scholarly journals Toward a typology of social entrepreneurs: the interplay between passionate activism and entrepreneurial expertise

2020 ◽  
Vol 27 (4) ◽  
pp. 509-530
Author(s):  
Michael A. Abebe ◽  
Sarah Kimakwa ◽  
Tammi Redd
Keyword(s):  
Social Entrepreneurship ◽  
Social Engagement ◽  
Profile Analysis ◽  
Social Entrepreneur ◽  
Social Entrepreneurs ◽  
Career Experiences ◽  
Content Type ◽  
Social Venture ◽  
Corporate Business

PurposeThis paper contributes to research in social entrepreneurship by introducing a typology that describes four distinct types of social entrepreneurs based on the nature of their lives and career experiences and the scope of their social engagement.Design/methodology/approachIn order to build a typology of social entrepreneurs, inductive profile analysis and archival research design approaches were used. A large variety of social entrepreneur profiles that are available in prominent social entrepreneurship organizations such as Ashoka Foundation, Echoing Green, Schwab Foundation and Skoll Foundation were examined.FindingsUsing four types of social entrepreneurs from the typology, the authors developed a number of predictions as to how social entrepreneurs with an activist background may benefit more in the short term but possibly struggle in the long term given their attachment to their venture's “original” cause and lack of corporate/business experience.Originality/valueBy developing a typology of social entrepreneurs and discussing the implications of this typology for post-launch social venture performance, the paper advances the current understanding of social entrepreneurs and the performance of their ventures. Additionally, by focusing on social entrepreneurs as agents of social change, this paper sheds some light on who these entrepreneurs are, what kind of life and career experiences they had and what motivates them to engage in social entrepreneurship.

Elucidating technology-based social entrepreneurs’ scale and scope perspectives: a study of environmental and organizational variables

2021 ◽  
Vol ahead-of-print (ahead-of-print) ◽  
Author(s):  
Som Sekhar Bhattacharyya
Keyword(s):  
Social Entrepreneurship ◽  
Research Study ◽  
New Ventures ◽  
Theoretical Perspective ◽  
Two Dimensions ◽  
Government Support ◽  
Social Entrepreneur ◽  
Social Entrepreneurs ◽  
Content Type ◽  
Social Venture

Purpose The purpose of this paper was to ascertain how social entrepreneurs were required to recognize their new ventures’ scope and scale of operations. The firm boundary was based upon two dimensions, namely, the scope of the offering and its scale. The objective of this research was to ascertain the thinking regarding this of social entrepreneurs engaged through technology-based social entrepreneurship (TBSE). Design/methodology/approach This study conducted an in-depth interview of 26 technology entrepreneurs engaged in social entrepreneurship ventures in India. The interview was carried out based upon a semi-structured open-ended questionnaire. This study undertook thematic and relational content analysis to develop a model of technology-based social entrepreneurs’ venture scoping and scaling. Findings This study found that the antecedent variables were the level of support perceived by social entrepreneur from government and at the industry level. Furthermore, the variables’ entrepreneurial and market orientation of social entrepreneurs were found to be the independent variables. These four variables in turn determined the explorative and exploitative horizon of the technology-based social entrepreneurs. Finally, an interplay of these variables ascertained the perspectives of social entrepreneurs engaged in TBSE regarding the notion of their firm’s scope and scale. Research limitations/implications The theoretical insights developed in this research study provided an integrated theoretical perspective accommodating both environmental perspectives (industry support and government support) and organizational perspectives (entrepreneurial and market aspects). This was in context of TBSE. Practical implications The insights from this research study could provide a robust and comprehensive understanding to social entrepreneurs regarding the strategic thinking towards scale and scope for a technology-based social venture. Originality/value To the best of the author’s knowledge, this study was one of the first theoretical works in TBSE towards scaling versus scoping perspectives.

