The reasons why we can’t ignore social entrepreneurship.
Social entrepreneurship is fast becoming the most powerful business model of the 21st century. It is an exciting process by which passionate and ambitious people build or transform a business to provide innovative solutions to social problems such as poverty, malnutrition, illiteracy, clean air and water, and healthcare.
Today’s world is plagued with probably more problems than ever before in history. We face challenges like never before and the “to do” list is huge and growing. Social entrepreneurship is a relatively new phenomenon operating in areas where traditional non-profit and government support structures have not been successful.
Social entrepreneurs are ordinary people who find innovative solutions to society’s social problems. They use traditional business models to generate social or community benefits. Social entrepreneurs often have a personal experience of the need they are addressing and as such are in a unique position to address some of our most pressing social challenges. They are passionate, motivated and committed.
Simon McKeon’s recognition as Australian of the Year 2011 has brought the term “Social Entrepreneur” into the national conversation. From Barack Obama’s presidential campaign to grassroots organizations, the concept of social entrepreneurship has received a lot of attention in recent times. It has been touted by many as the means to real and lasting change in a broken and wounded world. Although Social Entrepreneur and Social Entrepreneurship are relatively new terms, examples are found throughout history. They have always existed but in the past they were called visionaries, humanitarians, missionaries, philanthropists, reformers, saints, or just great leaders. Attention was paid to his courage, compassion, and great vision, but rarely to the practicalities of his accomplishments. The children learn that Florence Nightingale cared for wounded soldiers, but not that she built the first vocational school for nurses and revolutionized the hospital system.
Just as entrepreneurs change the face of business, social entrepreneurs act as agents of change for society, seizing opportunities that others miss and improving systems, inventing new approaches and creating solutions to improve society. While a business entrepreneur can create entirely new industries, a social entrepreneur finds new solutions to social problems and then implements them.
But although they may read from a different end result, social and business entrepreneurs have a lot in common. They build something out of nothing. They are ambitious to achieve. They gather resources, sometimes from the most unlikely places, to meet their needs. They are constantly creative. And they are not afraid to make mistakes.
Indeed, this new initiative has the world’s top policy makers predicting that it will not only become the most useful and profitable platform of our time, but also a revolutionary shift in thinking and planning for sustainable global improvement.
Social responsibility + Entrepreneurial strategies = Big change.
