Title: Advancing Social Enterprises: The Role of State Workforce and Economic Development Policy
1Advancing Social Enterprises The Role of State
Workforce and Economic Development Policy
Bob Sheets Director, Research and
Development Business and Industry
Services University of Illinois at
Urbana-Champaign
2State Economic and Workforce Development Policy
- Promoting global competitiveness
- Innovation and science and technology leadership
- Entrepreneurship and venture capital
- Globalization and trade
- Talent development--P-20 education and workforce
development (e.g., STEM) - Key issueLinking economic and workforce
development to expand skilled workforce in face
of projected shortages and growing concerns about
leaving communities and workers behind
3Workforce Development for Disadvantaged
Populations
- Improving existing workforce development programs
for disadvantaged populations - Expanding incumbent worker training programs to
low-income workers - Expanding access to postsecondary education and
sector-based workforce development programs
(e.g., bridge programs) - Major gap--providing transitional employment and
training opportunities for most disadvantaged
populations - Lack of labor market opportunities
- Disincentives in existing federal and state
programs - Declining federal and state funding
- Lack of foundation support for ongoing program
operation
4Promise of Social Enterprise Development
- Moving entrepreneurship strategies to non-profit
workforce development agencies - Social entrepreneurship refers to broad set of
innovative social value creating activities in
business, government and non-profit sectors - Focussocial enterprises in non-profit workforce
development agencies that generate revenues from
products and services and use revenues to provide
transition employment, skill development, and
other workforce development services with limited
government funding
5Many Leading Models
- Community Development
- Providing essential community services (e.g.
grocery stores, low-income housing) - Providing business support services for
non-profits and small businesses (e.g., IT
support) - Staffing Agencies
- Suburban-city linkages with transportation
support - Industry-specific ventures for populations facing
severe barriers (e.g., logistics/distribution
operations) - Business Ventures Supporting Education and
Training Programs - Restaurants supporting culinary/food services
program - Franchises supporting retail management program
- Information technology business supporting IT
program
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6Going to Scale Major Barriers and Focus Areas of
State Policy
- Social entrepreneurs number and quality
- Economic barriers to entry and private,
for-profit competition - Capital markets and business financing
- Social capitalaccess to business networks and
resources - Institutional and cultural barriers to social
entrepreneurship
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7Social Entrepreneurs
- Potential state strategies
- Expand university interdisciplinary
entrepreneurship programs to encourage business
and non-profit management students to pursue
social enterprise development - Professional development opportunities for
current non-profit and social enterprise managers - Provide mentorship and intern opportunities for
current and future non-profit and social
enterprise managers
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8Economic Barriers and Competition
- Potential state strategies
- Provide matching grants to non-profit agencies to
develop business plans - Provide access to business mentors to help
develop and review plans - Social enterprise incubators to provide
assistance and support from early stage to late
stage enterprise development
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9Capital Markets and Business Financing
- Potential state strategies
- Creating public-private capital funds including
venture capital funds focused on social
enterprise development - Developing or promoting intermediary investment
organizations for personal and corporate
investment - Expanding relationships with financial services
industry including banks and private investment
entities
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10Social Capital Business Networks and Resources
- Potential state strategies
- Developing social enterprise networks similar to
entrepreneur networks - Promoting business alliances and partnerships
between companies and non-profit organizations
(e.g., leveraging changing social responsibility
movement focusing on strategic alliances) - Providing marketing and promotion assistance to
government agencies, businesses, and consumer
markets (e.g., through non-profit agencies
promoting social causes)
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11Institutional and Cultural Barriers
- Potential state strategies
- Promoting public and private forums on social
entrepreneurship and role of social enterprise
development in non-profit agencies - Raising public awareness of social enterprise
development and their potential contributions
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12State Roles and Policies
- Expanding State Entrepreneurship Policies to
Social Enterprise Development - Provide matching funding to non-profit
entrepreneurs to develop business plans - Expand pool of social entrepreneurs
- Promote connections to business and investor
networks including state venture funding - Expand market opportunities
- Expanding Public-Private Awareness and Consensus
on Role of Social Enterprises - Promote stronger financial and social capital
networks - Promote awareness in public and private sectors
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13Advancing State Policies to Support Social
Enterprises
- Engaging state economic and workforce development
leaders on need for and role of social
enterprises in non-profit sector - Engaging business leaders active in both finance
and investment and philanthropic and non-profit
sectors - Promoting university programs in social
entrepreneurship - Promoting role of state as strategic investor and
catalyst similar to role in promoting
entrepreneurship in state economic development - Expanding awareness and support of major
stakeholders and general public
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14Contact Information
- Bob Sheets
- Director, Research and Development
- Business and Industry Services
- University of Illinois at Urbana-Champaign
- 1100 East Warrenville Rd.
- Naperville, IL 60563
- 630-505-0500, Ext. 229
- rsheets_at_uiuc.edu
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