Challenges faced by youth social entrepreneurs in Malaysia: career transition to become a social entrepreneur

2021 ◽  
Vol ahead-of-print (ahead-of-print) ◽  
Author(s):  
Nur Raihan Che Nawi ◽  
Mohd Mursyid Arshad ◽  
Steven Eric Krauss ◽  
Ismi Arif Ismail
Keyword(s):  
Social Entrepreneurship ◽  
Early Stage ◽  
Career Transition ◽  
Social Enterprises ◽  
Social Entrepreneur ◽  
Social Entrepreneurs ◽  
Content Type ◽  
Data Saturation ◽  
Analyse Data ◽  
Voice Recorder

Purpose The practice of social entrepreneurship has grown rapidly around the world, including in Malaysia where it is still considered to be at an early stage. Nevertheless, little is known about the career transition among youth who choose careers as social entrepreneurs. The purpose of this study is to explore the challenges faced by youth social entrepreneurs who run social enterprises in Malaysia. Design/methodology/approach This study used a qualitative approach to collect and analyse data to answer the research questions. Seven youth social entrepreneurs were interviewed until data saturation was met. An interview guide was created for the purposes of conducting the interviews. The interviews were recorded using a voice recorder. Data were transcribed verbatim and grouped in order to identify the codings, categories and themes. Findings The findings show the career transition to become a social entrepreneur, as well as the major challenges that youth social entrepreneurs face, which include acclimatising to the life and career of a social entrepreneur and not getting support from family. Practical implications The study findings are also significant for presenting valuable data on the experience of the developing social entrepreneur. The qualitative nature of the study provides valuable experiential insight into the lives and struggles of young social entrepreneurs in Malaysia. The findings will allow local authorities and social entrepreneurship regulatory agencies to design initiatives and plan actions intended to overcome the challenges. Originality/value This study makes an original contribution by showing that the process of career development as a social entrepreneur has given meaning to the informants. Despite presenting many challenges, social entrepreneurship has reinforced the role of youth social entrepreneurs, especially in relation to social responsibility.

Social entrepreneurship and entrepreneurial ecosystems

2017 ◽  
Vol 44 (9) ◽  
pp. 1252-1267 ◽  
Author(s):  
Philip T. Roundy
Keyword(s):  
Social Relations ◽  
Social Entrepreneurship ◽  
Social Entrepreneur ◽  
Social Entrepreneurs ◽  
Content Type ◽  
Community Revitalization ◽  
Entrepreneurial Ecosystems ◽  
Support Organizations ◽  
The Social ◽  
Time Work

Purpose The formation of entrepreneurial ecosystems is recognized as an activity that can produce economic development and community revitalization. Social entrepreneurship is also an activity that is receiving growing attention because of its potential for addressing social and economic problems. However, while scholars have focused on how the participants in entrepreneurial ecosystems, such as investors and support organizations, influence ecosystem functioning, it is not clear what role social entrepreneurs can play in entrepreneurial ecosystems. Nor is it known how the entrepreneurial ecosystems in which social entrepreneurs are located can influence the founding and operation of their ventures. The paper aims to discuss these issues. Design/methodology/approach In this conceptual paper, theory is proposed to explain the interrelationship between entrepreneurial ecosystems and social entrepreneurship. Findings It is theorized that entrepreneurial ecosystems will influence the operations and effectiveness of social entrepreneurs through mechanisms such as the ecosystem’s diversity of resource providers, support infrastructure, entrepreneurial culture, and learning opportunities. In turn, social entrepreneurs can shape the entrepreneurial ecosystems in which they are situated by influencing the heterogeneity of ecosystem participants, garnering attention for the ecosystem, and increasing its attractiveness to stakeholders. Originality/value Scholars examining entrepreneurial ecosystems have not studied the role of an increasingly important market actor: the social entrepreneur. At the same time, work on social entrepreneurship has not emphasized the community of social relations and cultural milieu in which social entrepreneurs found their ventures. The theory developed addresses both of these omissions and has important implications for practitioners focused on spurring entrepreneurial ecosystems and social entrepreneurship.

