THE STATE OF SOCIAL ENTERPRISE IN SINGAPORE (original) (raw)
Related papers
Landscape of Social Enterprises in Singapore
The buzz around social enterprises in Singapore is growing louder and more insistent. Yet one does not have to scratch too far beneath the surface of this energy and enthusiasm to realise that there is little consensus even amongst the most ardent supporters on what the primary characteristics of an organisation that calls itself a social enterprise are or should be. In this study, the authors explore the diverse landscape and eco-system that have developed since the first known social enterprises appeared in Singapore almost 90 years ago. The study sheds light on the core principles underpinning a social enterprise and presents the challenges and opportunities facing the sector in Singapore.
How do Thai social enterprise organisations perceive and practice the notion of social accountability and social impact assessments? This study answers the growing call to assess social enterprises and hold them accountable for their social impact, enhancing their legitimacy as agents for social progress. Through field research and six case studies of prominent Thai social enterprise organisations, this study reveals a desire to assess Thai social enterprises, but limited by the lack of social impact assessments. The leading reasons of this absence is due to the lack of competency and enabling mechanisms in implementing social impact assessments as well as an over-protectionism of the sector, which favours promotion before scrutiny. Moreover, the study reveals that supporting organisations utilise due diligence as a substitute for social impact assessments, and social enterprises acquire credibility, reputation and transparency through personalbased trust and storytelling. Thus, due to the lack of evidence-based social accountability and the reliance on alternative channels to acquire non-verifiable social accountability, the Thai social enterprise sector risks undermining its long-term legitimacy. Moreover, with no social impact assessments the sector loses valuable data that explains how social impact is created and weakens the development of impact investment.
Effective Social Incubation -First Insights from Asia
Asia is facing simultaneously huge growth potential and increasing inequalities, with often weak national solutions to the social issues at hand. Social purpose organisations (SPOs) – which includes but are not limited to non-profit organisations, charities and social enterprises - are seen to solve these issues sustainably. Social incubation is seen as a tool to help SPOs grow and potentially build a pipeline for social investors. Yet, how does social incubation in Asia work? The insights presented here are the first insights from surveying 15 social incubators in Indonesia, Thailand, India, Japan, China, Taiwan, Hong Kong and Singapore which have existed for at least two years. Four incubators supported idea-stage SPOs, while seven focused on entrants with prototypes. Two had SPOs in all stages and another two served post-revenue organisations. So are they effective? The strongest indicator was that seven out of ten incubators reported that their graduating SPOs had progressed by at least one to three stages between idea-, prototype-, postrevenue and growth-stage from their status at entry to the incubator...
Social entrepreneurs are faced with multiple challenges which are further amplified in resource deficit environment of developing economies. However, there has been a limited examination of the barriers and limitations present in social enterprise ecosystem from the developing country context. This research takes the case of India to identify the constraints which influence decision making and impact of the social enterprises, as perceived by various active participants of the social enterprise ecosystem. It reveals three major categories of challenges present in both macro and micro environment of the social enterprise ecosystem of India and further provides potential solutions to the challenges identified.
A STUDY OF THE SOCIAL ENTREPRENEURSHIP ECOSYSTEM: THE CASE OF MOROCCO
Today, social entrepreneurship is considered as a growth driver for emerging countries. This phenomenon that combines economic utility and social efficiency has recently attracted considerable interest in the academic world as well as among public institutions. In Morocco, it is during the last decade we witnessed an infatuation toward this new type of entrepreneurship. Several actors are working today to promote the sector; however, there is a lack of research on their role in developing the ecosystem of the Moroccan social enterprise. Based on a qualitative study, this article aims to map the stakeholders of social entrepreneurship, their missions and their role in creating a favorable environment for the emergence of social entrepreneurs. The results are presented as an exploratory basis.
Key Skills and Competences for Social Business Advisors: Views from Experts
Canadian Institute for Knowledge Development (CIKD)
The aim of the present article is to analyze the training needs as a difference between the current and desired state of knowledge, skills and qualifications of business advisors to provide the necessary consulting services to social intermediaries and social enterprises. Professional profiles of social business consultants are presented on the basis of published job requirements in organizations providing business consulting to social enterprises and by some organizations outside the country due to the poor development of these activities at national level. The research includes the results of 30 interviews with three categories of “Business advisors”, “Business advisors’ entities” and “Social entrepreneurs”. Business advisors usually provide financial and strategic advice to small and mid-sized companies, cooperatives, social enterprises and other formats of company formations. The business advisors must also have an excellent business sense and keen communication skills in order to be able to adequately support social entrepreneurs.
Bangkok University: 2017/18 GEM Thailand Report, 2018
The 2017/18 GEM Thailand Report on “Entrepreneurship in Thailand” offers an in-depth overview on the status quo of entrepreneurship in Thailand. It covers entrepreneurship and the entrepreneurial ecosystem to gain in-depth knowledge to develop informed initiatives and policy recommendations for the future development of Thai entrepreneurship. The findings are directed at supporting entrepreneurs with an emphasis on catalyzing innovation; creating better access to finance; empowering entrepreneurs to (1) develop an enhanced skill set and (2) promoting quality entrepreneurship in the region and (3) enhance both the awareness for entrepreneurs as the scope of their enterprises.