Learning from Social Enterprises
Social Enterprise is a growing and innovative sector of our economy.Many of our traditional boundaries are blurred these days and the social economy is the name given to that area of the economy that is a mix of both private and public, social enterprises are the ‘businesses’ that work within that space.
It is where an enterprise has some core public funding and combines that with various other income streams, some of which will be private spend. SustainEd personnel have years of experience of dealing with such enterprises and we are practiced at working within the challenges they face. This social economy is evolving fast, this can be confusing but it is also exciting as new models of economic activity, new working relationships are being explored and these will be the building blocks of a more sustainable future.
These enterprises work within an economic budget, though they may not make a profit. They often have explicit social and environmental goals that are written into their constitution and guide the choices they make. Many social enterprises practice the ‘triple bottom line’ in their daily work and as such are key exemplars for business in understanding the new ‘rules of engagement’ for business in a more sustainable future.
Private business has a lot to learn from the ‘triple bottom line’ behaviour of social enterprises. These new types of business are to be admired for their ability to motivate and inspire, for their collaborative behaviour, their strategies for working in complex situations with competing goals. SustainEd helps both private and social enterprises to design effective strategies for a more sustainable future.