Principles of frugal innovation and its application by social entrepreneurs in times of adversity: an inductive single-case approach

2021 ◽  
Vol ahead-of-print (ahead-of-print) ◽  
Author(s):  
Oly Mishra
Keyword(s):  
Social Entrepreneurship ◽  
Single Case ◽  
Research Paper ◽  
Social Entrepreneur ◽  
Practical Application ◽  
Social Entrepreneurs ◽  
Frugal Innovation ◽  
Content Type ◽  
The Social

Purpose This study aims to focus on implementing frugal innovation and its principles by social entrepreneurs to face the challenges during the COVID-19 pandemic. The research paper discusses the case of an Indian social entrepreneur who works for menstrual health and hygiene of unprivileged and rural women in India. The social entrepreneur’s constant endeavor is to create an ecosystem to ensure rural women’s economic and social upliftment through financial inclusion and livelihood training. When faced with the COVID-19 pandemic, the social entrepreneur re-purposed the manufacturing process to produce masks that were the need of the hour. Design/methodology/approach The research paper is qualitative and follows an inductive case study approach. The underlying principles of frugal innovation are established through content analysis of the social entrepreneur’s interviews and her team members. Findings The study discusses how adversity can be an opportunity for social entrepreneurs by implementing frugal innovation principles, i.e. re-use, re-purpose, re-combine and rapidity, in times of crisis. Research limitations/implications One of the major limitations of this study is that it is based on a single case study, as, in the current scenario, this case appeared to be the most suitable one. There is no way to generalize the assumptions of this model. Researchers will have to study the phenomena of frugal innovation in adversity across multiple cases in the future. Also, the study is based on a single emerging economy, i.e. India. Further research may be carried out with such cases from other countries. Practical implications The proposition of this research paper will help new and established social entrepreneurs understand that the four principles of frugal innovation and their practical application by a social entrepreneur. This will act as a guiding light for the present and future entrepreneurs regarding how one can respond to a crisis. This will also help advance our understanding of the distinct ways in which social entrepreneurs’ activities can help society in times of crisis. The findings of this research paper provide timely implications for social entrepreneurs. To respond efficiently to various crises, it is important to consider its effect on social entrepreneurship. Social implications The research paper shows that the social enterprise has implemented frugal innovation principles to manufacture the COVID-19 protection items supplied through existing supply chain networks. Also, a social entrepreneur is not intimidated by the sudden changes in the business environment; instead, they look at the situation as an opportunity to do something new. They are always willing to take the risk to innovate a solution that will address people’s problems. frugal innovation, due to its highly collaborative nature and its ability to make the most from limited resources, is the only way social entrepreneurs can create an inclusive, secure and sustainable future. Originality/value There are several challenges in social entrepreneurship, especially in emerging economies like India. During the pandemic, availability of resources was the major challenge, due to which social entrepreneurs had to find solutions through frugal innovation. This paper provides the practical application of the four principles of frugal innovation implemented by a social enterprise to manufacture and supply Covid protection items. It also presents the practical and managerial implications of the principles of frugal innovation by social entrepreneurs in low resource settings.

A mission of service: social entrepreneur as a servant leader

2018 ◽  
Vol 24 (3) ◽  
pp. 755-767 ◽  
Author(s):  
Irina Petrovskaya ◽  
Araksya Mirakyan
Keyword(s):  
Servant Leadership ◽  
Social Entrepreneurship ◽  
Sampling Technique ◽  
Social Entrepreneur ◽  
Future Research ◽  
Snowball Sampling ◽  
Social Entrepreneurs ◽  
Content Type ◽  
Leadership Attributes ◽  
Future Research Agenda

Purpose The purpose of this paper is to establish a conceptual link between the research domains of social entrepreneurship and servant leadership by exploring the proposition that social entrepreneurs may have specific leadership attributes that allow classifying them as servant leaders. Design/methodology/approach Five servant leadership attributes were identified based on the literature review: altruism, humility, integrity, trust in others and empathy. In an exploratory study, these attributes were examined in a sample of 78 Russian entrepreneurs. Findings Survey results indicate that social entrepreneurs indeed differ from traditional ones in four of the perceived servant leadership attributes: altruism, integrity, trust in others and empathy. However, no differences in humility between social and traditional entrepreneurs were found. Research limitations/implications The limitations of this study are the sample size and the sampling technique used (targeted and snowball sampling). Another limitation is the nature of the instrument used: servant leadership attributes were measured through a self-assessment questionnaire, making it susceptible to a social desirability bias. The study contributes toward setting a future research agenda for the further studies of both social entrepreneurship and servant leadership. Originality/value This paper introduces a conceptual connection between social entrepreneurship and servant leadership. No such study had been reported prior to this research.

