Make a difference.
When we think of business, we relate it to a model that focuses primarily on maximizing profit and omitting “social benefit”.
“Social enterprise” is a newly exposed field that differentiates from the standard profit-driven businesses. Opposed to “making money”, social enterprise strives to “generate social value” and to become “socially-responsible” with the combination of “financial and social returns”- the best of both worlds. Consequently, the popularity of “social enterprise” is rising as more graduate students enter this “nascent field”. However, there are many skeptics who argue that such discipline is impossible.
For instance, certain “socially-responsible practices” may yield economic losses. If this is the case, how many people are willing to continue with these entrepreneurial principles? The opportunity cost of conducting ethical practices is a financial loss. This is the “dark side” that lures students to the pitfall of becoming “money-oriented”. From a social entrepreneur’s perspective, “customer loyalty fostered” by social-conscious missions allows the social and financial return to exceed the losses in the long run.
Therefore, replace the mindset that social benefit cannot co-exist with profit gains by having an open mind.
Source:
http://www.yaledailynews.com/news/2012/oct/17/panelists-champion-careers-in-social-good/
http://www.newsroom.gov.bc.ca/2012/03/bc-introduces-act-allowing-social-enterprise-companies.html
http://www.ssireview.org/articles/entry/social_entrepreneurship_the_case_for_definition