I have often wondered about those working in the NGOs with the sole intention of doing good. Wonder what drives them? NGOs have often purported their objective to be the catalyst for solving the social, economic and environmental problems of a Nation. Admittedly there are success stories that give reasons to critics like me to introspect. At the same time, there are many NGOs that are viewed with a degree of suspicion that is more often than not justified. How many of us are willing to pursue public service for peanuts? Do the NGOs have the ability to scale and get the best talent to work for them? If like me, the reader feels that the answer is a firm ‘NO’, then will it not adversely affect the ability of the NGOs to raise and allocate resources for the betterment of the society? This segues nicely to the central idea of this article.
The answer lies in Social Entrepreneurship! No, the term is not my brain child! It is the ‘in thing’ in the conversations of the business leaders of the world. Muhammad Yunus (Noble Peace Prize winner) is amongst the prominent business leaders who strongly advocate ‘Market Based Social Entrepreneurship’ as a powerful alternative to the orthodoxy of Capitalism. Social consciousness driven private sector that is driven by social entrepreneurs is the new mantra that does not seek to obviate NGOs, but surely is looked upon as a viable, sustainable and more importantly an affective alternative. What has added weight to the concept is Bill Gate’s Davos speech where he emphasized on ‘Creative Capitalism’ as the way forward for Social Entrepreneurs. Perhaps the fact that the base of the Pyramid market in Asia alone is valued at $3.4 trillion would have caused the veritable rise in call for Social Entrepreneurship.
Who is a social entrepreneur? The world defines the social entrepreneur as a professional who is unconventional, innovative and resourceful. A social entrepreneur can feel the pulse of those at the base of the pyramid market. The essence of the Social Entrepreneur is that he/she is idealistic and at the same time should be an opportunist. Essentially he/she wants to do well professionally by doing good.
What are the essential ingredients for the success of social entrepreneurship? Yes, the philanthropy is most welcome but for the concept to be effective the social entrepreneurs will need to work in sync with the government and the non-profit making organizations. Social entrepreneurship will change the paradigm of business in the world. It will also require system innovation to devise business models that will churn out goods and services for the benefit of the world’s four billion low income consumers. ‘Social Entrepreneurship’ is not an analogy for ‘corporate social responsibility’. I reiterate that it will not obviate NGOs. However, for the majority like me who are not ready to work for peanuts but still want to do good, maybe Social Entrepreneurship is the right career move. It will provide us with lot more than tangible (monetary) incentives. It will make our work seem less mundane. We will be looked upon as a good doctor who revives moribund patients.
We will be looked upon as well intentioned professionals and not saints!
This entry was posted on Thursday, March 6th, 2008 (I migrated from blog.co.in)
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