The Role of Social Enterprise

46 Pages Posted: 14 Dec 2010 Last revised: 11 Feb 2014

See all articles by Robert Katz

Robert Katz

Indiana University Robert H. McKinney School of Law

Antony Page

Florida International University (FIU) - College of Law

Date Written: December 13, 2010

Abstract

A social enterprise operates a business in a manner intended to increase social welfare more than conventional businesses in the same sector. This notion of “social enterprise” was pioneered by nonprofit organizations seeking to advance their charitable missions through revenue-generating commercial activity, instead of relying on charitable donations. With increasing frequency the term is applied to for-profit business ventures whose founders seek to both address social problems while also generating acceptable returns for owner-investors. The article examines the notion of for-profit social enterprise, and explains how such entities may better achieve social goals than nonprofits engaged in revenue-generating commercial activity, most notably by expanding a business’s access to capital and talent.

The article also addresses what some have described as the “legacy problem” – the concern that for-profit social enterprises will not sustain their social missions after the founding social entrepreneur’s exit or loss of enthusiasm. Such concerns, the authors argue, reflect a “nonprofit lite” perspective, which sees the main challenge of social enterprise law as increasing the resources available to what are essentially nonprofit organizations, i.e., entities that are explicitly committed to generating social value in perpetuity. The authors favor an approach that is grounded in the broader ambitions of social entrepreneurship, which is to increase social welfare by transforming markets and preferences in a way that goes well beyond a particular enterprise’s activities. The for-profit social enterprise itself may be transitional and need not survive in order to achieve large-scale social change.

Keywords: social enterprise, social entrepreneurship, nonprofit, not-for-profit, philanthropy, hybrid organization, corporate law, corporations, corporate social responsibility

JEL Classification: L2, L20, L21, L22, L31, L33, M13, M14

Suggested Citation

Katz, Robert and Page, Antony, The Role of Social Enterprise (December 13, 2010). Vermont Law Review, Vol. 35, p. 59, 2010, Available at SSRN: https://ssrn.com/abstract=1724942

Robert Katz (Contact Author)

Indiana University Robert H. McKinney School of Law ( email )

530 West New York Street
Room 349
Indianapolis, IN 46202-3225
United States
317-278-4791 (Phone)
317-278-3326 (Fax)

HOME PAGE: http://indylaw.indiana.edu/people/profile.cfm?Id=37

Antony Page

Florida International University (FIU) - College of Law ( email )

11200 SW 8th St.
RDB Hall 1097
Miami, FL 33199
United States

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