http://www.socialvelocity.net/2009/04/the-benevolent-energy-of-a-new-generation/ Accelerating Social Innovation Thu, 15 Jul 2010 21:40:06 +0000 hourly 1 http://wordpress.org/?v=abc http://www.socialvelocity.net/2009/04/the-benevolent-energy-of-a-new-generation/comment-page-1/#comment-531 A False Dichotomy: Non-profit vs. For-profit Solutions « Austin Entrepreneur Network Sat, 20 Jun 2009 18:23:21 +0000 http://www.socialvelocity.net/?p=671#comment-531 [...] be full of hubris, but this is no less true in social businesses than it is in nonprofits.  Read my post on the “missionary” nature of some social business [...] [...] be full of hubris, but this is no less true in social businesses than it is in nonprofits.  Read my post on the “missionary” nature of some social business [...]

]]> http://www.socialvelocity.net/2009/04/the-benevolent-energy-of-a-new-generation/comment-page-1/#comment-478 Innovation is the Answer | Social Velocity Tue, 28 Apr 2009 21:14:28 +0000 http://www.socialvelocity.net/?p=671#comment-478 [...] is more interested in innovation for social good than innovation for individual gain (I wrote about this trend as [...] [...] is more interested in innovation for social good than innovation for individual gain (I wrote about this trend as [...]

]]> http://www.socialvelocity.net/2009/04/the-benevolent-energy-of-a-new-generation/comment-page-1/#comment-473 Nell Edgington Mon, 27 Apr 2009 14:26:02 +0000 http://www.socialvelocity.net/?p=671#comment-473 Well said, Scott. Thanks. Well said, Scott. Thanks.

]]> http://www.socialvelocity.net/2009/04/the-benevolent-energy-of-a-new-generation/comment-page-1/#comment-472 scott collier Sat, 25 Apr 2009 15:38:53 +0000 http://www.socialvelocity.net/?p=671#comment-472 Well said Nell. As a judge I too was impressed with some of the ideas and by the entrepreneurial zeal that went into them. It speaks to a consistent character trait I have always seen in successful entrepreneurs: tenacity in coming up with innovative solutions to challenging problems. What makes someone a good entrepreneur is that their sense of well-being gets tightly bound to their success scorecard and what I see happening is that for many they are swapping out the scorecard. While for years accumulated wealth has been the primary (and for some the only) scorecard, there are growing ranks of business builders that see social impact as a scorecard. This only makes sense as we see world class entrepreneurs like Muhammad Yunus, Bill Gates, and locally Michael Dell, John Mackey and Philip Berber sending a message with their actions that social innovation is a noble pursuit. What is exciting is that some of these social investors are experimental enough to try social business as an alternative to traditional philanthropy. Inherent in social business is the marketplace, and the marketplace is pretty intolerant of externally imposed solutions. "Solve my problem the way I want it solved" is what the market says over time; so to your point, my expectation is that the arrogant business with its own ideas will have its head handed to it on a platter by a disinterested market. Very different than what charity efforts do where handouts are grabbed up even if the only one really being satisfied is a donor who sees "impact". I will be suggesting to these enthused social business founders that if they really want to succeed they will do well to absorb the lessons from books like Prahalad's Fortune at the Bottom of the Pyramid before they try to scale. Well said Nell. As a judge I too was impressed with some of the ideas and by the entrepreneurial zeal that went into them. It speaks to a consistent character trait I have always seen in successful entrepreneurs: tenacity in coming up with innovative solutions to challenging problems. What makes someone a good entrepreneur is that their sense of well-being gets tightly bound to their success scorecard and what I see happening is that for many they are swapping out the scorecard. While for years accumulated wealth has been the primary (and for some the only) scorecard, there are growing ranks of business builders that see social impact as a scorecard. This only makes sense as we see world class entrepreneurs like Muhammad Yunus, Bill Gates, and locally Michael Dell, John Mackey and Philip Berber sending a message with their actions that social innovation is a noble pursuit. What is exciting is that some of these social investors are experimental enough to try social business as an alternative to traditional philanthropy. Inherent in social business is the marketplace, and the marketplace is pretty intolerant of externally imposed solutions. “Solve my problem the way I want it solved” is what the market says over time; so to your point, my expectation is that the arrogant business with its own ideas will have its head handed to it on a platter by a disinterested market. Very different than what charity efforts do where handouts are grabbed up even if the only one really being satisfied is a donor who sees “impact”. I will be suggesting to these enthused social business founders that if they really want to succeed they will do well to absorb the lessons from books like Prahalad’s Fortune at the Bottom of the Pyramid before they try to scale.

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