What does a social entrepreneur do?

What is a Social Entrepreneur?

A social entrepreneur is an individual who establishes an organization or business with the primary goal of addressing social, cultural, or environmental issues. Unlike traditional entrepreneurs, whose main objective is to generate profit, social entrepreneurs prioritize creating positive social impact while still aiming for financial sustainability. They innovate to solve pressing issues, often blending profit with purpose to create solutions that can be scaled and replicated, ultimately aiming to drive meaningful, long-term change in society.

An example of a social entrepreneur could be someone who starts a business that provides affordable solar energy solutions to underserved communities, thereby addressing both an environmental and a social issue.

What does a Social Entrepreneur do?

Duties and Responsibilities
Here are the key activities a social entrepreneur typically engages in:

• Problem Identification – They begin by recognizing a pressing issue or unmet need within a community or society, such as poverty, lack of education, environmental degradation, or healthcare access.
• Innovative Solution Development – Social entrepreneurs design creative and effective solutions that address the root causes of these problems. This could involve creating new products, services, or business models that are more efficient, accessible, or sustainable.
• Business Planning – They develop a business plan that balances social impact with financial sustainability. This often includes generating revenue to fund their operations while ensuring that the core mission of social change remains the focus.
• Implementation and Scaling – After developing a solution, they work on implementing it, often starting on a small scale to test and refine their approach. Successful social entrepreneurs then seek to scale their impact by expanding their operations, replicating their model in new locations, or influencing policy and systems change.
• Community Engagement – They actively engage with the communities they serve, building relationships, understanding local needs, and involving stakeholders in the solution process. This helps ensure that their initiatives are relevant and effective.
• Impact Measurement – Social entrepreneurs continually assess the impact of their work, using metrics and feedback to measure progress, improve their solutions, and demonstrate the value of their initiatives to supporters, funders, and the public.
• Advocacy and Awareness – Many social entrepreneurs also engage in advocacy, raising awareness about the issues they are addressing and influencing public opinion, policy, and broader societal change.

Types of Social Entrepreneurs
Now that we have a sense of the scope of the social entrepreneur’s work, let’s look at some different types of these entrepreneurs, each distinguished by their approach, goals, and the way they balance social impact with financial sustainability:

Non-Profit Social Entrepreneurs

• Focus – These social entrepreneurs operate within non-profit organizations. Their primary goal is to address social issues, with any generated revenue being reinvested into the mission rather than distributed as profit.
• Example – An organization providing free education or healthcare services to underserved communities

For-Profit Social Entrepreneurs

• Focus – These entrepreneurs run businesses that aim to generate profit while also creating positive social or environmental impact. The profit supports the mission, but financial returns for investors are also prioritized.
• Example – A company selling eco-friendly products where part of the profits supports environmental conservation efforts

Hybrid Social Entrepreneurs

• Focus – Hybrid models combine elements of both non-profit and for-profit structures. They may have a non-profit arm for charitable activities and a for-profit arm for revenue-generating activities, using profits from the business side to fund their social mission.
• Example – A business that sells products or services and uses the profits to fund a charitable foundation or social program

Public Sector Social Entrepreneurs

• Focus – These entrepreneurs work within government or public sector organizations to innovate and improve public services or address social issues. They often collaborate with private sector partners or NGOs to achieve their goals.
• Example – A government initiative that creates new ways to deliver healthcare or education to underserved populations

Community-Based Social Entrepreneurs

• Focus – These individuals or groups focus on grassroots initiatives within a specific community, often addressing local issues with solutions tailored to the unique needs of the population.
• Example – A local cooperative that helps small-scale farmers access markets and improve their livelihoods

Corporate Social Entrepreneurs (Intrapreneurs)

• Focus – Operating within larger corporations, these entrepreneurs develop and lead social impact initiatives that align with the company’s business goals while addressing societal needs. They leverage the company’s resources and reach to create change.
• Example – An employee who starts a program within a corporation to reduce the company’s environmental footprint or to support community development projects

Technology-Driven Social Entrepreneurs

• Focus – These entrepreneurs use technology as a primary tool to solve social problems. They often develop apps, platforms, or other tech solutions that scale quickly and reach a large audience.
• Example – A tech startup that creates an app to provide education or health information to underserved populations via mobile devices

Each type of social entrepreneur may work in different sectors and use different methods. Their efforts may span education, healthcare, the environment, economic development, social justice and human rights, housing and urban development, food and agriculture, technology for social good, arts and culture, disaster relief and humanitarian aid, youth and child welfare, gender equality and women’s empowerment, or community development.

What is the workplace of a Social Entrepreneur like?

Social entrepreneurs are typically not ‘employed’ in the traditional sense, as they are often founders or leaders of their own ventures or initiatives. However, they can work in various organizational settings, and their work can be supported or funded by different entities. Here are some of the ways social entrepreneurs may be supported or employed:

• Self-Employment and Founders
• Non-Profit Organizations
• For-Profit Social Enterprises
• Public Sector Institutions and Government Agencies
• Corporate Social Responsibility (CSR) Departments
• Impact Investment Firms – firms which provide capital to businesses and organizations that aim to generate social or environmental benefits alongside financial returns
• Educational Institutions
• International Organizations and NGOs – global organizations, like the United Nations, World Bank, or various non-governmental organizations, focused on developing and implementing programs that address global challenges such as poverty, health, and sustainability
• Foundations and Philanthropic Organizations – entities that fund and support social innovation (e.g., education reform)
• Incubators and Accelerators – supporters of early-stage ventures with mentorship, market research, product development, business model validation, startup scaling, and funding

The workplace of a social entrepreneur can vary widely depending on the nature of their venture, the stage of their organization, and the resources available to them. Common work environments where social entrepreneurs might operate include small rented offices, corporate offices, makerspaces, innovation labs, remote field offices, shared or coworking spaces, classrooms, and research centers.