Social Entrepreneurship – Social Enterprises: European Experience and the Greek Case

In Europe, we are witnessing a growth in the social economy sector, i.e. in socio – economic organizations, which belong neither to the traditional for profit sector (market economy) nor to the public sector (government) (Deforuny, 2001; Young, 2007) - they rather act at the interface of civil society and markets (Jäger, 2010). The main goal of these organizations, called social enterprises or social business, is doing business for socially useful purposes. These initiatives may take the form of traditional Non-Governmental Organizations (NGOs), like foundations and associations, as well as new kinds of organizations for example social cooperatives, partnerships, funds.Social economy is situated between public and business sphere of administration and combines both, social objectives and the ones profit-oriented. Social entrepreneurship is unquestionably a desirable feature of social economy understood as reaching planned economic objectives with the use of available resources. Another feature comprises in using involvement and creativity of excluded persons and thus, solving social problems, among others, structural unemployment and disadvantage of social minorities as well as strengthening democratic processes, bottom-up social initiatives etc. Achieving objectives, both social and economic, requires using modern management instruments and methods.All of the above mentioned organizations or ventures, which achieve their local, social or ethical mission and goals using methods adopted from the business sector (Defourny, Hulgard, Pestoff, eds.2014). One of these methods is project management. The whole sector of social economy, both in Poland and in Europe, is strongly influenced by projectification process: a lot of the activities are performed in the form of projects. For last ten years projectification of social non-governmental sector as well as the economy sector in Poland was reinforced by EU’s funding stream – hundreds of co-funded projects, which aimed at increasing the level of development and improving the condition of social economy, were implemented. Some of these projects have resulted in the creation of durable, dynamically operating social enterprises, and some of them did not produce any long-term results. In case of successful projects, we can observe an unusual effect of projectification process: the creation of permanent structures, sustainable social economy organizations through the implementation of projects.Although we can identify examples of interesting research on impact of project work on NGOs (Brière, Proulx, Navaro, & Laporte, 2015); Golini, Kalchschmidt, Landoni, 2015) or critical success factors of non-governmental projects (Khang & Moe, 2008), there is a research gap which we would like to address in this paper: lack of research on project management best practices in social enterprises. Thus, the main research question we would like to investigate in the paper is: What are the factors that lead to creation of durable, permanent social economy enterprises from projects?This paper draws on set of qualitative data from broader research on social economy sector conducted in Poland in years 2011-2013 by researchers from the Institute of Public Affairs (IPA). For the purpose of this paper we have conducted multiple case study analysis and analysed 36 case studies of existing social enterprises. One of our research goals was to find out, which factors are critical in the process of creation durable social enterprises from projects. Also, we wanted to understand how projectification, influenced strongly by the EU policies, changes the landscape of social enterprises in Poland and helps them achieve success.

In Europe 160 million people are members of social economy enterprises and mutual societies. Members that work at social enterprises usually are bound with an employee relationship with their organization; on the other hand participating in a social enterprise could be their only chance to find a job, especially for economies that face a long-term recession such as the Greek economy. Social enterprises and entrepreneurs invest in reciprocity which represents that positive actions will inspire reciprocal positive actions. The main objective of this study is to examine the effect of reciprocity on members’ decision either to invest in social enterprises or to work for them acquiring in both cases the necessary shares. For this reason, a survey was conducted among Greek members of social enterprises listed in the Greek Social enterprises directory, to investigate their aspects about reciprocity and if these aspects affect their decision to work in a social enterprise or support financially them. The survey process returned 142 fully completed questionnaires. The analysis identified a sub group (5 over 27 items) of the questions used to measure reciprocity that can be used to classify participants into shareholders - members (investors) and shareholders - workers in social enterprises. It is worth mentioning that sex or other demographic characteristics of the respondents do not affect this classification while there are only aspects of positive reciprocity that have either positive or negative effect on the possibility to work in social enterprises. Social entrepreneurs and the Greek state could use these findings in order to direct and manage their expansion efforts.

