bluuebunny/crossref_metadata_2025_split huggingface dataset:
Social enterprise: a case of terminological ambiguity and complexity
Authors: Jones Declan , Keogh William 
Published: June 2010

PurposeTo study some of the difficulties involved in defining the nature of social enterprises and the environments in which they operate in order to provide a framework to show how and where social enterprises fit in the overall social economy.Design/methodology/approachThe complexity of organizations involved in the spectrum of the social economy is discussed in terms of the literature to show how many social enterprises in the UK and worldwide can be categorized as small and medium sized enterprises (SMEs). Discusses the ambiguity prevalent in the social economy concerning the terms and concepts of “not for profit”, “non‐profit”, social enterprise and social entrepreneur and illustrates the successes, failures and difficulties of the social enterprise sector.FindingsThe four key issues which the definitional debate needs to address, comprise: voluntary participation; independence from the state; the concept of profit (profit making, appropriateness of profit making from certain activities, profit maximization, profit distribution); and ownership and corporate governance. Illustrates the points made in the article with particular reference to three case studies involving: Edinburgh Lothian Council On Alcohol (ELCA) (company limited by guarantee with charitable status); First Scottish University Credit Union Ltd (FSUCUL) (credit union); and Forth Sector (social firm).Originality/valueSorts out some of the difficulties and complexities in the definition and classification of social enterprises.
Equity finance for social enterprises
Authors: Brown Jim 
Published: June 2010

PurposeTo study a range of options for providing equity finance (equity capital) in social enterprises.Design/methodology/approachThe UK government’s keenness for social enterprises to overcome the sector’s cultural aversion to borrowing and seek finance for their activities and end grant dependency within the sector is discussed. Considers the different motives of ethical investors and the potentially blurred boundary between what constitutes a social enterprise and what constitutes a private enterprise. Reports on how the Community Interest Companies (CICs), which provides the legal format for social enterprises, has adapted its regulations to pave the way for new forms of equity finance for social enterprises.FindingsIt is possible to adapt the rights of ownership identified by Jeff Gates (1998) to provide the basis for equity finance for social enterprises through its attention to liquidation rights, income rights, appreciation rights, voting rights, and transfer rights.Originality/valueClarifies some of the aspects involved in equity finance to reveal the potential of this type of finance for social enterprises.
A new model for supporting social enterprise through sustainable investment
Authors: ul Islam Zia 
Published: June 2010

PurposeTo present a practitioner’s view on the experiences of the HELP Foundation, Pakistan, in finding practicable ways of helping poor people to escape the poverty trap through the setting up of sustainable institutions and social enterprises.Design/methodology/approachA review of the literature of fund availability and public policies is presented. Discusses the origin and work of the HELP Foundation, a not‐for‐profit organization (NPO) formed by a consortium of professionals, business people, industrialists and public servants, to develop a robust model for poverty‐alleviation through social enterprise. Examines the approaches used to finance the organization and the changes required at public and individual levels to establish sustainable institutions based on the new model. Reports the gathering of data through surveys and interviews with clients, staff and HELP Foundation benefactors to reveal the mixed results of micro‐finance and the difficulties faced when setting up social enterprises in a poor country.FindingsThe success of the HELP Foundation in deriving a novel model for a workable partnership between NPOs and slum‐level entrepreneurs is reported. Argues that social enterprises can be set up in urban slums through joint ventures between an NPO funder and small businesses that have the capacity to expand. Concludes that such joint ventures should be entered into only after trust has been established between the business person and the NPO. While the involvement of respected members of the locality, transparent processes and close monitoring are all necessary for the social enterprise’s success.Originality/valueReveals how the social enterprise concept can be made to work even in conditions of extreme poverty.
Social return on investment and social enterprise: transparent accountability for sustainable development
Authors: Rotheroe Neil , Richards Adam 
Published: June 2010

