Social enterprise

Implications for Research. A new pedagogy should include science-and-technology studies, in which researchers look at science as a social enterprise. The subject matter of a reformed science education would include the interaction of science and the society in which it is practiced-for example, how society influences scientists in choosing problems to investigate (see Lederman, 2004). 

A social enterprise, at least as it is practiced in bioengineering, is a business delivering, or enabling the delivery of, a medical device, pharmaceutical, or service. First and foremost, however, a social enterprise is a business. Like all businesses, a social enterprise must obtain revenues that exceed expenses, or it will fold. However, unlike a typical for-profit business, a social enterprise ... 

It can be easier to recognize a social enterprise than to define it. The Goodwill, the Boy Scouts, the American Heart Association, and a local soup kitchen are all easily recognizable examples of social enterprises. For bioengineers, organizations like PATH, Project Impact, Benentech, and Engineering World Health typify the social enterprise. 

However, precisely defining the border between the social enterprise and the typical business can be difficult. General Electric Corporation (GE) has a large program for donating medical equipment to Africa. However, few people consider GE a social enterprise. Likewise, Auralabs, described above, sells their lenses strictly for-profit. Yet, many consider Auralabs a social enterprise. 

There are a few things that are commonly (some incorrectly) considered hallmarks of the social enterprise. 

Myth 1 Social enterprises do not sell a product for a profit. This is definitely not true. In fact, the definition of a non-profit corporation is not related to the price at which a product is sold. You can be sure that the cookies you buy from the Girl Scouts cost less to produce than you paid for them. The restriction is that non-profits cannot distribute any portion of the profits to shareholders. 

Myth 2 Social enterprises are non-profits. In fact, not all social enterprises are non-profits. Some are for-profit. Although still outside of mainstream social entrepreneurship, some for-profit startups include in their articles of incorporation clauses placing the need to be socially responsible equal to the need to return profits to shareholders. 

Myth 4 Social enterprises use a volunteer labor force. For most social enterprises, this is far from true. Labor costs are too small a fraction of total expenses, and once infrastructure and insurance are considered, using volunteer labor is not that great a savings. However, bioengineering is an exception. The medical device industry is a still largely a low-volume industry, leading to a relatively high fraction of total expenses devoted to labor costs. And the delivery of medical care is often dominated by labor costs, especially professionals like doctors and nurses. 

Determination and dedication Starting a social enterprise is extremely difficult. Total commitment and personal sacrifice are required. 

Sell your idea 2.0 Almost all social enterprises require a separate sales pitch for those who are funding the idea. Start with your closest family. If you cannot look at your family and ask for money for your idea, then you would not be successful with a stranger. While money is a good measure of how convincing you are being, time is an even better measure. Can you get your friends and family to give up a Sunday afternoon to work on your idea If not, then refine your pitch. 

Do not focus on cool technology Engineers are most comfortable with technology. So, they tend to feel that their business needs a good website, perhaps MySQL support, a PBX, and perhaps an upgrade or two to the product. It does not. A new social enterprise needs donors and recipients who are sold on yotu idea. 

Do not focus on the legal For most social entrepreneurs, the best advice is not to sweat the legal aspects of the business. What you need to know is common sense and something you can learn from one good book. In particular, do not pay attention to intellectual property (IP). IP is an important aspect of some for-profit businesses, but social enterprises very rarely add social value by protecting intellectual property. They also very rarely can afford the large costs associated with protection. 

J. Herbert Hollomon, Engineering s Great Challenge— The 1960s, in Engineering as a Social Enterprise, Hedy E. Sladovich, ed. (Washington, DC National Academy Press, 1991), 104—10 Lerner, Volunteers in Technical Assistance, 16, 24. 

Sladovich, H., (ed.) (1991) Engineering as a social enterprise. Washington, D.C., National Academy Press. 

Keywords Social enterprise Social entrepreneurship Social innovation Technopreneur Innovation studies Entrepreneurship education... 

This is significant— but for most engineers and scientists the comfortable approaches remain the traditional impact pathways such as patents, KTPs, spinouts and so on. Whilst these do not preclude social enterprise, the science and engineering research community is not particularly well prepared to even think in those terms when it contemplates or plans the impact of its research. The difficulties are in part due to a traditional emphasis on more comfortably countable and monetised activities—e.g. patents, spinouts (employment), product and a technical problem-solution focus. Benefits to society, culture, public policy, the environment and quality of life are much harder to conceive and to deliver. 

For the sake of simplicity we will talk about social entrepreneurship as the activity of developing social enterprises, which we will loosely define as commercial activity that prioritises social goals above financial gain [discussion of the many other definitions and their context can be found in Ridley-Dulf and Bull (2011)]. 

This phenomenon should be of considerable benefit for introducing scientists, technologists and engineers to the world of social enterprise. As always however, life is not that simple and there are a number of reasons to be cautious about this recent enthusiasm for tech for good , quite apart from the already voiced concerns about the negative consequences of the mgged individualism of so many tech entrepreneurs (Miller 2015). 

Perhaps coincidentally, and perhaps not, an analogous strand of work has emerged within studies of social enterprise which stresses the central sigiuficance of what are called the eco-systems of support available to social enterprises, which obviously includes the different types of financial support but also the networks of relationships, professional associations, accreditation bodies, political support and trades unions (Bloom and Dees 2008). 

Cox G (2010) What do social enterprise and chocolate have in common Retrieved from http // geofcox.info/node/136. Accessed 10 May 2015... 

Ridley-Duff R, Bull M (2011) Understanding social enterprise theory and practice. Sage, London Rittel HWJ, Webber MM (1973) Dilemmas in a general theory of planning. Policy Sci 4 (1) 155-169... 

Mackintosh, M., Chaudhuri, S. Mujinja, P.G.M. (2011) Can NGOs regulate medicines markets Social enterprise in wholesaling, and access to essential medicines. Globalization and Health, 1 (4). 

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