OSCAR Foundation: empowering lives through football

2016 ◽  
Vol 6 (3) ◽  
pp. 1-32
Author(s):  
Elsa Varghese ◽  
Meena Galliara ◽  
Manjari Srivastava
Keyword(s):  
Learning Outcomes ◽  
Social Entrepreneurship ◽  
Social Enterprise ◽  
Subject Area ◽  
Social Entrepreneur ◽  
Dropping Out ◽  
Content Type ◽  
Non Profit ◽  
Social Venture ◽  
Set Up

Subject area Social entrepreneurship, Social enterprise. Study level/applicability Masters Programme in Social Entrepreneurship, Social Work, Business Administration; Management Development Programme for Social Entreprenuers. Case overview Organisation for Social Change, Awareness and Responsibility (OSCAR) Foundation is a non-profit organisation registered in 2010 under the Bombay Public Trust Act, 1950. Born and raised in the slum colony of Ambedkar Nagar, Cuffe Parade, Ashok, the founder, grew up seeing his friends becoming a victim to many socially inappropriate behaviours due to dropping out of school. Inspired by the thought of breaking this vicious cycle, Ashok used football as a mechanism to instil essential life skills among children and youth and encouraged them to continue their education. The success of his pilot motivated him to set up OSCAR. Presently, through its various programmes, the organisation has reached out to more than 3,000 marginalised children and 500 youths and aims to reach out to 20,000 children by 2020. The case highlights the struggles of Ashok’s entrepreneurial journey and maps the new challenges in scaling up his enterprise. Expected learning outcomes The expected learning outcomes are as follows: to identify the characteristics of a social entrepreneur and ascertain the leadership skills required by a social entrepreneur; to scrutinise the life cycle of a social enterprise and develop insights to examine the unique risks and challenges faced at the start-up phase of the social enterprise; and to enhance the understanding of interrelationship between passion, mission focus and challenges to attain financial sustainability for a social venture. Supplementary materials Teaching Notes are available for educators only. Please contact your library to gain login details or email [email protected] to request teaching notes. Subject code CSS 3: Entrepreneurship.

Creating change through social entrepreneurship: the case of girls’ school dropouts in Uganda

2021 ◽  
Vol 11 (4) ◽  
pp. 1-18
Author(s):  
Isa Nsereko ◽  
Alex Bignotti ◽  
Mohamed Farhoud
Keyword(s):  
Business Model ◽  
Social Entrepreneurship ◽  
Social Entrepreneur ◽  
Social Business ◽  
Social Entrepreneurs ◽  
School Dropouts ◽  
Content Type ◽  
Personal Initiative ◽  
Business Model Canvas ◽  
The Social

