incubation centre: centre for social entrepreneurship - tiss

Incubation Centre: Centre for Social Entrepreneurship Annual Report 2018-19

Incubation Centre: Centre for Social Entrepreneurship

Annual Report

2018-19

Centre for Social Entrepreneurship

Annual Report 2018-19


1

Social entrepreneurs bring innovative solutions to social problems and ensure the needed social

value. The graduates of ‘Master of Arts in Social Entrepreneurship’ programme offered by the

Centre for Social Entrepreneurship at Tata Institute of Social Sciences (TISS), Mumbai has

been proving this phenomenon. Association with DBS Bank India in the form of ‘DBS-TISS

Social Venture Initiative’ has strengthened this process and added multiple dimensions to its

success. Winning the prestigious National Entrepreneurship Award 2017 (Social Enterprises

category) instituted by the Ministry of Skill Development and Entrepreneurship, Government

of India by Sampurn(e)arth Environment Solutions Pvt Ltd, a social venture which was

supported under this Programme is a proof of excellence.

The Incubation Centre has been one of the first forerunners in the incubation centre space in

social sector space and are taking innovative approaches and engaging in partnerships to

disseminate the knowledge on social entrepreneurship and social venture creation.

The Incubation Centre is creating huge impact through the social enterprises it is nurturing. I

wish all the success to the Incubation Centre.

Prof Shalini Bharat

Director,

Tata Institute of Social Sciences

A Note from the Director


‘Social Entrepreneurship’ is a unique market-driven mechanism in which technological,

managerial and social knowledge and skills are deployed to affect social change. It combines

the economic benefits of entrepreneurship while simultaneously delivers the social and

environmental outcomes. It is believed that entrepreneurship can be learnt; it is not a divine or

super-natural phenomenon, as one learns the skills to practice engineering or medicine

profession, motivated individuals can also learn to become entrepreneurs.

Recognising this, Tata Institute of Social Sciences (TISS) established under Section 3 of the

UGC Act, 1956 of Government of India pioneered a Two Years Masters Programme in Social

Entrepreneurship called ‘Master of Arts in Social Entrepreneurship’, in 2007. The Programme

has been acknowledged by Ashoka Global University as one of the three most innovative

programmes. The core objective of this programme is to train a cadre of Social Entrepreneurs

who can create employment, assets and wealth for the poor, in innovative ways.

The Incubation Centre was started in 2012 to support the graduates to start their enterprises.

TISS went ahead with supporting enterprises and organisations from both urban and rural

setups. It has now gained momentum and has formed a very strong network of entrepreneurs,

social entrepreneurs, institutions, corporates and incubation centres that will strengthen the

ecosystem to encourage and sustain the work done by the social entrepreneurs/change leaders.

The Incubation Centre will continue to develop strong networks and disseminate the

knowledge on social entrepreneurship across sectors and across borders.

Prof Satyajit Majumdar

Project Head, Incubation Centre

Centre for Social Entrepreneurship,

School of Management and Labour Studies

PREFACE


3

Social Entrepreneurs and social enterprises have been in existence for many centuries, but only came into

prominence in recent decades when the particular label of “Social Entrepreneur” has been intentionally used to

identify them, an effort in large part pioneered and actively championed through Ashoka, a non-profit institution

that identifies and supports leading entrepreneurs globally in an effort to support social change. However, even

before Ashoka was founded in 1981 and subsequently popularized the term, history had witnessed numerous

social entrepreneurs responsible for the many social innovations we have come to find commonplace today. The

epitome of such historical social entrepreneurs is Florence Nightingale, who had revolutionized care-giving by

founding the modern nursing profession1.

Social impact and entrepreneurship is deeply rooted in the Indian ethos. The two major milestones in the social

enterprise sector in India are- the Land Gift Movement founded and led by Vinoba Bhave and the Amul Dairy

Cooperative led by Dr. Verghese Kurien.

Today, social entrepreneurship is a growing worldwide movement. There has been a significant leap in the field of

social entrepreneurship in India over the last decade. More and more people are using entrepreneurial skills in

building sustainable enterprises for profit and non-profit to effect change in India. Social entrepreneurs play the

role of change agents and they relentlessly strive to make the world a better place. Social enterprises address

social and environmental problems through innovative business solutions that improve the lives of underserved

communities. They are businesses which trade for a social purpose, re-invest surpluses into their social objective,

and make themselves accountable for their actions, rather than simply maximising profits for owners and

shareholders. A recent survey finds that social enterprise is a growing and dynamic sector of the Indian economy

that is creating jobs for disadvantaged groups, empowering women, and addressing social exclusion across the

country2.

