The Process of Social Entrepreneurship: creating opportunities worthy of serious pursuit
A CASE framework to guide social entrepreneurs through the process of creating a worthwhile opportunity.
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Guclu 02 SE Process.pdf 303.66 KB
All acts of entrepreneurship start with the vision of an attractive opportunity. For social entrepreneurs, an “attractive” opportunity is one that has sufficient potential for positive social impact to justify the investment of time, energy, and money required to pursue it seriously.
Attractive entrepreneurial opportunities have to be conceived, developed, and refined in a dynamic, creative, and thoughtful process. In order to determine whether a promising idea can be transformed into an opportunity worthy of serious pursuit, it is essential for the social entrepreneur to articulate a compelling social impact theory and a plausible business model. Developing a plausible business model requires designing an effective operating model and crafting a viable resource strategy. These pieces must fit together, and the assumptions embedded in them must be credible given the environment in which the social entrepreneur intends to operate.
This note—published by the Center for the Advancement of Social Entrepreneurship (CASE), Fuqua School of Business—provides a framework to guide social entrepreneurs through the process of creating a worthwhile opportunity. It is designed to help increase the chances of success for anyone contemplating the journey of social entrepreneurship, and it may also be helpful for those considering investing in new social ventures.
Website (URL): http://www.fuqua.duke.edu/centers/case
Author(s): Ayse Guclu, J. Gregory Dees, and Beth Battle Anderson