What is the primary driver of the social entrepreneur?-The primary driver of the social entrepreneur is social need. They are driven to make the world a better place and addressing social issues.
Should green or cleantech ventures be classified as social enterprises? If so ,why?-I do believe that they should be classified as social enterprises simply because Draytons definition of a social entrepreneur are those individuals who use innovative solutions to solves societies most pressing social problems, which exactly what green/cleantech ventures strive to accomplish.
What are some of the negatives of forming the social venture as a nonprofit?-Complicated tax and corporate governance issues, inability for founders to participate financially, difficult to sustain over time, inability to attract equal investments, difficult to attract top talent.
Why do stakeholders view the social venture differently from a traditional venture? -Social ventures tend to have greater stakeholder issues and challenges than a traditional venture. The emotional components are heightened and everything feels more intense. External stakeholders place a stronger scrutiny on the venture asking more questions seeing that the venture provides accurate information. Internal ventures look at growth and the challenges social ventures are faced with such as hiring and communication.
What are some of the growth challenges of a social venture?-One of the biggest growth issue for a social venture are employees. Employees who are on the same page as the social venture are driven by a social mission and considered “followers” rather than employees. They are emotionally committed to a very strong degree. This makes it really easy for those followers to feel betrayed if the venture were to do something out of character or “stray” off the mission. Also it will be a challenge to keep those followers motivated through out the course of the venture. As a social entrepreneur, the biggest problem you’ll be asking yourself here is whether you should hire a regular employee who isnt as committed to the businesses goal or hire a follower who believes in the cause.
Differences between Social Entrepreneurship, Corporate Social Responsibility and Philanthropy.-Corporate social responsibility mainly focuses on following and adhering to social norms within a business. There is no formal responsibility. Philanthropy is different in the sense that it is just charity work and is done out of the goodness of ones own self. A social entrepreneur draws upon business techniques to find solutions to social problems. It uses the profits as a means of tackling issues in society in hopes of changing for the better.
Differences between Social entrepreneurship and Business Entrepreneurship.-Both fulfill a need in the market and seek to earn a sustainable amount of profit. However, social entrepreneurs measures their performance on the positive impact its had on society whereas a business entrepreneur is solely focuses on revenue.
4 thoughts on “Social Entrepreneurship”
Great post! I agree that green and/ or clean tech should also be considered social enterprises since they are concern about the environment and society. They are similar to a business entrepreneur in that they use innovation and creative ideas too; however, their focus is not in the creation of wealth but also in helping solve society’s problems.
I agree with Natalia. Your post is very good – concise and on point. I also think green and cleantech venture companies should be considered social enterprises. When I think of an enterprise, I think of big companies/corporations. Usually, clean companies are aiming big, because they want to change status quo, which most often require big changes and disruption in current markets.
Do you think the world we live in today, one can still say companies (the big ones at least) do philanthropy “out of the goodness of ones own self”? Isn’t philanthropy serving the company instead?
I agree with all previous comments, it’s really a good post: concise and to the point! You showed how good you understand the chapter. And what I like most is that you shared your own thoughts in question 3, and last two questions.
Great post! I agree that green and/ or clean tech should also be considered social enterprises since they are concern about the environment and society. They are similar to a business entrepreneur in that they use innovation and creative ideas too; however, their focus is not in the creation of wealth but also in helping solve society’s problems.
I agree with Natalia. Your post is very good – concise and on point. I also think green and cleantech venture companies should be considered social enterprises. When I think of an enterprise, I think of big companies/corporations. Usually, clean companies are aiming big, because they want to change status quo, which most often require big changes and disruption in current markets.
Do you think the world we live in today, one can still say companies (the big ones at least) do philanthropy “out of the goodness of ones own self”? Isn’t philanthropy serving the company instead?
I agree with all previous comments, it’s really a good post: concise and to the point! You showed how good you understand the chapter. And what I like most is that you shared your own thoughts in question 3, and last two questions.