Organizational efficiency of social economy entities: An attempt of operationalization

Within the social economy there are many different organizations that are usually referred to as social enterprises. Social economy as a specific mechanism for delivery of goods and services within the existing socio-economic system may not disregard efficiency concerns. Literature studies indicate, that currently efficiency is often associated with effectiveness.The relationships between effectiveness and efficiency are very complex but, nevertheless, are one of the main issues dealt with by economic sciences. Currently, we can observe equating of the two terms, or rather treating them as complementary dimensions of the assessment of an organization activity. Combining both components we can talk about organizational performance, i.e. the ability of a company to current and strategic adaptation to changes in the environment, as well as to productive use of resources in order to implement the adopted structure of objectives. This article is an attempt to define organizational efficiency and its dimensions in relation to social economy. The starting point here is literature studies, hence, the analysis shall be based on the theory. This may provide a useful starting point for future empirical research. The result of the deliberations is to propose an operational definition of organizational efficiency of social economy entities.