Defining social entreprise

#socialenterprise #impactinvesting

Social entrepreneuring is very cool concept, help the entire society, save the planet and earn money!

However, what is a social enterprise (SE)? I find my previous statement fuzzy, in fact most of the companies strive to satisfy a consumer necessity (society), seeking to make profit and minimizing environmental impact (or at least this is the narrative). Just look into any of the 500 fortune website.

In reality, we realise that there is a large spectrum of types of SE, based on legal registration, dominance of profit vs social/environmental values, independence from community,government or corporate, etc.

Despite the emotional impetus that characterises most of the charismatic founders, the most explicit SEs are those tackling existing deficiencies or market failures, serving the underserved and providing better opportunities that did not exist. It means also that context matters as each region/country will experience its own societal/environmental deficiencies, which eventually will evolve.