IDEX FOCUS ON SOCIAL ENTERPRISE
IDEX believes that entrepreneurs are key contributors to solving some of the world’s most pressing social needs and have the potential to unlock market-based solutions that yield positive impact and develop more sustainable communities. Social enterprises have ambitious impact goals to advance growth, scale, innovation and sustainability. Access to knowledgeable human resources- IDEX fellows- can support them in achieving these goals. IDEX fellows fill the growing human capital gap and provide hands-on-experience for aspiring practitioners to work on projects that directly contribute to enterprise development.
SOCIAL ENTERPRISE DEFINED
Social enterprises are social mission driven organizations which apply market-based strategies to achieve a social purpose and create a positive social impact in society. Within the world of business and capital markets there exists a spectrum of enterprises ranging from traditional for-profit companies to non-profit organizations. Social ventures operate as businesses to develop sustainable ways of impacting the world. Social enterprises run are diverse and range from for-profits, non-profits, NGOs, civil society organization, global enterprises and small grassroots start-ups. Social enterprise can be best described as a cause-driven business, which evaluates its social impact equally as its financial return. Social enterprises address imminent world issues related to health and nutrition, education, clean energy, water and sanitation and poverty. These enterprises also utilize business concepts to create sustainability and scale to solve these problems. Contrary to conventional businesses, social enterprises evaluate the double bottom line of financial and social return and in some cases include environmental return as a triple bottom line.
Societal Impact + Economic Sustainability = Social Enterprise
For the purposes of understanding the scope of the IDEX Fellowship, we view social enterprise as an organization with a social mission that applies market-based strategies to achieve their desired social impact. This includes organizations ranging from non-profits that use sustainable business models to achieve their mission to for-profits whose main objectives are social. Examples of such enterprises include Aravind Eye Hospital, d.Light and SMV Wheels.
