Social Enterprise Research Articles

ABSTRACT This article examines economic moralities at play in financial capitalism by investigating the interplay of ‘value’ – in the form of capital earmarked as ‘impact’ investment – and ‘values’, that is, moral and ethical considerations, in impact investing. Through the case of Sust-Agric, a social enterprise that works with impact capital to alleviate poverty in rural Africa promoting sustainable agriculture, I show that although impact investing is founded on universalizing discourses and narratives that weave together ‘value’ and ‘values’, on the ground, the two often get separated by the ‘frictions’ that arise when such universals are translated into practice through project implementation. I contend that when ‘value’ and ‘values’ diverge on the ground, processes of capital labeling play a crucial role in weaving them back together, allowing the arrangement to remain under the rubric of ‘impact’ despite dubious outcomes.

HealthLit4Kids: Improving health literacy outcomes in an Australian setting.

In this article, the authors reflect on the power of participatory feminist research in supporting gendered knowledges and cultures of equality through a community-based education project working with women construction workers in Sylhet, northern Bangladesh. We consider the impacts of their involvement in feminist qualitative research conducted as part of the Global Gender & Cultures of Equality (GlobalGRACE) project, an international research, education and capacity building project funded through the UK government’s Global Challenges Research Fund (2017–2022). We then explore what happened next, between 2022 and 2025, after the official project ended. GlobalGRACE aimed to enhance women’s wellbeing, support self-esteem and confidence building, and promote gender equality with women construction workers from socio-economically marginalised communities. Here we reflect on the ways participant women were able to bring their agency and situated gendered knowledges through their participation to create exhibitions of films and photography, build a Manifesto of Workers Rights, and emerge beyond the project as entrepreneurs, developing a lasting social enterprise supporting over 2800 women. Travelling through the GlobalGRACE project, we thus consider participant women’s experiences as they made this journey from day-labourers on building sites to creating Protity, a women’s social enterprise supporting one another to become independent entrepreneurs running their own small businesses in Sylhet, Bangladesh.

IMPACT This article will interest integrated care systems (ICS) leaders, NHS managers, and those across the voluntary, community, faith, and social enterprise (VCFSE) sectors seeking more equitable and sustainable models of collaboration. It introduces the community transformation fund (CTF) model, which demonstrates how statutory and non-statutory bodies can co-develop services that address local priorities through a locally-owned, place-based vehicle. The purpose of this approach is to drive long-term integration across health systems to reduce health inequities. The model offers a scalable pathway for system transformation, defining a new role for national charities as investors and partners to both fund and facilitate change, acting as ‘anchor’ organizations within local systems. It shows how social investment can stimulate innovation, delivering tangible benefits for health systems by reducing demand and increasing capacity. The article provides practical insights on outcome-based funding models, embedding VCFSE organizations in service design and delivery, and strengthening locally-led, participatory decision-making.

The growing global emphasis on sustainable development has underscored the necessity for innovative models that align social responsibility with long-term organizational resilience. Social entrepreneurship represents a transformative approach that utilizes entrepreneurial strategies to address systemic social and environmental challenges. However, its potential to achieve sustainability is often limited by resource constraints and structural barriers. This conceptual paper identifies financial inclusion as a mediating factor that strengthens the relationship between social entrepreneurship and sustainable organizational outcomes. By enabling access to financial services, enhancing financial literacy, and promoting community participation, financial inclusion enables social enterprises to progress beyond short-term impacts toward lasting institutional viability. This study outlines on the Capability Approach, Social Capital Theory, and the Triple Bottom Line framework to develop a theoretical model that explains how inclusive financial systems empower communities, mitigate vulnerabilities, and promote environmentally responsible practices. A narrative review methodology is employed to synthesize recent scholarly contributions from 2019 to 2025, identifying key themes that connect financial inclusion with poverty reduction, green innovation, social equity, and resilience building. The findings indicate that comprehensive financial mechanisms not only expand economic opportunities but also support sustainable practices by facilitating investments in renewable technologies and enhancing community trust. The proposed framework aims to integrate previously disparate strands of literature and offers insights for policymakers, development practitioners, and leaders in social enterprises who are designing targeted interventions. The analysis concludes that financial inclusion functions as a dynamic enabler that translates social entrepreneurial intent into sustainable outcomes, contributing to more equitable, resilient, and environmentally conscious organizations. Future research is recommended to empirically validate the framework across different contexts and to investigate the evolving role of digital financial technologies in supporting inclusive and sustainable development.

