"Social Capital" and "Social Entrepreneurialism" are evolving terms that have fuzzy meanings. So, instead of adding another definition, I'm going to give you a check list to help you decide whether you might be a Social Entrepreneur.
You're a Social Entrepreneur when:
(1) Whether for-profit or non-profit, your entity was founded and continues to exist in large part because of an identified social need, rather than a market need. There might be both; however without the social need, the entity just wouldn't be the same. The employees feel that their work is purposefully contributing to a greater good.
(2) That social need might be related to providing for the growth or development of any kind of intangible asset(s): intellectual assets, relationship building and conflict management, the environment (water, land, air), health -- mental, physical, and spiritual.
(3) Your entity is market-driven when it comes to finding resources: people feel it's within the entity's mission to find donors or capital because they have a transaction of value to offer. (This is in contrast to having people donate because they should support the entity due to moral or ethical reasons. That type of entity has a role also, but it's a charitable role.)
(4) There is a growth strategy, and it can encompass merging with another entity. With traditional non-profits, one persistent issue is that some non-profits have a concept of "territory," as though non-profits were monopolies in their particular specialty. In that case, merging with another entity -- even if services can be delivered more efficiently that way -- can be perceived as a loss of status (which is then related to difficulty in fundraising). In a socially entrepreneurial venture, there are other mechanisms to increase revenues, so more flexibility is available for merging separate operating entities.
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