1 Daryl Poon (2011). “The Emergence and Development of Social Enterprise Sectors.” Social Impact Research Experience

Journal (SIRE) University of Pennsylvania 2 British Council (2016). Social value economy-A Survey of the Social Enterprise Landscape in India.

BACKGROUND


4

MASTERS PROGRAMME IN SOCIAL ENTREPRENEURSHIP

Tata Institute of Social Sciences (TISS) is one of the very few places where social entrepreneurship is

being taught as a fulltime Masters Programme. As a pioneer institution of Social Work in India, TISS

felt the need for starting a programme after careful thought about the emerging needs of wider society

to develop change leaders in social sector who can create enterprises with social purpose and impact,

and generate wealth to enhance livelihood and sustainable development. Consequently, as a part of the

School of Management and Labour Studies of TISS, the Centre for Social Entrepreneurship (CSE)

came into existence in 2007. This move has created a viable and sanctioned pathway for a new

generation of socially-motivated entrepreneurs and leaders. Every student registered in the course is

expected to start his or her own social venture that demonstrates solving one or more social problems.

Since its inception, the Programme has gained wide popularity amongst young graduates from various

disciplines such as engineering, medicine, agriculture, science, humanities, social science and computer

applications and many have left their lucrative careers to become social entrepreneurs.

INCUBATION PROGRAMME FOR SOCIAL STARTUPS

The Centre for Social Entrepreneurship (CSE) at TISS has set up an Incubation Center which

is the first of its kind in India in an academic institution, to support social entrepreneurship

and is an in-built adaptation of the Masters' Programme where the students, immediately after

graduation, get guidance, mentoring, physical space and network for funding and value based

collaboration. The TISS Incubation Centre promotes social start-ups by guiding them right

from the stage when social problems are articulated and the possible solutions are proposed,

to ensure that these ventures create impactful and sustainable solutions at appropriate scale.

The process also provides opportunities for experimentation and exploration of newer

solutions and methods. Spread across the country, the Ventures remain under structured

incubation support for eighteen months. They are encouraged and supported to become

independent and self-supporting. In this way within this period, the Ventures establish the

efficient venture model and gradually become competent and eligible for formal funding

support from donors, philanthropists and impact investors. They also find network partners

OUR APPROACH TO SOCIAL ENTREPRENEURSHIP


5

and the team members, to support growth in terms of impact and scale. The Incubation

Centre from 2018 onwards started inviting applications from across the country

VISION We strive to build social change leadership through budding and committed Social

Entrepreneurs (SEs) who would strive towards creating social value through innovative social

ventures, and in the process inspire many.

MISSION Create sustainable social enterprises by continuous evaluation, selection and support including

mentoring, networking, infrastructure and technology tie-ups.

Objectives

a. Creation of an Eco System

Endeavour to create a sustainable eco-system that helps ventures grow with the help

of mentoring, infrastructural, networking as well as emotional support and also

facilitate interactions with each other, to foster engagements and collaborations

b. Economic, Social and Environmental Impact

Strive to incubate the diverse types of ventures across various problem areas that

include education, livelihood, health care, energy, water management, art and culture,

environment and others to promote sustainable and innovative solutions.

c. Knowledge Creation

Intend to foster the spirit of entrepreneurship and social entrepreneurship in academia,

research and social space by developing cases as well as scholarly literature on social

entrepreneurship, by disseminating knowledge at relevant platforms and by partnering

with other institutions/organizations engaged in academics and practice.

FUNCTIONAL FRAMEWORK OF THE INCUBATION CENTRE

1. Duration of Incubation Support

18 months

2. Eligibility Criteria for selection

- Proof of Concept of the venture idea

- Ability to create sustainable impact in the marketplace/society

3. Size of Cohort

10-15 fellows each year


6

4. Selection of Ventures

i. A call for application is invited in the month of March/April each year.

ii. An expert committee which includes TISS Working Committee Members

screens the applications.

iii. The shortlisted candidates are called for final pitch at the TISS campus

iv. Final Selection of the ventures is done by the TISS Working Committee which

may include external experts.

v. The Incubation Cycle starts from July each year.

The Selection is done based on following parameters:

➢ Applicants should have done detailed problem mapping of the issue on which

they will be offering solution

➢ The solution should be viable

➢ The applicant should be able to visualize the intended impact.

➢ The applicant should present the business plan with projections for next three

years.

➢ The venture should be a high impact model.

➢ The venture should be a self-sustainable model.

Those not selected are encouraged to improve, fine-tune their plans and motivated to

come back next year. Required assistance is offered over the year to improvise the

plan.

