“Every firm is a profit-maximizer” 

After the class on social entrepreneurs, I searched up more about the enterprise on Kiva. In one of their blogs, it talks about how they are honoured by Oprah that it is one of the top things to do in 2010. Well, Kiva loans simple money to potential entrepreneurs who does not have enough money themselves to start a business. This gives everyone an opportunity to  gain an income to survive. Learning that many social entrepreneurs uses the innovative, opportunistic qualities of an entrepreneur to make social change by applying business principles to impact the society all while making profit. They benefit the lives of individuals by achieving social change, yet still  make profits.

Then, I thought about the causes of the current financial crisis, which in summary can be attributed to the inexorable pursuit of profits from banks and investment firms. The profits from these firms did not create wealth, which opposes Friedman’s argument, “only social responsibility of a business is to pursue profits” to the constraint of legal and ethical conduct. However, in many cases, earning profits often encourages ethical and legal standards of business to be broken.

In my past blog, Coke, similar to many companies nowadays is currently undergoing a change in its marketing scheme. Coke is following the trend by taking on more social responsibilities in helping WWF. With many years simply to make profit from consumers, many companies are considering about the world. They are still making profit, but at the same time benefiting the world as well. These changes in ideologies also show the emerging social entrepreneurs, their willingness of firms to circumnavigate the law and ethical practices.