We examine the consequences of spatial proximity on the performance of a distinct type of social enterprise – microfinance institutions (MFIs). Specifically, by using seemingly unrelated regressions, we evaluate how spatial proximity relates simultaneously to three dimensions of performance within a cross-border spillovers framework. We find that while the outreach to the poor by neighboring countries’ MFIs is positively related to the outreach of an MFI, their financial performance is negatively related. The results indicate that the outreach to clients within the region is improved with similar financial services. However, the cost of better outreach differs across countries in line with the literature showing tradeoffs between client outreach and financial sustainability. Country-level economic and institutional factors are identified as channels through which spatial spillovers are observed. The policy implications of our findings suggest that regional economic development and knowledge sharing professional communities have a bigger role to play when it comes to spatial spillovers in microfinance.

Purpose Entrepreneurial bricolage is understood as an effective utilization of available resources to respond to the limitations imposed by resource-constrained environments for acting upon entrepreneurial processes. The empirical bricolage research still lies at its evolving stage concerning the development of measures for distinct bricolage types. Reflecting upon this interest, the authors attempt to advance this research with respect to one of the most important bricolage types – network bricolage (BRI) that is considered relatively significant for network-embedded organizational entities like social enterprises (SEs). Relatively, the purpose of this study is to develop and examine the measure of BRI as a facilitator of dual value creation (DVC) within the context of SEs that are actively involved in engaging with distinct network-based actors. Design/methodology/approach The authors followed standard protocols laid down for the development of our unidimensional and reflective BRI scale and examining its importance for facilitating DVC in SEs. The scale development and validation procedure involves the utilization of primary data from two distinct samples received from top level management of Indian SEs (89 responses for pilot study and 419 for the final study) of new, young, as well as well-established SEs. Findings The findings reported promising results related to the reliability as well as the convergent validity and discriminant validity of the BRI measure. Furthermore, the findings of this study also demonstrate that the BRI and DVC in SEs have a statistically significant relationship. Research limitations/implications The authors empirically examine the influence of different bricolage forms on firm performance; the authors present that BRI positively influence DVC in SEs. The study establishes BRI as an important resourceful behavior to address resource constraints or lack of resources faced by social entrepreneurs. Practical implications Practitioners or social entrepreneurs should focus on strengthening BRI capabilities in accordance with the study’s suggestions and results. To do this, managers must proactively organize their network sources, resources and structure to support the enhancement of the components of DVC. Originality/value This study contributes to the theoretical advancement in the bricolage domain of entrepreneurial behaviors in terms of networking in SEs, therefore, contributing to the advancement of entrepreneurship theory and practice.

Purpose This article aims to analyse the influence of human capital on the cognitive components of the Theory of Planned Behaviour's (TPB) model and its subsequent effect on the social entrepreneurial intentions (SEIs) of university students. Design/methodology/approach The participants were students from the Mohammed V University of Rabat, Morocco. The study involved a total of 300 students. We use structural equation modelling (SEM) for our analysis. Specifically, we employ the Partial Least Squares approach (SmartPLS 4). Findings The findings of this study suggest that prior experience and entrepreneurial skills significantly influence the three antecedents of the TPB. In contrast, attitudes have a more substantial effect on SEIs compared to behavioural control. Moreover, subjective norms exhibit an inverse relationship with SEIs, indicating a negative impact. Research limitations/implications This study addresses a contextual gap in research on the impact of human capital on social entrepreneurship among university students in Morocco. It emphasises the need for institutional strategies and structured frameworks to promote social entrepreneurship among students, including integrating social entrepreneurship into the core academic curriculum, establishing social innovation labs, and forming partnerships with social enterprises. Originality/value This study makes a novel theoretical contribution by employing the human capital approach to analyse SEIs in the context of developing countries. By concentrating on higher education in Morocco, it addresses a significant gap and demonstrates how human capital can influence SEIs. Additionally, Morocco's university programs enhance students' skills in social entrepreneurship, promote a more structured approach to education, and enhance their entrepreneurial attitudes and self-confidence. While earlier models primarily elucidate social entrepreneurial intentions through personality traits, emotional factors, or prior experience, our framework illustrates the importance of human capital. By focusing on knowledge and skills, we refine existing approaches and illustrate how institutional capacity-building can proactively foster social entrepreneurial intention.

