The reasons why we cannot 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.
The world today is plagued with probably more problems than ever before in history. We are facing 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-based 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 personal experience of the need they are addressing, and as such are in a unique position to address some of our most pressing societal challenges. They are passionate, motivated and committed.
Simon McKeon’s recognition as the 2011 Australian of the Year 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 bring about real and lasting change in a broken and hurting 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 simply great leaders. Attention was paid to his courage, compassion and great vision, but rarely to the practical aspects of his achievements. The children learn that Florence Nightingale cared for wounded soldiers, but not that she built the first professional 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, taking advantage of 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 comes up with new solutions to social problems and then implements them.
But while they may read from a different point of view, social and business entrepreneurs have a lot in common. They build something from 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 of making mistakes.
Indeed, this new initiative has the world’s leading policymakers 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 = Great Change.
