opportunity to interview a company which was something that excited me. The project has allowed me to learn how to effectively navigate through the language barrier that was presented to us as we had to interview the company representative in Spanish and then have their responses translated to english. Overall, the project has helped me improve my time management skills as it was definitely a challenge attempting to balance the work while being in midterms. Finding a good time to schedule the group meetings was another challenge we faced since we had to keep the three different time zones in mind along with a time change in Spain. The group did a good job of managing these difficulties with good communication. We effectively split the workload into 3 different parts with 2 people working on each one. I found this strategy very useful as we were all able to get the work done swiftly. In general I was able to learn a lot from my teammates and everyone did a great job of keeping up with the deadlines. This was an experience in which I benefited a lot from and am glad that I took part in.

Natalia Diaz del Valle

As a Honduran familiar with Ficohsa’s presence in my community, this project offered a valuable opportunity to explore the company’s impact and innovations in greater depth. While I recognized Ficohsa as a major financial institution, I was unaware of its extensive commitment to sustainable development and social responsibility. Collaborating with a diverse group that included one of my classmates, two Canadians, and two Saudi Arabians enriched my understanding through varied cultural perspectives.

This experience significantly improved my digital communication and teamwork skills, fostering flexibility and patience as we navigated different time zones. It was particularly interesting to work with individuals who know little of a culture like Honduras, as it allowed us to share how various challenges are addressed in low-income countries.

Overall, the COIL project has broadened my worldview, making me more open-minded and culturally aware. I am grateful for the opportunity to collaborate with such a diverse group, and I will carry these insights into my future studies and career.

Maram Alqahtani

Being part of the COIL project was an exciting experience for me. Working with students from Canada and Spain broadened my perspective, allowing me to see how others approach problems and express ideas, which enriched our project and made it more diverse. Balancing the time difference and our midterm exams with the COIL project’s deadlines was challenging. Managing my time effectively while juggling these responsibilities helped me develop flexibility and time management skills . We overcame this challenge with my team through cooperation and flexibility, finding meeting times that worked for everyone. In our team meetings, we communicated effectively and divided responsibilities, ensuring that each part of the project was covered. Aljawharah and I took responsibility for designing the poster, where we explained innovation, its practices, and its impact on SDGs in a creative way. It was challenging at first, but once we decided to focus on one specific innovation, it became less complicated. Creating the poster helped us improve our design skills and taught us how to make our work visually engaging. Overall, I feel grateful for the experience. It pushed me to grow, especially in terms of communication and collaboration. This project taught me that teamwork can be challenging and rewarding, especially when you’re open to learning from each other.

Aljawharah Alhuqayl

Being part of the COIL project was a great experience for me. Working with teammates from different countries was both exciting and challenging. The time zone differences were difficult at times, especially since we were in the middle of midterm exams. It made planning meetings harder, but it taught me a lot about managing my time well and being flexible. I really enjoyed learning about the cultures of my teammates from Spain and Canada. We built a good connection and learned a lot from each other, like how to communicate effectively despite our differences. We had some challenges when trying to find times that worked for everyone, but we always found a way to solve those issues. Overall, it was a rewarding experience, and I learned new skills that will help me in the future. Due to the lack of time, we decided to split the tasks into three sections, and Maram and I took responsibility for the poster. Although we initially found designing it challenging, we managed to produce a great result by focusing deeply on one of the company’s innovations. This approach helped us better understand the company’s culture and the related Sustainable Development Goals (SDGs). It also allowed us to improve our design skills while highlighting the innovation. Overall, this experience was rewarding, and I am grateful for the skills and relationships I gained through it.

References 

Brandsma, G. J., & Schillemans, T. (2012). The Accountability Cube: Measuring Accountability. Journal of Public Administration Research and Theory, 23(4), 953–975. https://doi.org/10.1093/jopart/mus03

Milne, M. J., & Gray, R. (2013). W(h)ither Ecology? The Triple Bottom Line, the Global Reporting Initiative, and Corporate Sustainability Reporting. Journal of Business Ethics, 118(1), 13–29. https://doi.org/10.1007/s10551-012-1543-8

THE 17 GOALS | Sustainable Development. (n.d.). Retrieved November 3, 2024, from https://sdgs.un.org/goals