We are pleased to alert you to ISS working paper 668, entitled Social entrepreneurship: pathways to scale, by Bruna Lessa Bastos and Georgina M. Gómez.
Abstract
Creating positive and transformational change by meeting social needs is a goal of development organisations. Social entrepreneurship, characterized by the blurring of boundaries between sectors, offers innovative solutions to meet social needs and has emerged as a new developmental actor that does not centre on the state or international aid. However, the limited scope of impact of these initiatives makes reaching scale a central concern but the pathways of scaling are still poorly understood. By analyzing the case of Associação Saúde Criança this study provides insights into the tensions created by market encroachment on the social sector and the feasibility of scaling complex developmental initiatives. Findings show that scaling is not a linear process, it involves adaptation and resilience. Furthermore, market encroachment pressures organizations towards finding a balance between staying financially sustainable and socially relevant.
Keywords
Social entrepreneurship, market-encroachment, scaling.