Success Factors of the Asociación de Tecnólogos y Productores de Bilbao (Asotbilbao), a Post-Conflict Associative Company

Abstract

This article describes the success factors of the Asociación de Tecnólogos y Productores de Bilbao (Asotbilbao), which was founded in 2011 with a group of farmers working in coffee growing in the town of Planadas, in the south of Tolima, Colombia. In addition to own resources, public investments and the fact that it was established to meet the needs of its founders, the factors of success also include trust, and that most of the leaders of the organization have training as technologists in management of agricultural enterprises, conditions that stand out among other associations in the region. The approach from the associativity is made from the common stake, which is important for this type of organizations, and social capital, essential for entrepreneurship, addressed from the existence of rules or institutions that allow cooperation and reinforcement of the commitments accepted. It explores the role of associations in local development and the development of capabilities to achieve it the importance of social capital for productivity, cooperation and sustainability, and the relationship between associativity, social capital and innovation.