Today, many entrepreneurs are choosing to go beyond the norm. These entrepreneurs are not only focused on meeting their sales targets and reaching their other business goals. They are taking business entrepreneurship and innovation to another level by constantly looking for ways to improve society and leading the way to initiate and implement these changes.
This new breed of businesspersons is called “social entrepreneurs.” They are entrepreneurs who are advocates of social change and also take the lead in creating a new, better social equilibrium.
As a business owner, it is never too early or late to be a social entrepreneur. Business owners can bring about positive changes in society by:
A good start to being a social entrepreneur is identifying or knowing the problems affecting people in general and society as a whole.
Businesspersons who have been turning a blind eye to the prevailing issues in the community or even in their country should stop doing this right now. To initiate change, entrepreneurs have to know the specific problems the people and society are dealing with first. These can include widespread environmental waste, lack of housing for the underprivileged, and poor working conditions for employees.
And as they discover or identify these problems, they need to start thinking about what they and their organisation can do to help resolve the problems identified.
Although company owners may be fully inspired to tackle a particular problem, to be successful social entrepreneurs, they need to take a methodical approach in handling it. They can do this by applying the skills, knowledge, and experiences they have accumulated as business owners.
To properly deal with a particular issue, the first step is to determine the underlying causes and roots of the problem. Company owners can do this by working with their staff to conduct formal research or surveys or enlisting professionals to implement them.
And aside from taking the lead in identifying and implementing solutions, they will need to collaborate with other people to bring about effective and long-lasting social change. These can include community and grassroots leaders, local authorities, funders, and other social innovators.
Business owners will have to rely on their skills and experiences as entrepreneurs to successfully work with different people and groups.
One key element of any business is its mission-vision which summarizes the purpose and goals of the organisation. You can start being a good social entrepreneur by creating a formal social mission that your organisation can adhere to or fulfil.
This social mission should aim to improve the local infrastructure, the standard of living of residents, and the livelihood of the people. It should also help facilitate positive change in the environment.
Established social entrepreneurs are focused on using business profits to bring about improvements in people’s lives and in the environment. And this is something company owners have to start working on as well.
Noted social entrepreneurs are successful in running companies that prioritise the welfare of their employees, the community, and the environment without sacrificing profitability.
Social entrepreneurs need to find a way to run a business that would not only bring profit to them and their company but to the whole society as well. They can do this by developing strategies that can provide sustainable livelihood, income, and resources for the local community.
Additionally, it is also important you develop a business model that is environmentally sustainable. Start by sourcing and using eco-friendly supplies and finding ways to reduce waste both in production and operations, depending on the nature of your business.
It is also worth creating corporate programs that will allow the organisation to help the environment. A good example of this is donating a portion of all customer purchases to fund tree planting and local park or forest clean-up activities.
Once business owners become established social entrepreneurs, they can expect to reap numerous benefits.
They will enjoy positive instant brand recognition and encounter fewer difficulties in getting funding from private investment companies. More importantly, they will be able to share their success with their employees, the community, and even the environment. And the feeling they will get from doing these will definitely be incomparable.