Social Entrepreneurship: Issues and Opportunities

Margie Parikh September 18, 2015

Source: Jaipur Rugs Foundation

Flow of the topics

• Meaning

– Some Statistics: Potential for SE?

• Timeline of development of the concept

• Model

• Contribution

• Opportunities

• Challenges

Meaning*

– innovative business models

– Curative action to make up for a country’s inadequacies and limitations

– Helped by investors concerned with triple bottom line returns: profits, social impact, and environmental impact

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* Source: http://adb.org/sites/default/files/pub/2012/india-social-enterprise-landscape-report.pdf ** Source: http://www.acrn.eu/resources/Journals/JoE012012/Grassl_SE-Hybridity.pdf

Address a country’s development needs while maintaining sustainability through viable revenue models

Objective: Commercial

Objective: Social

Ownership: Private

Ownership: Public

Pvt. Ent. Social Ent.**

Pvt. Ent. Pub. Admn.

FIVE MINUTES:

CAN YOU NAME SOME SOCIAL ENTREPRISES ?

Social Entrepreneurs …

• Adopt a mission / ‘profit with a purpose’

• Recognize and relentlessly pursue new opportunities

• Engage in the process of continuous innovation, adaptation, and learning

• Act boldly without being limited by resources currently in hand

Some Statistics – Potential for SE?

• Second most populous country

• Fifth largest economy in terms of GDP, growth rate 7.45% (2000-2011)

• Yet: per capita income (2011): $3,600 (129/184 countries)

• 41% population under $1.25/day poverty line, 37% illiterate, high infant mortality

• Agriculture: 53% employment, 19% GDP

Timeline …and more at:

https://www.se-alliance.org/upload/Membership%20Pages/evolution.pdf

Pre-industrialization, religiously influenced activities by monks, missionaries, artists and such

1890s~: “Help people help themselves: Public philanthropy, developmental assistance to rural areas (to ensure there will be market for the company in future)

1960s-1980s: Direct engagement: Addressing major unmet needs of the society

1980~: Ashoka foundation, “New Frontiers for Business Leadership”, “Should the not-for-profits go for business?” Establishment of the Beacon Fund, “Social Enterprise CEO Club” and so on.

…. Contd.

• India: among the world’s most advanced impact investing markets in terms of number and size of investments

• But very few funds have managed successful exits from their investments. – Aavishkaar has only partially exited one of its

investments,

– Acumen Fund in India has exited only one of its debt-based investments.

• Business models need to evolve and mature

Models*

* Source: http://www.acrn.eu/resources/Journals/JoE012012/Grassl_SE-Hybridity.pdf

15 MINUTES:

CAN YOU SUGGEST IDEAS THAT CAN IMPROVE

THE LIVES OF PEOPLE WHO LIVE IN YOUR

SURROUNDING AREAS?

Source: http://www.slideshare.net/Alex.Osterwalder/business-models-beyond-profit-social-entrepreneurship-lecture-wise-etienne-eichenberger-iqbal-quadir-grameen-bank-grameen-phone

15 MINUTES:

WHAT CAN BE THE BUSINESS MODEL

OF THE SE THAT YOU HAVE THOUGHT OF?

Opportunities*

• Global wealth disparity

• The Corporate Social Responsibility movement

• Market, institutional, and state failures

• Technological advances

Source: http://socialeconomyaz.org/wp-content/uploads/2011/01/zahra.pdf

Challenges

• Communicating Value Objectively

• Strategy and Long-Term Focus

• Funding

• Remaining True to the Mission