PurposeTo apply the social return on investment (SROI) concept to a case study based on the Furniture Resource Centre Group (FRC Group), a social enterprise based in Liverpool, UK, to satisfy a need for quality affordable furniture for low‐income households.Design/methodology/approachThe nature of FRC Group’s business is discussed from the viewpoint of how it exemplifies Westall’s (2001) values‐led operation concept with four core values (bravery, creativity, professionalism, passion). Discusses the value of social enterprises and the importance of identifying their social returns as measured by the SROI approach, which was adapted by the New Economics Foundation (NEF) to take account of stakeholder engagement, materiality, impact map, and appreciation of deadweight. Reports on the action research based case study which explored the relationship between the social enterprise business model and the concept of sustainable development.FindingsThe results indicated that the SROI technique demonstrated many qualities of sustainability and, with stakeholder inclusiveness pivotal to the innovative process, it allows for truly connected thinking that reveals advancements in sustainable development.Originality/valueProvides a stimulus for ongoing research and thought on the dynamic concept of sustainability.
“Balance”: the development of a social enterprise business performance analysis tool
Authors: Bull Mike 
Published: June 2010

PurposeTo investigate the higher‐level skills needs and learning provisions for small medium social enterprises (SMSEs) in Northwest England in order to support strategies for lifelong learning and organizational development.Design/methodology/approachThe study involved the development of “Balance”, a tool based on an adapted form of Kaplan and Norton’s Balanced Scorecard (1996) performance measurement and management tool, integrating the notion of incremental learning development, and utilizing Kolb and Fry’s (1975) organizational learning cycle. Discusses the findings of piloting the tool in 30 social enterprises to make a case for an alternative approach to business analysis, where a qualitative approach is put forward.FindingsThe results indicated that the Balance tool provided SMSEs with an easy to use diagnostic tool for collating managers’ subjective opinions in order to simplify the analysis process and provide a reference point for discussing management skills needs. Reveals that there is a spectrum of social enterprise with the “need” or “social” driven organization at one end and the more “enterprise” driven organization at the other. Concludes that the “social” led business tends to focus on an informal, organic organizational system, utilising a loose business framework purely as a means to meeting the social/environment need, while the “enterprise” led business focuses on a structured business organizational system, embracing business logic and businesslike methods and discourse to meet the social/environment/business need.Originality/valueBuilds on research which was published in the previous issue of this journal (“Business practices in social enterprises”, Social Enterprise Journal, Volume 2 Number 1 2006) and outlines the current understandings and shortcomings of SMSE management knowledge.
Social enterprise: a solution for the voluntary sector?
Authors: McBrearty Sinéad 
Published: June 2010

PurposeTo identify the factors influencing the success or failure of voluntary organizations to utilize social enterprise models to achieve financial and/or social objectives.Design/methodology/approachA review of the literature of success/failure factors in trading ventures is presented. Describes the study to understand why social enterprise models either do or do not work in the voluntary sector. Evaluates findings from five separate consultancy projects with UK voluntary sector organizations, where the consultancy work comprised feasibility assessments of new business ideas for each organization and projects carried out by Beehive Promotions Ltd, a subsidiary of Social Enterprise London (SEL). Presents the critical success and failure factors involved in an action research framework for the organizations.FindingsThe five critical success factors identified were: organizations wishing to trade must have a product or service that can be sold; the need to identify a market with resources and inclination to pay for the service or product offered; ability and desire to change organizational culture; significant commitment from internal and external stakeholders; and the need for organizations to have requisite management skills to deal with the additional complexity involved in pursuing social enterprise models. Concludes that the three critical failure factors were: underestimating the development time required; the bureaucratic burden carried by third sector organizations; and the fact that organizations driven toward social enterprise for reactive reasons and fear declining grant income are less likely to succeed. Suggests that commercialization is not always a good thing for voluntary organizations struggling to build businesses while maintaining a focus on their core social mission.Originality/valueFills a gap in the literature where the issues brought up in this exercise have tended not to be studied.
Making sense of social enterprise
Authors: Seanor Pam , Meaton Julia 
Published: June 2010

PurposeTo study the ways in which the people involve in social enterprises make sense out of what they are trying to do.Design/methodology/approachThe study focused on the issues and concerns of participants in a social enterprise network in Bradford, UK, where the network includes both social enterprises and agencies offering them support. Explains that the study aimed to examine the relationship between the development of social enterprise and organizational identity, processes and problems to determine what shared meanings and sense of shared identity are used by participants to make sense of social enterprise, how these are related to actions and projects within the social enterprise sector, and whether there is network integrity in responding and adapting to changes. Reports on a case study involving exploratory semi‐structured interviews, between November 2005 and February 2006, with 11 key actors involved in social enterprise networks in Bradford, all of which were involved in either delivering services to the community or from agencies tasked with supporting these groups.FindingsFive key themes emerged from the interviews: identifying as a social entrepreneur; organizational identity; common language; growth; and networking. Concludes that the factors involved in the way that actors in social enterprises make sense of their activities include: identity, where most organizations did not identify a heroic leader nor would they choose to become social entrepreneurs; lack of a common metaphor; staying small; and fragmentation.Originality/valueProvides a useful starting point from which to explore the problems faced by social enterprise organizations.
So you like to play the guitar? Music‐based social enterprise as a response to economic inactivity
Authors: Cato Molly Scott , Arthur Len , Smith Russell , Keenoy Tom 
Published: June 2010