ABSTRACT This article investigates how technology‐mediated supply chains can foster ecological and social regeneration in the seafood sector. It focuses on Abalobi, a South African social enterprise that connects small‐scale fishers with consumers through technological and relational innovations and counters dynamics of degeneration, such as socioeconomic inequalities and growing disproportionality, prevalent in traditional seafood supply chains. The findings reveal that although disintermediation (shortening supply chains through technology) is a necessary first step to dismantle exploitative structures, it is insufficient on its own to foster regeneration. Instead, Abalobi's success hinges on reintermediation: strategically introducing relational mechanisms and creating new markets that realign incentive structures. Specifically, these measures redirect demand from overfished species toward undervalued, abundant alternative species, promoting both ecological sustainability and equitable livelihoods. This article contributes to the literature by illustrating a novel two‐step process model: (1) disintermediation to disrupt degenerative dynamics, followed by (2) reintermediation to initiate systemic regeneration. It advances supply chain management theory by explaining how disintermediation and reintermediation can create paths to restoring proportionality and shifting supply chains from degenerative to regenerative dynamics.

Purpose This study systematically reviews sustainability measurement frameworks (SMFs) using the TCCM (Theory, Context, Characteristics and Methodology) approach to evaluate their theoretical foundations, contextual relevance, core constructs and methodological robustness across different types of enterprises, including commercial, non-profit and hybrid organisations. Design/methodology/approach A systematic quantitative literature review was conducted following the SPAR-4-SLR protocol. In total, 161 peer-reviewed journal articles published between 1994 and 2024 were analysed. The TCCM framework structured the analysis to synthesise theoretical, contextual and methodological patterns in SMF research. Findings The review found that existing SMFs predominantly rely on traditional theories like Corporate Social Responsibility and Stakeholder Theory and are mainly designed for commercial enterprises. Most SMFs inadequately address the needs of non-profits and hybrid organisations. Research remains heavily concentrated in high-income regions, and there is limited multidimensionality and contextual adaptability in existing frameworks. Research limitations/implications This study uniquely applies the TCCM framework to the SMF literature, highlighting critical theoretical, contextual and methodological gaps. It calls for the development of inclusive, multidimensional and context-sensitive SMFs tailored to diverse enterprise types. Practical implications The findings suggest that policymakers, practitioners and enterprises must critically assess and adapt SMFs to better align with diverse organisational missions, particularly for social enterprises and non-profits, to enhance sustainability measurement effectiveness. Social implications Developing more inclusive and contextually sensitive SMFs can better capture and support the sustainability efforts of mission-driven organisations, promoting broader social equity, environmental stewardship and community well-being. Originality/value This study uniquely applies the TCCM framework to the SMF literature, highlighting critical theoretical, contextual and methodological gaps. It calls for the development of inclusive, multidimensional and context-sensitive SMFs tailored to diverse enterprise types.

There has been growing recognition of the role of social enterprises in generating social impact while achieving profits for their owners. However, to attain these goals, social enterprises need to innovate for sustainability by fostering collaboration with external partners. The article delineates the role of a social enterprise (ONganic Foods) in promoting sustainable innovation practices to organic smallholders in an environment of external collaborations (state and other ON Conglomerate actors, including SwitchON, ONergy Solar and ON Skills) and building a sustainable agricultural value chain in West Bengal. Survey observations highlight a range of sustainability-oriented innovative measures that can be grouped into two categories, that is, eco-innovation and social innovation. Eco-innovation practices involve applying agroecological principles and adopting climate-resilient agricultural technologies that minimise environmental externalities, while also focusing on market-oriented measures that promote the stakeholders’ economic interests. Social innovations include empowering the local community, providing capability development training to smallholders, facilitating knowledge sharing, spreading environmental and health awareness among consumers, and imparting skill education to generate employment for local youths.

Effect of Government Support and Support Services on the Sustainability of Solar Social Enterprises: A Case Study of Nairobi, Kenya

Purpose Focuses on understanding and managing supply chain uncertainties for social enterprises providing essential products and services to the base of the pyramid markets. The research problem is viewed through a resource dependence lens, and the sources of supply chain uncertainties and buffering and bridging strategies are explored. These strategies help manage uncertainties in BoP markets and enable the provision of essential products and services. Design/methodology/approach Empirical data were obtained through interviews with nine social enterprises that provide essential products and services to BoP markets and supplemented with text analysis of 31 reports on inclusive businesses to provide insights into supply chain uncertainties and potential solutions to mitigate these uncertainties. Findings Drawing on resource dependence theory, this research uncovered five primary sources of supply chain uncertainty in BoP markets, aligning with demand and environmental uncertainties. Additionally, six buffering and bridging strategies were identified to manage these supply chain uncertainties, helping social enterprises mitigate the exposure or impact of uncertainty on their social and economic viability. Practical implications The findings provide specific strategies companies can employ to manage uncertainties in supply chains when serving BoP markets. This research also contributes to the United Nations' Sustainable Development Goals (SDGs). Originality/value Examines supply chain uncertainty in BoP markets, studies its implications on supply chain activities and proposes uncertainty management strategies.

