THE UNLOCKING RISE OF SOCIAL ENTERPRISES
Behind Social Entrepreneurs
SUPER ENTREPRENEURS.
Social enterprises are “for-profit” companies with a social mission at the core of their business model. Hence, they maintain a balance between economic and social values. This may include developing eco-friendly and cruelty-free products, using sales to fund social causes, supporting local communities to earn a livelihood, or disrupting the waste management process. For instance, Helpsy is a social enterprise with the environmental mission of reducing textile waste by creating greater convenience to recycle old clothes. Another social enterprise, LEDsafari, develops innovative digital products to empower a future generation to tackle climate change and move towards sustainable energy technologies. The list goes on.
Social entrepreneurs are super entrepreneurs. They are entrepreneurs who are seeking to make a difference in the world. They are real catalysts of change. Driven by research and innovation, they fast track change and accelerate social and economic development.
SOCIAL PILLAR
Traditionally speaking, the world functions on two pillars: the economic pillar and the social pillar. The economic pillar focuses on wealth creation by using innovative processes, practices, and technology. In contrast, the social pillar is focused on health, wellness, and education of the people with the quality of life as one of the major priorities.
For a long time, we have relied on the economic pillar to support the social pillar and bridge the gap between the haves and the have nots. Due to the varied goals of the two, this works only in theory. As a result, there is a lack of access to disposable income, absence of cooperation in the labor market, shortage of education, and healthcare facilities, to name a few. Consequently, the gap between rich and poor is rising exponentially.
Accordingly, in the middle of these two pillars lies the world of social enterprises (the third pillar) — a new paradigm for businesses. Social enterprises operate in areas where traditional businesses see challenges and not opportunities.
Social Enterprise Ecosystem
WHAT DOES THE FUTURE HOLD?
Social enterprises are disrupting the business landscape, and at the same time, they are narrowing the development gap by making things happen. They showcase that “charity” and “profits” are no longer mutually exclusive. This encourages others to take the lead. As Robby Novak said, “Be somebody who makes everybody feel like a somebody.” This is what social enterprises do. They rise by lifting others.
There is no doubt that people have begun to realize the significance of social entrepreneurs. They make a huge difference to our community and the world. Cone Communications’ CSR (2017) study suggested that about 86% of US consumers expect companies to act on social and environmental issues. Further, 87% of consumers will buy a product if a company advocated for a problem that they passionately cared about. This is the impact of social entrepreneurship. They encourage conscious business and ethical consumerism. Social entrepreneurship will soon become the norm.