Subject area This case focusses on social innovation and social entrepreneurship in Africa, specifically looking at behavioural characteristics of social entrepreneurs, their motivations to create social value and the application of personal initiative theory. The case discusses the self-starting proactiveness and innovation traits of the social entrepreneur. The social business model canvas will be used to analyse the social enterprise’s business model. Study level/applicability Students of social entrepreneurship, development studies, sustainable livelihoods and asset-based development. It is useful for customised or short programmes on social entrepreneurship or for students with a background in business wanting to understand social enterprise as a vehicle for social and economic change. As such, this case is written for Business Management and Entrepreneurship undergraduates or students of elective courses in social entrepreneurship (“understanding” and “remembering” learning activities under Bloom’s taxonomy). When personal initiative theory is used, the case provides an initial understanding of social entrepreneurship in a less developed context for post-graduate students and may be used for higher-order learning activities (“analysing” and “applying”). Case overview The case tells the story of Dr Engr Moses Musaazi, who is a Social Entrepreneur and Managing Director of Technology for Tomorrow (T4T). Troubled with the persistent social problems in his country. Musaazi, through T4T, strived for social innovations to reduce school dropouts of Ugandan girls. While exploring Moses’ journey for solving persistent social problems through social innovations, students will be able to understand, remember, analyse and apply Dees’ (2001) social entrepreneurial behaviours and Santos’ (2012) theory of social entrepreneurship. The case discusses what motivates African social entrepreneurs to start a social venture (Ghalwash, Tolba, & Ismail, 2017). Students will apply personal initiative theory to identify the social entrepreneurial behaviours displayed in the creation of social ventures. To exemplify and analyse the different components of social ventures’ business model, the social business model canvas by Sparviero (2019) will be introduced. Expected learning outcomes The teaching objectives are Objective 1. Students are able to remember, understand, identify and apply the social entrepreneurial behaviours as defined by Dees (2001) and the elements of Santos’ (2012) theory of social entrepreneurship to Dr Moses Musaazi’s case as a social entrepreneur. Objective 2. Students remember, understand and identify what motivates social entrepreneurs in less developed economies to create social value (Ghalwash et al., 2017). Objective 3. Early-stage postgraduate students are able to apply and analyse (also evaluate and create for higher-level post-graduates) personal initiative theory to explain the emergence of social entrepreneurial behaviour and especially how innovation, self-starting and proactiveness may lead to social entrepreneurial venture start-up (Frese, Kring, Soose, & Zempel, 1996). Objective 4. Students use the social business model canvas (Sparviero, 2019) as a tool to understand, analyse and improve a social-enterprise business model. Supplementary materials Supplementary learning materials are provided in the Teaching Note (Table 1). Table1, which includes videos and their description. Also, a link to Uganda’s sustainable development index is provided (the focus is sustainable development goals [SDGs] 3: Good health and well-being, SDG 4: Quality Education, SDG 5: Gender equality, SDG 10: Reduced inequalities). Subject code CSS 3: Entrepreneurship.

Social entrepreneurship and post conflict recovery in Uganda

2014 ◽  
Vol 8 (4) ◽  
pp. 300-317 ◽  
Author(s):  
Arthur Sserwanga ◽  
Rebecca Isabella Kiconco ◽  
Malin Nystrand ◽  
Rachel Mindra
Keyword(s):  
Social Entrepreneurship ◽  
Social Entrepreneurs ◽  
Cross Sectional ◽  
Content Type ◽  
Qualitative Research Design ◽  
Post Conflict ◽  
Societal Level ◽  
Cross Sectional Design ◽  
Long Term Impact

Purpose – The purpose of this study was to explore the role social entrepreneurship has played in post conflict recovery in Gulu district in northern Uganda. Design/methodology/approach – An exploratory and qualitative research design was used to examine the role of social entrepreneurship in post conflict recovery in the Gulu community located in Uganda. A sample of five social entrepreneurs and 15 beneficiaries were interviewed. Findings – The findings revealed that there is an association between active social entrepreneurship and post conflict recovery. Social entrepreneurship was found to create opportunity recognition, networking and innovation at both an individual and societal level. Research limitations/implications – The generalization of the findings was limited by sample and method. A cross-sectional design that was used does not allow for a long-term impact study and limited empirical published research done. Originality/value – This in-depth richness provides a clearer appreciation of the role social entrepreneurs’ play in post conflict recovery.

What motivates social entrepreneurs to start social ventures?

