1st Summer Edition

Navigating social and commercial objectives in social enterprises
April 15, 2019

Running your own business is hard, but it can be especially difficult for people who want to set up a social enterprise, aimed at having a positive impact on people and the planet. How is this done, and how do you get over the tension between commercial and social objectives?

In this workshop, we drew on our research to give workshop attendees the tools to understand the tensions they face, and how they can find a way to navigate through this. We helped those involved in social enterprise and other forms of third sector or business activity to think through some challenging issues such as: should a social enterprise grow its business if it is not its core social mission; should we hold onto knowledge about our innovations or share them broadly; should we employ experienced and highly skilled staff or employ those needing the experience and skill development.

The workshop was aimed at existing and start-up social enterprises/entrepreneurs and was organized by CUSP and CEEDR in collaboration with the American Corner at the Co-Creation Hub Lagos.