University social incubators have been emerging as relevant instruments within the Third Mission of higher education institutions, as they contribute not only to entrepreneurship and innovation but also to the promotion of the Social and Solidarity Economy (SSE). While the literature on technological and business incubators is extensive, limited attention has been devoted to university social incubators and their role in strengthening SSE initiatives. This article presents partial results of a broader international research project, focusing specifically on the survey data collected in Argentina and Brazil. The comparative analysis highlights that, in both countries, university social incubators are more numerous than in many European contexts. In Brazil, the institutionalization of public programs such as PRONINC and ITCP has enabled universities to consolidate their engagement with SSE, while in Argentina experiences are more fragmented and less supported by stable policy frameworks. The findings show that university social incubators play a distinctive role in supporting cooperative projects, social enterprises, and community-based initiatives. They act as bridges between universities and local territories, fostering inclusive and sustainable development. Finally, the article discusses the managerial implications for incubator managers, universities, and SSE actors, as well as policy recommendations for decision-makers seeking to integrate SSE into innovation and development strategies. In doing so, the study contributes to the international debate on university incubators by moving beyond technology-oriented models and emphasizing their social transformative potential.

There is unequal access to safe drinking water, particularly for the less privileged sections of society. The situation worsened during the COVID-19 pandemic. The study uses a qualitative case-based approach to understand how Indian social entrepreneurs address the gap in access to clean drinking water by utilizing dynamic capabilities to achieve social sustainability. By integrating dynamic capabilities and their micro-foundations theory with social sustainability, social entrepreneurship, and crisis literature, we use multiple methods of data collection, including focus group interviews, observations and individual semi-structured interviews with the founder entrepreneur and employees. A thematic analysis of the data shows how social enterprises sense, seize and reconfigure their resources to achieve social sustainability. While ‘sensing’ involved building a rapport with empathy and a flexible approach, the enterprise ‘seized’ the opportunity by showcasing trust, a forward-thinking mindset and cutting-edge technology. The social enterprise ‘reconfigured’ its resources by providing training to its staff and spreading awareness through social media. By examining the micro-foundations of dynamic capabilities of social enterprises, the study advances knowledge on dynamic capabilities in social entrepreneurship and social sustainability.

Purpose This paper presents a unique approach to impact through being bottom-up in multi-fold realms. The insights were developed through extensive research into subsistence marketplaces, social enterprise developed in parallel through marketplace literacy education for communities, as well as curricular innovations for students. This paper aims to bring out distinctly different lessons about impact that are closely tied to our unique bottom-up orientation and experience. Design/methodology/approach This paper draws on a multi-decade journey into subsistence marketplaces and marketplace literacy to derive insights for creating impact through research. The method is a case study of the journey into the stream of work on subsistence marketplaces and the social enterprise of marketplace literacy. The insights were developed through extensive research into subsistence marketplaces, social enterprise developed in parallel through marketplace literacy education for communities, and curricular innovations for students. This paper presents a detailed discussion of our social enterprise in terms of impact and its interface with research and education. Findings This paper develops a unique framework for impact through being bottom-up in multi-fold realms which encompasses the what of the substantive and theoretical, the how of the methodological and practical and the why, both philosophically and ethically. Noteworthy here is how the bottom-up approach resonates and is deeply intertwined with the notion of evolving understanding about impact as a discovery process. This paper emphasizes distinctly different lessons about impact closely tied to the unique bottom-up orientation and experience. Research limitations/implications The primary limitation of this research is perhaps also its strength, that it is based on the evolution of a research and practice stream that the authors are closely engaged with. However, by explicating the “bottom-up” approach, this paper provides a framework for interweaving research with theoretical implications and practical impact. This framework can be transferred to other settings. Practical implications This paper builds on the experience of a stream of research and an associated social enterprise impacting more than 100,000 individuals across seven countries. In doing so, this paper provides practical recommendations on implementing a bottom-up approach to achieve impact. This paper also provides recommendations on how the solutions to these problems can be implemented at scale by creating social enterprises. Furthermore, through the educational innovations, this paper presents practical implications for marketing and management, such as in product design and business model development. Social implications This paper draws from the examples of the subsistence marketplaces stream of research and the marketplace literacy program, both of which are focused on low-literate, low-income consumers. The focus of this paper is on how the lived realities of such consumers can generate socially impactful research questions as well as practical solutions that enhance their well-being. Having ourselves enacted the social enterprise of marketplace literacy, this paper offers in-depth implications for impact. Originality/value The bottom-up framework to create impact through research that encompasses the what (substantive, theoretical), how (methodological, practical) and why (philosophical ethical), as well as their interrelationships, is unique in a number of ways. This paper reports on emergent insights about impact that evolved from being bottom-up in the most challenging of circumstances. The context of subsistence marketplaces from which the understanding of impact emerged represents a grand challenge reflected in several sustainable development goals. This paper speaks to how the very nature of impact needs to be understood at a deep level through a bottom-up orientation.