5. Mentoring

➢ Mentoring is offered by creating a pool of mentors who are domain experts from

different sectors

➢ Mentoring happens either in the form of a workshop, clinics or one-on-one

interactions.

6. Infrastructure Support

The Incubation Centre provides office space, computers, copiers, internet and other

available resources to ventures operating in Mumbai and those outside Mumbai may

use the infrastructure whenever they visit the campus (subject to availability).


7

7. Review of Ventures

➢ Monthly telephonic reviews are held to gather updates. (10-15 minutes meeting

with each fellow)

➢ Detailed review meeting/strategic discussions are done during the Quarterly

meetings (October/November, January, April, June/July).

➢ The Incubation team do on-site visits once a year.

➢ Monthly KPI (Key Performance Indicator) are set based on which monthly

reports are sent by each fellow. The monthly review discussions are based on the

reports.

8. Resource Network Support

Offers network support by bringing together a pool of resource persons and

supporting organizations across sectors.

Yearly Conference (National/International) is organized by TISS that gives a platform

to upgrade the academic knowledge and network with academicians and industry

experts.

Incubation Programme Structure

The Centre has two dedicated resource persons to manage the operations and liaison with all the

stakeholders. A senior faculty member from the Centre for Social Entrepreneurship acts as Faculty

Coordinator and Chairperson. The main task for the Working Committee is to review the progress of

each and every Incubatee Venture on periodic basis and take important decisions. They normally meet

at quarterly intervals and provide expert feedback and guidance to the ventures. The Working

Committee Members include:

Prof Satyajit Majumdar

Prof Samapti Guha

Mr Raviraj Durwas


8

Profile of TISS Incubatees

BUNKAAR

Name of the Social Enterprise: Bunkaar Textiles

Incubation Period: 2017 to 2018

Area of operation: Mumbai, West Bengal

Type of legal entity: Private Limited Company

Sector: Textiles

The Social Entrepreneur/Enterprise

Aman has a rich corporate experience of working with Samsung and TCS. He comes from a

textiles family who are into fabric trading. He himself is a big fabric enthusiast and believes

in identity of weavers as well. He started Bunkaar Textiles in 2017 to solve the marketing

problem of handloom weavers. He is a trained Social Entrepreneur from TISS Mumbai and

Engineer from Jamia, Delhi

Bunkaar is a social enterprise working towards providing identity and market opportunities to

the handloom weavers. The organisation positions itself as handloom fabric branding,

promotion and sales company.

AYANSH

Name of the Social Enterprise: AYANSH (Advocating Youth At-risk through Nurturing &

Support Hub)


Area of operation: Mumbai



9

Sector: Skill Development


Sanish has completed his M.A in Social Innovation & Entrepreneurship from TISS, Tuljapur

and is a gold medalist of his course. He has done Bachelor of Mass Media (BMM) from the

University of Mumbai. His journey as an entrepreneur started when he co-founded a

successful t-shirt and merchandise printing business at the age of 19 with negligible funds.

The urge to do something for the society existed since his childhood. The journey which

started as his hobby of making short-films for awareness brought him till pursuing a degree in

social sector. He believes in making people independent. He is currently heading AYANSH

and has dedicated his life to it.

At-Risk Youth includes Juvenile Delinquents, Orphans, Victims of Social Evils &

Marginalized Youth. The at-risk youth who have inclined towards art are identified.

AYANSH enhances the inherent creativity and energy of these youth by training them. It

prevents the youth from working in exploitative unorganized sector in India and provides

them with an opportunity to learn, earn and even complete their formal education in a secure

environment until they are ready to compete with the world around.

Desimati

Name of the Social Enterprise: Desimati.com


Area of operation: Bhopal, Madhya Pradesh


Sector: Organic vegetables/supply chain management

The Social Entrepreneur/Enterprise: Diptiman has an interesting blend of technology,

management and sales in his skill set. He has been quite elaborative, informative and wise

with detailed understanding of competitive market players. It has been his sharp business

acumen which has driven him to work.


10

An electronics engineer by education and a software professional in the financial

technologies space for almost 11 years and executing many important assignments with

companies like thomson reuters, financial technologies and many more.Chose to shun the

trappings offered by the corporate world, to run a start-up around our nation's oldest

profession, agriculture.

Kalavithi

Name of the Social Enterprise: Kalavithi


Area of operation: Pune


Sector: Art and Culture

The Social Entrepreneur/Enterprise: Ms Dipti Jana has worked for years in the corporate

sector and started Kalavithi with the passion to bring all the artists to the mainstream.

