And how do we demonstrate the impact of María Cano’s applied research on the management of organizations in the city of Medellín? One of the questions that arise in the academic communities of the country and the region is how research results are transferred to organizations in any productive sector, specifically small and medium-sized companies, and what is the impact? for its different processes. Consistent with the typology and identity of the María Cano University Foundation, the SUMAR research group, attached to the Faculty of Business Sciences, under the management of its leaders and researchers, design and execute research projects and products with an organizational and social focus. , generating a positive impact on different organizations, processes that have been recognized, including, by various rating agencies in the educational sector such as the Ministry of National Education, the National Accreditation Council, Icontec, Minciencias and Sapiens Research, among others.

Since 2016, the year of official creation of the Sumar group, some professors focused the formulation and execution of projects on addressing needs that, at that time, were predominant in the region based on the context in which the Institution developed its activities. An example of this was the research led by Professor Jhon Arbeláez Ochoa and Dr. Humberto Serna Gómez, History of the José María Villa Retail Plaza, a bastion of the popular economy in Medellín, which marked a milestone for the research processes, not only of the Sumar Group, but also of María Cano.

This research raised the management conditions of an organization that was little studied and that at the time gave rise to a positive impact in the region, being an articulating space for the distribution of essential products in the northern area of ​​the Aburrá valley. It is highlighted that this type of exercises opened the door to scientific analysis of social sectors excluded from the academic focus, which became a first approach to the social focus for the Institution in terms of research.

As a result of this, academic publications were generated in social and administrative sciences that made an effort to analyze medium-sized companies and the milestones that marked the development and progress of the department of Antioquia, one of the most important territories for Colombia in economic and well-being terms. social, organizational development and industrial growth.

According to the needs of the environment, the research group of the Faculty of Business Sciences consolidated its strategy and, in that sense, included as researchers an interdisciplinary group made up of professionals in administrative sciences, social sciences, statisticians and engineers that allowed a broader vision of the phenomena to be studied, which have transformed the lines of research and have provided significant elements for the survival and consolidation of small and medium-sized companies in the city, identified for this type of analysis and for direct interventions.

Colombian companies such as Coordinadora, The four Plazas Retailers of Medellín, Pijao, Polímeros Colombianos S.A.S, Plasticoop, Poliolefinas industriales, Triv3ntto, Crear Unidos, Lam Creación y Moda, Territorio Amaí and Unicomfacauca, among many others, have received interventions and products in areas or administrative, human talent, financial, marketing or positioning and export processes, which have been endorsed and certified by the legal representatives of each organization, of the María Cano University Foundation as a higher education institution, within the framework of its object social, and articulated to the investigative standards of the Ministry of Science and Technology Minciencias, this being recognized in different calls for measurement of groups and researchers by the Colombian state, a common process in the academic and research context in the country.

Now, the impact on small and medium-sized companies has been the focus of analysis of their research, where approximately 70% of these are concentrated in small and medium-sized companies, which has given rise to the generation of spaces that have facilitated the mitigation of inequities and inequalities of economic and social types, giving rise to the formulation of the proposal for the creation of a social innovation laboratory model, which includes the consolidation of joint policies that articulate the different actors with the HEIs and can generate new knowledge to solve urgent problems in the area of ​​influence of María Cano and the region, from what is proposed by the sustainable development objectives.

The reality of the country, the city and the region necessarily leads us to think about the consolidation of strategies that allow the participation of all actors, from citizens, academia and companies, as well as the State, to resolve situations of multidisciplinary and transversal way, and one of the ways to do it is to create one of these social innovation laboratories that allow and facilitate this situation, a Social Innovation laboratory being understood as that space of change to address social challenges from a multidisciplinary approach, with the aim to investigate and develop proposals that involve dynamic learning and new ways of generating social, economic and environmental value. This laboratory will be a useful tool in the educational field to recognize, develop and propose multidisciplinary solutions to social problems in the city and the region, arising the following research question.

Returning to the generation of products derived from the different research projects, we find the innovations generated in organizational management, which have provided elements for decision-making regarding business dynamics. An example of this type of innovation is the one carried out for the social entrepreneurship AMAI, in which it was sought, from the presentation of strategic planning and analysis of the environment, design of a marketing and financial plan, to provide tools to its creators in such a way. Luckily, without abandoning the creation of their business, they had the possibility of remaining relevant over time and having real sustainability that could guarantee their survival.

With the Territorio AMAI Foundation, the goal was established to design its strategic direction between 2023 – 2026, this product being considered as an innovation generated in business management in the organizational field, which consists of analyzing the strategic direction of the organization, based on the construction and definition of the SWOT matrix, and once the factors have been evaluated, determine the way in which the fulfillment of the objectives and goals can be promoted, since the Foundation has committed and highly qualified human talent. , research and innovation activities in its services and specialized attention, which allows the generation of value in each of the links of the production chain.

The organizational innovations developed for small and medium-sized companies in Medellín introduce improvements to the decision-making tools, while the consolidation of their processes will allow the strengthening of forward integration strategies, in such a way that marketing can be enhanced, attacking its great weaknesses, adapting to the characteristics and needs of its clients, providing training, training and tools for its management. It is highlighted that this intervention has transcended even in the international arena, given that one of its creators resides on the oceanic continent, specifically in Australia, which highlights the Sumar group in other different contexts in which it has operated.

These innovations, non-existent in the organization, have generated novelty, due to the fact that they constitute significant improvements with respect to what the companies initially had, not only because they have an impact in economic terms due to increased income, but because they have implied a reduction in costs, the optimization of human talent and reduction in management and service times, evidencing added value in terms of competitive advantage.

In parallel, thanks to the heterogeneous knowledge in the group, research has been led for large companies, highlighting those carried out in Higher Education Institutions, carrying out characterizations of the student population or the generation of tools that guarantee the permanence of students based on impact. What Covid had on the economy of our academic population.

With the above, we can answer the question posed at the beginning of this academic reflection, hoping that not only the Sumar de la María Cano group, but other teams of researchers from different areas of knowledge can continue to impact through research, not only academic processes, but also in the social impact that this has in the Colombian context, and even in other latitudes.

We invite all people who want to be involved in the training and applied research of the Institution, approaching researchers and groups, given that this substantive work of any educational institution is not only designed for the validation or creation of documentary hypotheses.

Ana María Pérez Naranjo
Victor Hugo Monsalve Manco
Faculty of Business