Nova SBE Leadership for Impact Knowledge Center began a series of Master Thesis Showcase. This one was developed by Manuel Peteleiro, advised by Nova SBE's Professor Miguel Pita.

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For a proper analysis on how to increase Associação Alzheimer Portugal social impact, a detailed explanation was conducted on what is dementia, how it can affect the elderly, and why dementia patients’ treatment requires specialized attention from professional caretakers. Thirty years ago, the Association was found to address this issue, providing several services across the country. Casa do Alecrim, located in Cascais, provides nursing home, day center and home support services, playing a major role inside the Association. However, looking into the future evolution of dementia across the country, Associação Alzheimer Portugal should follow important routes to tackle this problem.

Casa do Alecrim’s expansion came out as a suitable alternative to empower Associação Alzheirmer Portugal social impact while granting its own financial sustainability. Its concept was designed to include both Nursing Home and Home Support services. The capacity of the first was established on a best estimation basis – 36 to 45 patients – due to the absence of an architectural plan whereas the latter relied on a replication of the existing model – 50 patients. According to collected estimates, CAPEX was projected at €1,2M and the OPEX was based on the existing costs with the required HR adjustments. Given the defined price range and the need for further investigation regarding Nursing Home’s maximum capacity and Home Support’s occupancy rate, best-case and worst-case scenarios were computed, as well as a final recommendation regarding financing. With this new facility, the Association will be able not only to increase its cash balance by 10-fold, reaching financial sustainability in other business units and independency from Social Security, but also to enhance its social impact, expanding its reach to an additional 1.045 dementia patients.

As the only institution in Portugal dedicated to improving the quality of life of people with dementia and its caregivers, Associação Alzheimer Portugal can capitalize on its experience and competitive advantage by replicating its expertise through Social Franchise. After a readiness test to replicate, next steps were designed for the Association to become a potential franchisor – creating a team, documenting procedures and legal agreements, defining the franchising concept, target franchisees, and create a communication strategy. Through benchmark with both the expansion of Casa do Alecrim and other franchising networks, a standardized nursing home was designed, allowing to observe attractive returns for investors and benefits for the institution. When implemented and effectively communicated to wealthy and motivated investors, Associação Alzheimer Portugal franchising network, alongside the expansion of Casa do Alecrim’s current facilities, will contribute to the organization’s financial sustainability and to widen the reach of its social impact, helping around 4.000 patients every 20 years.

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