Shivar Foundation

Name of the Social Enterprise: Shivar Foundation


Area of operation: Osmanabad, Maharashtra

Type of legal entity: Trust

Sector: Farmer distress, Agriculture



11

He has completed his studies is Social Work and has closely observed the agony of farmers

from Vidarbha region in Maharashtra. He hence tries to deep dive into their problem and

offer a viable and sustainable solution in this direction.

Social Innovation Immersion Programme

SIIP is Fellowship/Award Programme of BIRAC- Biotechnology Industry Research Assistance

Council under the aegis of Department of Biotechnology, Government of India. BIRAC is a not-

for-profit Section 8, Schedule B, Public Sector Enterprise, set up by Department of Biotechnology

(DBT), Government of India as an Interface Agency to strengthen and empower the emerging

biotechnology enterprises to undertake strategic research and innovation, addressing nationally

relevant product development needs.

SIIP-Social Innovation Immersion Programme aims at creating a pool of biotech ‘Social

Innovators’ who can identify needs and gaps within communities and then can help bridge the gaps

either through an innovative product development or service.

TISS engaged with the SIIP fellows to teach the processes and tools that are required to understand

the complexities of the society and associated cultural dimensions as well as train them to develop

entrepreneurial mind set, equip with managerial methods, and expose to venture creation techniques

and strategies to become a successful social entrepreneur/innovator.

TISS associated with 15 fellows in the year 2018-19 cohort where innovative ideas were processed on

the theme ‘Ageing and Health’. The fellows were from the below mentioned Incubation Centers

supported by BIRAC:

1) Venture Centre, Pune

2) KIIT, Bhubaneshwar

3) TiMed, Trivandrum

4) C-Camp, Bangalore

Profile of SIIP Fellows

Name: Mohammed Hashid

Incubation Centre: C-Camp

Idea: Blood electrolytes- Point of Care Unit

Contact Number: 9946169749


12

Email address: [email protected]

Name: Dilip. S


Idea: Real-time non invasive monitoring of urine output on minute to minute based report of

kidney function



Name: Karthikeyan Gopinathan


Idea: Post Stroke Sensory Physiotherapy Support



Name: S. Nikhil Das


Idea: Mechanism for Purification of human blood/ instrucment for effective dialysis. Method:

Concentration polarisation- introduced an external attachment which would disturb the process

of polarisation through Ultrasonic waves-literature supports the idea that the ultrasonic works

function as indicated



Name: Rishi Agarwal

Incubation Centre: KIIT, Bhubaneshwar

Idea: Opthalmological and Neurodegenerative diseases- AI based technology, VR-AI based


Email address:

Name: Pooja.k.Jha



13

Idea: Knee Pain, arthritic Pain- electromagnetic braces


Email address:

Name: B. Sruthi


Idea: Smart Locomotory Device with novel defecation assistance. The aim of the intervention

"Smart Locomotory Device with novel defecation assistance" is to assist disabled people to

perform their activities of daily living easily in terms of defecation and locomotion. This

eliminates the physical and social issues existing due to mobility.


Email address:

Name: Dr.Steward Gracian


Idea: Asssistive Oral Care for bedridden elderly- custom fit mouth guard, user defined,

pressurised inflow of liquid disinfectant, closed suction system, smart sensors-controlled flow

of liquid and patient position feedback


Email address:

Name: Mohammed Razik

Incubation Centre: TiMed, Trivandrum

Idea: Arthritic Pain Management- Portable ayurvedic Kizhi for application of heat atattached

with medicinal/herbal medicine bags



Name: Gowri M


Idea: MASKIT- resolve the TINNITUS noise in the ear among elderly population through a

noise cancellation ear device- This will ensure sound sleep to people suffering from Tinnitus


14



Name: Lini Basil


Idea: Dry Mouth in geriatric patients- Hydrogel based system that can provide moisturisation

for hours



Name: Akhil S Nair


Idea: Mechanical Patient Transferring System



Name: Divyakshi Kaushik

Incubation Centre: Venture Centre, Pune

Idea: GAIT abnormality- muscular and neurological dysfunction (caused due to arthritis, )An

assistive tool to correct a biomechanical foot condition to enable mobility and prevent falls.



Name: Yashoda Padhye


Idea: A multi-functional bedside supportive device for the bedridden elderly and their care-

givers for easy shifting and functioning of the daily activities of the older adults


Email address: [email protected]>

Name: Mangesh Khadase


mailto:[email protected]


15

Idea: Vitamin B12 enriched functional foods with increased absorption efficiency



MONITORING AND REVIEW PROCESSES

VENTURE REVIEW

MONTHLY REVIEW MEETINGS

Monthly reviews are conducted with every venture to understand their key achievements, areas of concerns etc.,

so that the mentoring and resource planning activities by the centre can be more focused. These reviews are

mostly telephonic discussions held once a month with each Incubatee. It is based on the ‘Self-assessment report’

submitted by the Incubatee which is reviewed by the TISS Working Committee and discussed during the monthly

telephonic call. Monthly reviews were held for TISS incubatees as well as SIIP fellows.