PurposeTo study the relationship between organization structure and socio‐economic impact in the Welsh music industry and the potential role of social enterprises.Design/methodology/approachThe economic value of social enterprise and the role of creative industries in urban regeneration are discussed from the viewpoint of the inclusion of marginalized workers, especially the young, into the labour‐market. Discusses the increasing political interest in social enterprise and explores evidence for this policy interest, including whether the nature of the governance and management structure of social enterprises influences their social and economic impacts. Reports preliminary stages of the research project and presents evidence gathered through case studies of three unnamed music businesses based in South Wales comprising: a development agency based on co‐operative principles; a loosely organized collective of practitioners and trainers; and a limited liability company. Explains that all three companies began by focusing on hip‐hop music but have developed in different directions and have also developed distinct forms of governance, and this enable the relationship between governance, the music industry, and socio‐economic outcomes to be studied.FindingsThe critical analysis of the potential of social enterprises to achieve social and economic regeneration supports the authors’ own conception of mutual economic activity in terms of what they call “associative entrepreneurship”. Concludes that this concept is needed because the existing definition of social enterprise has become too wide to have analytical value. Notes that the authors hope to present the research findings to a conference of creative industries’ academics in the coming year.Originality/valuePresents the authors’ preliminary attempts to apply their knowledge of the social economy to the music industry as the first stage of a research project funded by the Welsh Assembly.
Understanding social enterprise: a case study of the childcare sector in Scotland
Authors: Hare Paul , Jones Declan , Blackledge Gemma 
Published: June 2010

PurposeTo investigate the application of the social enterprise model to the childcare sector in Scotland and develop a practical model for analysing such social enterprises.Design/methodology/approachA review of the literature of ideas on social enterprise found in official and academic literature is presented. The concept of “social enterprise” is reviewed with particular reference to features of the childcare sector that relate both generally and specifically to Scotland. Reports the results of a questionnaire survey, conducted in late 2005 and early 2006, involving 81 childcare organizations (27.0 per cent response rate).FindingsThe results indicated that about two‐thirds of the organizations operated at just one site, with playgroups tending to be local groups operating in relatively small geographical areas. Reveals that the issue of whether childcare should be free caused mixed but fairly evenly distributed responses, from strong agreement to strong disagreement, but the issue of external sources of funding and the problems involved caused the majority of respondents to agree that childcare services are unsustainable without external funding, a finding that shows that sustainability is not the same as self‐sufficiency. Concludes that childcare sector issues and social economy issues are the most significant.Originality/valueContributes to the social enterprises literature where there is a dearth of knowledge about the birth and death rates for social enterprises and where improved statistics would help in supporting sector‐related policies more effectively and understanding better the sector’s function and behaviour. Provides information that could be helpful for banks and other financial institutions that might be in a position to offer credit to these social enterprises.
Research on the affecting mechanism of entrepreneurial environment on new firm performance
Authors: Li Cai , Xiumei Zhu , Qiguo Cui , Di Zhao 
Published: June 2010

PurposeThis paper aims to build a theory model to examine the influencing mechanism of entrepreneurial environment on new firm performance based on network view and resource‐based view, and then carry out empirical research.Design/methodology/approachData were obtained from 112 new firms, through the use of questionnaires, in Changchun city, China.FindingsEvidence indicates that the entrepreneurial environment has an impact on new firm performance through entrepreneurial network and resource acquisition. The results show that eight out of ten hypotheses are supported.Practical implicationsIn a hostile, dynamic and complex environment, the new firm should enhance its entrepreneurial network to ensure resource acquisition and then promote performance.Originality/valueThe paper shows definitely the significance of entrepreneurial network as a bridge between external environment and resource acquisition and new firm performance. Entrepreneurial network and resource acquisition are identified as important intermediary variables, and resource combination ability as a moderating variable. This paper examines the influence of external environment on new firm performance. The research has some theoretical and managerial implications for new firms' survival and obtaining growth in highly uncertain and turbulent environments.
Anatomy of nascent entrepreneurship in China
Authors: Long Dan , Yang Jun , Gao Jiayong 
Published: June 2010