The dominant trend is an increasing separation between the land and the food products, as well as the extension of the food chain: the increasing distance between places of production and places of consumption breaks the links with nature and culture. Social economy enterprises are able to develop innovative solutions that increase productivity while delivering better services in social, health, and education services. Their contribution to economic development and well-being has been confirmed by the recent economic crisis, which has highlighted the resilience of social economy and social enterprises as well as their capacity to generate new employment and preserve existing jobs. What does it mean for a social economy enterprise to take food into account? The paper contributes to this branch of studies with the aim of understanding how social enterprises are able to generate alternative food systems to promote food sovereignty and sustainability. Firstly, a review of the relevant literature is presented, with the aim of showing an overview of the relationship between social economy enterprises and sustainable development with a specific focus on sustainable food. Following this, after a description of the methodology employed, the experiences of a number of social enterprises of food sector among Europe that have implemented innovative projects involving sustainability and counteracting the desertification of rural areas, women’s employment, migrant integration, decent job conditions and work integration. This leads to a discussion of the results, the interpretation of the new roles of social enterprises, and the identification of the main implications. The main thing that links all these cases is five key elements, which are present in all the experiences we analysed: inclusion, equity, respect, responsibility and opportunity. These elements can be seen as keywords and important aspects for a transition towards more sustainable food systems through social economy enterprises.

Social entrepreneurship is a long-discussed issue in the countries of the European Union as well as in other countries worldwide. In the Slovak Republic this issue mostly interests younger people who search the possibilities for social entrepreneurship in their home regions in order to eliminate the lack of accessibility of certain services. The social economy is considered as an important tool of social inclusion. The Slovak Republic adopted as one of the few Member States of the European Union the act on social economy and social enterprises. We consider the creation of legislative framework of social economy and social enterprises in Slovakia as an innovative solution, even in the comparison with other Member States of the European Union. The aim of this paper is to present to the scientific public the importance of setting up social enterprises at the national level. An essential addition to the objective is also to show the width of potential that social enterprises have after the adoption of the Act on Social Economy and Social Enterprises.
 Legislation eliminates potential debatable redistribution of the profit of social enterprises. The profit from social entrepreneurship should primarily cover the basic life needs of the disadvantaged groups of persons as well as generally beneficial activities for the community and/or region. Social entrepreneurship gets into discourse of public policy mainly as a tool aimed to provide the opportunity for the persons that were unemployed for a longer time to gain working habits again or for persons that suffer from multiple disadvantages to become active on the labour market. It may also be a reliable instrument for solving the sale of goods or provision of services which are not provided or insufficiently provided by the private sector.

Motivation: Social economy has been playing increasingly important role in the EU member states regional development overcoming the phenomena included in the widely understood social and economic exclusion and degradation of natural environment. It so happens because social entrepreneurship bridges the gap resulting from ineffective and imposed actions of the third participant of economic process, namely the government trying to overcome the effects of above mentioned negative phenomena. The social entrepreneurship is becoming more and more important because of the local and regional character of activities, addressed directly to endangered social groups and geographic areas, solving problems at their source. In the European Union nearly 11 million people are employed in the sector of social economy and the number has been growing for many years. Therefore, it seems important to make the topic of social entrepreneurship and its impact on regional development the subject of scientific studies. In recent years, more attention is paid to various concepts, fulfilling not only economic, but also social and environmental goals; one of them undoubtedly includes social economy. Aim: This article aims at analysing specific form of entrepreneurship, namely social economy enterprises (PES), and presenting benefits resulting from their activity for regional development. The research methods applied in this study include inter alia the critical analysis of literature as well as evaluation and comparison of secondary research results from various sources. The scope of research refers to selected regions in Poland. The character of research work is illustrative. Results: The article indicates how the concept of social economy helps to eliminate the negative effects of social and economic exclusion. Through actions at the regional level, it is the social economy that acquires particular importance in voluntary, bottom-up solving of local community problems and supporting governmental activities. The results of the research of source materials presented in the article indicate that the level of development of social economy in different regions of Poland is of a varied nature, which may mean that its potential is not yet noticed everywhere.

