Key Findings:
- Businesses set up with a primary purpose to make a positive social impact are commonly known as social enterprises, often with certain organisational checks to ensure ongoing commitment to the social mission and appropriate management of surplus income. Inclusive businesses are similar but rather than social impact per se, are driven by the commercial viability of integrating low-income populations in their value chains (as suppliers, distributors, retailers and/or customers).
- Socially-oriented businesses differ in their features and needs both in relation to the two extremes of the profit-impact spectrum and in relation to each other. A social orientation can present particular challenges and barriers to businesses, which cross-cut with other factors that do not relate to their social mission. One such challenge relates to the access to finance for socially-oriented businesses.
- Five important dimensions of variety of social enterprise and inclusive business, that help to highlight the range of organisations and the barriers they face, are 1) legal forms and governance; 2) income and mission alignment; 3) size, age and growth; 4) impact sought and target communities; and 5) leadership.