2017 ◽  
Vol 13 (3) ◽  
pp. 268-298 ◽  
Author(s):  
Seham Ghalwash ◽  
Ahmed Tolba ◽  
Ayman Ismail
Keyword(s):  
Social Networks ◽  
Social Entrepreneurship ◽  
Social Issues ◽  
Developing Economies ◽  
Social Entrepreneur ◽  
Future Research ◽  
Social Entrepreneurs ◽  
Empirical Examination ◽  
Content Type ◽  
Social Ventures

Purpose This study aims to explore the characteristics and backgrounds of social entrepreneurs, particularly in relation to what motivates them to start new social ventures, through an empirical examination of the phenomenon of social entrepreneurship in the specific context of Egypt. Design/methodology/approach The study adopts a qualitative methodological approach based on a triangulation of data sources, including extensive interviews from five social entrepreneurs, interviews with senior executives in their organisations and industry experts, as well as secondary data. Findings The paper proposes a model that integrates common characteristics and motivations among individuals who start social ventures. Findings confirm the characteristics of social entrepreneurs as compassionate risk-takers with entrepreneurial mindsets who seek to address social issues in innovative ways. They also have the perseverance to face the inefficient institutional frameworks prevalent in developing economies. Social entrepreneurs are motivated by social problems and challenges, inspiration, and previous personal experiences, as well as their social networks. Research limitations/implications There are limitations pertaining to the limited sample size and single country focus. Practical implications This research offers useful and practical insights for current and future social entrepreneurs, particularly in developing economies. Moreover, the study contributes to expanding future research on social entrepreneurship in similar contexts. Originality/value This study makes several contributions to the literature on social entrepreneurship. First, by presenting an integrated model for the characteristics/traits and motivations of social entrepreneur. Second, it provides deeper understanding of social entrepreneurship in emerging economies. Third, it highlights the importance of personal inspiration and informal social networks as two sources of motivation for social entrepreneurs, in emerging countries.

Social entrepreneur and gender: what’s personality got to do with it?

2018 ◽  
Vol 10 (1) ◽  
pp. 61-82 ◽  
Author(s):  
Susana Bernardino ◽  
J. Freitas Santos ◽  
J. Cadima Ribeiro
Keyword(s):  
Gender Differences ◽  
Personality Traits ◽  
Gender Gap ◽  
Social Entrepreneurship ◽  
Social Entrepreneurs ◽  
Content Type ◽  
Big Five Model ◽  
The Social ◽  
Social Venture ◽  
The Creation

Purpose Research on economic entrepreneurship identifies a gender gap that is favorable to men. In the social entrepreneurship arena, the existing evidence is slightly fuzzy, as this gender gap is less preeminent. This paper aims to identify how gender differences in social entrepreneurial ventures creation are explained by different personality traits, by analyzing the extent to which female and male social entrepreneurs exhibit the same personality traits and whether potential differences are able to explain the differences in predisposition for the creation of new social entrepreneurial ventures. Design/methodology/approach A review of the literature on gender differences and personality traits in social entrepreneurship details the main theoretical developments and builds the hypotheses. Based on the Big Five model, the investigation uses a hypothesis testing quantitative approach. Primary data were collected through a questionnaire that was e-mailed and applied to the social entrepreneurs engaged in the creation of social ventures in Portugal. Findings The data gathered suggest that both female and male social entrepreneurs have personalities characterized by high levels of openness to experience, agreeableness, conscientiousness, extraversion and emotional stability. Based on the analysis of variance (ANOVA) between the two groups and logistic regression, the investigation reveals that women and men who launch a new social venture only differ in one personality dimension – agreeableness – wherein women scored more highly. No significant differences are found in the other personality traits. Research limitations/implications The research assumes that most aspects of human personality structure are represented in the Big Five model. Practical implications The knowledge about whether gender differences are explained by different personality traits is critical to public entities that might design appropriate public policies to stimulate social entrepreneurship. Also, social entrepreneurs’ capacity building programs should be delineated in accordance with a deeper understanding about gender and personality traits differences. Social implications The knowledge of the factors that affects the creation of new social ventures has an important potential contribution on social value creation and the promotion of gender equality. Originality/value This paper links two important topics – gender and entrepreneurs’ personality traits – scarcely explored in the social entrepreneurship literature. Thus, the paper adds new empirical evidence to support (or not) the belief that personality and gender matter in the decision to launch a new social venture.

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