The scientific article focuses on characteristics of public and private sectors of the economy in the context of considering their mutually beneficial long-term cooperation, as well as systematized approaches to the interpretation of the definition of «public-private partnership» (PPP). The works of foreign scientists in the field of researching the peculiarities of this form of partnership in the process of its evolutionary development are analysed, the experience of their implementation in different countries is presented, and the possibilities of implementing advanced scientific developments in modernization of economy and society in Ukraine are considered. The modern normative-legal support of the public-private partnership regulation is considered. The author argues that public-private partnership is a priority of government development programs which encourages strong and effective cooperation between government agencies and private business. Balance of interests between the studied sectors is a key factor in the success of public-private partnership in Ukraine, as the application of positive experience in PPP projects allows public and local authorities to address a number of important socio-economic issues. In the context of the formation of political, economic, legal and social attitude of public authorities to achieve partnership in the implementation of socio-economic development programs or investment projects, the researches of the diversity of public and private sectors, features of legal support of this interaction and identification of problems for its further development are extremely important. During the thematic research, the main relaxing (inhibitory) factors influencing the development of public-private partnership in Ukraine were identified, as well as key recommendations for improving the efficiency of public and private sectors of the economy. It is argued that the successful implementation of public-private partnership in Ukraine is possible only with mutual consideration of interests of the state and the private sector through trustful and transparent relationship between business and the state.

The evidence of the effectiveness of public support aimed at social enterprises is limited and rare. This paper explores the impact of government public support offered to social enterprises. The empirical research focussed on the case of Poland. Individual In-depth Interviews have been used to explore opinions on public support of social enterprises. Ten interviews were organised, covering two groups: social entrepreneurs and stakeholders’ social economy sector. The study contributes to social enterprise theory and the literature on public policy implementation by identifying factors limiting the effectiveness of government support for social enterprises.

Social Entrepreneurship and COVID‐19

This introductory article to the special issue, Social Innovation, Social Enterprise, and Social Entrepreneurship (SE/SI) in Social Work and Human Services, positions SE/SI as embedded in the profession’s history as an integral sub-field of practice and research. It advances three arguments: SE/SI has been part of social work practice since the inception of the profession; social work entrepreneurship is globally distributed and contextually responsive; and deliberate engagement with SE/SI is necessary for the field’s future relevance. This article outlines foundational concepts, traces historical developments from settlement houses and early work-integration initiatives to contemporary hybrid models, and situates this legacy within current global challenges. It also introduces the contributions in this issue, grouped into three thematic areas that reflect these arguments. The introduction underscores SE/SI as vital to social work and human services’ capacity to address complex crises in turbulent times while advancing equity, sustainability, and well-being.

