Understanding social entrepreneurship

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ESCAP

This publication looks at recent developments in corporate social responsibility (CSR) with particular attention to the growing role of impact investment and the need for greater convergence of global CSR instruments and provides recommendations to policymakers to enhance the adoption of CSR as an integral part of business strategy and operations. Increasingly, companies are adopting sustainable business practices as an integral element of their corporate strategies, going beyond the traditional interpretation of CSR and engage in social or impact investment and/or play active roles in development cooperation, including the provision of disaster relief and humanitarian assistance. Various global CSR instruments and sustainability frameworks, such as the Global Compact, Global Reporting Initiative and ISO 26000, have been in existence for some time and have been increasingly adopted by many companies, usually the bigger transnational corporations (TNCs).

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Ben Cohen, Mal Warwick

"The premier title in the Social Venture Network (SVN) Series--SVN is a nonprofit network of the most prominent socially conscious business leaders in North America, representing Ben & Jerry's, Working Assets, Tom's of Maine, Eileen Fisher, Clif Bar, and many others. Find out more about the series * Combines the tried-and-tested wisdom of the co-founder of Ben & Jerry's and the chair of the Social Venture Network Advisory Board * Concise and practical format includes a self-assessment tool, checklists, and other user-friendly features * Listen to podcasts of Mal Warwick talking about Values-Driven Business on the Good Life radio show In Values-Driven Business, Ben & Jerry's co-founder Ben Cohen and Social Venture Network chair Mal Warwick team up to provide you with a way to run your business for profit and personal satisfaction. This practical, down-to-earth book details every step in the process of creating and managing a business that will reflect your personal values, not force you to hide them. It includes: * A self-assessment tool to determine what it will take for you to start a values-based business or transform your company into one * Hundreds of examples of business policies and practices that are both ethical and business-savvy * Checklists crammed with practical suggestions you can put to work today in your own business."--Publisher's website.

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Michael Hopkins

"Written by noted CSR practitioner Michael Hopkins, this book is the first to explicitly link CSR with development. It spells out what corporations are doing on development, what more they could do and how CSR can be a useful tool to promote economic development via corporations. This is important and challenging reading for all of those in government, business and NGOs who think that there must be a better, more effective and dynamic way to kick-start development and eradicate poverty."--Jacket.

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Joseph L. Badaracco

The question of how to lead successfully and responsibly is crucially important in our uncertain, high-pressure, turbulent world. In this book, Harvard Business School Professor Joseph Badaracco answers this question in practical and, at times, provocative ways. Leaders today are surrounded by what Badaracco calls "the new invisible hand"--powerful, pervasive markets that touch and shape almost everything. As a result, understanding the inevitability and importance of struggle is critical. And leaders must go a step further to create what Badaracco calls "the good struggle" in order to meet their goals at work, as well as their goals in life. The Good Struggle helps you meet the relentless challenges of being a leader today by identifying the most important questions you should be asking yourself. New answers to these questions can be found by watching leaders in dynamic settings, especially entrepreneurs. The conditions entrepreneurs have always faced--intense competition, scarce resources, and unforgiving markets--are true now for the rest of us, and they offer valuable, practical lessons about struggling and succeeding in volatile and uncertain environments. If "the joy of life is in the struggle," as one thoughtful entrepreneur put it, The Good Struggle can help you find meaning in your work, stay focused on what matters despite the turbulence around you, and keep you on the path to leading successfully and responsibly.