PurposeThe promoting effects of entrepreneurship on economic development, innovation, and employment has been explained in the literature. However, research on micro‐level entrepreneurial activity, falls far behind practice. The purpose of this paper is to analyze the general laws of Chinese entrepreneurial activities at the micro level.Design/methodology/approachThe paper takes a combination of stratified and random digital dialing sampling, and conducts a longitudinal survey on nascent entrepreneurs. In total, 293 nascent entrepreneurs were interviewed by telephone.FindingsPreliminary analysis results of the first‐wave survey show that nascent entrepreneurs are featured as young, educated, and experienced. Most entrepreneurial activities are opportunity oriented, which is primarily sought via systematic searching. Most entrepreneurs start their businesses by making full use of available resources or abilities. Saving funds, collecting information of target customers and markets, and analyzing and forecasting financial risks are three main activities most frequently undertaken by Chinese nascent entrepreneurs; and most entrepreneurs create their businesses independently. Most new ventures are small businesses, over half of which take the second‐mover strategy and target mature and developing markets. Only a small number of new ventures exhibit high growth aspiration and entrepreneurs tend to pay more attention to the control of their businesses.Practical implicationsThe paper presents an overall deconstruction of Chinese nascent entrepreneurs and the pre‐establishment activities of new ventures. The government and VCs can make decisions based on its findings.Originality/valueThe Chinese Panel Study of Entrepreneurial Dynamics is the first survey research program focused on the micro‐level entrepreneurial activities in China. This paper expands understanding of the entrepreneurial process.
The impact of founder turnover on firm performance: an empirical study in China
Authors: He Xiaogang , Wang Zhixin , Mei Lin , Lian Yanling 
Published: June 2010

PurposeThe purpose of this paper is to assess the immediate and lagged effects of founder's turnover on firm performance, and test the moderating effects of enterprise scale and founders' tenure on enterprise performance.Design/methodology/approachThe paper selects 307 listed companies founded by founder from the Listed Company's Financial Database provided by the China Center for Economic Research. Based on 1,535 observations, this paper tests the relationship between founder turnover and performance by using the random effect model and the fixed effect model.FindingsIt is found that founders' turnover will have a significant immediate and negative effect on firm performance. There exists a lagged effect of founders' turnover, but this lagged effect is not as strong as immediate effect. It is also found that the effect of founders' turnover has been moderated by firm size and founders' characteristics.Practical implicationsFounders should choose an appropriate time of leaving when the firm's performance has reached a level high enough for the successor to have a better chance of improving its future operations.Originality/valueAlthough some scholars have recognized the special role of founders and that enterprises' performances are mainly determined by the founders, few have studied founders' turnover on firm performance directly and empirically. This paper expands understanding of the founders' departure behavior on firm performance.
Empirical research on private entrepreneur human capital in China and enterprises' growth performance
Authors: Jin Zhang , Huixin Yang , Ruizhan Lv 
Published: June 2010

PurposeThe purpose of this paper is to locate those entrepreneur human capital elements which significantly influence an enterprise's growth performance, within both high‐tech and traditional enterprises, thereby helping entrepreneurs understand that human capital elements will provide different impacts within different industries.Design/methodology/approachUnder some necessary research assumptions, the statistical analysis described in this paper uses data collected from a questionnaire survey and is performed under the SPSS16.0 Program.FindingsAn enterprise growth model is built from the perspectives of entrepreneur human capital. Analysis shows that human capital elements of the same entrepreneur have different impacts on the performance of business growth in different industries. The theoretical model provides a better explanation of the high‐tech enterprises' growth performance. Innovation and business growth performances from a high‐tech enterprise have greater reliance on human capital of entrepreneurs than the traditional industries.Originality/valueMost current studies of the human capital of entrepreneurs focus on the analysis of background characteristics, but inadequate attention has been given to the relationship between human capital and the enterprises' growth performance, as well as to the comparative analysis of entrepreneurs' human capital in high‐tech enterprises and traditional enterprises. This paper, however, compares and analyzes such relationships between high‐tech enterprises and traditional enterprises.