The emergence of entrepreneurship as an activity which addresses enduring social or environmental challenges has been a source of innovation, promise and insight for practitioners and scholars alike. While researchers have contributed to understandings of social entrepreneurship and social enterprise in many contexts, it is a curious anomaly of social entrepreneurship scholarship that so little consideration has been given to its application within international humanitarian non-government organizations (INGOs) and aid agencies. The lack of research is notable because these development organizations have tremendous potential to realize the benefits of social entrepreneurship due to their capability and capacity that has been developed through the provision of community and economic development programs in the world’s most vulnerable communities. We therefore lack relevant theory to explain and guide action in this sector. As INGOs pursue or facilitate social entrepreneurship to increase their impact and/or make their activities more financially sustainable, they are forced to contend with the competing logics (social and commercial) of this activity itself, but also with the ways in which this conflicts with their own dominant development (social) logic. These logics are based on the institutional parameters of the category in which the organization operates, i.e., private, public or non-profit sector (Doherty et al., 2014). Billis (2010) provides us with the following organizational templates to explicate category logics (Table 20.1). This is a useful framework for illustrating not only how social entrepreneurs and social enterprises combine competing logics but how this can be problematic in terms of governance and resourcing (cf. Doherty et al., 2014; Newth and Woods, 2014). International development agencies are being forced to respond to many geopolitical, economic and technological environment changes. The threats and opportunities these changes create will likely necessitate a degree of hybridization. Hybrid organizations are those that combine institutional logics (Battilana and Dorado, 2010; Doherty et al., 2014; Pache and Santos, 2013). Examples of such organizations include social enterprises which combine commercial and social logics (Doherty et al., 2014); microfinance organizations which combinedevelopment and banking logics (Battilana et al., 2015), public-private partnerships which combine state, market and civil society logics (Jay, 2013), and research centers and education institutions which combine scientific or academic with market logics (cf. Pache and Santos, 2013). These organizations also bridge, or blur, institutional fields (Tracey et al., 2011). Institutional logics are understood to be the “taken for granted social prescriptions that represent shared understandings of what constitutes legitimate goals and how they may be pursued” (Battilana and Dorado, 2010, 1420). Hybrid organization research in social entrepreneurship is particularly concerned with organizations that combine logics that would otherwise be considered incompatible. This chapter uses Shepherd and Patzelt (2011) as an organizing framework to illustrate the opportunities that social entrepreneurship offers INGOs, all of which are relevant to the organization under examination here. The points within an INGO that are challenged by the pursuit of social entrepreneurship are then identified and discussed in terms of how changes at these points force, or require, hybridity. This discussion seeks to contribute to the literature around hybridization in social entrepreneurship and enterprise by drawing out the specific aspects of a particular non-profit that are challenged by the hybrid logic of social entrepreneurship strategies and initiatives. Drawing on Newth and Woods’ (2014) development of Schumpeter’s (1934) notion of resistance as it applies to social entrepreneurship and institutional theory, the micro-level institutional bases for tension and resistance to social entrepreneurship are considered via an in-depth case study. This chapter’s empirical application of Shepherd and Patzelt’s (2011) framework and its combination with institutional theory, specifically institutional logics, contributes to social and sustainable entrepreneurship theory. It also provides specific insight into the application of this theory in the international development sector. This represents an initial step in addressing the lack of research into social entrepreneurship in this sector in general, and towards building theory which explains and informs the contextual bases thatTable 20.1 Organizational templatesInstitutional guideGovernorship Owners Business model/ revenuePrivate Market forces Share of ownershipShareholders SalesPublic Public benefit and collective choiceElected representativesCitizens and stateTaxationNon-profit Social and environmental goalsElected representatives or appointed trusteesMembers Donations, membership fees and legaciesenable and constrain entrepreneurial action in established development organizations.

Social enterprises and social ventures, which constitute the actors of the social economy, are assuming the role of the 'third sector' by addressing a multitude of social issues that are not addressed by public and private companies. In this context, it is meaningful to gain an understanding of the characteristics of the social economy and the areas of study that fall within its remit. Accordingly, this study examines the defining characteristics and current research trends of social enterprises and social ventures, two pivotal entities within the social economy. Furthermore, it employs big data methods to analyse extensive data sets pertaining to social enterprises and social ventures. The abstracts of academic research on social enterprises and social ventures were extracted from the Research Information Service (RISS). Subsequently, three analytical techniques were employed in sequence: 1) word frequency and TF-IDF analysis, 2) co-occurrence network analysis, and 3) LDA-based topic modelling analysis. The results of the word frequency and TF-IDF analysis indicate that the economic aspects of social enterprises and their analysis represent a significant research area. Additionally, it can be concluded that research on organisational characteristics, their impact, and the value of the social economy is actively being conducted. Secondly, the 'co-occurrence word network' analysis demonstrated that research pertaining to social enterprises constitutes a pivotal topic within this field. The data analysis outcomes are of considerable significance, with the economic aspect of social enterprises and the purpose of enterprises also representing major research topics. Thirdly, eight themes were extracted through a comprehensive consideration of the implications of LDA-based topic extraction. The results demonstrated that social enterprises and social ventures are active in a multitude of fields, with a particular focus on the role and importance of various aspects, including consumer relations, support for individuals with disabilities, cultural access, urban regeneration, investment and responsibility, and partnerships. This demonstrates that social economy enterprises are playing a role in addressing social issues. The value of this study lies in its ability to draw inferences from the aforementioned research trends in the social economy domain through the utilisation of text mining analytical techniques. This study aspires to contribute to the formulation of prospective research directions in the field of social economy, with a foundation in the analysed research trends.

