The practice of social entrepreneurship may be new for some, however after today’s summit on the topic hosted at MaRS and sponsored by MaRS, The Boston Consulting Group, the Centre for Social Innovation and the Toronto City Summit Alliance, I suspect that social entrepreneurship will no longer live on Canada’s periphery.
I first came across the concept nearly four years ago when I was introduced to Bill Young, who once upon a time was a CEO with an ivy-league pedigree, but after an investment windfall had an epiphany: he was confident there was another way to build sustainable commercial enterprises that delivered to more than one bottom line. Bill proceeded to take $10 million of his own equity to start a firm called Social Capital Partners (SCP) where he now champions entrepreneurs who are either from, employ, or whose business serves at-risk populations. The SCP model relies not on hand-outs, but on business savvy delivered by Bill and a sophisticated team of advisors and consultants who select, fund and mentor social entrepreneurs as they realize their visions to build sustainable enterprises.
Bill’s enthusiasm is absolutely infective, and he led a discussion this morning for the 280 attendees, entitled: Scaling Social Entrepreneurship in Canada. I acted as a roving facilitator for this breakout session and will be reporting back to relay some of the key themes that arose behind the closed doors…
Be sure to also check out MaRS’ official opening of their social innovation initiative: MaRS names community advocate to lead new social innovation initiative
David is Project Leader at the Martin Prosperity Institute and a practicing management consultant. He is a recent MBA grad from the Rotman School of Management and is passionate about developing the thinking and leadership potential of others.