ABSTRACT 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.

ABSTRACT Tackling wicked public problems requires governance-centred policy integration to coordinate state and non-state actors across policy subsystems. This study explores if technological social enterprises (TSEs) – competent in technology transfer and application for social innovation – can serve as micro-level instruments for integrated public problem-solving. It develops propositions to map TSEs’ mechanisms in providing technology-based solutions. Driven by meeting unmet market needs sustainably, TSEs play an integrative role in problem framing, shaping public opinions, technological innovation, collaborative policy implementation and advocacy. Guided by systemic thinking, they integrate public values and market logics in their technology-based solutions, to gain trust and collaboration with stakeholders. Findings show that Chinese local governments’ support for TSEs’ socio-economic goals fosters civil society. TSEs benefit developing countries because they do not require heavy government funding. TSEs’ capabilities to provide integrated solutions spanning multiple policy subsystems can help developed countries overcome sectoral fragmentation. Autonomous from the state, they function as market-oriented hybrid instruments, nudging private actors to voluntarily comply with command-and-control regulations-a regulatory approach traditionally challenging to implement effectively.

Across diverse economies, social enterprises have emerged as key drivers of sustainable development, adopting innovative business models to address social and economic challenges. As the importance of social business performance continues to grow, understanding the organizational factors that enhance such performance is essential. This study investigates the influence of leader–member exchange and organizational commitment on social business performance, with organizational citizenship behavior as a mediating variable. The research was conducted among micro, small, and medium enterprises supported by the Aisyiyah network in East Java, Indonesia, involving 146 respondents. Data were analyzed using structural equation modeling with partial least squares. The results reveal that leader–member exchange significantly affects social business performance, whereas organizational commitment shows a negative and non-significant effect, indicating that the hypothesized positive relationship is unsupported. leader–member exchange also positively affects organizational citizenship behavior, while organizational commitment does not. Furthermore, organizational citizenship behavior significantly enhances social business performance and mediates the relationship between leader–member exchange and social business performance, but does not mediate the organizational commitment–social business performance link. These findings suggest leadership quality is more decisive than employee commitment in eliciting discretionary behaviors that improve social business outcomes. The study strengthens the relevance of social exchange theory in explaining leadership–behavior–performance dynamics in social enterprises. From a practical perspective, leaders and owners of social MSMEs should prioritize cultivating trust-based relationships and fostering organizational citizenship behavior through recognition systems, while aligning employee commitment with proactive contributions. Such strategies are vital for balancing financial sustainability with social value creation in emerging economies.

Rappo is a local brand that produces products, especially bags. A social enterprise that produces recycled plastic bag waste (kresek) that is designed in such a way that it becomes a product that has a selling value. Conceptually, a brand means a "contract" from a company to its customers; promises, benefits, quality and certain values. A well-designed brand identity is able to form a brand image with a positive perception in the minds of customers. The ideal of brand identity is a higher goal of a brand or organization that goes beyond the products and services it sells. There are nine aspects of the ideal of brand identity, namely vision, meaning, authenticity, differentiation, durability, coherence, flexibility, commitment, value. Rappo packaging design is one of the brand identity elements owned by Rappo. Researchers want to know the design of Rappo product packaging in building brand ideals. The research method used is qualitative, with research outputs in the form of journal publications. The results obtained at this time are that Rappo products are not optimal in packaging.