PurposeEstablishing alliances between social economy enterprises (SEEs) is considered to be a solution to the problem of providing enough resources and knowledge to compete in the global market and, at the same time, to maintain identity and ownership. Nevertheless, an important number of alliances breaks up after several years. Therefore, the purpose of this paper is to study the key factors that affect alliances’ development and outcome. In this study, the success factors that have been extensively tested in investor-owned companies are assessed in SEEs, which present important differences in organizational issues and corporate principles and values.Design/methodology/approachThis study defines a scale that includes the most important factors that might be controlled by SEE managers to develop successful alliances. These factors are grouped into three categories: relational capital, relationship governance and the partner selection process. The study also assesses the impact of these factors on alliance performance.FindingsStatistical analysis through structural equation modelling shows that relationship governance and the partner selection process have a significant impact on performance. Therefore, they can be considered success factors in alliances among SEEs.Originality/valueTaking into account the relevant contribution of the SEEs to the European economy, and having noted the scarce number of studies about alliances success factors in the social economy sector, this study offers a significant contribution to this research field. Moreover, findings will be also interesting for SEE managers and social economy authorities when designing programmes to empower and support alliances.

Purpose– Sweden, and many other countries, has, during the twentieth century, developed a rather large public sector providing social welfare services to citizens. Only to a small extent were private for- or nonprofit organizations providing these services. During the last decade we have seen a shift towards more services being provided by private for- and nonprofit actors. This shift means that roles are reconsidered, renegotiated and reconstructed. In this debate social entrepreneurship, social enterprises and innovation are emphasized. The aim of this paper is to problematize and analyze how social entrepreneurship and social enterprises relate to public sector management and governance.Design/methodology/approach– In the paper theories on (social) entrepreneurship and innovation is combined with theories focusing on welfare structures. Empirically, the analysis is based on the current policy development in Sweden and five social entrepreneurship initiatives.Findings– The analysis discloses the relationship between the public sector and social entrepreneurship as negotiation of emerging social enterprise markets in which aspects as the creation of value, dependencies and innovation are emphasized. Even if the study has a geographical focus both theoretical contributions and implications for policy and practice can be of use also in other contexts.Originality/value– Through combining social entrepreneurship with welfare services and public management this empirically based study contributes both to problematize and align the emerging field of social innovation.

Social enterprises, social entrepreneurship and sustainable business models are increasingly common in sectors where Fair Trade does not have a strong presence (e.g. mobile phones and software). This research asks: To what extent do social and sustainability enterprises and entrepreneurship (SSEEs) in these ‘distant’ sectors engage the principles of Fair Trade? It draws on an in-depth, multi-method case study of SSEEs in the legal cannabis sector in Portland, Oregon, US. It analyzes data from magazine advertisements, public and industry events, and visits to 85 cannabis retailers. The results suggest that SSEEs in distant sectors may not be engaging some of the principles that are at the heart of Fair Trade. These include transparency, accountability, collaborative price-setting, pre-payment, honouring contracts, inclusive governance and worker organizing. SSEEs appear more engaged with the environment and buy-cotting (privileging) small producers, sustainable businesses and marginalized groups. How can Fair Trade encourage and empower SSEEs in distant sectors to engage more principles of Fair Trade?

Purpose A conducive and enabling environment is imperative for the formation of sustainable social business enterprises (SBEs). This paper aims to identify the macro-level enabling conditions necessary for SBE formation and to analyze them in the context of the Philippines, an emerging economy that is yet to be transformed into an inclusive one. Design/methodology/approach Major developments on micro-, small- and medium-sized enterprises, specifically on social enterprises, were revisited and analyzed. The author also looked into how they are sustained, supported and nurtured in the Philippines’ overall economic landscape. Extensive data were collected from relevant agencies in public and private sectors, after which they were analyzed parallel to existing academic literature, i.e. theories, models and concepts, on social entrepreneurship and development nexus. Findings It has been found that the four macro-level enabling conditions, namely, governance, socially inclusive economic approach, financial services and entrepreneurial culture, presumed to be vital for SBE formation, contribute to the latter at various levels, but surely complement each other in the process. Research limitations/implications The significance of exploring the context in which social enterprises are formed and flourish lies in the sheer importance of understanding the sustained prevalence of SBEs in many economies – both in developed and developing ones. Originality/value By having a more structured knowledge of the components surrounding SBE formation, the community may be able to also simultaneously explore why and how social entrepreneurs form profit-earning business entities that are primarily driven by social advocacies and goals.