Social Enterprise

Introduction

How can we achieve and sustain impact with different revenue models?

This coaching stream helps organizations explore ideas for how they can further their social impact goals and generate revenue through an enterprise model. The focus is on helping established social-purpose organizations identify business opportunities, assess viability, and plan for launch.

Social Enterprise 101

A social enterprise:

• Is an ongoing organization or venture
• Is created with the primary goal of achieving an environmental, social and/or cultural mission
• Uses earned income strategies by selling products and/or services in its operation.

Main types of social enterprises

Social enterprises are often launched for one or more of the following three reasons:

• Employment-based: to meet an employment need in the community that is not being met through traditional business models. For example, Eva’s Phoenix Printing in Toronto trains at-risk youth in the printing business, preparing them to leave the streets and enter the labour market.
• Mission-based: to advance or achieve a specific environmental, social, and/or cultural mission. For example, Haida Gwaii Higher Education Society operates an accredited university-level academic program that brings students to their community to learn about local First Nations culture and arts, as well as the unique biology in the local environment. In addition to student learning, there is an important local economic impact for the remote region of Haida Gwaii.
• Profit-based: to contribute to the financial sustainability of a community organization. For example, the Prince George Aboriginal Friendship Centre rents out the extra space in the building they own. The income from rent covers the mortgage payment and their program administrative costs.