Social Entrepreneurship

Business with a Social Mission

Social entrepreneurship combines the passion and innovation of entrepreneurship with a primary mission to create social value. This module explores what social entrepreneurship is, how it differs from traditional business and charity, and how to build a sustainable social enterprise that creates lasting positive change.

SWOT Analysis for Social Enterprises

Analyze your strengths, weaknesses, opportunities, and threats

Internal Factors ↕

Positive ← → Negative

Course Content

Social entrepreneurship is the process of pursuing innovative solutions to social problems. Social entrepreneurs are individuals who recognize a social problem and use entrepreneurial principles to organize, create, and manage a venture to achieve social change. Unlike traditional entrepreneurs primarily motivated by profit, social entrepreneurs are primarily motivated by social impact, though financial sustainability remains essential.

Key Points

Primary mission: social value creation, not profit maximization
Financial sustainability is necessary but not the primary goal
Innovation applied to social problems
Scale and replication of successful social solutions
Examples: Grameen Bank, TOMS Shoes, Patagonia

Module Quiz

Question 1 of 520%

What does 'Sustainability' mean in business?

Downloadable Resources

Worksheets and templates to practice what you've learned

Sources & Literature

[1]B-ECO Project Results: https://b-eco.erasmus.site/it/project-results/
[2]Dees, J.G. (1998): The Meaning of Social Entrepreneurship. Stanford Social Innovation Review.
[3]Nicholls, A. (2006): Social Entrepreneurship: New Models of Sustainable Social Change. Oxford University Press.
[4]Social Value UK (2012): A Guide to Social Return on Investment.