QUARTERLY REVIEW MEETINGS

Quarterly reviews are a time when the Working Committee at the Incubation Centre meets every quarter to review

the performance of each and every venture. During this time the Incubate Ventures come face to face with the

Centre and give an update on their performance as well as share the constraints faced by them with the Centre.

They also get a chance to interact informally with other fellow entrepreneurs and learn from each other's

experiences. Peer discussion and mentoring sessions are a key element of these meetings and the ventures greatly

benefit from each other's experience and learning. It is mandatory for all the incubate ventures to attend the

quarterly review meeting that takes place in Mumbai.

WORKSHOPS AND EVENTS

The Self-Assessment Workshop was conducted on 16th to 18th February 2019 lead by Prof Premlatha from Centre

for Human Resource Development at the School of Management and Labour Studies. 22 students from 2nd year

MA in Social Entrepreneurship participated in the workshop. The workshop invited several internal faculties,

PhD and MPhil Scholars and externals experts to evaluate the students across different traits required by a social

entrepreneur. Comprehensive reports were share with 10 students who attended all the activities in the workshop.

CONTINUOUS LEARNING SUPPORT


16

CO-INCUBATION

Centre for Social Entrepreneurship, TISS has formed partnerships with incubations like Social Alpha and Venture

Centre. As a result of this collaboration, Mr. Pramod Bhurji, MASE graduate 2017 has got an opportunity to be

co-incubated at Venture Centre, Pune.

RESEARCH AND OUTREACH

As part of its research and outreach initiative, the centre has engaged with Dr Premalatha, Associate Professor at

TISS. Dr. Premalatha initiated a research wherein a competency framework was designed based on conducting

Behavioural Event Interviews (BEI) with Subject Matter Experts and Social Entrepreneurs. The framework

presents the list of competencies with their behavioural indicators essential to become social entrepreneurs at the

entry level. The framework is improvised each year.

The Centre for Social Entrepreneurship organised an International Conference on Business Models in Social

Entrepreneurship from 17th to 19th January 2019. The conference aimed at broadening the area of research in

social entrepreneurship.

It was during this event that an attempt was made to celebrate social entrepreneurship. On 18th January, a session

was dedicated to the budding entrepreneurs. It acted as a platform where the social entrepreneurs produced by the

Centre for Social Entrepreneurship at TISS and its partner organisations like BIRAC.

On 19th January, an interactive session was held between ‘Social Entrepreneurs in Making’ i.e., the MASE 2nd year

students. The students who had already run their pilot were given an opportunity to pitch their venture idea. A

general Question-Answer session was held after the pitch.

OTHER INITIATIVES

CELEBRATING SOCIAL ENTREPRENEURSHIP


17

INCUBATION SUPPORT

The Centre has realized that there is a need to support the social ventures that have sprung up in recent years all

around the country. It intends to widen its scope and provide the much needed handholding to other start-ups with

a social mission even outside TISS. In order to do this, it is working towards joining hands with partners including

government bodies like the Department of Science and Technology. It aims to create an exclusive entity which

can provide an eco-system wherein such budding social entrepreneurs get an opportunity to flourish.

INCUBATORS NETWORK

The Centre is also incessantly working towards creating a network of Incubators and seeks to make necessary

progress in the upcoming year i.e., 2019-20. It has already begun its work and aspires to take a step ahead and

aims to create a structured way of networking, meeting, learning and capacity building of Incubators.

RURAL ENTREPRENEURSHIP

The Centre intends to expand its reach throughout the country by creating smaller virtual Incubators in rural areas

like the tribal belts of West Bengal, Chattisgarh and Madhya Pradesh. It already has an experience of engaging,

supporting and promoting social entreprises like SRREOSHI in West Bengal and Shivganga in Madhya Pradesh.

The Centre intends to utilize its experience and reach out to the remotest parts of the country and provide

incubation support to rural start-ups with a social mission.

LOOKING AHEAD


PARTNERS ORGANISATIONS

Contact Details:

304, Academic building 2, Malti and Jal A.D Naoroji Campus, TISS,Deonar Far,

Road, Deonar, Mumbai- 400 088. Landline No- 022-25525820

incubation centre: centre for social entrepreneurship - tiss

Documents