Social entrepreneurship is the process of recognizing and

resoureefully pursuing oPPortunities to create social value docial

entrepreneurs innovative resoureful and results oriented
are
They
draw upon the best thinking in both the business and nonprofit
worlds to develop strateqies that maximize their social impact T hese

entrepreneurial leaders operate in all kinds of organiza tions larqe

and small new and old religious and secular' nonprofit for-profit
and hybrid These the social secton
organizafions comprise
The concept of SOcial
entrepreneurship describes
how individuals, startups, and
entrepreneurs work to develop
and fund solutions that address
social issues. It can also be
known as an organization that
uses business methods with the
aim of addressing a social or
environmental problem in an
innovative. It is all about
recognizing the social problems
and achieving a social change
by employing entrepreneurial
principles, processes and

operations.
 Characteristics of Social
Entrepreneurship
Social entrepreneurs aim of
contributing to the society for
the long-term businesss
activities in the society. Their
main focus is towards creating
social capital without
measuring the performance in
terms of profit. Some of the
characteristics of social
entrepreneurship are as

follows:
o
Achieve Social Change:
Social entrepreneurship is
considered as the means
of achieving change in the
society. It recognizes the
social problems, achieves
social change by
employing
entrepreneurial
principles, processes and
operations.
o Initiative Innovative:
There is initiation of social
entrepreneurship towards
the innovation of new

Concepts, ideas, and

models for solving social

problems. The problems
like health, education,
unemployment, natural1
calamities, etc. are

considered as social
problems. There is
generation of new
methods and techniques
for resolving social
problems and issues by
the social entrepreneurs.
o Create Value: The main
aim of sOcial

entrepreneurship is
creating value to the
society. It focuses on

creating social capital

without measuring the
performance in terms of
profit or return.
Entrepreneurs perform
such business activities
that can create and
maintain value of the
society.
o Change Agent: Social

entrepreneurs are the

change agent of the

society. They support the
society through their
innovative new concept
ideas, and knowledge.
They understand the
social needs and fulfill it
through creativve

organization. They
measure their success
through improvement of
social value and standard,
not only in terms of profit.
o
Feel Satisfaction: The
application of innovative,
practical, sustainable,
market-based approaches
is emphasized by social
entrepreneurship which
support to fulfill the needs
of under-served
populations. In present
time, it has become the
priority for decision-
makers at the most senior
levels.
What is the Significance of Social
Entrepreneurs?
Focus on Social Problems: Social
Entrepreneurs mainly focus on social
problems. They initiate innovation by
mobilizing the resources available to
build social arrangements in response
to social problems.

Change Agent in Social Sector: Social

Entrepreneurs act as change makers in
society who in turn influence others to
contribute to the development of
mankind.

oThey work not only as a strong

catalyst in society, but as change

agents in the social sector.

Bring the Changes: They adopt a
mission to create and sustain social
value; recognizing and rigidly pursuing
new opportunities, engaging in a
process of continuous innovation,
adaptation and learning.

Increased Accountability: They act

boldly without being limited by
resources in hand and exhibit
heightened accountability to the
constituencies.
Improve People's Lives: People are
attracted to social entrepreneurs like
the Nobel Peace Prize laureate
Muhammad Yunus for many of the
same reasons that they find business
entrepreneurs like Steve Jobs so
compelling - these extraordinary

people come up with brilliant ideas and

against all the odds succeed at
creating new products and services
that dramatically improve peoples
lives.

Help in Achieving Inclusive Society:

They are also playing a pivotal role in
the inclusive recovery and rebuilding of
communities at the grassroots level.
6 CHot ENGES EACING
SOCLAL ENTREPRENELRS
Social entrepreneurship
Finding funding
There isn't a business in the world that
didn't wish it had more money to
invest in expansion and achieving its
mission statement. Unfortunately,
when it comes to social enterprises
this is usually a much bigger concern
than for corporate enterprises.

It's not ridiculous to call finding

funding the number one challenge of
a successful social enterprise. A great
idea is worthless unless you can follow
through on it. And that requires not
just funding for action, but promotion,
structural costs and paying staff.
Overcoming suspicion
Social enterprises are often met with
distrust. The public often
questions
their true intentions. Charities wonder
why they aren't non-profit. Some
media give them little
coverage and
assume they'll fail and fizzle away. This
is a unique business hurdle to
overcome before you've even really
got started.

Solving the problem of initial suspicion

requires proving you're invested in the
cause and moved by the issue. One
way to do this is to offer customers
the option to choose where their
money is going. Rather than looking
like an all-powerful business leader
who thinks they know best, listen to
customers and show you have support
from experts.
f in
With your social enterprise.

Finding good manufacturers

Unaccounted for additional costs can

be a death blow for a business,
shutting them down before they get a
chance to begin their mission.

Take e-commerce as an example once

again, the cost of production can be a
huge challenge if you're selling a
quality product with specific
requirements. Considering all the
additional costs of running e
commerce, it can be hard to make it
worthwhile. This can lead to you
looking for a good manufacturer in a
price range they simply don't exist in.

Don't wait too long,

invest in your dreams

f in
Remaining true to your mission

So, there's a
So, clear issue that's
bothering you and you have a killer
idea to solve it. It's often said that the
simplest business ideas are the best,
and that's no different for social
enterprises. Moving away from the
initial great idea can kill a business and
it's something social entrepreneurs
need to be equally wary of.

receives
As your enterprise growS and
more outside funding it's natural to
feel you can do more, or you may feel
pressured to expand by your
investors.

Now is the time to remain true to

the

originalmission though. Until you've

remain
returned on your investment,
true to your original mission.

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Lack of clarity in message

Your social enterprise is all about the

message. A social enterprise can fail to
attract funding and an audience
through a lack of clarity in its message.
Without the message youre just
another online store, software service,
or half-thought start-up, the goal of

your social enterprise is what sets you

apart and can't be sacrificed. Weak
messaging can destroy a good
intentioned mission like it can destroy
a brand.

Make surethe message is articulated

Hire
properly and your mission clear.
Copywriters and social media gurus
(and give them the right tools to
and source the
manage your output
to focus on) to get the
right topics
out there and associated
message

f in
Aligning with investors

As difficult as funding is to acquire for

social enterprises, there has still been
an upturn in recent years of impact
investors looking for opportunities.
This brings with it the challenge of
keeping the investor on-side and
engaged with the project. Not only are
investors always conscious of the
bottom line, but they're also not afraid
to offer suggestions out of line with
your mission to improve it.

While this differs from investor to

investor, try to appeal to the side of
the business your investor leans most
heavily too. If they're mission-focused,
build your reports around the good
you're doing rather than making it
profit-focused. Don't be afraid to keep
them at arm's length if necessary, and

f in