Week 5: Process of Social Entrepreneurship

When many people think of an entrepreneur they concentrate on the fact that they are innovative and full of ideas. Something that seems obvious, but surprisingly is not always, is that a big part of the process is turning these ideas into something that can work and is sustainable. This is the hard part...the part that separates those who are just dreamers, and those who are real entrepreneurs. These concepts are especially true for social entrepreneurs. According to Guclu, Dees, and Anderson in "The Process of Social Entrepreneurship: Creating Opportunities Worthy of Serious Pursuit", the initial flash of brilliance is only worth so much, but what is really important is getting that idea to the point of becoming an attractive opportunity. (2002, p. 1)

When thinking about The Barnabas Network it is clear that they have an idea, they have had a few ideas turn into attractive opportunities over the years, but as Erin Stratford said, they have been through major transitions over the past year because of a transition in leadership, but also due to the economy. This is where clearly redefining who they are and what their social impact theory is would be helpful (Guclu, Dees, Anderson, 2002, p. 7) They have recently taken some of their original ideas out of their services, so a re-vamp is needed here. Also, they have to make a business model which would allow for more cash flow to happen. Their dream so far is to get an inventory system, they just got a computer system. This is because they realize the importance of being able to track what they have and what they need. For now their inventory system is stickers and hand written codes. (Guclu et al., 2002, p.8)

It will definitely be very interesting, rewarding, and educational to work with this very great and ambitious organizations. They are interested in getting our ideas on how to look at things with a more business minded approach. I also cannot wait to learn all that I can from them.

REFERENCES:
Guclu, A. J., Dees, G., & Anderson, B.B. (2002). The Process of Social Entrepreneurship: Creating Opportunities Worthy of Serious Pursuit. Center for the Advancement of Social Entrepreneurship, Retrieved from http://www.caseatduke.org/documents/seprocess.pdf