It’s been a while since the last round-up, and lots to link to and write up.
– Will write more about this shortly, but the Ambassadors have started to blog….and there is an uber-feed you can sign up to for all of them combined (http://feeds.feedburner.com/SocialEnterpriseAmbassadorBlogsFeed). Early days, but starting to happen….
– Details of the next Social Enterprise Research Conference announced
– Free audio file from Stanford Social Innovation Review from their Social Entrepreneurship Day, which I shall be listening to on the way home…
– Podnosh has an interesting post on "Why should leaders blog?"; check comments also…
– SSE graduation in London on March 14th (a week today); if you haven’t got an invite, and think you should have, then get in touch.
– US article about entrepreneurship and social change (in the Tennessean, no less)
– Updated research from CAF on Social Enterprise in Practice; haven’t had a chance to read, but looks very interesting both on the challenges to the sector (quote from PR: "Social enterprises are unlikely to achieve financial sustainability and it is unreasonable to expect them to do so") and on what is needed in terms of measurement and support. Will follow up on this……
– Sally Reynolds is held in high esteem in the sector for her work leading Social Firms UK, and they continue to take an approach focused on quality and delivery; new trade directory of social firms is now online, and their Star Social Firm quality mark is also taking hold. Interesting to hear her discuss the other day how they could develop quality standards for social firms because they are more tightly defined / structured (see definition of What is a social firm?) than the diverse and varied spectrum of social enterprise.
– Related to that spectrum-like nature, NCVO are "unhappy with the government definition of social enterprise", according to this Guardian article on their new ‘civil society’ approach. I do hope we’re not entering a period of definition debate………
– Social Enterprise Magazine has relaunched (more developments on website to follow), and, IMHO, looks a country mile better in design, focus and content. Massive congratulations to all involved in making it happen and promoting it so effectively: Tim, Claudia, Deniz and the team. Look forward to encouraging our students and Fellows to read and get engaged with it….
– Greed offsetting. Really?
– Interesting Business Week article on the profits (social and financial) of CSR
– And finally, for all your non-profit blog needs, here’s Nonprofit.alltop.com; single page aggregation is the future?
Have a great weekend, one and all….