Change Agents Unite - Coaching Social Entrepreneurs

Change Agents Unite
Coaching Social Entrepreneurs

What Exactly Is A Social Entrepreneur, Anyway?

The concept of “entrepreneurialism” was developed in French economics and has always been related to developing new markets and economic progress within a capitalistic framework. A successful entrepreneur of the traditional, capitalistic ilk refers to one who has the ability to take a business to the point at which it can sustain itself financially and operate with minimal supervision.

While the jury is still out with respect to what characteristics accurately define a social entrepreneur, scholarly definitions still on the table range from anyone who operates a non-profit social enterprise to individuals simultaneously pursuing financial and social return on investment in for-profit corporations (e.g. social sector businesses or multinationals with varying levels of financial commitment to social causes). Other institutional structures considered are affirmative businesses, community development banks and hybrid organizations mixing non-profit and for-profit elements in a myriad of ways.

However, those deeply involved in defining the term in such a way that speaks both to the current trends in social innovation, as well as to an “ideal” characterization of the social entrepreneur, tend to emphasize the concept is about more than “giving back” to the community. They state, rather, that the best definitions refer to an individual who pursues initiatives to meet human needs, and who does so with a pure entrepreneurial spirit; that is with radical innovation and a relentless drive to achieve a “new equilibrium” and sustainable success for the projects.
Some Examples

Perhaps the most widely known social entrepreneur and the man whose initiative spurred the quest for the term’s definition is Muhammad Yunus, who is known throughout the world as the “father of microcredit.” Yunus founded the Grameen Bank in Bangladesh, making it possible for women who were unable to qualify for loans through the formal banking system or only by accepting exorbitant interest rates, to start their own businesses. By lending, from his own pocket, the now-famous sum of $27 to 42 women for capital costs, these individuals were able to stop begging in the streets, establish a tailoring business, pay back their loans and rise out of poverty.

Contemporary American social entrepreneurs include Steve Jobs and Wozniak of Apple Computers; Fred Smith of Federal Express; Pierre Omidyar and Jeff Skoll of eBay and John Wood, former Vice President at Microsoft, author of Leaving Microsoft to Change the World and founder of “Room to Read,” an initiative dedicated to literacy in the developing world. All of these individuals shattered the economic and functional limitations that held their industries back from radical change and created new approaches utilizing effective business models to make their projects sound and viable over the long-term.

Enter: The Coach

So, how might the coaching profession benefit social entrepreneurs? What might become possible for coaches and for the field of coaching as a whole as a result of coaching social entrepreneurs? And what might an ideal relationship between the two look like?

Generally speaking, once social entrepreneurs determine that they wish to live out the value of affecting positive social change, those who are working in the business world (many enter the field through other avenues), either restructure their companies or they leave their home companies to pursue these projects. Coaches who work with the corporate sector are in an ideal position to coach executives, senior managers and others who are longing to pursue large-scale social ventures, but require support to take the steps in this direction. Many coaches are already doing so.

In effect, you might already be coaching a social entrepreneur and not even know it. Becoming familiar with this emerging field can help both coach and client understand client goals within the most relevant framework, remain aware of available resources, dismantle limiting beliefs with greater speed and foster a certain comfort level with the notion of being an agent for radical, world-altering change. In turn, it can also allow the coaching relationship to remain highly relevant through the transition and beyond.

“Sound Familiar?”
10 Defining Characteristics of Social Entrepreneurs

According to J. Gregory Dees, Faculty Director of the Center fo rthe Advancement of Social Entrepreneurship at Duke University, there are a number of characteristics that define the social entrepreneurial model. The following 10 are central to his definition.

Social entrepreneurs:

1. are change agents
2. hold bold visions of qualitative change
3. address the causes of problems, rather than simply treating symptoms
4. seek to create systemic changes and sustainable improvements
5. adopt a mission based on their values and vision
6. entertain, recognize and relentlessly pursue new possibilities
7. are engaged in a continuous process of exploring, learning and improving
8. treat failure of a project as a learning experience, not a personal tragedy
9. act boldly despite perceived and real limitations
10. exhibit a heightened sense of accountability to those they’re serving

Fundamentally, then, social entrepreneurs are already very coach-like in their approach to pursuing their ideals. In both fields we see the desire for fearless change based in deep-seated values, the seizing of the widest possible range of possibility combined with a fundamental reverence for the human being and concern for the conditions in which human beings live.

A Marriage That Could Save the World?

Not only are the parallels between the characteristics of coaching and social entrepreneurship striking and their emergence on the world stage timely, the potential power that exists if the two fields were to merge and work together on a global scale is immense.

Might the timing and alignment be an invitation for the two to merge and work together more deliberately, within a new framework? From the coaching perspective, it is an opportunity to work with value-centered businesses toward more radical ends than ever and with individuals whose dreams have far-reaching impact. For coaches whose central values include addressing world needs or who harbor a longing to be part of large-scale transformation and change in the world, social entrepreneurship can be a niche-defining dream come true.

For the social entrepreneur, coaching provides the opportunity to move more forward swiftly, with more personal power, clarity and focus to affect positive change both in themselves and on the world stage. More than ever, these entrepreneurs need professionals who can challenge them to think outside even the biggest box and to support them in creating powerful social change, whether the desired result is hungry people fed, children clothed, the environment healed, advances in philanthropy, healthcare, film, or the emergence of new banking or political structures.

This relationship is also an opportunity for the coaching profession to become active in helping to create new paradigms for world change. And what if the relationship between the social entrepreneurial movement and the coaching movement could result in something even bigger – even more powerful? What if it is central to a shift in planetary consciousness? Not only could the reputation of coaching take a quantum leap as a result of this work, but these corporate clients who are fulfilling a mission greater than their own immediate needs would be met with a community prepared to walk alongside them.

Further Resources

Exploring Social Entrepreneurship

In Books
Leaving Microsoft to Change the World, by John Wood
www.leavingmicrosoftbook.com

In Film
http://www.pbs.org/opb/thenewheroes/about/index.html
http://www.skollfoundation.org/tvfilm/uncommonheroes.asp

For information on organizations, projects and awards visit
www.skollfoundation.org
www.schwabfound.org
www.ashoka.org

Article: “The Meaning of ‘Social Entrepreneurship’; J. Gregory Dees. May 30, 2001, p.4f. See www.fuqua.duke.edu/centers/case/documents/dees_sedef.pdf